Cleanup vs Cleaner Guru vs AI Cleaner: prices compared

Short answer: over a year, Cleanup is the cheapest of the three at $29.99 for its yearly plan, and its weekly plans start at $5.95. AI Cleaner's yearly plans run $34.99 or $39.99 with weekly plans from $6.99 to $10.99, while Cleaner Guru lists subscriptions from $4.99 to $9.99 plus a $39.99 tier (US App Store, checked on September 27, 2026). The real money pit isn't which app you pick, it's a weekly plan you forget to cancel: $7.99 a week works out to about $415 a year.

I went through the US App Store listings for the three most visible cleaners right now, one in-app purchase line at a time, and put Nino, the app we build, in the same table. Yes, it's our product, so it gets the same treatment, weekly plan at $5.99 included. If you want to try it after reading, you can download Nino on the App Store or on Google Play. The first clean is free.

Nobody here is the villain. The point is to figure out what you'll actually pay, and how to get out if it's not for you.

1. The price table (checked 09/27/2026)
2. What a weekly subscription really costs
3. Cleanup, Cleaner Guru, AI Cleaner: the listings up close
4. What about Nino?
5. How to choose, and how to cancel

The price table (checked 09/27/2026)

Quick note on method. The In-App Purchases section of an App Store listing shows up to ten products with names and prices. Developers often list several versions of the same plan (different paywalls, A/B tests), which is why you get ranges. The tracking column comes from the Data Used to Track You part of each app's privacy label, as declared by the developer.

Checked on the US App Store on 09/27/2026. Nino has no monthly plan. Prices can change, so always check in the app before you confirm.

Two things that aren't obvious at a glance. Cleaner Guru's US purchases are named "Premium" or "Unlimited Access" with no duration, so I can't tell you for sure which one is weekly and which is yearly. The paywall will. (On the French listing, one product is clearly labeled "Cleaner Guru Pro 1 Year" at 45,99 €.) And Cleanup sits at roughly 725,000 ratings in the US (724,600 when I checked), which makes it by far the most installed of the three. It was also #4 in Utilities that day.

One more: Cleaner Guru and AI Cleaner both carry the "Contains: Advertising" line on their listing. Cleanup didn't when I checked.

What a weekly subscription really costs

A weekly price looks small because it's sliced thin. Multiply by 52 and it's a different story:

So a year of weekly billing costs roughly 9 to 14 times the yearly plan of the same app. Nino is no exception: our $5.99 weekly plan adds up to $311 if you leave it running. We offer it because some people want one big cleanup, then cancel. That's fair. Keeping it for months isn't a good deal, with us or anyone else.

My rule of thumb: if you'll use a cleaner for more than a month or two, go yearly or lifetime. If it's a one-off, check for a free or pay-per-clean option first (we covered those in our piece on iPhone cleaners without a subscription).

Cleanup, Cleaner Guru, AI Cleaner: the listings up close

Cleanup (Deep Flow Software Services)

The heavyweight: 4.7 stars, 725K ratings, #4 in Utilities on the US store the day I looked. The listing pushes swipe sorting, picking the best shot among similar photos, merging duplicate contacts, compressing videos and clearing junk email.

Price-wise it's a bit of a paradox: cheapest yearly plan, but a weekly range that goes up to $11.99. What you pay depends on which paywall you land on. The US listing only shows weekly and yearly lines; the French one also lists a lifetime purchase at 34,99 €, so it may be worth looking for it in the app. Full breakdown in our Cleanup review.

Cleaner Guru (GM UniverseApps)

4.5 stars from 149K US ratings. The listing promises duplicate photo removal, video compression, bulk spam email deletion and contact merging. Listed prices go from $4.99 to $9.99, plus a $39.99 "Premium" tier. The catch is the naming: none of the US purchase names say how long they last, so read the paywall carefully. The listing also mentions ads.

AI Cleaner (Grimlax Trade)

4.6 stars from 209K US ratings. It's the only one of the three that spells out its trials right in the product names: "1 Week Plan, Get 3 Days Free", "7 Day Free Trial". Credit where it's due, that's clearer. Weekly plans run $6.99 to $10.99, and yearly comes as "1 Year Ultimate" at $34.99 or "1 Year Extended" at $39.99. Its tracking section is also the shortest of the three (identifiers only).

If you're wondering whether these apps are "scams", the honest answer is no, they do what they say. The friction is in how the subscription is presented. We dug into that in are iPhone cleaner apps a scam?

What about Nino?

I'm not going to tell you Nino is free. You get one free clean. After that, each clean costs you either an optional rewarded ad, or you go Nino Pro: $5.99 weekly, $34.99 yearly with a 7-day trial, or $44.99 lifetime. Check the price in the app, same as for the others.

What we won't do: flash a fake "GB of junk" counter to scare you, or show one price and charge another. The price you see is the price you pay, and canceling takes two taps in iOS Settings.

What Nino doesn't do: it compresses videos, not photos, and it sticks to your photo library (no contact merging, no email cleanup). And on pure yearly price, Cleanup is cheaper than us ($29.99 vs $34.99). We'd rather say it. If paying the least over a year is what matters and Cleanup works for you, take its yearly plan. If you want a single clean with no subscription, or fully local processing with a safety-net trash, Nino makes sense. 🐿️

How to choose, and how to cancel

Three questions before you pay

• How long will you use it? One big cleanup: skip the yearly and cancel the weekly right after. Regular use: yearly or lifetime.
• What exact price is on the payment sheet? With ranges like $5.95 to $11.99, don't trust an article (this one included). Trust the Apple payment sheet that pops up before Face ID.
• Does anything go to the cloud? Read the privacy label at the bottom of the App Store listing before granting full photo library access. Our cancellation guide covers the rest of the housekeeping.

Cancel in 30 seconds

Open Settings > [your name] > Subscriptions, tap the app, then Cancel Subscription. Deleting the app doesn't stop billing. If you cancel during a free trial, you usually keep access until the trial ends and aren't charged.

Asking for a refund

Charged after you thought you'd canceled? Go to reportaproblem.apple.com, sign in with your Apple Account, pick "Request a refund" and select the purchase. Apple decides, not the developer, and it tends to go better when you ask soon after the charge.

Bottom line: all three apps do what they advertise. What separates them is total cost over a year, how clear the paywall is and how easy it is to walk away. Compare on those, not on the star rating.

FAQ

Which iPhone cleaner is cheapest?

Over a year, Cleanup, with its $29.99 yearly plan (US App Store, checked 09/27/2026). For a single clean, Nino gives the first one free, then offers an optional rewarded ad per clean.

Should you pay weekly for an iPhone cleaner?

Only for a one-off cleanup, and cancel right after. At $7.99 a week, a forgotten subscription costs about $415 a year, around ten times a yearly plan in the $30 to $40 range.

Is Cleanup better than Cleaner Guru?

On price, Cleanup wins with a clearly labeled $29.99 yearly plan, while Cleaner Guru's US purchases don't state their duration. Both cover duplicates, video compression and contacts, so total cost and paywall clarity are the real deciders.

How do I cancel Cleanup, Cleaner Guru or AI Cleaner?

Go to Settings > [your name] > Subscriptions, tap the app and choose Cancel Subscription. Deleting the app does not stop billing.

Does Nino have a weekly subscription too?

Yes. Nino Pro comes weekly at $5.99, yearly at $34.99 with a 7-day trial, and lifetime at $44.99 (check in app). The first clean is free with no subscription.