PhotoSweeper alternative: Peekaboo vs PhotoSweeper
By Vishva Variya · Updated
PhotoSweeper is a specialist. It works inside Apple Photos, Lightroom Classic and Capture One, groups bursts and edits by how alike they look, and picks the keeper with rules or an AI quality score. For a photographer with a big catalogue, that depth matters. Peekaboo covers a wider, shallower field: every kind of file in your folders, where copied PDFs, zips and videos waste as much space as photos do.
Looking for PhotoSweeper itself? It’s at apps.apple.com.
- PhotoSweeper price
- $14.99 one-time (Mac App Store)
- PhotoSweeper requires
- macOS 10.15 or later
- Peekaboo
- $24.99 one-time, 14-day trial, macOS 14+
PhotoSweeper figures from Mac App Store listing id463362050, verified 2026-11-02.
Why pick Peekaboo over PhotoSweeper?
Any file, not only images
Exact duplicates are matched by SHA-256 whatever the file is: installers, archives, documents, videos. PhotoSweeper is built around photos.
Look-alikes in your folders
For images outside a library, Peekaboo uses Apple Vision feature prints to group shots that look the same, then shows how much space the extras are worth.
One licence, a whole file app
Plain-English search, text in screenshots, Space Map and the App Uninstaller come with the same purchase.
Peekaboo vs PhotoSweeper, job by job
| Job | PhotoSweeper | Peekaboo |
|---|---|---|
| Photos, Lightroom Classic, Capture One libraries | Works inside all three | Not supported; it scans folders |
| Similar photos | Adjustable match level, side-by-side compare | Look-alike photos via Vision feature prints |
| Choosing which copy to keep | Auto Mark rules and an AI quality score | Peekaboo picks the best copy, or you choose |
| Duplicates that aren’t photos | Built for photos | Any file type, by SHA-256 |
| Price | $14.99 one-time (Mac App Store) | One-time, 14-day free trial |
The honest verdict
If your duplicates live in a Lightroom catalogue or the Photos library, PhotoSweeper is the right tool: it works through them, and Peekaboo won’t touch them. If the waste sits in Downloads and Documents, across every kind of file, Peekaboo covers it and brings the rest of a file app along.
PhotoSweeper vs Peekaboo: questions
Can Peekaboo clean a Lightroom or Capture One catalogue?
- No. Removing files behind a catalogue’s back leaves it pointing at missing photos. PhotoSweeper works through the catalogue, which is the safe way to do it.
What does PhotoSweeper cost?
- $14.99 one-time on the Mac App Store, for macOS 10.15 or later, as listed on November 2, 2026.
Are look-alike photos removed automatically?
- No. Peekaboo groups them and suggests a keeper, and nothing moves until you’ve reviewed it. What you remove goes to the Trash and can be put back in one click.