cleanapp
Cross-platform CLI tool that finds and removes leftover files from uninstalled apps.
Try it
This is a simulated terminal. Type commands below to see how cleanapp works.
Try: cleanapp Spotify
The Problem
When you uninstall an app, you only remove the executable. Hundreds of megabytes of caches, preferences, logs, and support files stay behind — scattered across system directories. On macOS it's ~/Library, on Linux ~/.config and ~/.cache, on Windows %APPDATA%. Over time, these orphaned files pile up, waste disk space, and clutter your system.
The Approach
cleanapp scans platform-specific paths for anything matching the app name you provide. It shows you exactly what it found, with file sizes, and asks for confirmation before deleting anything. No guessing, no silent removals. Works on macOS, Linux, and Windows.
Technical Choices
Rust
Filesystem traversal needs to be fast and safe. Rust gives zero-cost abstractions over OS-level directory walking, with no runtime overhead. The resulting binary is a single native executable — no dependencies to install. Cross-compiles to macOS, Linux, and Windows via CI.
Safe by default
Case-insensitive matching catches naming variations (e.g. "Spotify" vs "com.spotify.client"). Confirmation prompt before any deletion. --exclude flag to protect specific paths. --exact flag for whole-word matching.
Progressive depth
Default mode scans platform-specific directories — fast and covers 95% of cases. --deep flag expands to the entire home directory. --here flag limits to the current directory. --max-depth controls how deep the traversal goes.