How can I find and remove duplicate files on Windows 10/11?

DuplicateFilesDeleter is a great tool you should try it

Managing duplicate files on Windows 10/11 can indeed be tricky, especially when dealing with large file libraries on your computer or external/cloud storage. While methods like PowerShell scripts and manual sorting work for some, they can be time-consuming and lack user-friendly automation.

For a more streamlined approach, specialized tools can make a significant difference. If your primary focus is on cleaning duplicate files stored locally (e.g., system or external drives), a tool like Clone Files Checker (CFC) could be incredibly helpful. It scans your computer for exact and similar duplicates and offers flexible file management options, including previews and safe deletions.

For those working with cloud storage platforms like OneDrive, Google Drive, or Dropbox, its complementary counterpart, Cloud Duplicate Finder (CDF), might be the better fit. CDF works online, utilizing APIs to scan your cloud drives directly without downloading the files to your system. 

Always double-check the detected duplicates before deletion, and back up important data! The results—more storage and a more organized file structure—are definitely worth it.

In my experience, it is more efficient to use a duplicate file remover app for PC in order to find and remove duplicate files on Windows 11 and Windows 10. Here is why:

Efficiency: Third-party tools are specifically designed to find and remove duplicates, making the process faster and more accurate.

Customization: These tools often provide detailed options to customize the search, allowing you to exclude certain files or directories.

Ease of Use: Most of these tools come with user-friendly interfaces, making it easier even for non-technical users to remove duplicates.

While Windows 11/10 offers many great built-in features, managing duplicate files requires specialized tools that are best provided by third-party duplicate file remover software for PC.

QuinnQuinn Unfortunately, Windows 11 does not have a duplicate file remover designed for finding and removing duplicate files. While Windows 11 includes tools like Storage Sense and Disk Cleanup to help manage disk space by deleting temporary files and unnecessary system files, these tools do not target duplicate files.

To find and remove duplicate files on Windows 11, you'll need to use third-party duplicate file remover software specifically designed for this task.

If you want to go a simpler route without extra software to find and remove duplicate files, you can manually search for duplicates by using Windows' built-in search feature, although this method is more tedious:

• File Explorer: Open File Explorer.
• Search: Navigate to a folder where you suspect duplicates live, like Downloads or Documents.
• Search Bar: In the search bar, type the name of the file you think may be duplicated.
• Sort and Compare: Sort the results by name or size and manually review the files.

This method is harder and takes more time, especially if you have many files.

Steps to Use a Duplicate File Finder to find and remove duplicate files on Windows 10/11:

1. Download and Install: Choose one of the tools above, download it, and install it on your computer. Launch the duplicate file finder you installed.
2. Select the Folders to Scan: Choose the folders or drives you want to check for duplicates. You can scan specific folders like Documents, Downloads, or Pictures, or scan your entire disk. Adjust the settings if necessary. For example, you might want to search for exact duplicates (same file name and size) or similar files (with minor differences).
3. Run the Scan: Start the scanning process. Depending on how many files you have, this might take a little while. Once the scan is complete, the software will show you a list of duplicate files. Take a moment to review them. Most tools will let you preview the files, which is great for ensuring you don't delete something important!
4. Select and Remove: Choose the duplicates you want to delete. You can usually select them all at once or pick specific ones. Once you've made your selection, hit the delete button. After deleting the duplicates, don't forget to empty your Recycle Bin to free up that space!

Using the Command Prompt to find and remove duplicate files on Windows 11 involves utilizing PowerShell or batch scripts. This approach is more technical but can be effective for users who are comfortable with command-line tools. Here's how you can do it with a batch script:

Get-ChildItem -Recurse | 
Get-FileHash | 
Group-Object Hash | 
Where-Object { $_.Count -gt 1 } | 
ForEach-Object { $_.Group | Select-Object -Skip 1 } |
Remove-Item

After running the script, you can verify that duplicates are removed by checking the directory manually or by running the script again to see if any duplicates remain.

This is a very powerful method to find and remove duplicate files on Windows 10 and can handle large directories efficiently, but it's also risky because it involves directly deleting files. If you're not comfortable with this approach, using a dedicated duplicate file finder tool might be safer.