Most photo libraries are full of near-duplicates: the same moment taken three, five or ten times. They’re easy to take and tedious to clean up, because deciding means comparing pictures that look almost the same.
What the Photos app can do
The Photos app finds exact duplicates: in the Photos app, look for the Duplicates album under Utilities. It merges copies of the same file, which is useful after imports, but it doesn’t help with five slightly different shots of the same scene.
Finding near-duplicates
Near-duplicates are photos taken moments apart that show the same thing with small differences: a slightly different angle, someone blinking, a bit more light. To clean them up you need to:
- Group photos taken close together that look alike.
- Rank each group, so the sharpest, best-looking shot comes first.
- Decide: keep the best, or keep a few, and delete the rest.
Photo Cleaner does the first two steps on your device. It compares photos taken moments apart, ranks every set by sharpness and Apple’s on-device Vision score, and puts the best shot first. With Keep Best you can clear every set in one go, or open a set and choose by hand.
Tips before you delete
- Check faces at full size. Closed eyes are easy to miss in thumbnails. Open the set and swipe through.
- Keep favorites safe. If one shot matters, favorite it or add it to an album first.
- Start recent. Last month’s photos are quick to judge because you remember the moment.
- Remember Recently Deleted. Deleted photos stay recoverable for 30 days, so a mistake isn’t permanent.
