Pixtide vs Swipewipe: An Honest Comparison

On this page

Swipewipe: Photo Cleaner is a swipe-to-clean iPhone app from MWM that rates 4.69 from 94,247 US ratings and sells plans up to $9.99 a week, checked on the App Store on 2026-09-25. Since about 2026-09-12, reviewers report having to watch an ad before a deletion completes. Pixtide uses the same right-keep, left-delete swipe and costs nothing: no ads, no subscription and no swipe limit, checked on 2026-09-25.

This page is written by the Pixtide team (we make Pixtide). We name where Swipewipe wins.

Prices and facts verified on the App Store on 2026-09-25.

The short version

Swipewipe and Pixtide solve the same problem the same way: one photo on screen, swipe right to keep it, swipe left to mark it for deletion, then review the pile before anything is removed. Neither app deletes a photo on its own; you make every call.

The differences are the business model and the size of the app. Swipewipe, launched on 2022-03-05 and bought by the French company MWM in June 2024 (TechCrunch reported the deal on 2024-06-25), is the category leader, with 12 languages, an iPad and Android version, a memory map, On This Day with a widget, and AI photo enhancement. It pays for that with ads, a capped free tier and weekly plans. Pixtide, launched in 2026 and newer than the others, is smaller and does one thing: a free swipe with no ads, no in-app purchases, no cap and no AI, with a Decide Later swipe and videos that play with sound.

Also worth knowing: Apple Photos already has free cleanup tools, including the Recently Deleted album (30 days), the Duplicates album and the Media Types albums.

Feature comparison

Every Swipewipe figure comes from its App Store page, checked on 2026-09-25, unless the row says it comes from reviews.

Price, ads, and swipe limits

Swipewipe is free to download but not free to use without limits, and Pixtide has no paid tier at all. Swipewipe's App Store page lists 10 in-app purchases, checked on the App Store on 2026-09-25: Swipewipe+ weekly at $9.99, $3.99 and $9.99, Swipewipe+ 1 week at $7.99, Swipewipe 1 week at $4.99 and $7.99, Swipewipe Premium at $9.99 and $5.99, and 1 year premium at $29.99. Reviewers describe a 3-day trial that renews at about $7.99 to $9.99 a week.

The free tier has no published cap, but users report one. In 2026 reviews it shows up as "25 pictures a day" or 20 photos followed by an 8-hour timer. Ads became the loudest complaint in late summer: in the 500 most recent US reviews we read, 52 of 225 August reviews and 69 of 195 September reviews mention ads. One 1-star reviewer wrote on 2026-09-20: "i don't want to watch a full 45 second ad with no skip button every 3 swipes".

Pixtide has no in-app purchases, no trial, no ads and no daily cap. For every free option in the category, see the free swipe photo cleaner with no subscription breakdown and is Swipewipe free.

AI: Swipewipe adds it, Pixtide leaves it out

Swipewipe ships AI photo enhancement and finders for similar shots, blurry photos and screenshots, while Pixtide uses no AI anywhere. Neither app deletes on its own judgement: in both, a photo leaves your library only after you swipe it and confirm. The difference is whether software suggests what to look at.

Pixtide keeps that choice entirely with you. Nothing is scanned, scored or grouped, and the only filters are the ones iOS itself assigns, such as Screenshots, Selfies, Live Photos and Bursts. That makes Pixtide slower for one job, finding near-identical shots, and Swipewipe's finders are a real advantage there.

If you want help spotting likely duplicates without a full AI suite, Sifty surfaces them in its month-by-month decks, though its free tier stops at 40 photos a day, checked on the App Store on 2026-09-25 (see the Sifty alternative comparison). For exact copies, the Duplicates album in Apple Photos does the job for free.

Video handling

Both apps show videos, so this is not a gap on Swipewipe's side; the difference is control. Pixtide plays a video inline with sound and a scrub bar, so you can jump to the middle or the end of a long clip before deciding. Sound is off by default and turns on with the speaker button on the card. Swipewipe autoplays videos, according to its reviews, and MWM's page also mentions Supercut videos made from your library.

Videos are usually where the storage is. A single 4K clip of a few minutes can outweigh hundreds of photos, so being able to check what a long screen recording or an old clip actually contains saves second-guessing later. Pixtide's category decks include Videos on their own, which lets you clear the heavy files first and watch the storage figure climb.

Safety: how the delete flow works

Both apps stage deletions and then hand them to Apple's Photos library, so every confirmed delete goes to Recently Deleted and stays recoverable for 30 days, as Apple Support explains. Swipewipe's FAQ says you finish a month and then "review the photos one last time" before they are removed.

Pixtide's flow has three steps:

1. A swipe only marks a photo. Nothing leaves the library during the session, and the Undo button reaches back through the whole session.
2. The review screen lists everything marked, and one tap rescues a photo.
3. Confirmed deletes sit in Recently Deleted for 30 days. To restore one, open Photos, then Recently Deleted, and tap Recover, following Apple's steps for deleted photos.

One recurring Swipewipe complaint in September 2026 reviews is photos that stayed in the library after a session. In the reports we read, the usual cause is a month left unfinished, because Swipewipe removes photos only after that month's final review. More on the last step: where deleted photos go on iPhone.

