CleanMyMac Review 2026: Make Your Mac Like New

Although we wouldn't recommend CleanMyMac as an antivirus program, we would recommend it if you're seeking effective performance optimization tools. With this tool, you can remove junk, clear your cache, update apps, uninstall unwanted programs, and more.

Although CleanMyMac includes basic malware monitoring, it's not a full antivirus solution. It even failed all of our in-house malware detection tests. We recommend bundling CleanMyMac with a powerful antivirus to keep your Mac safe from cyberthreats and free of clutter.

Learn more about what CleanMyMac has to offer in this review.

Overview

Price	Starts at $40.20/yr
Free plan	Yes, or 7-day free trial for paid version
# of devices protected	5
Malware scans	Manual
Real-time malware protection	Limited
Junk cleaner	Yes
Drive space visualizer	Yes
Device optimization	Yes
Browser history eraser	Yes
Compatibility	macOS
Extras	My Clutter, device optimization tools
24/7 customer support	No
Learn more	Get CleanMyMac

We last tested CleanMyMac in Q2 2026.

Our experience

Testing CleanMyMac was interesting because we found that it was more focused on performance optimization than antivirus protection. We tested CleanMyMac on our MacBook running macOS Tahoe. 

The Smart Care and Protection Scans were fast, and we received detailed results on how to improve our device. 

The optimization tools are useful when you want to improve your Mac’s performance. We flushed our DNS cache, which can clear cached IP addresses and DNS records, improving online security and internet connectivity.

CleanMyMac improved our device’s performance and there was no lag, even with numerous browser tabs open at once.

We were disappointed when running the EICAR tests, as CleanMyMac didn’t flag any test files as malicious. We ran several Protection Scans to confirm, but none detected any threats.

On the plus side, none of the features were difficult to use. The CleanMyMac interface is incredibly intuitive and easy to navigate. It's just not an antivirus program. For MacPaw fans looking to add complete antivirus protection, we recommend Moonlock.

CleanMyMac prices and plans

CleanMyMac costs $40.20-$210.60/yr. You can purchase an annual plan, a monthly plan, or a one-time plan with an upfront payment. Note that if you make a one-time purchase, you'll have to pay for any significant upgrades.

The yearly plan costs $40.20/yr and covers one Mac. There's also the option to cover multiple devices with annual or one-time pricing, including two or five Macs.

	1 Mac	2 Macs	5 Macs
Annual price	$40.20/yr	Starts at $64.20/yr	Starts at $127.80/yr
Monthly price	$9.95/mo	Starts at $15.95/mo	Starts at $32.95/mo
One-time price	$191.95	Starts at $191.95	Starts at $383.95
Details	View plan	View plan	View plan

CleanMyMac features

CleanMyMac is an enhancement package for your Mac. With features like a duplicate finder, junk cleaner, and My Clutter, you'll get many options that aren't typically included with a traditional antivirus program.

Let’s look at how CleanMyMac’s features can help your Mac run better.

Malware and antivirus scan

When you look at the CleanMyMac interface, you’ll see the Smart Care option in the upper-left corner. We expected to find quick and deep scan options, but this program seems to work a bit differently.

The Smart Care Scan is where the magic happens. You’ll watch as it quickly scans your files, looking for anything suspicious.

The Smart Care scan is also the starting point. When you run a Smart Care scan, you’ll get a list of files that could be unnecessary junk or, worse, malware. 

The Protection feature is the deep scan that's meant to check every nook and cranny, looking for threats that may be hiding. The best antivirus software scans the entire machine to ensure your device is clean, but CleanMyMac didn't find any of our malware test files. 

Real-time protection

CleanMyMac's Malware Monitor is meant to detect threats even without you having to run a scan. However, it didn't block the EICAR files we downloaded before and during testing. It failed every single time. 

To enable or disable the Malware Monitor, select Settings from CleanMyMac's drop-down menu, then select the Protection tab. 

Junk cleaner

CleanMyMac includes several cleanup tools that can make your Mac pristine by removing junk files, cache files, and even large and old files.

The System Junk tool removes temporary files and broken items that you may not know were left behind. You can also search for and remove duplicate files with CleanMyMac using the System Junk tool.

Device optimization

One of the more prominent selling points for the CleanMyMac software is how much you can do with device optimization. SSometimes, we have so many processes weighing down our Macs that we aren’t aware of, and some housekeeping can make a huge difference in how smoothly your device runs.

Free up RAM

If you wonder what’s taking up so much space on your Mac, you can free up your RAM using the Maintenance feature. You can also click on Optimization to show any heavy consumers maxing out your CPU. 

Alternatively, if you open the CleanMyMac menu from the top-right corner of your Mac screen, you can also view the Memory section and select Free Up to see what’s using the most memory.

Uninstall apps

You'll see the Uninstaller option under the Applications section of the CleanMyMac dashboard. When you use this feature, the program shows you all the applications installed on your Mac, displays how much space they occupy on your device, and lets you choose any apps you want to uninstall.

