Uninstalling bloated programs and process-hogging applications is one of the most critical ways to keep your system’s performance snappy. Unfortunately, the built-in Windows uninstaller is limited when it comes to removing leftover files and residue.

Wise Program Uninstaller takes it up a notch as an alternative solution. When you first fire up the program, you’re greeted with some basic options and metrics. The bottom status bar lets you know how many running programs are installed and how much space is occupied. There are two main uninstall approaches: safe and forced.

Safe uninstall guides you through the default uninstallation process and gives you the option to remove any related files, folders, and registry entries. Forced uninstalls are used more for cases where programs are more stubborn about being removed. Wise Program Uninstaller also offers a repair option for faulty installations, though reinstalling would probably get stabler results.

The interface is fairly clean: it’s not too cluttered and there are no unnecessary features or buttons. One additional feature we appreciated was the ability to go directly to the registry editor for each installed program by right-clicking on an installed item. There’s also a seemingly random “like” button placed, which, to be quite frank, we can only imagine a very small audience using to publicly declare their affection for a system utility. But, hey, whatever floats your boat.

Wise Program Uninstaller is a lean and mean cleaning machine. We definitely prefer it over the stock Windows control panel and definitely recommend it for anyone who frequently maintains a PC.