It happens most of the time with us. Maybe we forgot to back up an important file. Maybe the storm of the century left your office looking like Waterworld. Or maybe a cyber-attack took everything you held dear.
Don’t worry, there are tools that can dig deep into the architecture of your lost universe and retrieve these sacred scrolls of knowledge. Or, ya know, just recover that photo of you and your team members out last week.
There are many free data recovery software products available on the Internet. Some products are freeware while others offer free trial downloads of the tool for evaluation.
We’ve put together a list of the 5 best data recovery tools of 2022 that can be downloaded and tried for free.
1. Disk Drill Data Recovery (Windows & Mac)
Features:
- You can recover up to 500MB of data for free with Disk Drill for Windows.
- Unlike any other, the app has two important additional data loss prevention functionalities.
- The first, Recovery Vault, adds a layer to the Recycle Bin and keeps a backup reference to all deleted files.
- The second, Guaranteed Recovery, keeps a copy of each file moved to a previously selected folder, as for example the Recycle Bin.
- In addition, Disk Drill allows users to create image files in the form of ISO, IMG or DMG files.
- Therefore in practice, enables the user to conduct the data search in a clone, without taking any additional risk with the original source. This functionality is of particular importance in forensic science.
- Link to download Disk Drill Data recovery is below.
2. EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard (Windows & Mac)
Features:
- Group deleted files with Tags for simpler recovery;
- Greatly enhanced FAT recovery quality;
- Recover up to 2 GB of data for free for clicking the share button.
3. Recuva (Windows)
Developed by Piriform, Recuva can recover permanently deleted files, which have been marked as free space by the operating system.
This free data recovery software can work on hard drives, USB flash drives, memory cards, MP3 players, and other storage devices supported by FAT and NTFS file systems. The app comes in 32-bit and 64-bit versions. After the developer joined a bigger enterprise, the app has not been updated in several years.
In addition, Recuva is available in installable and portable form. The portable version has the advantage of not having to risk the possibility of overwriting the data still on a hard drive, and therefore losing extra megabytes due to its own deployment.
Features:
- Unlimited free data recovery with the standard version;
- Deep scan mode for hard to find files;
- It’s available in a portable version.
4. TestDisk Data Recovery (Windows & Mac)
TestDisk freeware solution is only applicable to partition recovery. It is a command-line tool that supports many operating systems and filesystems. The app is still supported by its developer and is available in a bootable version.
Features:
- Wide operating system and filesystem support;
- Recovers partitions, boot sectors, and file tables;
- Has a bootable version.
5. Minitool Power Data Recovery (Windows)
Minitool Power Data Recovery offers users a comprehensive data recovery tool that supports over 100 different file types. The application can restore lost and deleted data from many types of storage devices with a three-step recovery process.
A free version of the tool can be upgraded with monthly, yearly, or lifetime subscriptions. Preview selected file types before recovery and select designated folders to be scanned for faster performance.
Features:
- Recover up to 1 GB of data for free;
- Intuitive user interface for simplified recovery;
- 24×7 technical support is available.
