MacKeeper Review: Has It Cleaned Up Its Act?

If you‘ve been in the Mac ecosystem for a while, the name MacKeeper may send a slight shiver down your spine. Launched in 2010, the app quickly gained a reputation as adware at best, and scareware at worst.

Deceptive marketing tactics, like pop-up ads claiming your Mac was "infected", steered many users into downloading MacKeeper believing it was essential security software. In reality, the app exaggerated issues on your computer in order to upsell you expensive and unnecessary services.

Facing multiple class-action lawsuits, MacKeeper was passed between several parent companies before landing with its current owner, Clario, in 2019. Under new management and after an extensive rebranding, can MacKeeper shake its shady past and establish itself as a legitimate all-in-one Mac utility? I put the latest version to the test to find out.

Getting Started with MacKeeper

The first thing I noticed is that MacKeeper has toned down its aggressive advertising. Its website no longer makes outrageous claims about your Mac‘s health. Downloading and installing the app on my test machine was painless, taking just a couple minutes.

Upon launch, MacKeeper requests access to your files and folders in order to run its scans and optimizations. This immediately kicked off the first system scan, which completed in about 2 minutes and identified nearly 3 GB of junk files and "threats".

Before I could even begin investigating the results, MacKeeper hit me with the first of many upsells. A chat window popped open, purportedly with a live support agent ready to answer questions – though the generic and repetitive responses made it clear this was just a bot. Even after paying to upgrade to the Premium version, the chat kept pushing me to purchase add-on services, including a $99 "Expert Technical Support" package.

The app interface itself is simple and intuitive, with a sidebar listing MacKeeper‘s various functions: Antivirus, Adware Cleaner, Safe Cleanup, Duplicates Finder, Smart Uninstaller, Memory Cleaner, Update Tracker, Login Items, ID Theft Guard, Privacy Connect, and StopAd. Let‘s see how each performed.

Putting MacKeeper‘s Features to the Test

Antivirus

MacKeeper boasts real-time antivirus protection powered by its own "highly intelligent" engine. On my initial scan, it detected 87 "threats", which raised some red flags. Digging into the results, most were benign items like tracking cookies. Only 15 were actual potential threats like malware.
What‘s worse, the scan took a glacial 5 hours and 38 minutes to complete. For comparison, Norton 360 scanned over 400,000 files in 7 minutes, while Bitdefender finished a full scan in 42 minutes. Subsequent scans with MacKeeper were faster, but it still lagged behind industry leaders.

Adware Cleaner

Given MacKeeper‘s past propensity for adware tactics, I had to chuckle at the irony of them including an adware removal tool. Unsurprisingly, it found zero adware or malicious extensions on my test machine. Whether there truly was no adware present or MacKeeper just couldn‘t detect any is unclear.

Safe Cleanup

This is MacKeeper‘s basic junk file cleaner. Running the cleanup cleared out 2.8 GB of unnecessary files, including application caches, logs, mail attachments, and universal binaries. It was a simple one-click process with no options to review the files before deleting. For those who want more control, CCleaner offers more advanced filtering and customization of junk cleanup.

Duplicates Finder

As a photographer, I have countless duplicate and near-duplicate photos clogging up my drive. MacKeeper‘s duplicate finder analyzed over 17,000 images and identified 1,348 duplicates, recovering nearly 8 GB of space. I appreciated that it intelligently grouped similar photos and showed a handy preview of each duplicate set before deleting.
Other file types like music, videos, archives and documents can also be scanned. While not as full-featured as standalone duplicate finders like Gemini 2, this was one of MacKeeper‘s more practical tools for everyday users.

Smart Uninstaller

Think of this as a pumped up version of the Apps section in Finder. MacKeeper provides a complete inventory of your installed applications along with helpful metadata like app size and last opened date. From this single dashboard, you can easily batch uninstall multiple unused apps.
It‘s a convenient option for app hoarders, but won‘t benefit those who keep their Applications folder tidy. I‘d argue the "Uninstaller" label is a bit misleading, as there‘s no special technology happening behind the scenes – it‘s essentially a centralized interface for the basic "move to trash" function.

Memory Cleaner

This utility provides a real-time view of your Mac‘s memory pressure and offers a way to quickly free up RAM with the click of a button. In testing, it cleared up 2-3 GB of memory on average. However, the effects were always short-lived, with memory filling back up within minutes as expected.
The Memory Cleaner may provide a small temporary performance boost when your Mac is under heavy load, but it‘s certainly no replacement for actually upgrading your RAM. And with the way macOS dynamically allocates memory, regularly running the cleaner may actually hurt performance in the long run by purging cached data.

