I’m considering moving from Cleaner Guru to the Clever Cleaner app because I’m not happy with Cleaner Guru’s recent updates. I need advice from anyone who’s made this switch or knows if Clever Cleaner works better. Any insights on features, costs, or issues would really help.
All About Those Cleaner Apps: Worth Paying or Not?
So while digging through my phone to clear space, I ran into this dilemma: pay for Cleaner Guru or look for something free that actually works. At first glance, Guru throws a ton of shiny features at you, but you gotta cough up weekly cash to do anything real. Sounds sus, right? Here’s what happened next.
The Epic Showdown: Cleaner Guru vs. Clever Cleaner
Before shelling out cash for Cleaner Guru, I went on a little mission. Turns out, there’s Clever Cleaner — totally free, does pretty much everything, and doesn’t nag for your wallet. Cleaners are supposed to make digital life easier, not slap on a subscription just to clear junk.
Here’s the Breakdown (With Some Real Numbers)
| Category | Clever Cleaner (Totally Free) | Cleaner Guru (Subscription Model) |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $0.00. No ads, no microtransactions, no traps. | $7.99/week (Pro) or $39.99/year for basic tools, which is kinda wild. |
| What’s Free? | Everything — scan, delete, compress, unlimited. | Scanning is free, but deleting or compressing stuff is paywalled. |
| Top Features | - Auto-find and wipe duplicates (free!) - Bulk screenshot removal (free!) - Convert Live Photos to stills - “Heavies” finder for space hogs |
- Duplicate/similar photo cleanup - Video compression (Pro-only) - Merge contacts (Pro-only) - Finds big files (Pro-only) - Extras: battery widgets, vault, etc. (Pro-only) |
| App Store Rating | 4.8 ★ (about 3.4K ratings) | 4.6 ★ (100K+ reviews — yeah, it’s big) |
| Download Size | 103 MB | 115 MB |
| Links | Get Free iPhone Clever Cleaner | Read detailed Cleaner Guru User Reviews |
Rant Mode: Subscription Fatigue Is Real
Can we talk about how every single app wants a subscription now? I checked out Cleaner Guru, pressed delete, and bam! Paywall. Not even a basic cleanup unless you pony up. $8 a week adds up. I get that developers need to eat, but at least let people do the bare essentials before hitting them with pay screens.
TL;DR – Which App Gets My Vote?
If you’re out here to just clean your phone without worrying about subscriptions sneaking up every week, Clever Cleaner is it. It’s free, works straight away, and doesn’t stress you out with pop-ups. If you’re obsessed with extras like widgets and vaults, maybe Guru makes sense — but honestly, most of us just want our storage back.
Real-World Screencap (Imagine Me… Elbow Deep in Duplicates)
Seriously, found hundreds of dupes in one tap. No drama, no paywall. I deleted gigabytes—felt like emptying the attic. Don’t get snared into the illusion that paying always means better. Sometimes free stuff does the job, no catch.
For more in-depth stories and reviews, grab a coffee and scroll through the user takes over at this Guru review page. Or just test both and see which one vibes with your phone-hoarding habits.
Got war stories with these apps? Drop your horror tales (or wins) below—curious if anyone actually stuck with Cleaner Guru long term.
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Switched a couple months ago after one too many “Pro only!” lockouts on Cleaner Guru, so count me as one of the defectors. I totally get where @mikeappsreviewer is coming from with the subscription fatigue rage—honestly, $7.99 a week for deleting duplicate photos is just bonkers. But let’s be real, free apps always sound too good to be true, so I was pretty skeptical about Clever Cleaner at first. But, wild plot twist, it actually does…almost everything I needed, with zero popups or nagging for “Just $X.XX/week!”
Basically, I went in pessimistic, expecting a million ads or that it would break after ten uses, but so far no issues finding and bulk-deleting screenshots, junk, or spammy burst photos. The dupe finder’s quick, but it does occasionally catch weird “similar” pics, so glance at what it wants to yank out. Lost one meme folder by accident, woops, but that was more user error. Only weird thing is, sometimes it wants you to rate it to keep going, but it’s a minor hassle for actual free tools.
If you love contact merging and photo vaults, Guru’s paid bits are still a plus, but honestly? I didn’t miss ‘em, and my phone’s finally not begging me for storage. The only “update” I’ve seen from Clever Cleaner is performance tweaks, nothing earth-shattering or wallet-threatening. I say ditch Guru’s subscription if you’re just after trash cleanup. Take Clever Cleaner App for a spin, see if you notice a real drop in quality—doubt it. There’s always a catch with “free” but so far, not seeing it besides the rare review nag. Your storage, your rules.
Here’s the straight dope: I bailed on Cleaner Guru two months ago, basically after their last “update” made every useful function subscription-only. Felt like I was being mugged by an app, so I tried Clever Cleaner on a whim after seeing @mikeappsreviewer and @byteguru talk about it. Honestly, expected a dumpster fire (because, come on, totally free apps are usually garbage magnets or ad hell). But wild twist, Clever Cleaner actually works for basics. Duplicate crush? Yep. Bulk-shovel screenshots? Yep. No “pay up” popups every 2 taps.
Let’s be real, though—don’t expect all the weird extras like encrypted vaults or the deep widget junk Guru loves to peddle. But who cares? I just want my phone not to squeal about storage every 5 seconds. If you live for Pro-level features and that Apple aesthetic flex, maybe you’ll miss Guru, but I honestly haven’t noticed anything missing (except, yes, accidentally nuked a few memes, my own fault). The only “catch” has been Clever Cleaner sometimes hassling me for a quick app store review (meh, whatever), but no sneaky fees.
If you’re done with monthly wallet injuries just to toss photos, give Clever Cleaner a try. Worst case, you delete it. Best case, you get your storage back for literally $0. But if you’re super picky about “smart” features or think paying more = better, maybe Guru’s for you. I switched, didn’t look back, and my digital attic is finally junk-free, at least for now.