CleanMyMac Review 2025: Make Your Mac Like New

If you’re an Apple user looking for a product specific to your Mac, CleanMyMac has some benefits and drawbacks you may want to consider. MacPaw’s CleanMyMac includes plenty of tools to keep your Mac in tip-top shape, but it's not really an antivirus. There is a malware removal tool that didn't give us much confidence during testing. However, you also get optimization tools, clutter cleanup, patch management, and hard drive cleanup. 

We should note that CleanMyMac is specifically designed for macOS, so it doesn’t have an iOS app and doesn’t work on PC. Overall, we like CleanMyMac for a few reasons, but we also have some criticisms. Please read this before you buy; some features and functions may not be what you're looking for.

Pros and cons

CleanMyMac overview

Price	$39.95-$127.95/yr
Free plan	Yes, or 7-day free trial for paid version
# of devices protected	5
Malware scans	Manual
Real-time malware protection	Yes
Junk cleaner	Yes
Drive space visualizer	Yes
Device optimization	Yes
Browser history eraser	Yes
EICAR test results	Fail
Compatibility	macOS
Extras	My Clutter, device optimization tools
24/7 Customer support	No
Learn more	Get CleanMyMac

We last tested CleanMyMac on January 30th, 2025.

Our Experience

We tested CleanMyMac on our Macbook running an M2 chip and Sequoia 15.1.1. We tested all the features to see how they worked and what they could do for our machine. Admittedly, CleanMyMac did seem to make our device run faster, and there was no lag, even with numerous browser tabs open.

The Smart Scan and Malware Removal scans were fast, but we can’t verify how many files either one checked because it didn’t show us those details at the end of the scan. CleanMyMac simply let us know our Mac was free of possible vulnerabilities.

However, it shows how many files have been scanned the entire time you’ve used the product. Ours totaled over a million files within two days.

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

We were a bit bummed when running the EICAR test, as CleanMyMac didn’t flag the test file as malware. We ran five malware scans to be sure, but none detected potential issues.

On the plus side, none of the features were difficult to use. The CleanMyMac interface is incredibly intuitive and fun to explore.

Who is it best for?

• Recommended for Mac users who want software designed for their device that also includes extra tools to optimize macOS efficiency

While CleanMyMac is missing a few standard features you’d normally find in an antivirus, like scheduled scanning and dark web monitoring, it packs a powerful punch for many Apple enthusiasts.

If you’ve ever joined the Mac versus Windows debate, you know more antivirus products are built for PC use. Thankfully, CleanMyMac evens things out with a full lineup of malware removal, cleanup, and speed-optimizing features that help free up your disk space and make your Mac run more efficiently. MacPaw even claims the software works so well that your Mac will work like new.

CleanMyMac looks deep into your machine to find files that stayed behind without you knowing. For less than $40 per year, the performance boost is worth it to many Mac users. The accompanying Mac cleaning tools and malware removal are the icing on the cake.

Pricing

CleanMyMac offers two paid versions of its antivirus. You can purchase an annual plan or the product at a one-time purchase price with prices at $39.95-$127.95/yr for annual subscribers. One-time purchases have to pay for any significant upgrades.

The yearly plan costs $39.95/yr and covers one Mac, which is cheap compared to MacKeeper, another Mac-specific antivirus. 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
Price for first year	$39.95/yr	Starts at $63.95/yr	Starts at $127.95/yr
# devices supported	1	2	5
Compatible with	Big Sur 11 or later	Big Sur 11 or later	Big Sur 11 or later
Manual and auto scan
Phishing protection
Firewall
Real-time protection
Ransomware protection
Performance optimization tools
VPN
Ad blocker
Details	View Plan	View Plan	View Plan

Features

CleanMyMac isn’t just another antivirus program; it’s an enhancement package for your Mac. With features like real-time protection, junk cleaner, and My Clutter, you get many options you might not find with other products.

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 Scan 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 Scan is where the magic happens. You’ll watch as it flies through your files, looking for anything suspicious.

It’s also considered the starting point for optimizing your Mac. When you run a Smart Scan, you’ll get a list of files that could be unnecessary junk or, worse, malware. The malware scan looks at potential threats and suggests optimization tasks to increase your device speed, like emptying the trash bin.

