Recover Deleted Files on Windows and Mac: Step by Step
You deleted something you needed. Maybe it was a folder of photos, a tax spreadsheet or a school project, and now the Recycle Bin looks empty or the file was never there. Before you panic, there are several places a copy might still be sitting, and the order you check them in matters.
The first rule is to stop saving new things to that computer until you have looked. When a file is deleted, the data often stays on the drive until something else is written over it. Installing programs, downloading files and even browsing the web all write data in the background.
Step 1: Check the Recycle Bin or Trash
On Windows, open the Recycle Bin on the desktop. Use the search box in the top right if you remember part of the file name, or sort by Date Deleted. Right-click the file and choose Restore to put it back where it came from.
On a Mac, click the Trash in the Dock. Right-click the item and choose Put Back. If you cannot see it, search the Trash by name.
Items deleted from a USB drive, a network drive or by pressing Shift+Delete skip the Recycle Bin, so move on to the next steps if you used any of those.
Step 2: Search the whole computer
Sometimes the file was moved, not deleted. In Windows, open File Explorer and search for the file name from This PC so it searches every drive. On a Mac, use Spotlight (Command + Space) or open Finder and search “This Mac”.
If you do not remember the name, search by type, such as *.docx or *.jpg, and sort by date modified.
Step 3: Check cloud storage
Many people have a copy in the cloud without realizing it.
- OneDrive: sign in at onedrive.com and open the Recycle bin. Personal accounts keep deleted files for 30 days.
- Google Drive: open Trash in the left menu. Items stay there for 30 days.
- iCloud Drive: at icloud.com, open Recently Deleted in Drive. These are also kept for 30 days.
- Dropbox: open Deleted files in the left menu on the website.
Windows also syncs your Desktop, Documents and Pictures folders to OneDrive if you turned that on, so a file you deleted from the computer may still be in OneDrive.
Step 4: Look at your backups
On Windows, there are two built-in options that only help if they were switched on before the loss.
- Right-click the folder where the file used to be and choose Show more options > Restore previous versions. If a version appears, open it and drag out the file you need.
- If you use File History, search for Restore your files with File History in the Start menu and browse back to a date before you deleted it.
On a Mac, if you use Time Machine, open the folder where the file lived, click the Time Machine icon in the menu bar and choose Browse Time Machine Backups. Scroll back, select the file and click Restore.
If you plug in an external drive for backups, check it now. Third-party backup services will usually have a restore page on their website.
Step 5: Try recovery software
If the file is not in any of those places, recovery software can scan the drive for data that has not been overwritten yet. Some points matter a lot here:
- Install the software on a different drive, or run it from a USB stick. Installing it on the drive you are recovering from can overwrite the very files you want.
- Save the recovered files to a different drive as well.
- Microsoft offers a free command-line tool called Windows File Recovery in the Microsoft Store. It works from Command Prompt and is not very friendly, but it comes from Microsoft.
- Be wary of random search ads for “free recovery”. Use a well-known product from its own website.
Results depend on the drive. On a traditional hard drive, deleted data often survives for a while. Most modern laptops use SSDs, which clear deleted data more aggressively in the background, so recovery after emptying the bin is less certain and gets worse with time.
Step 6: Recovering from a memory card, USB stick or phone
Memory cards and USB sticks have no Recycle Bin. Stop using the card, take it out of the camera or device, and run recovery software on a computer with the card plugged in. Do not format it, even if the computer offers to.
On an iPhone, open Photos > Albums > Recently Deleted, where photos stay for 30 days. In Google Photos, open Library > Bin to look for deleted photos and videos.
When to call a technician
Recovery gets riskier the longer you keep trying things on the same drive. Call for help if:
- The drive is making clicking, grinding or beeping sounds. Turn it off and stop using it.
- The computer will not start, but you need what is on it.
- The files are important and recovery software only found part of them.
- You accidentally formatted a drive or reinstalled Windows.
- Water or physical damage is involved.
For failing drives and lost files, our data recovery and backup service covers assessing the drive and getting data off it where that is possible. If a drive is not even showing up, read what to do when an external hard drive is not showing up before you try anything else. We work with people in Victoria, Saanich and Langford on-site, remotely or by drop-off, and you can also reach out through our home tech support page if you are not sure where to start. We will tell you what is realistic before any work begins.
Set up so it does not happen again
Once you have your file back, spend ten minutes on a backup. Turn on File History or Time Machine with an external drive, and keep your important folders synced to a cloud service. A good habit is to keep a copy of anything irreplaceable in two places. Then a deleted file is a small annoyance instead of a lost one.