Hands-on test · 17 October 2026

Metadata remover alternatives, tested: BeforeShare, MetaStrip, MetaRemover, verexif and ExifTool

If you are looking for an alternative to MetaStrip, MetaRemover, verexif, ExifTool, ExifCleaner or Metacleaner, three questions decide it: does your file leave your device, does the tool remove everything, and does it handle your file type? We ran the same three test files through five of these tools to answer the first two with measurements instead of claims.

Tested and written by TuliAI, the publisher of BeforeShare. About the publisher →

Tested on 17 October 2026. Tools change; if a result here is out of date, tell us and we will re-test and correct it.

Disclosure: BeforeShare is our product. Where a competitor did as well or better in the test, this page says so.

The test

Three synthetic files, each carrying made-up identifying values we could search for afterwards:

  • Photo (JPEG): GPS position, camera make, model and serial number, artist, copyright, software, an XMP creator and a prompt-like description, an IPTC byline, and a C2PA Content Credentials manifest.
  • PDF, edited once after saving: Author, title, subject, keywords, creator and producer, then edited with ExifTool. Like many real PDFs, the file keeps the earlier version of its metadata inside, even though viewers only show the latest one.
  • Word document (DOCX): Author, last editor, company and manager, a comment, and a tracked insertion and deletion by a reviewer.

After each tool, we searched every byte of the result for the planted values, including compressed parts of the PDF and every file inside the Word package, and compared the photo’s pixels with the original. On websites, we recorded every request the page sent while the files were chosen and cleaned.

Not tested: Metacleaner (one free file a day, uploads to its service) and ExifCleaner (desktop app). What this page says about them comes from their own websites and documentation.

Download the test files and raw results to repeat the test: JPG, PDF, DOCX, results.json

What we found

  • BeforeShare, MetaStrip, ExifTool and verexif removed everything we planted in the photo and left the pixels unchanged. BeforeShare, MetaStrip and ExifTool produced the very same file, byte for byte.
  • MetaRemover uploaded each file to its own server the moment it was chosen, before any button was pressed, and cleaned the PDF and Word files on its servers. Its site says processing happens in the browser “whenever possible”.
  • MetaRemover’s cleaned Word file still contained the comment, the commenter, the reviewer’s name and the deleted text, while the page showed “Cleared ✓”. Its photo map also loaded map images of the photo’s area from OpenStreetMap.
  • ExifTool’s PDF looked clean in viewers, but the original values were still inside the file. ExifTool warns about this: its PDF edits are reversible.
  • MetaStrip matched BeforeShare on all three files, and it supports more formats.

Quick answer: which tool fits which job

Features side by side

“Where the file goes” matters most for privacy: a tool that uploads can still be trustworthy, but you are relying on its promise rather than on how it works.

Tool by tool: when to stay, when to switch

MetaStrip alternative · Tested

It is the better choice when you need HEIC, AVIF, GIF, TIFF, Excel, PowerPoint, video or audio files, batches above 20 files (it takes 100), or open-source code with no ads. In our test it did as well as BeforeShare on every file. For people who work in English, it is the stronger general tool. MetaStrip ↗

BeforeShare may suit you better when you want the interface in Spanish, German or another of BeforeShare’s eight languages, or a cleanup report you can download and keep.

MetaRemover alternative · Tested

It is the better choice when you need HEIC, Excel, PowerPoint, video or audio files, which BeforeShare does not accept, and you are comfortable with them being uploaded. MetaRemover ↗

BeforeShare may suit you better when you do not want files uploaded: in our test MetaRemover sent every file to its servers. You need comments, reviewer names and deleted text gone from Word files, which MetaRemover left in. Or you want photos cleaned without re-encoding.

Metacleaner alternative · Not tested

It is the better choice when you need legacy Office files (.doc, .xls, .ppt), OpenDocument, PSD, or an API. Metacleaner ↗

BeforeShare may suit you better when you want your files to stay on your device, need more than one free file a day, or need files above 5 MB (BeforeShare takes up to 25 MB each, and 20 files in one ZIP) without an account.

verexif alternative · Tested

It is the better choice when you want to read a photo that is already online by pasting its link, or see its GPS position on a map. Its cleaned photo was complete and kept the pixels unchanged. verexif ↗

BeforeShare may suit you better when you do not want the photo uploaded: BeforeShare reads and cleans it in your browser. It also handles PDF and Word files, and batches of up to 20 files.

ExifTool alternative · Tested

It is the better choice when you work in a terminal, need scripting, or have formats nobody else reads. Its cleaned photo was identical to BeforeShare’s, byte for byte. ExifTool ↗

BeforeShare may suit you better when you want no installation and no command line, or you clean PDFs and Word files. In our test, ExifTool left the original PDF values inside the file and could not write the Word file. It also leaves an “_original” backup next to each file.

ExifCleaner alternative · Not tested

It is the better choice when you want an offline desktop app, camera RAW files or video. Version 4.5.0 was released in September 2026, so it is maintained again. ExifCleaner ↗

BeforeShare may suit you better when you need Word (DOCX) files, which ExifCleaner does not list, or PDFs: ExifCleaner uses ExifTool, and its own README warns that PDF metadata cannot be securely erased, which matches what we saw with ExifTool.

You may not need another tool

For one file, the software you already use can often do the job:

  • Word: File → Info → Check for Issues → Inspect Document removes comments, revisions and document properties.
  • Windows: Right-click a file → Properties → Details → “Remove Properties and Personal Information”. Coverage depends on the file type.
  • iPhone: In Photos, tap Share → Options and turn off Location before sending. Camera details stay in the file.
  • Adobe Acrobat Pro (paid): Redact → Sanitize Document removes hidden information from a PDF.

What BeforeShare does not do

  • No HEIC, AVIF, GIF, TIFF or RAW images, no Excel or PowerPoint, no legacy .doc, no video and no audio. Use MetaStrip, ExifCleaner or ExifTool for those.
  • 25 MB per file and 20 files (100 MB) per batch.
  • It removes hidden metadata, not what is visible: names, faces or text on the page stay. It does not remove pixel watermarks such as SynthID.
  • Only selected editorial pages can show ads. File-inspection and cleanup pages do not load advertising scripts; files and their metadata are not sent to the ad network.

How to check any of these tools yourself

  1. Open your browser’s developer tools, choose the Network tab, then choose and clean a file. An upload shows up as a request about the size of your file; that is how we saw MetaRemover’s uploads.
  2. Open the cleaned copy in a different tool than the one that cleaned it, and look for author, location, camera and software fields.
  3. For PDFs and Word files, a viewer is not enough: old PDF versions and Word comments can hide where viewers do not look. Search the file itself, or use our test files, which come with the values to search for.

Questions

What is a good ExifTool alternative without the command line?

In our test, BeforeShare and MetaStrip produced the same clean photo as ExifTool, byte for byte, in the browser, and also removed the earlier PDF version that ExifTool left in the file. ExifCleaner is a desktop app built on ExifTool; we did not test it.

Which metadata removers do not upload my files?

In our test, BeforeShare and MetaStrip kept the files in the browser, and ExifTool runs on your computer. MetaRemover uploaded every file to its servers, and verexif uploaded the photo. Metacleaner’s privacy notes describe files going to its service and back; we did not test it.

Is there a free alternative to Metacleaner?

Yes. BeforeShare is free with no daily limit, accepts files up to 25 MB and cleans PDF and Word files in your browser. MetaStrip is free too and accepts Excel and PowerPoint. Neither replaces Metacleaner’s API or its legacy Office support.

Can any of these remove an AI watermark such as SynthID?

No. SynthID is part of the pixels, not metadata. These tools remove readable AI fields and C2PA Content Credentials; the pixel watermark stays.

Found an error or an outdated result? Tell us on the contact page →

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