There are a number of Android cleaner apps that claim to remove junk files, clear cache files, increase space, and provide a host of other utility to the users. However, most of these so-called cleaner apps (famously-terrible Cheetah Mobile) are filled with ads, malware, and virus. They have no regard for your data and privacy is an alien concept for the devs.
There are plenty of space cleaner and memory booster apps in the Play Store (like Clean Master) that will kill existing running tasks. They come with a feature called Tasks Killer, RAM booster, etc. While that does free up memory, it is only temporary. Those tasks will simply restart after a few seconds. The RAM cleaning part of those apps is useless, while and take up even more resources while doing so. Killing running tasks can also hamper the way apps function. Here is an excellent post on why you should avoid using them.
Take a look at the below list to find Android cleaner apps that actually work, without stealing your data or compromising your privacy.
The first app in the list is by none other than Google. Files is a file manager app that will clean up space on your device automatically, and quite effectively. You will receive periodic recommendations from the app to remove, clear space, by deleting duplicate and junk files. Nothing will be deleted without your approval though.
You can browse files stored app-wise, by size, and categories too. For example, delete unnecessary forwarded images from WhatsApp, find documents separately, even apps that you have not used in a long time or no longer need. Finally, there is a handy file sharing tool that works without Internet which is cool.
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Price: Free
Download Files by Google: Android
Norton is one of the top antivirus software in the world and is widely used around the globe. Banking on the popularity of the name, the dev team have released an Android cleaner app which is equally popular. The app works by cleaning cache and junk files, and claims to optimize memory.
Interestingly, Norton was able to find even more junk files that were left by Files by Google. About 2GB of data was discovered by it, mostly old Word files but still. You can remove unused apps and their data just like Files. It has a colorful UI which is bright and pleasing.
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Price: Free
Download Norton Clean: Android
SD Maid is one of the oldest Android cleaner apps that is free to use and comes without ads. I still remember it using on my S2 back in the day. The UI is really dated but the app works just fine and is regularly updated. It also doubles as a file explorer allowing you to dive deeper into the system. It may help you get rid of certain system apps (bloatware) which is cool. You can also auto-run it based on a set schedule.
SD Maid can also delete the empty folders in your file manager. Simply, go to SystemCleaner > Filter manager and enable Empty directories. And the best part is, it does not delete intentionally hidden folders (folders with “.nomedia”)
You can clean the device of old and duplicate files, leftover files from uninstalled apps, and optimize the database. SD Maid comes with a pro version that is totally worth it at $3.49 but not required. However, seeing that there are other that does it for free, you may want to compare results as a lot also depends on your make and model.
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Price: Freemium
Download SD Maid: Android
Cleaner for Android has a clean UI which is a lot better and refreshing than what we saw in SD Maid above. The basic premise remains the same. You can clean the cache files to give your RAM a boost. There is a junk file remover which will delete old unused or no longer required files.
There is a battery saver feature that will kill apps that are running in the background but no longer in use. Might work. There is a game booster feature which again frees up resources to give a boost to the game. I am not sure how they do it but again, you may try it if facing lags during game play. Finally, there is a file explorer, app manager, and duplicate file remover which are all useful.
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Price: Free
Download Cleaner for Android: Android
The last app in the list is CCleaner that also has a very popular product by the same name for desktop operating systems like Windows. CCleaner has a free version that is pretty good but you may go for the paid version, if you want. There are no ads. Apart from all the usual features that we have seen in the above apps, CCleaner offers some additional features like system monitor so you know which apps are consuming more resources, allocation of CPU and RAM.
Clean junk files, remove unwanted apps, optimize device which simply means deleting cache files and history, monitor everything in between. In that sense, CCleaner is a cool app that seems to do everything and more but for a price.
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Price: Freemium
Download CCleaner: Android
These are some of the best Android cleaner apps that come without any ads and are completely free, except CCleaner which does have a paid version but is totally worth it. You can use apps like DiskUsage to check out DiscUsage It’s like WinDirStat.
Most of these apps have some common ground, share features that are similar in nature. You can use any of these apps, really, but I would suggest going for only one as multiple cleaning apps might cause conflict, resulting in unwanted errors and situations.
Gaurav is an editor here at TechWiser but also contributes as a writer. He has more than 10 years of experience as a writer and has written how-to guides, comparisons, listicles, and in-depth explainers on Windows, Android, web, and cloud apps, and the Apple ecosystem. He loves tinkering with new gadgets and learning about new happenings in the tech world. He has previously worked on Guiding Tech, Make Tech Easier, and other prominent tech blogs and has over 1000+ articles that have been read over 50 million times.
