Recovering deleted files from Trash on Mac is as simple as performing Recycle Bin recovery on Windows. Whenever you delete a file on Mac, it is moved to the Trash Bin, from where you can restore your accidentally deleted data on Mac. However, many users have a habit of emptying the Trash or permanently deleting files using the “Command + Option + Delete” keys.

Usually, you will encounter two scenarios when you are trying to recover files from Mac Trash

• Recovering deleted files from Trash on Mac
• Recovering data from Emptied Mac Trash

The quickest and most effective way to recover files from the Trash folder on Mac is with the “ Put Back ” option. Go to the Trash folder, right-click on the deleted file and select Put Back. However, if the deleted file is not displayed in the Trash folder, open the Terminal program and follow the steps given below. Steps to Recover Deleted Trash Files on MAC with Recoverit: Free download and install Recoverit data recovery tool on your Mac. If your Mac is under macOS High Sierra (macOS 10.13), please 'disable System Integrity Protection' first. Then, follow the next steps to perform Mac Trash recovery easily and safely. How to recover the Trash on Mac: Open the Trash Can by clicking on its icon. Locate the items you wish to recover. Drag the files out of the Trash to the desktop or another folder. Alternately, select an item, right-click, and choose Put Back. When you delete data on your Mac, it is first moved to the Trash. As long as the Trash has not been emptied, you always have the option to manually restore files from the Trash on a Mac. To do this, proceed as follows: Step 1: Open Trash. Double-click the Trash icon in the dock. You’ll see a list of all files that are still in the Trash on. Follow the steps below to Recover Deleted Trash Files on Mac: Step 1: Run the application and click 'Continue' to start the wizard which will guide you through the data recoery process. Step 2: Click the'Hard Drive' icon and click 'Continue' buttom. Step 3: Select the volume from which the files were deleted.

Fact: Annually around 32% of Mac users encounter data loss.

Caution: Stop using your computer until you recover deleted files from Mac Trash

Recover Deleted Files from Trash on Mac

Mac system temporarily stores the deleted files in the Trash before permanently deleting them or empty the Trash. You can recover the files from Mac Trash using the Put Back option.

To restore the files from Mac trash, open the trash folder and select the files you want to recover. Right-click on the files or use control + click which will give you the options.

Select Put back option to recover the files from mac trash.

However, by default, the time period of the file in the Mac Trash folder is 30 days(customizable), exceeding 30 days the file is permanently deleted from your Mac. Not only that many users are habituated to use “Command + Shift + Delete” which empties the Mac Trash folder.

In this situation, the files are no longer available in trash or visible anywhere on the Mac. To recover files from emptied Mac trash you need the help of suitable Mac Trash recovery software such as Remo Mac Data Recovery software. Click on the download button to start recovering data from emptied Mac trash.

For further explanation on how to recover data from emptied Mac Trash please move to the next section of the article.

Disclaimer: Do not install Mac Trash recovery software on the same drive where the deleted files used to exist

Fact: 11% of data loss happens due to human errors

Recover Emptied Mac Trash

To Recover Emptied Mac Trash files, download and install Remo Mac data recovery software. Launch the Remo Mac Data Recovery software and select the “Recover Files option”

• In the next screen, select Recover Deleted files option. This will load the volumes available on the Mac.

• Select the volume and click on the Next button to initiate a scan.

• After scanning the drive Remo Mac Data recovery software will display the recovered files from emptied trash on Mac.

• Select the files and click on save to complete recovering data from emptied Mac Trash.

Quick Note: Remo Mac Data Recovery tool recovers deleted files from SD card on Mac that are not available on Trash. Moreover, this tool also supports data recovery from various file systems like exFAT, APFS, HFS, HFS+, etc.

How can I recover permanently deleted files from Mac without the Software?

Yes, you can recover data from a Mac trash can using the terminal. The terminal is a command-line interface that allows users to undo the emptying of the mac trash.

Go to utilities and double click on the terminal

Type “cd trash” and press enter

Next type mv (filename) and press enter (remember that the file name should be exact including the extension)

Exit the terminal and check whether the file is recovered or not.

However, using this process you can only recover one file at a time. Not only that, you also need to enter the exact file name. If the file name is wrong, you can’t recover the file.

Bonus Tip: With Remo Recover you can not only recover data from trash but also retrieve files that are disappeared from the desktop on Mac.

Time Machine Backup

You can also use the time machine backup application to recover the data from emptied trash. However, time machine backup only works if there is an existing backup file. Without a backup file, you cannot recover data from emptied Mac trash.

Nevertheless, it is advised to make use of Time Machine backup and set up regular backup files so that you can avoid data loss situations.

Conclusion

When files are deleted they become hidden and inaccessible. Since the files are hidden and inaccessible, the recovery process becomes extremely complicated for a normal user.

To make the entire Mac trash recovery process simple Remo Recover is designed with a straightforward user interface. So that even a novice user can restore data from the Mac Trash folder.

Remo Mac data recovery software is a professional tool that can scan and scavenge the Mac storage sectors and undo emptied Mac trash.

