I used this program for many years and like it. It keeps my computer running well. I would like to continue using it, but the program became excessively expensive. So I am switching to Ashampoo. It i... See more
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Review summary
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Reviews shaping this summary
trying to install system mechanic in new laptop and entering my current license number errors with unable to find license. Is there a different downloadable app that allows me to enter my current lic... See more
Company replied
though i really like Sys Mech I prefer the CD version best. it's easier to install and if i ever need to upgrade or make changes to my system all i have to do is put the cd in my drive.
Company replied
I'm fairly happy with the performance of System mechanic keeping my PC clean. But I'm rather disgusted with additional surprise charges and constant up-sell pop-ups. I signed up for a discounted year... See more
Company replied
Company details
Written by the company
Rated #1 by PC Magazine for 8 years in a row, iolo’s flagship performance optimization suite System Mechanic® has been downloaded by over 100 million people worldwide. Located at 150 South Los Robles Avenue Suite 400, iolo is your trusted partner for superior PC performance and protection. Specializing in system optimization and automated computer maintenance, we deliver cutting-edge PC software solutions to boost your device's speed and efficiency. Our top-tier privacy software ensures robust browsing privacy and malware removal, safeguarding your digital experience. iolo is committed to enhancing your computer's performance while securing your online presence. Choose iolo for unmatched expertise in privacy and PC optimization solutions.
New System Mechanic® Ultimate Defense™
All-in-one online privacy, password manager, antivirus, and pc cleaner
More than your average PC tune-up software. Speed up, secure, and simplify your digital life with iolo’s all-in-one Windows® optimization, antivirus, and online privacy software suite.
Contact info
150 South Los Robles Avenue, 91101-4675, Pasadena, United States
- 8015236763
- Reputation@RealDefen.se
- www.iolo.com
3.9
Great
4K reviews
No recent history of asking for reviews
This company hasn't invited customers recently, so reviews may not be representative
Replied to 98% of negative reviews
Typically replies within 1 week
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Don't bother trying to cancel. Lots of help if you want to buy though.
With system Mechanic pro installed, a scammer got thru. I installed another well known security software and System Mech was a conflict. I have tried for an hour to cancel the auto subscription which they applied, but none - zero - of their contacts work. Email, chat, customer service email. Subscription is supposed to be managed in the account, but I do not have an account. How can I have a subscription without opening the account? So I'm stuck. Fortunately, the card number they have is now void, so they will find out when they debit it.
August 29, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from iolo
Hi Stuart, I’m really sorry to hear about the trouble you’ve had with System Mechanic Pro. I can imagine how frustrating it must have been to deal with both a security concern and then spend so much time trying to get in touch with support without success. Please accept my apologies for the stress this has caused.
I also want to acknowledge your feedback about subscription management and conflicts with other software. That’s valuable input, and I’ll make sure it’s passed along so improvements can be made to prevent similar issues for others.
If you’d like, please reach out to me directly at Reputation@RealDefen.se
and I’ll personally help you get this sorted out. I want to make sure you aren’t left stuck and that your subscription concerns are fully resolved.
SIMPLE AND EFFECTIVE EXIT PROCESS.
August 26, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from iolo
Thanks so much for the great feedback, Mitchell! We’re glad to know the exit process was simple and effective, and we appreciate you sharing your experience.
Best,
RealDefense Reputation Manager
Moving from Free to 1 year
Moving from Free to 1 year, great product as I am coming back from Apple.
August 23, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from iolo
Thanks so much for the great feedback, Eric! We’re glad to hear the transition to a 1-year subscription has been smooth and that you’re enjoying the product after switching back from Apple.
Best,
RealDefense Reputation Manager
Repeated Spam From Iolo
I signed up for a trial of System Mechanic some years ago, found it was not what I wanted, and cancelled my trial. Lately I have been getting spam emails several times a week asking me to "re-activate my subscription". I have tried to unsubscribe multiple times and even spoken to customer support, all to no avail. My recommendation would be to avoid this company like the plague.
August 25, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from iolo
We’re sorry to hear about your experience, William, and thank you for letting us know. We understand how frustrating it must be to keep receiving emails after canceling a trial, especially when unsubscribe attempts and support outreach haven’t resolved the issue.
That’s not the level of service or communication we want our customers to have. Our goal is always to make it easy to manage subscriptions and communication preferences, and it’s clear we fell short in your case. Your feedback is being shared internally so we can improve how we handle unsubscribe requests moving forward.