Privacy labels

Swipewipe's App Store privacy label declares tracking, and Pixtide's does not. Checked on 2026-09-25, Swipewipe lists Data Used to Track You (identifiers, usage data and other data) and Data Linked to You for third-party advertising, analytics, app functionality and other purposes. Photos and videos are not declared as collected. The tracking data is what an ad-supported free tier needs.

Pixtide's label reads Data Not Linked to You. It sorts and deletes entirely on the iPhone, has no account and never uploads a photo; the only data it sends is anonymous usage statistics, such as how many photos were reviewed, and you can switch them off in Settings. For a closer look at the other side, see is Swipewipe safe.

Organization and momentum

Swipewipe and Pixtide both let you work through the library month by month, both have On This Day, and both use streaks to bring you back. Swipewipe adds a memory map of where your photos were taken, an On This Day widget, Recents and Random sets, and stats for GB freed.

Pixtide sorts by month or a whole year, remembers your place so you can resume mid-month, and offers category decks for screenshots, videos, selfies, Live Photos, panoramas, favourites and bursts. It tracks storage freed and photos reviewed, awards milestones and levels (Photo Rookie, Photo Sorter, Storage Guru), lets you set a storage goal, and sends at most one optional reminder a day. Its third swipe direction, down for Decide Later, keeps a session moving when a photo is a hard call.

Where Swipewipe wins

Swipewipe is the better pick in several concrete cases, checked on the App Store on 2026-09-25:

• Track record: 4.69 from 94,247 US ratings since 2022, against a handful for Pixtide. A 5-star reviewer wrote on 2026-09-15: "15 GB free in less than 1 and a half hours".
• Breadth: memory map, On This Day widget, AI photo enhancement, similar and blurry photo finders, Supercut videos.
• Devices: iPhone, iPad, visionOS and Android; Pixtide is iPhone only.
• Languages: 12, including Japanese, Korean and Chinese; Pixtide's listing is English.
• Update pace: 25 releases between 2026-03-11 and 2026-09-22.

If you are happy to pay, a paid plan removes the ads and the cap. The weekly price is the catch: one 1-star reviewer put it as "10$ a week for something this simple is comical" (2026-09-13).

One honest limitation

Pixtide does not detect duplicates, so for exact copies use the Duplicates album in Apple Photos, which is free. Pixtide shows only the representative photo of a burst, and deleting it removes that photo only; prune individual burst frames in the Photos app (full burst handling is on the roadmap). Pixtide runs on iPhone only and needs iOS 18 or later.

Which should you choose?

Choose Swipewipe if you want the most features in a swipe cleaner, use an iPad or Android phone, need one of its 12 languages, or are willing to pay a weekly plan to remove the ads and the cooldown. Choose Pixtide if you want the swipe without ads, trials or a cap, a Decide Later swipe for the hard calls, videos you can scrub with sound, and a privacy label with no tracking. Pixtide is free on the App Store, so trying it costs nothing. For more options, see the Swipewipe alternative roundup and the Pixtide features overview.

Pixtide is independent and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Swipewipe. All product names and trademarks are the property of their respective owners. This comparison reflects publicly available information as of September 2026; pricing and features change, so please check each app's App Store listing for the latest details.

Frequently asked questions

Pixtide vs Swipewipe, which one is better?

Swipewipe: Photo Cleaner by MWM has far more features and ratings (4.69 from 94,247 US ratings, checked on the App Store on 2026-09-25), but its free tier shows ads and caps swipes, and plans cost up to $9.99 a week. Pixtide is free with no ads, no subscription, no swipe limit and no AI. Pick Swipewipe for memory maps and AI extras; pick Pixtide for a free, uninterrupted swipe.

Is Swipewipe free?

Swipewipe is free to download, but its free tier shows ads and limits how much you can sort. Users report 8-hour cooldowns between batches, and recent reviews describe an ad before a deletion completes. Its App Store page lists 10 in-app purchases from $3.99 to $29.99, checked on 2026-09-25. Pixtide is free with no in-app purchases, no ads and no swipe limit.

How much does Swipewipe cost a week?

Swipewipe's App Store page lists weekly plans at $3.99, $4.99, $7.99 and $9.99 and a 1-year premium plan at $29.99, checked on the App Store on 2026-09-25. Reviewers describe a 3-day trial that then renews at about $7.99 to $9.99 a week. Pixtide has no trial and no plans: it is free, with nothing to cancel.

Does Swipewipe have ads?

Yes. Swipewipe's free tier shows video ads, and since late August 2026 App Store reviewers describe unskippable ads every few swipes. From about 2026-09-12, reviewers also report having to watch an ad before a deletion completes. Paying for Swipewipe+ removes them. Pixtide shows no ads at any point, free or otherwise.

Is Swipewipe safe to use?

Swipewipe deletes through Apple's Photos library, so removed photos wait in Recently Deleted for 30 days. Its App Store privacy label, checked on 2026-09-25, lists Data Used to Track You (identifiers, usage data, other data) and third-party advertising. Photos and videos are not declared as collected. Pixtide's label reads Data Not Linked to You, and it never uploads a photo.