You may wonder why you need this feature when you can simply move an app to the Trash. Well, you might not realize that when you move something to the Trash, file remnants are often left in your system library. CleanMyMac found several of these remnants on our system and cleaned them for us.

It’s not only time-consuming to clean these remnants manually, but if you forget to look in any area, part of the app is still there, taking up space. CleanMyMac removes the entire application for you.

Automatic app updater

Updating your apps can be a headache sometimes because you may not get all of them from the same place. For example, the App Store is the location for many Mac apps, but you can also download applications directly from websites.

Updating apps requires remembering to visit the vendor’s site or the App Store. CleanMyMac removes this hassle.

You simply click on the Updater option to see the apps that need to be updated. Click the Update button, and you’ll have the latest version of your apps in no time.

CleanMyMac test results

We review every program in three testing categories:

• Scan speeds: Measure duration of scans and if they impact device performance
  
• EICAR tests: Use cyberthreat test files to confirm the program's efficacy
  
• Third-party tests: Review antivirus test results to check the program's claims
  

The scan speeds were fast and didn't slow down our computer at all. CleanMyMac failed all three EICAR tests and has no third-party testing. However, it efficiently cleaned our Mac and executed performance optimization features.

Scan efficiency

• Result: Found no preexisting malware files

Although CleanMyMac is focused on performance optimization, we still put its anti-malware features to the test. Before installing CleanMyMac, we placed malware dummy files in our downloads folder, screenshots folder, and desktop. Then, we ran scans to determine if CleanMyMac could find these files. 

Both scans were completed quickly, but neither found any threats on our laptop. We'd recommend pairing CleanMyMac with Moonlock for comprehensive protection. 

	Smart Care	Protection
Time spent	54 seconds	44 seconds
# of files scanned	Not disclosed	51,500 files
Did it find preexisting malware files?

EICAR test results

With every antivirus program, we download test malware files and open test malicious links to see if they're detected and blocked. These are provided by the European Institute for Computer Anti-Virus Research, hence the name EICAR. 

Test	Protection score
Malware detection	Fail
Drive-by malware downloads	Fail
Phishing pages detection	Fail

CleanMyMac failed all three tests. We downloaded the malware test files, but CleanMyMac didn't detect them in real time. It also didn't detect them after running a Protection scan. 

We're less surprised by CleanMyMac failing the phishing page detection test, as it doesn't offer any anti-phishing features. 

Third-party test results

• Result: No independent testing available

We look at AV-TEST, AV-Comparatives, and SE Labs for independent testing scores outside of our own. Unfortunately, CleanMyMac doesn't have any independent testing, but that isn't necessarily a deal breaker. 

Companies must submit themselves and pay for independent testing, and not everyone wants to do that. Seeing as how CleanMyMac is more performance enhancement than antivirus, we understand why there are no third-party test results.

CleanMyMac compatibility

	Compatibility
Windows
macOS
Android
iOS
Browser extensions

If you use macOS 10.13 or higher, then your device is fully supported and compatible with CleanMyMac. The following systems can run the new version of CleanMyMac:

• Tahoe 26
• Sequoia 15
• Sonoma 14
• Ventura 13

For macOS 10.10 through 10.12, you'll need to run one of the earlier versions of CleanMyMac. Note that CleanMyMac doesn't work with macOS 10.9 or earlier.

CleanMyMac customer support

Support type	CleanMyMac
Email or live chat
Phone
Online guides or forums

Clicking the FAQ link at the top of the CleanMyMac page takes you to a searchable database of help topics. If you need more help, there's a "Contact Us" link that will take you to a form submission page.

Support says it can take 24 to 48 hours to respond. The FAQ page looks like it has a chatbot, but clicking it only brings up a page stating that messages from the team can be found there. It's not an actual chat.

CleanMyMac user reviews

• Trustpilot rating: 4.7/5

CleanMyMac is rated excellent on Trustpilot, with 85% of reviewers giving it five stars. Reviewers praise CleanMyMac for how well it works, keeping their Macs clean and performing optimally. They also describe customer support as being quick and helpful.

Top alternatives

Unfortunately, not all antivirus software is created equal, especially when it comes to macOS. CleanMyMac is an excellent optimization tool, but if you need comprehensive device protection, our #1 antivirus pick for Mac is MacKeeper. 

With MacKeeper, you receive device optimization plus real-time protection against malware, adware, phishing emails, and more. MacKeeper also received a perfect score in its most recent third-party testing with AV-TEST and our in-house testing. 

Bottom line: Is CleanMyMac good?

CleanMyMac has some great optimization tools for Mac users, but it's insufficient as an antivirus program. You can optimize your device by freeing up RAM, uninstalling apps, and updating applications. 

But you'll need to be diligent about running scans as the real-time protection isn't robust, and there are no scheduled scan options. If you need an antivirus that you can customize to schedule scans and catch the latest malware, we can’t promise you’ll be in the best hands with this pick. CleanMyMac lacks third-party test results and failed our in-house testing.

If antivirus is what you're after, our best antivirus software guide includes our most highly-rated products.

FAQs