Find and remove similar images

CleanMyMac recognizes similar photos as sets of nearly identical images or photos taken at short intervals, such as multiple shots of the same scene or object from different angles.

1. In CleanMyMac, click My Clutter in the sidebar.

2. From the dropdown list, choose a location to scan.

3. Click Scan to begin, and wait for the results.

   

   To rescan, click Start Over in the upper left, confirm, and click Scan again.

4. Review and manage similar images:

   • Similar images found in your Photos app will appear in a tile.

     

     Click Review to see details and select photos for removal.

     

     After reviewing, click Remove – selected photos are moved to the Recently Deleted album in Photos.

   • To view and clean up all similar images in detail, click Review All Files above the tiles, then select the Similar Images category.

     

     After reviewing, click Remove to delete the selected files.

     Photos in your Photos app are moved to the Recently Deleted album, while all other images are deleted permanently, bypassing the Trash.

CleanMyMac groups similar images together. Each group shows a thumbnail, the number and total size of images in the group, and the number of images selected for removal. Right-click a group to:

• Apply smart selection – CleanMyMac will automatically select similar images for removal

• Deselect all files in the group (if some have been selected)

• Add all files in the group to the ignore list – CleanMyMac will skip these files in future scans

Clicking on a group reveals a list of similar images. For each image, CleanMyMac shows a thumbnail, preview, file name, location, and metadata. Images suggested for keeping are marked with a green dot on their thumbnails.

Right-click a file preview to:

• Select the file for removal
• Reveal the file in Finder
• Get file info
• Add the file to the ignore list
• Preview the file via Quick Look