Please contact me directly at reputation@realdefen.se with the email address receiving these messages, and I’ll make sure this is addressed quickly and thoroughly.
Best,
RealDefense Reputation Manager
Long time user, but too expensive
I used this program for many years and like it. It keeps my computer running well.
I would like to continue using it, but the program became excessively expensive. So I am switching to Ashampoo. It is recommended by AI apps.
August 13, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from iolo
Thanks for your feedback, Peter. We’re glad to hear you’ve had a positive experience with our program over the years and that it’s helped keep your computer running well. We understand your concern about pricing and will share it with our team for consideration. Appreciate you choosing iolo and we hope to serve you again in the future.
great experience high trust making…
great experience high trust making application
July 13, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from iolo
Thanks so much for the great feedback, Ashish! We’re glad to hear you had a great experience and find our application trustworthy. Appreciate you choosing iolo!
Scam company with convenient cancellation issues
I just got off the phone with this company. I just got charged 90.34 for a subscription that I thought I cancelled in Feb 2024. I have a subscription cancellation email, but they claimed that was for a different product. I called just a few hours after the payment processed, but they refused to refund my money. They also had been sending me emails telling me that I was about to lose my license and saying that I needed to renew the subscription, further adding to the belief that this had been cancelled. This is outright scammer behavior. No legitimate company with a desire to treat their customers right would behave like this. They are aware that I have not used their software in at least a year, as well, because I get emails telling me that I'm past-due for a system check-up. Thanks for doing me a solid there. /s
August 8, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from iolo
We’re sorry to hear about your experience, Tom, and appreciate you taking the time to share these concerns. We understand how upsetting it can be to see an unexpected charge and to feel that the process was not transparent. We also take your comments about communication, renewal notices, and the service experience very seriously.
While our records show that subscriptions include an auto-renewal to prevent service interruption, we recognize that this may not have been clearly understood in your case. We also want to be clear that we do not intentionally design our software or pop-ups to mislead or cause alarm, and your feedback will be reviewed internally to ensure our practices align with that commitment.
Please contact me directly at reputation@realdefen.se with your order details so I can personally review your account and see what can be done to make this right.
Logan D.
RealDefense Reputation Manager
I have relied upon System Mechanic for…
I have relied upon System Mechanic for years to keep my PC clean and clutter free.
August 3, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from iolo
Thank you for the kind words, Lou! It's our goal to provide reliable service and protection. We appreciate your continued support of System Mechanic and iolo.
I recently tried to cancel my…
I recently tried to cancel my subscription, as it was due for renewal in under a month. I chatted with a staff member and received confirmation by email it was cancelled. However I noticed Iolo had taken another year's subscription out of my bank.
They decided to auto renew my subscription a moth early, uncannily on the day I canceled it. They also charged me £20 a moth for unwanted tech advice, until I canceled that.
A bunch of thieves, avoid.
August 3, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from iolo
Dave,
I’m very sorry to hear about your experience. I completely understand how upsetting it must have been to see your subscription renewed on the same day you requested cancellation, along with the additional charges for tech support that you didn’t want. That’s certainly not the type of experience we want for any of our customers.
I’d like to take a closer look at your account and review exactly what happened with the timing of the auto-renewal and the tech support billing. Situations like this are rare, but they are understandably frustrating when they occur, and we want to make sure any incorrect charges are addressed promptly.
Please contact me directly at reputation@realdefen.se with your account details so I can personally investigate and work toward a resolution. I want to ensure this is handled properly and restore your confidence in how we manage our subscriptions.
Logan D.
RealDefense Reputation Manager
Shocking Service
I have been a customer for some years on again renewing this year was offered the upgrade to Byepass+ which I installed on my Laptop. It was sometime before I realised my Byepass version on my Mobile phone was still the old version and was not now updating with any new or changed passwords. On contacting support was informed Bypass had NEVER been compatible with IOS.?? and certainly the new version was not. I was then contacted by their support who informed me the new version was not compatible with IOS and I would have to wait for when it was and as a ending comment he informed me they were closing the old version soon where does that leave customers with the Password software on their mobiles did not seem interested.
July 31, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from iolo
David,
Thank you for sharing your experience. I’m sorry for the confusion and frustration caused by the ByePass+ upgrade and the lack of iOS compatibility. I completely understand how concerning it is to learn that your mobile passwords are no longer syncing and that the old version may soon be retired.
