AI Cleaner vs Clever Cleaner: what 4,576 reviews say

AI Cleaner vs Clever Cleaner: the numbers side by side

Where do AI Cleaner and Clever Cleaner differ most?

• Billing, trials and cancelling is a bigger issue for AI Cleaner (49.6% of low ratings) than for Clever Cleaner (23.7%).
• AI Cleaner's unhappy reviewers mention calling the app a scam or rip-off more often as Clever Cleaner's: 10.7% against 0% of 1–2★ reviews.
• Ads, pop-ups and pushy screens is a bigger issue for AI Cleaner (9.4% of low ratings) than for Clever Cleaner (2.6%).
• An ad or listing that promised something else is a bigger issue for Clever Cleaner (13.2% of low ratings) than for AI Cleaner (7.5%).
• Privacy and permission worries is a bigger issue for AI Cleaner (2.8% of low ratings) than for Clever Cleaner (0%).

Both are compared on iPhone, where both have enough reviews. AI Cleaner deletes duplicate photos and similar videos, clears email inboxes and compresses media files; Clever Cleaner finds similar photos, duplicates, screenshots, Live Photos and large videos, with daily free limits and no ads.

Are AI Cleaner and Clever Cleaner improving?

AI Cleaner went from 2.24 stars in 2025-Q3 to 3.21 in 2026-Q4, with billing at 28.1% of its latest 1–2★ reviews. Clever Cleaner went from 4.9 stars in 2026-Q2 to 4.65 in 2026-Q4, with billing at 38.1% of its latest 1–2★ reviews.

Where are AI Cleaner and Clever Cleaner alike?

Their reviewers agree on a paywall before the app does anything useful, slowness, crashes and bugs and having to review items one by one: on each, the two apps are within two points of each other (16.3% vs 15.8%; 6.1% vs 5.3%; 2.1% vs 2.6%). 44% of AI Cleaner's reviews are 1★ and 37.1% are 5★; for Clever Cleaner the split is 3.2% and 84.7%, so AI Cleaner has noticeably more very angry reviewers.

What do happy users praise in each?

27.9% of Clever Cleaner's 4–5★ reviews say it is easy to use, compared with 6.3% for AI Cleaner. 38.4% of Clever Cleaner's 4–5★ reviews say it works, compared with 20.6% for AI Cleaner. 6.7% of Clever Cleaner's 4–5★ reviews say it finds duplicates and similar shots, compared with 1.6% for AI Cleaner.

Which is cheaper, AI Cleaner or Clever Cleaner?

AI Cleaner: App Store (US) in-app purchases from $6.99 to $34.99; Google Play (US) $4.99 to $79.99 per item, with ads. Clever Cleaner: App Store (US) in-app purchases from $6.99 to $39.99. AI Cleaner starts lower, at $4.99 against $6.99. Billing makes up 49.6% of AI Cleaner's 1–2★ reviews and 23.7% of Clever Cleaner's.

What reviewers say about AI Cleaner and Clever Cleaner

• AI Cleaner: "The ad says it free, but once you download it you'll have to subscribe to try it.. classic bait & switch scam!!!" (1★, Google Play, US, Apr 2026)
• AI Cleaner: "This is a scam!!! I downloaded the free app and then it charged me weekly for a subscription I never signed up for." (1★, App Store, US, Feb 2026)
• Clever Cleaner: "Quick and good that you have a free trial" (5★, App Store, UK, Oct 2026)
• Clever Cleaner: "Very convenient, no surprise money scams or ads so far." (5★, App Store, UK, Aug 2026)

Picked from the billing, trials and cancelling and calling the app a scam or rip-off themes, where the two differ most.

Should you choose AI Cleaner or Clever Cleaner?

On ratings alone, Clever Cleaner is the safer bet on the evidence here, with 46% fewer 1–2★ reviews. If billing, trials and cancelling is what worries you most, Clever Cleaner has the better record on it.