Mole Review

Mole has two parts. The mo command-line tool is free and open source and covers cleaning, uninstalling, optimizing, disk analysis, status monitoring, and purging project build artifacts. Its commands are mo (an interactive menu), mo clean (caches, logs, temp files, and leftovers from uninstalled apps, and it empties the Trash by default), mo uninstall (removes an app with its related files while keeping shared data other installed copies still use), mo optimize (bounded maintenance such as DNS flush, Finder and QuickLook refresh, and database optimization), mo analyze (an interactive disk explorer with --json and support for external drives via mo analyze /Volumes), mo status (a read-only dashboard for CPU, memory, disk, network, power, and processes with --json and --watch), mo purge (rebuildable project artifacts such as node_modules, target, and dist), mo installer (installer files such as DMG, PKG, and ISO), and mo update, remove, history, touchid, and completion. Mole for Mac is a separate native app that adds review-before-delete cleanup, tested leftover detection for 800+ apps, disk drill-downs with a treemap, live status including GPU and fan RPM, fan controls on supported Macs, menu bar extras (a live HUD, a Privacy Check for camera and microphone use, and Clean Screen), and an AI Cleanup and Care section that appears when AI tool data is found.

The CLI requires macOS 12 or newer on Intel or Apple Silicon and installs with brew install mole or an install script (use the script if Homebrew no longer supports your macOS version); brew installs the CLI only, not the Mac app. A Windows version is maintained as a separate PowerShell installer on the windows branch. Settings live in ~/.config/mole/whitelist (protected cache and maintenance items, managed with --whitelist) and ~/.config/mole/purge_paths (custom project scan directories). The Mac app requires macOS 14 or later and, per its site, scanning and reviewing are free while each paid tool (Clean, Uninstall, Optimize, and Analyze trash) can be used twice without a license, after which a $19 one-time license covering two Macs with free updates and a 14-day refund applies. Run Mole without sudo, since it requests administrator access only when needed.

The tool is designed to show before it deletes. The README describes path validation, protection of shared and system-owned locations, confirmation prompts, refusal when it cannot prove an item is safe, a --dry-run flag for destructive commands (plus --debug for detailed logs), and an operation log at ~/Library/Logs/mole/operations.log reviewable with mo history. mo analyze moves selected items to the Trash after confirmation, while mo purge permanently deletes confirmed items and leaves recently active artifacts unselected. In the Mac app, cache cleanup is permanent by default with a Trash option in Settings, uninstall and Analyze deletions go to the Trash, and emptying the Trash and some Optimize deletions are permanent. This section reflects the README and the Mole for Mac site; we did not run Mole.

• CLI for cleaning, uninstalling, optimizing, analyzing disk usage, monitoring, and purging build artifacts
• Dry-run mode, an operation log, and whitelists for protected items
• mo purge for node_modules, target, dist, and other rebuildable artifacts
• App uninstall that keeps shared data and detects leftovers for 800+ apps (Mac app)
• Disk treemap, live system metrics, a menu bar HUD, and fan control (Mac app)
• Update checks across Sparkle, the App Store, Electron apps, and Homebrew

• Safety-first design with previews, protections, and logs instead of blind deletion
• A genuinely free, open-source CLI, with about 70,000 stars
• One tool replacing several paid utilities, with a one-time price instead of a subscription
• Active development, with a release (1.59.1) and commits within hours

• The graphical app is proprietary and paid, so only the CLI is open source
• mo clean empties the Trash by default, and mo purge permanently deletes confirmed items
• Scans can be partial: sizes marked + are incomplete and unknown means a size could not be measured, and mo analyze skips external drives in its default overview
• mo optimize skips tasks it judges unnecessary, unsafe, or unavailable, and disk verification stays off unless MOLE_ENABLE_DISK_VERIFY=1 is set
• macOS only, and requirements differ between the CLI (macOS 12) and the app (macOS 14); mo update and mo remove do not change Nix-managed installs

The CLI is free. Mole for Mac is a $19 one-time purchase covering two Macs with free lifetime updates, a 14-day refund, and payment by card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, WeChat, or Cash App. Scanning and reviewing are free, and each paid tool can be used twice without a license. Older $9 figures are historical.

CleanMyMac and CCleaner are commercial cleaners with graphical interfaces and, in some cases, subscriptions. AppCleaner handles uninstalls, DaisyDisk handles disk maps, and iStat Menus handles monitoring. Mole combines all of this behind a single free CLI, with a $19 app if you want the GUI. CleanMyMac has the advantage of being Apple-notarized and sold through the Mac App Store, which speaks to app identity but not to whether each cleanup rule suits your Mac, and the open-source part of Mole is the terminal tool, so the all-in-one graphical experience is not free.

• Mac users comfortable with the terminal who want a free cleaner and uninstaller
• Developers who want to purge project build artifacts safely with a dry run
• People who dislike subscription cleaner apps

• Users who want a free, open-source graphical app
• Anyone running Windows or Linux
• People who are uncomfortable with commands that can delete files permanently