CleanMyMac Alternatives: CleanMyMac vs OnyX vs CCleaner vs DaisyDisk vs AppCleaner (2026)

Search for a Mac cleaner and you'll find dozens of apps promising to free gigabytes and speed up your Mac in one click. Some are excellent, some are free, and a few have histories worth knowing about. They also do quite different jobs: some find big files, some uninstall apps, some run maintenance scripts, and some try to do everything.

A quick disclosure: we make MacCove Space, which is one of the apps in this comparison. We've tried to describe every tool, including our own, fairly, and to point out when a free tool is all you need.

Quick answer: If you just want to see what's using space, a free disk visualizer like GrandPerspective or the paid DaisyDisk ($9.99 one-time) is enough. For uninstalling apps completely, the free AppCleaner works well. OnyX is a free, powerful maintenance tool for experienced users. CleanMyMac is the best-known all-in-one app, sold by subscription or one-time licence. CCleaner for Mac has a free tier, but check it supports your macOS version. Disk Drill is a data-recovery app, not a cleaner. Whatever you choose, download it from the developer's own site or the App Store, never from a link in a "storage cleanup" guide that asks you to paste Terminal commands. Our own app, MacCove Space, has a free tier and grades every item Safe, Review or Caution before you clean.

Do you need a Mac cleaner at all?

Not necessarily. Apple doesn't recommend any third-party cleaner. Its own advice is to use System Settings → General → Storage, empty the Trash, delete old downloads, apps and iPhone backups, and move media elsewhere. macOS also clears caches and temporary files that are safe to delete when space runs low.

That works for many people. Where cleaner apps earn their place is in finding things macOS hides, such as leftovers from deleted apps, developer data and the contents of System Data, and in grouping them so you can see what's safe to remove. If you'd rather do it yourself, our guide on how to free up disk space on a Mac covers the manual route.

The apps at a glance

CleanMyMac

CleanMyMac, from Ukrainian developer MacPaw, is the app most people think of when they hear "Mac cleaner." The current version (previously called CleanMyMac X) combines junk cleanup, an uninstaller that removes leftovers, a malware scanner, memory and login-item tools, and a duplicate finder.

• Pricing: subscription plans start at about $3.33 a month billed yearly on MacPaw's site; the Mac App Store version offers monthly, yearly and one-time options. It's also included in Setapp.

• Strengths: polished, broad, well maintained, available on the App Store and directly.

• Things to know: it's a subscription for most buyers, and the one-click "Smart Care" approach is convenient but gives you less detail about what's being removed than reviewing items yourself.

OnyX

OnyX is a free utility from French developer Titanium Software, and it has been around for two decades. It isn't really a "cleaner" in the one-click sense. It's a control panel for maintenance tasks: verifying system files, clearing caches, rebuilding databases and indexes, and changing hidden settings.

• Pricing: free; donations welcome.

• Versions: there's a separate version for each macOS release, and the developer warns against using one built for an older system. OnyX 5.1 supports macOS 27 on Apple silicon Macs.

• Strengths: free, trustworthy, very capable.

• Things to know: it's aimed at people who know what each option does. Some tasks, like rebuilding indexes, make your Mac slower for a while afterwards.

CCleaner for Mac

CCleaner started as a Windows app and is now owned by Gen Digital (the company behind Norton and Avast). The Mac version has a free tier covering junk cleanup, duplicates, an uninstaller and startup items, and paid Professional tiers that add more automation.

• Things to know: at the time of writing, CCleaner's Mac system requirements page lists versions only up to macOS Ventura, so check it supports your macOS version before buying. The Windows version had a well-publicised security incident in 2017, when a compromised update shipped with malware. That was resolved, but it's part of why some people prefer other tools.

DaisyDisk and GrandPerspective

These two don't clean anything automatically. They show you, visually, where your disk space has gone, which is often all you need.

• DaisyDisk ($9.99 one-time, up to five Macs, free trial) draws your disk as an interactive ring chart. It can scan as administrator to see system files, and it's been an Apple Editors' Choice on the App Store.

• GrandPerspective (free, or $2.99 on the App Store to support the developer) draws a treemap of rectangles, each sized by how much space a file takes. It's open source and still actively updated.