Your feedback highlights an important gap in communication about platform support, and I apologize that this left you feeling uncertain about your password access on mobile devices. I’ve shared your comments with our team so they can review how we communicate compatibility and provide better guidance for customers like yourself.
If you’d like, please reach out to me directly at reputation@realdefen.se so I can assist with reviewing your account and keep you updated on the iOS status. We want to make sure you feel supported while awaiting the mobile solution.
Logan D.
RealDefense Reputation Manager
Reply from iolo
Lynda,
Thanks for your feedback. I’m sorry to hear the exit questions felt annoying — we appreciate you sharing that, and I’ll pass it along to the team for review.
If there's anything else you'd like to share about your experience, feel free to reach out.
No refunds for cancelled renewal until after reviewed here.
I've had System Mechanic for some years and am pleased with it.However, the Tech support was added without my noticing it and automatically renewed in June.As I'm in the UK I don't want to ring the States for support as I have it locally.I used the chat facility,and it was cancelled on 8th July. But another renewal payment was taken the same day.I returned to the chat today and was told it was cancelled but he couldn't refund the payment; against the rules.Not good enough.
After writing this,I was contacted and offered a refund.Good, but it's a pity it took an adverse review here to get action.I said that,and apparently he will raise it with the company.So, there might eventually be change, but don't hold your breath !
July 19, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from iolo
Thanks for your continued support, Stella — we're glad to hear you've been pleased with System Mechanic. I'm very sorry about the billing experience and have flagged this for further review; please reach out to me directly at reputation@realdefen.se so I can help resolve it.
Best,
Logan D.
RealDefense Reputation Manager
Buyer beware
Buyer beware. The product is fair, but upon signup, one triggers a negative option contract term that subscribes one to a $20+ monthly charge for "tech support". If one misses this and does not call (yes, that's the only way) to cancel, they won't refund any but the current period charge. I judge that a disgusting practice, and a reason to not use their products. (Update: upon using the contact email address shown above, I was given a full refund. But that was after two calls in which I was denied even speaking with a supervisor (they're all in a meeting, you know), and was told that it was not possible to issue such a refund and there was no one higher up the food chain to petition. The company clearly has a policy to take your money and try to keep it by making it difficult and lying to you, but then when challenged in public, like this, they make nice and resolve in customer's favor to maintain an appearance of decency. Why would a company need a Reputation Manager if they were acting with integrity? They wouldn't. Not good faith practices, not to be trusted with your credit card, not to be supported. And so why am I trusting them with my computer's health and security anyway? I don't know.)
July 2, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from iolo
Hello ch,
I deeply apologize for the poor experience you've had. Please know that your feedback is taken to heart and leading to internal improvements.
If you need any more assistance or would like to share more feedback, please don't hesitate to reach back out to me at reputation@realdefen.se.
Best,
Logan D.
Reputation Manager
IOLO just collects money
IOLO just collects money. They said I had a subscription when I cancelled over a year ago. I had called them over a year ago and they kept it active. To my surprise I was charged a year later. Stay away from this company.
The company has replied and has taken action hopefully in the right direction. Common sense from the manager was better than the Tech support help in this case.
July 10, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from iolo
Hi Charles,
I’m very sorry to hear about the charge you received and the trouble surrounding your canceled subscription. We understand how frustrating it is to be billed unexpectedly, especially after taking the time to cancel in advance. That’s not the experience we want for any customer.
Situations like this are taken seriously, and your comments have been flagged internally so we can better understand what happened. While our systems are designed to honor cancellations, we clearly missed the mark in your case, and I regret the inconvenience this caused you.
I’d like to personally look into your account and make sure this is resolved properly. Please contact me at reputation@realdefen.se so I can assist further and help set things right.
Best,
Logan D.
RealDefense Reputation Manager
Certainly NOT the solution
I got the message that my laptop was cluttered...so I bought what IOLO suggested, and I continue to get the message after 2-3 days..always. It didn't seem to do anything for my laptop.
July 7, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from iolo
Hi Snowbug,
I’m sorry to hear the product didn’t meet your expectations and that you're still receiving clutter notifications after purchase. That’s definitely not the experience we want for our users, especially when you've taken steps to improve performance based on our recommendation.
