Top 10 Best File Recovery Software for Windows 10/8/7

Are you looking for the best file recovery software? We round up the top 10 best data recovery software to help you. You can use these tools to retrieve lost files, documents, videos, pictures, and more.

Is there any free file recovery software? How can I recover permanently deleted files for free? Where do deleted files or photos go? When you are faced with any one of these questions, what can you do? You can turn to the best file recovery software. 

Top 10 Best File Recovery Software in 2021 (Free & Paid)

Deleted files are often still present on your hard drive, USB drive, SD card, etc. and can be recovered using data recovery software. Data recovery software recovers corrupted or deleted data from numerous storage devices. You can use them to restore files, documents, videos, pictures, and more. Here is a list of the top 10 best file recovery software in 2021:

1. 1. EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard
2. 2. Stellar Data Recovery
3. 3. Recover My Files
4. 4. Recuva
5. 5. Data Rescue 5
6. 6. Disk Drill
7. 7. Puran File Recovery
8. 8. Windows File Recovery
9. 9. Glary Undelete
10. 10. Orion File Recovery

All hope is seemingly lost when you accidentally deleted important files or photos. Fortunately, you can get back lost data with the following data recovery software.

Top 1. EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard - File Recovery Software for Windows and Mac

Applies to Windows 10/8.1/8/7/Vista/XP and macOS 10.15 ~ 10.9

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard is the best free file recovery software compatible with both Windows and Mac devices. This data recovery software is straightforward to use. You can retrieve lost files with three simple steps. With this tool, you can undelete files from hard drives, USB flash drive, external hard drives, and more. If your lost data is less than 2GB, you can bring them back without any cost.

Pros:

• It works well on both Windows and Mac devices.
• The file recovery process is easy and fast.
• You can preview files prior to restoration.
• After the scanning process, you can sort files by file type, date, and name.
• You can repair MP4 or MOV files with this data recovery software.

Cons:

• You can recover 2GB data for free. If you want to recover more, you need to use the paid version.

Top 2. Stellar Data Recovery - DIY Software for Individuals

Applies to Windows 10/8.1/8/7/Vista/XP and macOS

Stellar Data Recovery is a tool that helps you to recover formatted, deleted, or lost data. It is a user-friendly application that allows you to retrieve all major file types and formats. If your data is no more than 1GB, you can get it back for free. Stellar data recovery software also allows you to make the free recovery of digital photo and video, audio library, PowerPoint deck, PDF and Word document, Excel workbook, email file, and more.

Pros:

• It is compatible with Windows PCs and Mac devices.
• It takes three steps to restore deleted files.
• It allows you to select file types before scanning.
• You can preview files before you save them.

Cons:

• You can only recover 1GB of data for free.
• Pricing starts at $49.99 for the Standard version up to $299 for the Toolkit.

Top 3. File Recovery Software - Recover My Files

Applies to Windows 10, 8 and 7

Recover My Files is a tool that helps you to recover data from hard disk, camera card, USB, Zip, floppy disk, iPod, and other media. With it, you can recover deleted files emptied from the Windows Recycle Bin and files lost due to the format or re-install of a hard drive or files removed by a virus, Trojan infection, unexpected system shutdown or software failure. This software also recovers data from NTFS, FAT(12/16/32), exFAT, HFS, HFS+.

Pros:

• It is compatible with Windows 10/8/7.
• You can preview files before the recovery process.
• This tool allows you to sort out files by date.

Cons:

• The free version only allows users to scan & preview deleted and lost data. 
• The operation steps are a little bit difficult due to the old-fashioned interface.

Top 4. Windows Files Recovery Software - Recuva

Applies to Windows 10/8.1/8/7/Vista/XP

Developed by Piriform, Recuva recovers files on your hard drive, memory cards, floppy disks, iPod or MP3 player, etc. It can also retrieve data from newly formatted or damaged discs. Recuva can undelete files in Windows 10, Windows 8.1 & 8, 7, Vista, and XP.

Pros:

• It allows previewing screen before final recovery.
• A wizard walkthrough makes it easy to use.
• It works on most Windows operating systems.

Cons:

• The free version doesn't support automatic updates, advanced file recovery, premium support, and virtual hard drive support.

Top 5. Data Rescue 5 for Windows File Recovery

Applies to Windows 7 or later and macOS

Data Rescue 5 provides a very intuitive interface with several basic options: Scan a drive to recover files, review a preview scan to make sure you got everything, and manage your drives to help save the data. With it, you can restore lost files after deletion, format, partition lost.

Pros:

• It allows previewing files before recovery.
• You can locate files by filters or searching.
• This software has a disk clone feature for data protection.

Cons:

• You can only run a full scan and preview your recoverable files with the demo version. If you want to recover data, you must pay for it.
• The quick scan doesn't work well while looking for some lost files.

Top 6. Windows and Mac File Recovery Software - Disk Drill

Applies to Windows and Mac

Disk Drill is a tool that provides a useful way to attempt recovery of permanently deleted files. It enables users to browse, search, and preview or read deleted files from NTFS and FAT volumes. With this tool, you can retrieve deleted files from flash drives, memory cards, and hard drives. Besides, it can recover any type of deleted files in Windows, including Office documents, messages, and media files quickly and easily.

Pros:

• It works with several different file systems.
• You can filter the results by size and date.
• It organizes deleted files by category for more comfortable viewing.

Cons:

• You can only recover 500 MB of data for free. If you want to get back more data, you have to pay for it.
• You can't preview the file before restoration.

Also read: 6 Best Free Disk Drill Alternatives for Mac Data Recovery

Top 7. Puran File Recovery 

Applies to Windows 10/8.1/8/7/Vista/XP

Puran File Recovery can be used to recover deleted or lost files. Almost everything that is detected as a drive can be scanned irrespective of its file system. Unlike other file recovery software, Puran Data Recovery recovers data from a damaged disk, CD, DVD, and any other media supported by Windows to a selected location. 

Pros:

• It has a very simple interface with a potent recovery engine.
• It works well on almost any Windows device.
• The recovered files can be saved with their path structure intact.
• This software skips bad sectors automatically while recovering files.

Cons:

• You cannot preview the result.
• You cannot filter the files you want to recover.
• Free for home use only (non-commercial).

Top 8. Windows File Recovery Powered by Microsoft

Applies to Windows 10 2004 and above

With the launch of an app called Windows File Recovery, Microsoft has decided to give us a first-party solution. It's a Win32 command-line app, described as a solution to recovering personal data that may have been accidentally deleted, perhaps while wiping a hard drive. It can recover most file types, with Microsoft listing JPEG, PDF, PNG, MPEG, Office files, MP3, MP4, and ZIP files. The only system requirement is the need to be running Windows 10 2004 or higher.

Pros:

• It recovers JPEG, PDF, PNG, MPEG, Office files, MP3 & MP4, ZIP files, and more.
• It is totally free to get back deleted files from HDD, SSD, USB, and memory cards.

Cons:

• It only works on Windows 10 2004 and above.
• You must use the command line to get back files according to the file types.

Top 9. Glary Undelete - Undelete Windows Files

Applies to Windows 10/8.1/8/7/Vista/XP

Glary Undelete is an excellent free file recovery program. This software includes the easy "Folders" view, an explorer-style view of recoverable file suggesting how likely a successful file recovery will be. It supports multiple file systems like NTFS, EFS, FAT, NTFS. Moreover, it can recover files that the user has compressed or fragmented or even encrypted on NTFS file system.

Pros:

• It is easy to recover deleted files with a simple interface.
• Explains very clearly whether the file will be recovered fully.
• It is free to bring back lost data or files on Windows.

Cons:

• The program hasn't updated in a long time.
• Setup attempts to install another program with Glary Undelete.

Top 10. Orion File Recovery

Applies to Windows 10/8.1/8/7/Vista/XP

Orion file recovery software opens with a wizard, which will guide you to either search and recover files or permanently delete files. It is a free file recovery program from NCH Software. This software searches for deleted files that are not overwritten on your computer. The unique feature is that it can permanently erase data from your hard drive to protect privacy.

Pros:

• You can filters search results by folder, file type, name, and more.
• It provides Recover File Wizard that guides you through the data recovery process.
• This software allows users to erase data.

Cons:

The scanning process is slightly slow.

You may install other utilities unintentionally during the installation of the software.

How to Recover Deleted Windows Files with the Best Tool

Is your drive starting to fail? Are files suddenly missing? You need to act fast. Use the best free file recovery software to recover deleted files. Here are the steps to get back deleted data or files:

Step 1. Launch EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard and select the location you would like to recover data from – such as the Recycle Bin or a hard drive. Click the "Scan" button to start looking for deleted files that can be recovered.

Step 2. When the scan completes, you can click the "Filter" menu or type in the "Search files or folders" field to home on certain files that match the criteria you specify.

Step 3. Select and preview files to determine which ones you would like to recover. Click the "Recover" button to restore them.

Conclusion

There are many more file recovery programs than those listed above. I've only included specific useful file recovery programs that also undelete wide ranges of files. If you still need help with a file recovery issue, you can refer to the comparison table below to get more information.

Best File Recovery Software FAQs

Free data recovery software can help recover deleted files. If you still have questions, you can read the following questions and answers.

What is the best free recovery software?

The best recovery software at a glance

1. 1. EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard
2. 2. Stellar Data Recovery
3. 3. Recover My Files
4. 4. Recuva
5. 5. Data Rescue 5
6. 6. Disk Drill
7. 7. Puran File Recovery
8. 8. Windows File Recovery
9. 9. Glary Undelete
10. 10. Orion File Recovery

Can data be recovered from a failed hard drive?

You can recover data from the dead hard drive in full. These files can be retrieved in full. But if you are currently not facing a dead hard disk drive, back up your data to be on the safer place. 

Also read: How to recover data from a dead or failed hard drive.

How much does it cost to recover data from a hard drive?

• If your data is no more than 2GB, it is free.
• If your data is more than 2GB, it only costs $69.95 with EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard.

Is it safe to use data recovery software?

Yes, but you must choose a trustworthy data recovery software. Outdated applications and solutions from unknown developers should be avoided because they could make the data loss worse or infect your computer with malware.