When it comes to data recovery, there are a few things to consider before you jump in. If it's a straightforward situation and you have just accidentally deleted a file and want it back, then you can easily use any of the programs listed below. Even if it's a bit more complicated than that, many of the programs below can still help.
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However, if you are experiencing physical drive failure, there could be numerous causes and, in some cases, the best thing you can do is unplug your drive and leave it for the professionals.
If your drive is damaged, whether it's been dropped, you've spilled liquid on it, or you can hear your hard drive clicking or making other unusual noises, then stop what you are doing and don't attempt software-based recovery methods. No program is going to help you recover files from a physically damaged disk, and trying may only damage it further, which you don't want. Not all hope is lost though, and while it may be costly, if you need the data back, you can send it off to specialists who use cleanrooms and, in many cases, can restore the drive and retrieve the data from it.
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There are several common symptoms of failing storage drives outside physical damage. If you notice your storage drive is running very slow but isn't full, it could be failing. If you are experiencing files or folders just disappearing, then it could also be a sign your storage drive is on its way out. The file and folder names may even start to become scrambled, or you may notice weird symbols in files, etc. You may face errors when trying to write, move, or save files, all of which are further indications that something just isn't right. If you are experiencing any of this, you may want to check your drive's health first before proceeding with one of the below programs for data recovery.
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Once you decide to proceed with software-based recovery, here are our top recommendations.
5 Glarysoft File Recovery Free
Glarysoft File Recovery Free will restore files from your Recycle Bin, HDD, SSD, USB, and even SD cards. You can recover a wide range of file types, including documents, pictures, videos, emails, and much more. Glarysoft File Recovery Free will even sort your files out automatically based on size, type, name, and more. It can scan FAT, NTFS, and NTFS + EFS file systems, giving you the most options to help recover your files.
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The Glarysoft File Recovery Free has an easy-to-use interface. When it first loads, it will ask you to select the drive you want to scan. Once the drive is selected, it will start to automatically scan it for files. Once you have found the lost file you are looking for, there is a small button in the bottom right corner that says Recover, just click that and follow the instructions to save your file. If you need more features and don't mind paying, there is also an Upgrade button in the top right-hand corner.
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4 Stellar Data Recovery Free
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Stellar Data Recovery Free can help you recover deleted files, documents, photos, and other crucial data. It can recover the data from formatted, corrupted, or encrypted drives and the free version allows you to recover up to 1GB of data for free, without the need to enter your credit card details. Like most similar programs, it can recover data from HDDs, SSDs, USB drives, SD/CF cards, and more. Basically, if it can store files and be used by Windows, Stellar Data Recovery Free can find your lost files.
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It, too, has a fairly easy-to-use interface and, from the time of installation, will guide you through the steps needed to recover your files. It also has a nice preview file pane, so if you are looking for photos, you can see exactly what you will be recovering, taking out the guesswork based on filenames alone. All in all, Stellar Data Recovery Free makes the process quick and easy to recover your data.
3 Wise Data Recovery
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Wise Data Recovery allows users to recover files whether they were deleted from the storage disk, if the disk was reformatted, or if they've suffered a virus attack. Wise Data Recovery is free to recover up to 2GB of photos, videos, documents, and even emails. Said files can be recovered from local drives, external drives, USD drives, SD cards, mobile phones, and more. It also offers a wide range of recovery of different formats across all file types, making sure your lost files are not gone forever.
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The interface is easy to understand. It groups files by type in the left-hand pane. For instance, it will list audio, click that, and then in the main pane it will list all the different audio extensions so you can navigate to the one you need. You can also switch to the file path view, which is great if you know where the file you are looking for was stored before it was deleted. Using a combination of the two options should make it fairly easy to find what you are looking for in most cases.
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2 Recuva
Recuva is a well-known file recovery program that has been around for almost 20 years at this point. The free version only allows for advanced file recovery, but this is exactly what we're after. You can recover files from damaged or newly formatted disks. Recuva can also deep scan your drives to find even more files than some of the other programs with similar features. Recuva can find files on your Windows PC storage, external media, and even your MP3 player, giving you the best chance of recovering your lost files.
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The interface for Recuva is a bit plain and basic at first. It just lists a bunch of files in what seems to be no real order at all. You will want to click on Advanced mode, which will let you select what drive you want to view and even give you a preview of the files you want to recover where applicable. It isn't as intuitive as some of the other programs, but it does work and very well. It just takes much longer to search through all the files to find what you need.
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1 EaseUS
EaseUS is probably one of the most well-known and most popular data recovery programs out there. While I have only had to personally use it a couple of times to recover photos from SD cards, it has worked flawlessly when needed. As with all the other options we have looked at, it has a limited free version which can allow you to recover up to 2GB of files for free. You can restore deleted files such as documents, pictures, videos, emails, and more from your Recycle Bin, HDD, USB, SSD, and more. You can even use it in some cases to help repair corrupted files thanks to its file repair features, which makes it more useful than a lot of other data recovery programs.
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The interface will allow you to switch between file paths or type views, making it seamlessly easy to find your lost files. When it comes to downloading the program, make sure you get the free version with up to 2GB recovery and not the trial version of the pro program. If you get the trial version, you will only be able to view files and not recover them without the need to pay first. However, as mentioned, the proper free version will let you recover up to 2GB of files.
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Why would I pay to recover my files?
There are a couple of reasons. One is that you may need to recover more files than the free versions of the programs will allow. In most cases, you will only be able to recover 1-2GB worth of files, which may not be enough. If you have deleted all your holiday photos, odds are the volume will be much higher than that. You may also want some of the advanced features that these programs offer, such as support, computer cleaning, and deleting files so that they can not be recovered.
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In most cases, you should at least be able to see the files you want to recover in the free version of all the programs mentioned in this article. From there, you can then decide if the free version is enough or if you need to look into buying the software. If you are looking to buy, make sure to check out a couple of different pieces of software to make sure they come with the advanced features you will need. Also, remember that not every lost file can be recovered, but with these programs, you stand a very good chance.
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