PhotoSweep

How the Duplicate Scan Works

Two passes, both on device. The first buckets your library by media type, exact pixel dimensions, and duration, so only items that agree on all three are ever compared — which keeps a large library fast. The second pass confirms: videos by identical file size, photos by a perceptual fingerprint computed from a small grayscale thumbnail, so a re-saved or re-compressed copy still matches.

A group is labelled Exact only when there is hard evidence the files are the same shot: an identical fingerprint together with an identical file size, or an identical size plus a capture time matching to the second and GPS coordinates within about 30 metres. Anything else that merely looks the same is labelled Similar. Each group lists the signals that actually matched, so you can see why it was grouped — and if iOS won't report an item's size, that item is never called an exact copy.

Key Features

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• Sound effects and haptics — distinct cues for keep, trash, undo, and a completed deletion, each toggleable.
• Limited-access support — share only selected photos and PhotoSweep works on just those, with a Manage button to change the selection.
• Screenshot, panorama, and video labels — every item says what it is, so you know what you're judging.
• Reduce Motion respected — panorama auto-pan holds still when the system setting is on.
• Dynamic Type and accessibility labels throughout the review flow.
• Zero third-party dependencies — no analytics, no ad SDK, no crash reporter, nothing to opt out of.

• Personal use. PhotoSweep is licensed for personal, non-commercial use on devices you own.
• You confirm every deletion. The app stages items; iOS asks for your approval before anything is removed. You are responsible for what you approve.
• Not a backup. Keep your own backups — iCloud Photos, a computer, or an external drive — before any large cleanup.
• Recovery window. Deleted items stay in Photos' Recently Deleted for about 30 days. After that album is emptied, recovery is not possible through the app or by us.
• Provided as-is. No warranty of any kind, to the extent permitted by law.
• No accounts, no payments, no user content is transmitted to us, because there is no server involved.

Read the full Terms & Conditions (19 clauses) →

Last updated: July 26, 2026

• No account, no sign-in, no email address. You open the app and use it.
• All processing is on device. Scans, fingerprints, and comparisons run on your iPhone. There is no share sheet and no export.
• No servers. The app sends nothing anywhere. The only possible network activity is iOS fetching one of your own iCloud photos so it can be displayed — Apple's service, your account.
• No analytics, no advertising SDK, no crash reporters, and no third-party frameworks of any kind.
• No tracking prompt, because there is nothing to ask about. Expected App Store privacy label: Data Not Collected.
• One permission, ever: photo library access, read-write.
• No microphone, camera, location, contacts, or notification access. The duplicate finder reads GPS coordinates already attached to your photos, on device, only to check whether two shots were taken in the same place.
• Fingerprints are computed in memory and discarded with the scan. They are never written to disk.
• Limited access is fully supported.
• The only thing saved is your own bookkeeping — which items you marked keep or trash, plus your sound and haptics toggles — in the app's private storage. Delete the app and it's gone.
• Deletion is the one write the app performs, and it goes through the system dialog to Recently Deleted. Nothing else in your library is ever edited, re-encoded, or moved.

Read the full Privacy Policy (16 sections) →

Last updated: July 26, 2026

Does PhotoSweep ever delete anything without asking?

No. "Trash" inside PhotoSweep is a staging list — your photos stay in your library, exactly where they were, and the tab badge just counts what's waiting. Deleting takes three deliberate acts: you tap the delete button, you confirm in a sheet that names the count and the size, and then iOS shows its own system deletion dialog. The app cannot delete a single item without you approving that last dialog, and if you cancel it, everything stays staged.

Can PhotoSweep clean other apps' data, caches, or "junk files"?

No — and neither can any other app on your iPhone, whatever the App Store screenshots imply. iOS sandboxes every app: PhotoSweep can only see what you grant it access to, which is your photo library. It cannot touch another app's storage, the system cache, or temporary files. That's why the built-in Free Up More Space guide is a checklist that walks you into Apple's own tools instead of pretending to do it for you. Photos and videos are usually the biggest thing on the phone anyway, and those PhotoSweep can genuinely help with.

Where do deleted photos go — and why didn't my free space change?

They go to Photos' Recently Deleted album, where they're recoverable for about 30 days. That's also the answer to the free-space question: iOS doesn't release the storage until Recently Deleted is emptied. Open Photos → Albums → Recently Deleted → Select → Delete All, and the space appears. PhotoSweep's guide has an Open Photos button for exactly this.

Do I need an account or an internet connection?

No account, no sign-in, no email address. And it works offline, with one honest exception: if a photo lives only in iCloud because you use Optimize iPhone Storage, iOS needs a connection to fetch that original when it's displayed at full resolution or fingerprinted. That's Apple's system service pulling your own file from your own iCloud account. PhotoSweep has no servers to talk to.

What's the difference between an Exact and a Similar duplicate?

Exact means PhotoSweep has hard evidence the two files are the same shot: identical fingerprint and identical file size, or identical size plus a capture time matching to the second and GPS coordinates within about 30 metres. Similar means they look the same but aren't byte-identical — a re-save, an edit, a messaging-app copy, or one frame out of a burst. Both are shown with the signals that matched, so you can see why they were grouped. If iOS won't report an item's size, that item is never labelled an exact copy.

Why did it pick that copy as the keeper?

The largest file wins, oldest on ties, because the biggest version is normally the least compressed one. It's a suggestion, not a rule — the keeper is just outlined in green and labelled "Keep". Tap through to the side-by-side comparison, and if you disagree, trash the keeper and keep an extra instead.

I swiped too fast and changed my mind.

Undo steps back through the deck one decision at a time. Beyond that, anything you trashed is still staged in the Trash tab: tap a thumbnail to restore it, or Restore All. Nothing is irreversible until you approve the system deletion dialog — and even then, Recently Deleted holds it for about 30 days.

Does it work with iCloud Photos, or if I only shared some of my photos?

Both. Sizes and duplicate groups are worked out from library metadata, so the lists fill in whether or not the originals are on the device; iOS fetches an original from your iCloud when a full-resolution view or a fingerprint needs it. With limited access, PhotoSweep works on just the photos you selected, shows a banner saying so, and gives you a Manage button to change the selection at any time.

Before you write in

• Space didn't change after deleting? Empty Photos' Recently Deleted album — iOS holds the storage until you do.
• A photo won't open full-screen? It probably lives only in iCloud. Check your connection so iOS can fetch the original.
• Missing photos in the app? You may have granted limited access. Tap Manage on the banner to add more.
• Duplicate scan found nothing? That's a real result — only items matching on type, dimensions, and duration are ever compared.