How to Recover Deleted Photos, Videos & Files on Android
Recovering deleted photos, videos and files on Android is easier than most people think and is especially easy if the files were deleted recently
It can be stressful to lose an important photo, video, document or other file by accident. What is more annoying is that you can no longer see the file in your phone gallery or file manager.
The good news is that you might still be able to recover a recently deleted file. Lots of Android phones and apps have a Trash, Bin or Recently Deleted folder where deleted files are stored for a certain amount of time.
It may not be there, so check your cloud backups or other places you may have saved a copy of the file.
In this guide we’ll cover the best ways to recover deleted photos, videos and files on an Android phone safely.
How to restore delete files from android phone?
Yes, sometimes you can.
If the file you deleted is in the Trash / Bin, the easiest way to do so is to restore it. Then in most cases you should be able to recover it without any recovery software.
When you delete photos and videos, they go to the Trash in Google Photos for a period of time. Things not backed up can survive for 30 days, and backed up things can survive for 60 days. Google says, “The item may be permanently deleted even after you empty the Trash.
This is also the case with Files by Google deleted files. Its Trash keeps files for 30 days before deleting them permanently.
So if you delete something by mistake, don’t wait too long to check the Trash:
1. Check Google Photos Trash
If you’ve deleted a photo or video file, the first thing to do is head to Google Photos.
How to Restore a Deleted Photo or Video:
1. Open the Google Photos app.
2. Select Collections
3. Select Trash or Bin (this may be called something else in your app)
4. Choose the photo or video you want to recover.
5. Press and hold the item.
6. Restore Touch
If it’s still in Trash, Google Photos can restore it to your Google Photos library and any albums it was in. depending on the device and setup it can also be located in the gallery of the phone.
What if the photo is not in Trash?
1. First check if it was archived not deleted. Make sure you are signed into the Google Account that you backed up the photos to.
If it’s not in Trash and you didn’t back it up, you may not be able to recover it with Google Photos.
2. Check your phone’s Recently Deleted folder.
Most Android phones come with a Gallery app. There is a Recently Deleted or Trash or Recycle Bin section in Gallery.
The actual name and location will depend on your phone brand and the software version.
Open your Gallery App and search for options like :
– Rubbish
– Delete latest
– Recycle Bin
– Tins.
If you find the deleted photo or video, select it and tap Restore.
This is one of the safer ways to recover your data, because you are restoring the original file, and not using some unknown data recovery program.
3. Google Files with File Recovering
Want to delete a document, PDF, video or ZIP file with Files by Google? Trash Read Trash.
1. Methods
1. Files = Files by Google.
2. Tap the menu icon.
3. Select Trash.
4. Search for the file you want.
5. Select the file.
6. Restore Touch
7. Check the recovery.
Google states that files deleted with Files by Google are retained in the Trash for 30 days. When you delete files from Trash, they are permanently deleted and cannot be recovered through the app.
Important: Some of the cleanup options permanently delete files, and do not move files to the Trash. Use storage cleaning features carefully.
4. Backup your Google Photos
Sometimes a photo might be missing from your phone, but still exists, safe in your Google Photos account.
Launch Google Photos and sign in with the right Google account.
Then find the missing image in your photo library.
If you had backup enabled prior to deleting the photo, then your chances of finding a copy are better in your Google Photos library.
You can turn on backup to automatically save your photos and videos to your Google Account.
This is also why having photo backup turned on can save you from losing important memories even after they were accidentally deleted or even after switching phones.
5. Use Google Drive and other cloud storage options
If the file you deleted was a document, project file, PDF, or another type of file, check the cloud services you use regularly.
For instance, you may have saved the file as:
– Google Drive
1. Drive
– Dropbox
– other cloud vendor
If you delete a file in the cloud, also check the Trash or Recycle Bin of those services.
Even if you can’t see it on your phone, you might be surprised to find that the file is still out there somewhere.
6. Scanning WhatsApp Media
If it’s a photo or video that was deleted from WhatsApp, check in the WhatsApp media folders and your chat history.
If the sender still has the original file, it might be easier to ask them to resend it rather than trying to recover it with a third-party recovery app.
Ensure that you have a backup already saved of the messages/media you wish to restore on WhatsApp.
But do not delete WhatsApp to see if it can recover. Depending on how the backup was created and restored, restoring a backup will overwrite newer chat data.
7. What happens to files when they are deleted forever?
If you see this one, do.
There are many sites and apps that claim to recover 100% deleted photos and videos forever. But don’t take their word for it.
If you deleted the file from the Trash and it’s not in a backup, then it’s likely unrecoverable.
Is there a way to recover it? It is dependent on a lot of things like where the file was, if there was a backup, what happened to the storage after delete, and the storage system of the phone.
INSTAGRAM ID
There is no guarantyd way to recover deleted files permanently.
8. Want file recovery software?
There are a lot of android recovery apps claiming to recover deleted photos and files.
Purchase one and consider it carefully.
Some apps come with lots of permissions/ subscriptions or access to your personal files. Some others will give you great scan results, but won’t actually recover your original files.
If you’re selecting a recovery app, download from a trusted source and check permissions, developer info, reviews and pricing.
Don’t allow an unknown app to access sensitive information just because it says it can help you recover deleted photo.
9. What if I remove files from SD card?
If your phone has SD card and the deleted files are on the card, don’t use the card too much.
If you create new files in the same storage it will be harder to recover the deleted files, because new data can overwrite the space that was occupied by the deleted files.
If the files are very important, do not install recovery apps again and again on the same storage directly.
If the data is important or irreplaceable, you might want to look into a professional data recovery service.
10. Prevent File Loss From Happening In The First Place
The best way to deal with deleted files is to have a backup before something goes wrong.
Turn on Google Photos backup for your photos and videos. Google also provides a way to backup Android data/settings on supported devices.
You can also keep copies of important documents in the cloud, or keep a backup copy on a computer or on an external storage device.
A good rule of thumb for important files is to employ the 3-2-1 backup method:
– Copy important data 3 times.
– Store them in 2 different types of storage at minimum.
– Keep 1 copy somewhere else or in the cloud.
No fees. No individual files to set up. Even something as simple as a cloud backup, plus a local copy can go a long way.
Common questions
How to Recover Permanently Deleted Photos on Android?
Not always. If the photo is still in the Trash, or if you have a backup, you might be able to recover it. Once it is permanently deleted from the Trash and there is no backup, there is no guarantyd recovery method.
Deleted photos go to the Google Photos trash and remain there for 60 days.
Google says photos and videos that have been backed up can be kept in Trash for up to 60 days and some items that have not been backed up can stay for up to 30 days.
Google Files Trash items are deleted after 30 days.
Files by Google Deleted files remain in Trash for 30 days before they are permanently deleted.
How to recover deleted files free?
Yes. Find free existing copies of your photos in your phone’s Trash, Google Photos, Files by Google, cloud backups and other places. Always try these before going to any third party recovery software.
How to get back deleted photos from Whatsapp?
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Or there is a second copy of it somewhere in chat, phone storage or backup. If they still have it, the easiest thing to do is usually ask the sender to resend the picture.
Don’t Panic If you have accidentally deleted a photo, video or file and don’t go installing random recovery apps immediately.Start by looking in the Recently Deleted folder on your phone, Google Photos Trash, