SpotlessSpotless vs Mole
Spotless is a $9 Mac app where nothing is ticked, every item explains itself and removals go to the Trash. Mole is a command line cleaner with a separate $19 Mac app. This page compares Mole's deletion behaviour, defaults and price with Spotless.
Where Spotless wins
- Trash first. Mole's clean, purge and installer commands delete files permanently. Spotless moves everything to the Trash and the Recently Deleted list.
- Nothing pre-ticked. In Mole's Mac app, caches start selected. In Spotless, no box is ticked until you tick it.
- Less than half the price. $9 against $19 for Mole for Mac, with the same 2-Mac licence.
- Nothing leaves your Mac. Mole's Mac app contacts mole.fit, cdn.tw93.fun and live.dodopayments.com for activation and updates. Spotless sends nothing about your files anywhere.
- Explained items. Each Spotless item says what it is, which app owns it and what happens if it goes.
- More views. Space map, folder explorer, System Data breakdown, large files, duplicates with keeper rules and an app uninstaller.
Also in Spotless
- Every item can explain itself: what it is, which app owns it, and what happens if it goes.
- Developer storage that understands projects: Xcode, Gradle, Cargo, pnpm, CocoaPods, Homebrew, Docker.
- Startup items, memory and a menu bar monitor for disk, memory, processor and network.
- Export what would be removed as a text list. Keyboard shortcuts for everything.
- Scheduled cleaning: weekly, every 2 weeks or monthly, Spotless moves only items marked Safe to the Trash and notifies you. Restore any of it from Recently Deleted.
Mole and Spotless, feature by feature
| Feature | Mole | Spotless |
|---|---|---|
| Delete method | CLI clean, purge and installer delete permanently | Trash first, Recently Deleted with Restore |
| Default selection | Caches start selected in the Mac app | Nothing ticked after a scan |
| Dry run | --dry-run on CLI commands | Dry-run export of exactly what would move; review list before every clean |
| Item explanations | Groups: Regenerable, Expensive to rebuild, Irreplaceable | Every item explains what it is, which app owns it and what happens if it goes |
| Space map | Analyze command | Treemap space map, folder explorer and System Data breakdown |
| Network use | Mac app contacts three hosts | Nothing about your files sent |
| Price | CLI free; Mac app $19 once for 2 Macs | $9 once |
Price
The Mole CLI is free. Mole for Mac is $19 once for 2 Macs with a 14-day refund (seen 2026-11-11). Spotless is $9 once with every feature included. See Spotless pricing.
Switching from Mole to Spotless
Install Spotless and scan. If you used mo clean --dry-run, the equivalent is Spotless's review list and its dry-run export, which writes out what would move without moving it. Removals go to the Trash, so you can put anything back.
See also: Review before you clean, Space map, Developer storage.
Frequently asked questions
Is Spotless an upgrade from Mole?
Yes. Spotless goes beyond a cleaner you run from the command line: it is a native Mac app with a review list, a space map, duplicates and an app uninstaller.
Does Spotless delete files permanently?
No by default. Items go to the Trash and the Recently Deleted list. Permanent deletion is a setting.
Does Spotless have a dry run?
Yes. You can export exactly what would be removed as a text list before anything moves.
How does the price compare with Mole for Mac?
Spotless is $9 once with every feature included. Mole for Mac is $19 once.
Keep comparing
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- Spotless vs CleanMyMac: A one-time cleaner that ticks nothing for you against a larger subscription suite.
- Spotless vs CCleaner for Mac: A one-time cleaner with scheduled cleaning, a space map and undo against a tiered cleaner.