# BleachBit

> Free, open-source disk cleaner for Windows and Linux

BleachBit is a free, open-source system cleaner for Windows and Linux. It deletes temporary files, caches, logs, cookies and browsing history from browsers and other applications, shows every file before removing it, and can shred files or overwrite free disk space so deleted data is harder to recover. All features work offline with no registration, a command line supports scripting, and the code is licensed under GPLv3.

- **Category:** Desktop Utilities
- **Made by:** Andrew Ziem (since 2008)
- **Website:** https://www.bleachbit.org
- **Runs on:** Windows, Linux
- **Facts last checked:** Oct 9, 2026

## Pricing

BleachBit is free to use.

- **Pricing model:** Free
- **Free plan:** Every feature is free, with no registration, license activation, ads or upsells; the site describes it as free forever. Donations are optional.
- **Free trial:** None listed.

| Plan | Price | What you get |
| --- | --- | --- |
| BleachBit | $0 | The complete cleaner for Windows and Linux, open source under GPLv3. The features page says every user has the "Pro" version. |

Read from https://www.bleachbit.org/ on Oct 9, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with BleachBit before buying.

## Key features

- **Junk and cache cleaning:** Removes temporary files, browser caches, logs and other junk, using built-in cleaners for Google Chrome, Edge, Firefox, VLC, system logs and many other targets.
- **Privacy cleaning:** Erases browsing history, cookies, saved passwords and application traces across several browsers in one step. A cookie manager for keeping chosen cookies is new in the 5.1.0 beta.
- **Preview before deleting:** You tick the items to clean, click preview to see every file that would be removed, and then delete only what you want.
- **Shredding and free-space wiping:** Shreds sensitive files so their contents cannot be read, and overwrites free disk space to hide files that were deleted earlier.
- **Command line and custom cleaners:** A command line interface supports scripting and automation, advanced users can write cleaners in CleanerML, and Windows users can import winapp2.ini for thousands more.
- **Linux system cleaners:** On Linux it can clear memory and swap, delete unused localizations and broken shortcuts, and clean the APT, Pacman, Snap, Yum and DNF package managers.

## Good for

- Windows and Linux users who want to free disk space at no cost
- People clearing browser history, cookies and app traces in one pass
- Administrators who script cleanup across many machines

## Worth knowing

- There is no regular macOS version: the download page lists Mac OS X support as experimental with limited features.
- The current Windows installer is for Windows 10 and 11; Windows XP, Vista, 7 and 8 need the older 4.7.0 release.
- Importing winapp2.ini, which adds thousands of extra cleaners, is available on Windows only.
- New versions are not installed automatically; the app can notify you, and updates are downloaded from the website by hand.

## Works with

Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Firefox, VLC, LibreOffice

**Tags:** Disk cleanup, Open source, Works offline

## Alternatives

- [CCleaner](https://toolgpa.com/tools/ccleaner): Junk cleaner and PC optimizer for Windows, Mac and mobile. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/bleachbit-vs-ccleaner)
- [WinDirStat](https://toolgpa.com/tools/windirstat): Free, open-source disk usage analyzer for Windows. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/bleachbit-vs-windirstat)
- [WizTree](https://toolgpa.com/tools/wiztree): Fast disk space analyzer for Windows and macOS. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/bleachbit-vs-wiztree)

## Sources

The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Oct 9, 2026:

- https://www.bleachbit.org/
- https://www.bleachbit.org/features
- https://www.bleachbit.org/download

Page: https://toolgpa.com/tools/bleachbit
Listed by ToolGPA (toolgpa.com).