There could be a number of factors at play, and I’d like to make sure you’re getting the full benefit of the software. Sometimes a quick settings adjustment or one-time cleanup can resolve the issue entirely. We want to help make that happen.
Please contact out tech support agents at (801)340-1991 or reach out to me directly at reputation@realdefen.se so I can take a closer look and ensure everything is working as it should. I appreciate you sharing your experience, and I’d like the opportunity to improve it.
Logan D.
RealDefense Reputation Manager
ByePass+ upgrade not so good
Google Chrome blocked access to the Iolo ByePass extension (and I couldn't re-enable the extension to backup information stored). Iolo advised installing ByePass+, which I've done. Now I'm unable to access any of my previously stored passwords using ByePass+.
I've used Iolo ByePass for years. This is the first glitch... but what a stuff up. Iolo is a large corporation that charges a substantial fee for its password management software, which failed to deliver a seamless upgrade. No warning of the impending Google Chrome issue. No advice from Iolo to upgrade to ByePass+ before the new Google Chrome release.
Iolo support has resolved my issue (by reinstalling the old ByePass on a different browser and exporting data etc); however, I was without access to my information for several days.
July 12, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from iolo
Hi JustAntszy,
Thank you for your honest and detailed review. I’m sorry for the disruption caused by the ByePass+ upgrade and the lack of advance communication about the Chrome extension changes.
While I’m glad our support team was ultimately able to recover your information through a workaround, the delay and inconvenience you faced shouldn’t have happened. We understand how critical secure access is when it comes to password management, and we’re reviewing this internally to ensure future transitions are handled with greater care and transparency.
If there’s anything still unresolved, please feel free to reach out to me at reputation@realdefen.se — I’d be happy to assist further. We truly appreciate your long-time support and candid feedback.
Logan D.
RealDefense Reputation Manager
Scammy Experience
Saw good reviews on Tech Radar and Toms Hardware and was tired of Norton and IOBITS popups and up sale attempts. I read the material, bought the basic version and then downloaded it. The download was the free version. I had an activation code so used the chat feature to ask how to get the full version and activate.
It turned into a fiasco. He wanted control of the computer. He started the whole "your not really protected unless you purchase Ultimate."
What an ordeal. Now. after 1/2 an hour of misery, I can wait up to two billing cycles for my money to be refunded. Please, just one decent Company!
July 13, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from iolo
Hi John,
Thank you for sharing your experience — I’m really sorry to hear how frustrating and disappointing it turned out. What you described is not the kind of onboarding or support experience we ever want customers to go through, especially after choosing us based on trusted reviews.
We take situations like this seriously, and I want to make sure your feedback leads to meaningful changes. You should never feel misled or unsupported during the setup process.
Please contact me directly at reputation@realdefen.se so I can personally review your case and help ensure the refund is processed properly. I’d like the chance to turn this around and restore your trust.
Logan D.
RealDefense Reputation Manager
Byepass password manager is no longer supported by Chrome/Google
I have been using System Mechanic for quite a few years now, especially the Byepass password manager through the Chrome extension. A couple months ago, I received a warning in Chrome that the extension was no longer supported. Today, Chrome turned it off as IOLO clearly has not updated the extension to comply with Chrome Store requirements.
When I called IOLO customer support, the woman tried to upsell ME to include technical support on my license. No matter how much I explained that this was not MY issue, she would not relent..
July 11, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from iolo
Hi David,
Thank you for taking the time to share this. I’m sorry for the inconvenience you experienced with the Byepass Chrome extension — and for the frustration during your support call. You’re absolutely right to expect continued compatibility and helpful service, especially as a long-time System Mechanic user.
We understand how important browser extension support is, so please know that your feedback is being taken seriously.
Please reach out to me directly at reputation@realdefen.se so I can look into this further and ensure your concerns are addressed the right way. I appreciate your continued use of our software and want to help get things back on track.
Logan D.
RealDefense Reputation Manager
Reply from iolo
Thanks for the feedback, Jerry! We're glad the issue was understood right away and resolved quickly — that’s exactly what we aim for.
Both support members were very…
Both support members were very knowledgeable and expedited my issues in a timely manner. Since I rely on my Computer for business it was essential and have saved the day. Hats off to the support team
July 8, 2025
Unprompted review
Reply from iolo
Thanks so much for the kind words, James! We're thrilled our support team could step in quickly and get everything resolved — especially when it mattered most for your business.
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