Recuva File Recovery: A Full Review of the Best File Undelete Tool (2024)

At some point, everyone deletes something they shouldn't have deleted. Usually, the solution is to restore the file from the Recycle Bin, but what if you've already emptied the Recycle Bin? In that case, a file recovery program like Recuva can help.

Recuva is one of the best free file recovery software tools available, and it's my personal favorite choice that I always recommend before similar tools. It's easy to use and is as effective as any other freeware or premium file recovery program on the market. It was developed by Piriform, the makers of CCleaner, another outstanding product.

Recuva File Recovery: A Full Review of the Best File Undelete Tool (1)

The current version of Recuva is v1.53.2096, which was released June 13, 2023. It's available in a free version that doesn't include support or automatic updates like Recuva Professional.

Recuva Pros and Cons

I've used Recuva almost exclusively over the competition for several years now, and there's very little to complain about.

What We Like

  • Comes in both installable and portable versions.

  • Contains a simple wizard and advanced options.

  • Supports a wide range of Windows operating systems.

What I Don't Like

Recuva Features

  • The easy-to-use wizard asks the important questions and does the hard work behind the scenes
  • It's available in a portable version, making installation unnecessary
  • A quick standard scan and an optional deep scan cover all the technological bases in the search for recoverable files
  • Recuva supports scanning inside files so that you can find documents that contain a particular text string
  • It can recover files from hard drives, USB drives, memory cards, BD/DVD/ CDs, and MP3 players, even if they're damaged, corrupted, or recently reformatted
  • You can securely overwrite the files the program finds to ensure that nobody else can restore the files you see in the results. The overwrite methods include DoD 5220.22-M, NSA, Gutmann, and Secure Erase
  • If you enable the option in the settings, the folder structure can be restored along with the file
  • Both 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Recuva are available
  • It supports drives as large as 3 TB

Installing Recuva

To get started, visit the program's website and download the version you want. The best option for someone who already has files to recover is the portable download (get it here, hosted on Softonic). This allows you to avoid installing anything after discovering that you need to recover a file. If you are downloading the program for future use and don't have any files to recover, the standard installable download is fine.

A file recovery program can only recover a file deleted from your computer if the same space on the hard drive hasn't already been used by another file. Every time something is saved or installed, the chance that your file will be recoverable decreases. Using the portable version of Recuva prevents it from overwriting anything during installation.

If you download the portable app, you need to extract the program from the ZIP archive. Once you do so, run either recuva.exe or recuva64.exe, depending on whether you're running a 32-bit or 64-bit version of Windows.

Running Recuva

When the program starts, you're presented with a wizard where you choose the kind of file you're looking for, such as mail or music, and where it was last located, such as in a specific folder, drive, disc, or another device, if you have the information. You don't need to know its previous location, but it can help in the search for deleted files if you do.

You can choose All Files from the wizard to have Recuva search for all file types so that it doesn't limit the results to just specific ones like pictures, videos, emails or one of the other categories. You can see which file types are included in each category from their website. If you use the Deep Scan mode, only certain file types are found.

After a quick scan, you're presented with a list of recoverable files. Recovering one of the deleted files is as easy as selecting it and clicking Recover.

At any time, you can switch to Advanced Mode, which reveals options and additional sorting abilities, such as to preview a file or read its header information.

If a file has gone missing from your mistake, a virus infection or a system crash, there is a good chance that this tool can find it. There's no guarantee that it can successfully recovery any particular deleted file, but it's your best bet.

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Recuva File Recovery: A Full Review of the Best File Undelete Tool (2024)

FAQs

Recuva File Recovery: A Full Review of the Best File Undelete Tool? ›

Yes, it does helps to recover files on your Windows PC, it really works, but not works all the time. There are occasions you fail to recover a file using Recuva, especially when your files are lost for a long time. Also, you are always recommended to use Advanced Scan if you want Recuva works better for you.

Can Recuva recover permanently deleted files? ›

Recuva is a free app that will undelete files you accidentally removed from your computer. You can get the tool from https://www.ccleaner.com/recuva. The free version of the tool should be enough for recovering most deleted files.