It might be Catalina, Mojave, or High Sierra, Remo Recover is one of the best apps to recover data from Mac that works seamlessly with all the Mac OS versions. Not just that you can use Remo Recover on MacBook Air, MacBook pros (all versions).

Additionally, with the help of this Mac trash recovery software, a user can also recover photos, videos or any kind of digital media from Mac trash without any fuss.

This article covers the top five completely free data recovery software for Mac, which varies in features, functions, and performance. However, they all have one thing in common: they are free.

Compare the five tools carefully, and select the one that fits your needs best.

Top 5 Completely Free Data Recovery Software for Mac

When you get data loss on your Mac due to accidental deletion, partition/hard drive formatting, system crash, macOS upgrade, file system or hard drive corruption, stay calm and pick up one of the recommended data recovery software below for help.

1. EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac Free

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac Free is one of the free top and handy Mac data recovery software that enables you to recover data from the emptied trash bin, Mac notebooks, desktops, hard drives, USB drives, SD cards, memory cards, digital cameras, etc. It works on internal APFS/HFS+/HFS X drives, and FAT/FAT32/exFAT/NTFS file systems used in USB flash drives and external hard drives connected to Mac.

Highlighted Features:

# 1. All-in-one data recovery software

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac Free is fully compatible with the latest macOS 11.0 (Big Sur), 10.15(Catalina), 10.14 (Mojave) and all the former versions. It enables all Mac users to perform a full recovery of lost valuable data in only 3 steps: Scan > Preview > Recover.

# 2. HFS+ Fusion Drive Recovery

The latest update of EaseUS Mac data recovery software has improved its support of Fusion Drive, which makes it work even better in retrieving files from Mac computers that are installed on fusion drives.

# 3. Encrypted Drive Recovery

Another great update in EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac is that it supports encrypted drive recovery by offering guidance to assist Mac users in decrypting and unlocking their drives with password.

# 4. Data Protection

Once the data protection feature is enabled, it will automatically back up the deleted files to a safe location. If you unexpectedly delete files and want to recover later, you can quickly restore the lost files from the created backup.

Pros:

• Support to restore 200+ file types on Mac, including recovering lost Word/Excel/PPT documents, photos, videos, music files, emails, archived files, and more.
• Quick Scan + Deep Scan technology greatly enhances recovery probability.
• Real-time Preview allows you to preview found files while scanning and before proceeding with data recovery.
• No quality-loss recovery brings your lost photos, videos perfectly back in its best performance.

Cons:

• The completely free version is limited to a maximum of 2GB data recovery. (The outstanding Windows data recovery free version also provides 2GB free file recovery.)

2. Disk Drill

Disk Drill is a popular Mac data recovery application developed to recover lost partitions or files from Mac internal and external hard drives. Also, the Recovery Vault and Guaranteed Recovery options in the free trial version support to monitor the file deletion activity and retain metadata so as to quickly undelete files.

Highlighted Features:

# 1. Undelete Protected Data (Not Available in Free Version)

Being similar to the Data Protection feature in EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac, Disk Drill also contains an undelete protected data feature that requires Recovery Vault and Guaranteed Recovery features to be enabled in advance.

With these two features enabled, Mac users could quickly undelete files from a Trash Bin reference or shadow copy of each file to a user-specified folder.

# 2. Allocate Existing Files

When Finder fails to read data, Disk Utility reports the drive as unformatted, Disk Drill can scan the partition and retrieve data from Mac.

Pros:

• Compatible with all the Mac OS X and macOS systems.
• Recover 200+ file types.
• It is packed with free and useful disk tools for all users.
• An intuitive user interface to recover lost files effortlessly.

Cons:

• The free version only allows a preview of data recovery.
• Recovery Vault and Guaranteed Recovery are not available in the free version.

3. PhotoRec

PhotoRec is a free, open-source program that works very well in data recovery on older operating systems like OS X, Linux, Free BSD, Net BSD, Open BSD, and Windows.

It allows users to restore most common files, like photos, audios, documents, ZIP archives, and others from internal or external devices, such as digital cameras, memory cards, USB flash drives and partitions/hard disks.

Highlighted Features:

# 1. Advanced File Carving

PhotoRec first searches for the data block or cluster size. The program will quickly load value from superblock like ext2/ext3/ext4 or volume boot record like FAT/NTFS if the file system is not corrupted. When the file system corrupted, PhotoRec will check the device at a sector level, using the first 10 found files to calculate the block or cluster size so as to locate and find more lost files.

# 2. Block or Cluster Level Recovery

This program will read the Mac device block by block, cluster by cluster, checking against different file signatures so as to recuperate available files.

Pros:

• Support data recovery cross-platforms, Mac OS X, Windows, Linux, etc.
• 100% open-source program, not only the software but also the source code.
• Nice tool to recover personal files.

Cons:

• Not very user-friendly for ordinary computer users.
• Technical skills required. It uses command lines to operate.

4. TestDisk

TestDisk, like PhotoRec, it's also an open-source, freeware product that allows for multiple file types recovery.