Update Tracker

MacKeeper scans your applications and plugins to identify available updates. For someone like me who always clicks "Remind Me Later", it‘s a useful nudge to keep things current. The update process was hit or miss – some apps updated with no problems, while others presented errors or didn‘t update at all.
I prefer the more reliable and fully automated approach of MacUpdater, which can also tackle updates from the Mac App Store. Still, some update help is better than none, and the Update Tracker is a low-effort way to boost your Mac‘s security.

Login Items

From this settings pane, you can view and disable programs that automatically launch every time you log in. Cutting down your login items can markedly speed up boot times. MacKeeper found several hidden login items that weren‘t visible in the Users & Groups preferences.
In my testing, eliminating unnecessary login items shaved 12 seconds off startup – not earth-shattering but still appreciated. Of course, you can manage login items yourself without additional software; MacKeeper just makes it slightly more convenient.

ID Theft Guard

MacKeeper can monitor your email addresses, credit card numbers, phone numbers and other sensitive data to see if they appear in any data breaches or on the dark web. Considering the near daily reports of hacks and leaks, this feature provides some extra peace of mind.
When I tested it with an email address I know has been compromised, MacKeeper successfully found it in a data breach and walked me through the recommended steps to secure my information. The implementation is not as slick as dedicated services like Dashlane or 1Password, but it‘s a nice value add.

Privacy Connect

Every MacKeeper subscription comes with access to a built-in VPN powered by ClearVPN. You can connect to 500+ servers in 50+ locations directly within the app. In my speed tests, MacKeeper‘s VPN was about 30% slower than my normal connection, which is pretty typical.
While it doesn‘t have all the bells and whistles of top VPN services, the inclusion of a functional VPN at no extra charge is a welcome addition for occasional use. Just don‘t expect it to unblock geo-restricted streaming content or provide complete anonymity.

StopAd

The final tool in MacKeeper‘s arsenal is an ad blocker for Safari and Chrome. After a simple setup process, it cuts out ads, trackers and social widgets cluttering up websites. In practice, it works as well as popular ad blockers like Adblock Plus or uBlock Origin.
However, the constant nudging to enable StopAd quickly grows tiresome. Even with it disabled, MacKeeper nagged me to activate ad blocking on every website I visited. Thankfully you can turn off the notifications, but having to opt out of the pestering is an annoyance.

The Verdict on MacKeeper

Having thoroughly tested MacKeeper‘s many features, it‘s clear the app has matured since its inception. The antivirus, while slow, does legitimately detect macOS malware. The duplicate finder, file cleaner, and update tracker all work as advertised to keep your Mac running smoothly. And the VPN and ID theft monitoring are appreciated extras.

However, remnants of MacKeeper‘s unsavory past still peek through. The upsell tactics of the support chat feel slimy and manipulative. Notifications and warnings often veer into alarmist territory. The antivirus results are padded with non-threats to make your Mac seem more vulnerable than it really is.

That‘s not to say MacKeeper is an outright scam like it used to be. Under Clario‘s stewardship, it has evolved into a functional, if flawed, suite of Mac utilities. Clario CEO Alun Baker acknowledged MacKeeper‘s "well-known historical issues" and stated the company has done "a tremendous amount of work to improve the user experience."

So where does that leave us? For less tech-savvy users who don‘t mind weathering some annoyances, the current version of MacKeeper can be a simple way to handle Mac maintenance and security from one central hub. More advanced users are better off with standalone solutions: Malwarebytes for antivirus, CCleaner or Onyx for system cleanup, Gemini 2 for duplicate finding, etc.

The decision also comes down to value. At $10.95 per month or $63.40 per year for the Premium plan, MacKeeper is priced competitively against the piecemeal approach. You‘ll have to decide whether the convenience is worth putting up with MacKeeper‘s quirks and aggressive upselling.

As for me, I won‘t be keeping MacKeeper on my personal machine. The app has certainly come a long way, but still doesn‘t feel entirely trustworthy. Until Clario takes more steps to reform MacKeeper‘s practices and reputation, I‘ll stick with the alternatives. But I wouldn‘t begrudge anyone who chooses to give the new MacKeeper a chance – with the right expectations, it can be a helpful tool to keep your Mac safe and speedy.