The Malware Removal feature is the deep scan that checks every nook and cranny, looking for bugs that may be hiding. The best antivirus software scans the entire machine to ensure your device is clean, but CleanMyMac didn't find anything, including the EICAR tests it failed. 

We would’ve liked to have seen a scheduled scan option because it helps to keep everything on track, but we guess you can’t have it all.

Real-time protection

The real-time protection looks for adware and may reduce the number of pop-ups you see. Our real-time monitor ran in the background while we tested CleanMyMac, but it didn't work to stop EICAR files when tested. It failed every single time. 

We liked the dashboard that shows when you click the CleanMyMac icon at the top-right corner of your desktop. It tells you when the malware database was last updated and allows you to check for newer updates. We can't, however, determine if this will actually catch any malware as it failed all malware, ransomware, and virus testing during our evalutation of it.

Ransomware Protection

While we were disappointed with the lack of scheduled scans and the real-time protection, which didn't seem to work well, the ransomware protection is useful. It caught pieces of old EICAR tests that were still on our system from other antiviruses we've tested. 

This surprised us considering it failed its own EICAR tests. What this means for you is that CleanMyMac may not stop viruses and malware in real-time, but it will be able to clean them from your system if they make their way there. 

Junk cleaner

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

• System Junk: This 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.
• Mail Attachments: This program cleans up the local copies of your email attachments and downloads (it removes any images stored on your device from emails).
• Trash Bins: If you’re like us, you probably moved items to the Trash and then forgot to empty them, like a teenager who forgot to take the garbage out after dinner. This tool scans and removes those unwanted items still hanging around.

Device optimization

One of the more prominent selling points for the CleanMyMac software is how much you can do with device optimization. Sometimes, we have so much 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 of your Mac screen, you can also view the Memory sections 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 always move an app to the trash bin. Well, you might not realize that when you move something to the Trash, remnants of the file are often left in your 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 means remembering to go to the vendor or App Store to check for updates. 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.

Browser history eraser

The Privacy tool scans your browsing history and chat data and allows you to delete browser cookies, messenger chats, and browser history.

This is an essential tool because most browsers keep a trail of your searches and leave cookies on your device. These small files take up room and help inform advertisers and marketing companies about your browsing preferences.

Clearing your browser history, cookies, and cache regularly is good practice for leaving fewer online footprints and freeing up space. If you don’t want to clear cookies manually, CleanMyMac’s Privacy tool saves time.

Antivirus test results

CleanMyMac has no published third-party results available, but that doesn’t mean the performance enhancement software isn’t good. We found the real-time scanning lacking, but the malware detection and removal on the deep scan were thorough.

Antivirus companies must pay for independent testing, so some may forego it. To see how good CleanMyMac is at detecting and removing malware, we ran tests using European Institute for Computer Antivirus Research (EICAR) test files. These aren’t malicious files but were designed to be detected as malware by antivirus products so you can test the software's functionality.

We could open the file under the Text Editor application when we downloaded it. We ran the malware scan twice, but CleanMyMac didn’t flag it.

CleanMyMac test results

We review every antivirus 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 speeds

• Result: Fast

All of the scans ran quickly and efficiently, although the antivirus scan didn't pick up EICAR remnants, so we aren't sure it worked.

Scan type	Time spent
Smart Care	54 seconds
Protection	53 seconds

CleanMyMac's scan times are extremely fast, and, with the exception of the antivirus scan, gave us a lot of suggestions

EICAR Test Results

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

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.

Compatibility

CleanMyMac is one of the few antivirus programs made for macOS only. If you use macOS 10.13 or higher, you’re fully supported and compatible with CleanMyMac.

The following systems can run the new version of CleanMyMac:

• Sequoia (15)
• Ventura (13)
• Sonoma (14)
• Ventura (13)
• Monterey (12)
• Big Sur (11)

Customer support

If you click the FAQ link at the top of the CleanMyMac page, it'll take 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 24-48 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.

Top Alternatives

FAQs

Bottom line: Is CleanMyMac good?

CleanMyMac has some definite benefits for Mac users and some significant drawbacks.

You can optimize your device by freeing up RAM, uninstalling apps, and updating applications. Unfortunately, you'll need to be diligent about running scans as the real-time protection isn't robust, and there are no scheduled scan options.

For the optimization features, CleanMyMac is excellent. But 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 test. If antivirus is what you're after, our best antivirus software guide includes our most highly rated products.