Glary Utilities vs WindowsCleaner

Glary Utilities is a Windows utility for cleaning and maintaining PCs, with more than 20 tools. Its features include junk cleanup, startup management, driver updates, scheduled maintenance, and restore-point tools. The startup manager identifies unnecessary programs that use system resources, while software-update tools help find newer versions. Privacy functions can locate and delete browsing records and permanently erase files. File recovery can help find accidentally deleted items, including after the Recycle Bin has been emptied. The free version is available for Windows PCs, and the Pro plan costs $39.95 a year for up to 3 PCs. Listed platform support includes Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, 2000, XP, and Vista in 32- and 64-bit versions; another listing specifically identifies Windows 10 and 11. The software is available in 44 languages. The listed version is 6.48, updated September 21, 2026; version 6.48.0.52 improves Uninstall Manager, Empty Folder Finder, and Startup Manager.

WindowsCleaner is a free PowerShell cleaner, debloater, optimizer, and troubleshooting toolkit for Windows 10 and 11. Its registry-driven cleanup engine covers 106 targets across browsers, developer tools, applications, games, caches, disks, logs, Windows Update, and driver leftovers. A real -WhatIf run previews removals and estimates reclaimed space. Safety features described by the project include path guards, System Restore points, risk tiers, and a Dangerous tier requiring an explicit option. Optimization provides 77 tweaks for performance, privacy, debloating, and networking, with earlier settings backed up for undo. The repair engine runs 43 health checks in eight categories and supports scan-first, selectable repairs. WindowsCleaner is available as a WPF app, console menu, PowerShell scripts, and a dependency-free batch alternative. It supports unattended logs, JSON reports, and scheduled weekly cleanup and monthly health scans. Administrator rights and PowerShell 5.1 or later are required.