Is Recuva 100% free? ›

Recuva is often known as free data recovery software. Indeed, Recuva offers a free version you can use to recover an unlimited amount of data. Size limitations won't greet you like on other recovery platforms. However, there is a Recuva Professional version priced at $24.95.

Does Recuva really work? ›

As with other file recovery programs Recuva works by looking for unreferenced data, but if the operating system has written new data over a deleted file then recovery will often not be possible.

How do I recover permanently deleted files? ›

Here are four of the most usual deleted file recovery methods.
  1. Check Your Recycle Bin. Find the File. ...
  2. Use the Control Panel. If you can't find the file in the recycling bin, it could still be stored elsewhere on your computer. ...
  3. Use a Data Recovery Software. ...
  4. Hire a Data Recovery Service.
6 days ago

What files can Recuva recover? ›

There are thousands of file types and Recuva can identify the most important ones. Specifically, a Deep Scan has the ability to recover the following types of files: Graphics: BMP, JPG, JPEG, PNG, GIF, TIFF. Microsoft Office 2007 (or newer): DOCX, XLSX, PPTX.

How much does Recuva recovery cost? ›

Free: Recuva free version provides advanced file recovery. Professional: Recuva professional version costs $24.95 and provides all the services that are not accessible in the free version, including virtual hard drive support, automatic updates, and premium support.

Can Recuva fix corrupted files? ›

Recuva can also recover files from disks that may have become corrupt or damaged physically or through software.

Is Recuva safe and free? ›

The answer is YES. You can trust this recovery tool when encountering common data loss situations while using the computer, and it is totally safe and clean. Keep reading to find out why we should trust Recuva.

Is disk drill better than Recuva? ›

Disk Drill is ideal for industries like All Industries. For All Industries, Recuva is a better choice. If you are confused between Disk Drill or Recuva, you can also check if the software has customizable modules for your industry. Industry-specific functionalities will ensure higher efficiency and ROI.

Where can I download Recuva safely? ›

Click on https://www.ccleaner.com/recuva/download/standard, then click the Save File button in the download window.

Is Recuva free better than professional? ›

Recuva Free VS Pro

Recuva Free is 100% free to recover files, no limitations on file size, file quantities. Recuva Professional guarantees a higher recovery rate than Recuva Free, but it is not the best choice among those priced data recovery software.

Is Recuva better than easeus? ›

For All Industries, Recuva is a better choice. If you are confused between Easeus Data Recovery Wizard or Recuva, you can also check if the software has customizable modules for your industry. Industry-specific functionalities will ensure higher efficiency and ROI. However, do check for the hidden price, is any.

Are deleted files ever completely removed? ›

When you delete a file, it typically moves to the Recycle Bin or Trash, depending on your operating system. Emptying the Recycle Bin or Trash removes the reference to the file from the file system, but the actual data may still be recoverable until the space it occupies is overwritten by new data.

Is anything ever permanently deleted? ›

Bottom Line. If you want your data to be gone, don't just delete it; ERASE it. Deleted data can be recovered easily with a data recovery tool. And, if you erase data with a reliable data erasure tool, such as Stellar File Eraser, you can rest assured that your data is permanently wiped beyond the scope of recovery.

Why deleted files cannot be recovered? ›

Even after emptying the Recycle Bin, there is still a chance of data recovery if no new data is written on those specific sectors where the deleted files exist. If specific sectors of the hard disc are overwritten with new data, however, the odds of recovering deleted files are little to none.

Are permanently deleted files really gone? ›

When you permanently delete a file, the storage drive makes its space available for new data. However, the file is not deleted. It remains on the hard drive; only the file pointers get deleted. (The File pointer shows you where the file exists and keeps track of it being accessed.)

Can Recuva recover permanently deleted files from phone? ›

The Recuva data recovery for Android is supported by its Windows application. Therefore, you first need to connect your phone's SD card to the system in order to get the lost data back. Needless to say, it can also retrieve the lost content from Android's SD card and not its internal storage.

How far back can deleted files be recovered? ›

You are not sure when a deleted file can be overwritten. So, there is no fixed answer to how long is too long before a deleted file is unrecoverable. You might discover that some files that were deleted years ago are still recoverable. But, some files that were deleted recently become unrecoverable.

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