It mainly focuses on partition recovery. It enables users to find deleted or lost partitions by fixing the partition tables due to software crash, virus attack, mistaken formatting, etc.

Highlighted Features:

# 1. Partition Recovery

When a partition lost or disappeared on Mac due to corrupted partition tables, Mac users can apply TestDisk to rebuild and repair the corrupted partition table.

# 2. Rebuild Boot Sectors

When the Mac bootable drive fails to boot, it corrects problems in bootable drives that are failing to boot.

Pros:

• Completely free and open.
• Runs on several operating systems, including macOS and Mac OS X versions.
• Recover lost partitions and rebuild the partition table.

Cons:

• Use the command line to make data recovery.
• Not user-friendly for regular computer users.

5. Exif Untrasher

Exif Untrasher is another completely free Mac data recovery tool that mainly restores deleted or JPEG files from digital cameras, external drive, USB stick, SD card, etc. You can easily download and install this software on your Mac running Mac OS X 10.10 and all the later versions.

Highlighted Features:

# 1. Highly Efficient in JEPG Recovery

Exif Untrasher is a tool that mainly designed to locate photos in JEPG formats on any kind of storage device like SD card, CF card, memory stick or Mac hard disk.

External storage device needs to be mounted as a volume on Mac for the utility to access and attempt a restore.

Pros:

• Simple and quick to recover lost images from the memory card.
• Free with no quantity limits.
• It is updated by the developer regularly.

Cons:

• It only works for JEGP file recovery. It doesn't support extra file formats.

3-Step Tutorial of Free Mac Data Recovery

To help more Mac users to bring their lost files are soon as possible, we are here to show you a 3-step tutorial of free Mac data recovery. If you are eager to bring your lost files back on Mac or external storage devices, apply the brief and innovative EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac Free for help.

Remember to connect your USB, SD card, or external hard drive to Mac computer if your lost data were saved on it.

Step 1. Select the disk location (it can be an internal HDD/SSD or a removable storage device) where you lost data and files. Click the 'Scan' button.

Step 2. EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac will immediately scan your selected disk volume and display the scanning results on the left pane.

Step 3. In the scan results, select the file(s) and click the 'Recover' button to have them back.

Conclusion

On this page, you are presented with the top 5 completely free Mac data recovery software - EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac Free, Disk Drill, PhotoRec, TestDisk, Exif Untrasher. When you are facing unexpected data loss on Mac, the programs demonstrated above can help you recover lost files effectively.

What's more, if your lost data is less than 2GB, EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac Free is highly recommended as it provides the most user-friendly interface and most powerful data recovery function.

If you simply want to restore JEGP images, Exif Untrasher is worth to try.

People Also Ask

Some Mac users may still have doubts about Mac file recovery. Here we have collected the top frequently asked 4 questions and left brief answers below. Check out and find your own answers here.

1. Is Mac data recovery free?

It depends. If you lost deleted files to Trash, you can restore them from the Trash for free.

When you lost files on a local Mac hard drive or an external storage device, if you apply free Mac data recovery software like EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac Free for help, it's free.

If you take your computer to a local data recovery center, it will charge you a big bunch of money.

2. What is the best free data recovery software?

• For Windows users, you may refer to Top 10 Free SD Card Data Recovery Software.

The Recommended software also works perfectly in Windows OS for data recovery and you can find out the most suitable for you to apply and restore lost files with ease.

• For Mac users, as we recommended on this page, EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac Free, Disk Drill, PhotoRec, TestDisk, Exif Untrasher are all good to help.

3. Is there any free data recovery software?

How To Recover Deleted Trash On Mac For Free Without

Sure! Many data recovery software producers all have released their free data recovery software. Here we have collected some of them for you to pick up and apply to guard your own data.

10 Top Free Data Recovery Software for Windows Users:

• 1). EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Free
• 2). Recuva
• 3). Stellar Data Recovery
• 4). Disk Drill
• 5). R-Studio
• 6). Acronis Revive
• 7). Remo Recover
• 8). Recover My Files
• 9). Puran Data Recovery
• 10). TestDisk

Recovering Deleted Files On Mac

5 Top Free Data Recovery Software for Mac Users: (We have uncovered on this page)

• 1). EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac Free
• 2). Disk Drill
• 3). PhotoRec
• 4). TestDisk
• 5). Exif Untrasher

4. How can I recover deleted files without software Mac free?

There are two ways for you to recover deleted files on Mac for free without using data recovery software.

How To Recover Items Deleted From Trash

• One way is to undelete files from your Mac Trash bin.

When you mistakenly deleted files on Mac computer to the trash, and you didn't empty the trash, you can undelete them from your Trash for free.

• The other way that you can try is to recover deleted files from your Mac Time Machine backup.

If you have the habit of backing up files on Mac computer using the Time Machine, congratulations. When you delete some of them, luckily, you can bring them back immediately from your Time Machine backup. You can follow to Recover Files from Time Machine Backup for a detailed guide.