Both are ideal if you want to find large files and decide for yourself. See also how to find large files on a Mac.

AppCleaner and Pearcleaner

• AppCleaner (free, from FreeMacSoft) does one job well: drop an app onto it and it finds the preferences, caches and support files the app created, so you can remove them together.

• Pearcleaner (free, source-available) adds orphaned-file search and Homebrew management. Its developer has paused development indefinitely, so check it still works on your macOS version.

Our guide on how to uninstall apps on a Mac completely explains what these tools remove and how to do it by hand.

Disk Drill is not a cleaner

Disk Drill often appears in "Mac cleaner" searches, but it's a data-recovery app from CleverFiles: it recovers deleted files from Macs, drives and memory cards. It includes some cleanup and duplicate tools in its free version, but if you're looking for a cleaner, it's the wrong tool. If you've deleted something by mistake, it might be the right one.

MacKeeper: know the history

MacKeeper is one of the oldest Mac utility suites and is now sold by Clario Tech as a bundle of cleaning, antivirus and VPN tools. It's worth knowing that in 2015 its then-developer settled a US class-action lawsuit for $2 million over claims that the app exaggerated problems to sell fixes, and that a separate 2015 data exposure affected millions of users' records. Ownership has changed twice since then. Make your own judgement, but read up first.

MacCove Space

MacCove Space is our app, so weigh this section accordingly. It's built around reviewing rather than one-click cleaning:

• Graded results: every item is marked Safe, Review or Caution, and only Safe items are pre-selected.

• Memory Alpha: remembers files and folders you never want touched, and finds duplicates.

• Explanations: the AI you already use (Claude or Codex) can explain what an unfamiliar file is before you delete it.

• Beyond storage: a complete app uninstaller, an on-device malware scan with a network monitor, and memory, CPU and startup-item tools.

• Undo: cleans go to the Trash by default, with Undo Last Clean.

• Pricing: a free tier (storage scan, duplicate finding, app cleaner, resource monitor), and Unlimited at $5.99/month or $49.99/year. It's a direct download from maccove.com and runs entirely on your Mac.

How to choose

Avoid fake cleaners

In 2026, Microsoft reported a campaign that used fake "Mac storage cleanup" guides, hosted on blogging platforms, to trick people into pasting encoded commands into Terminal. Those commands installed password-stealing malware. Genuine cleaner apps don't ask you to paste commands from a web page. Download cleaners only from the developer's own website or the Mac App Store, and be wary of ads and pop-ups claiming your Mac is infected or full.

FAQs

What is the best free Mac cleaner?

It depends on the job. For seeing what's using space, GrandPerspective. For uninstalling apps, AppCleaner. For maintenance, OnyX. Combined with Storage settings, these cover most needs at no cost.

Is CleanMyMac safe?

Yes. It's a legitimate, long-established app from MacPaw, available on the Mac App Store. Download it from MacPaw or the App Store, not from third-party sites.

Is OnyX safe to use?

Yes, when you use the version for your macOS release and understand what each task does. It's free and well regarded, but it's a power tool rather than a one-click cleaner.

Do Mac cleaners speed up your Mac?

Sometimes, mostly by freeing disk space when it's nearly full and by trimming startup items. Clearing caches on a healthy Mac doesn't make it faster. See why your Mac is running slow for what actually helps.

Can a Mac cleaner delete something important?

Any tool that deletes files can. Choose one that shows you what it's removing, lets you exclude files, and moves items to the Trash first so you can undo.

Related guides

• How to Free Up Disk Space on a Mac

• How to Uninstall Apps on a Mac Completely

• Does a Mac Need Antivirus?

Sources

• Apple: Free up storage space on Mac

• MacPaw: CleanMyMac

• Mac App Store: CleanMyMac

• Titanium Software: OnyX

• CCleaner for Mac

• DaisyDisk

• GrandPerspective

• FreeMacSoft: AppCleaner

• CleverFiles: Disk Drill

• Wikipedia: MacKeeper

• Microsoft Security: ClickFix campaign uses fake macOS utilities lures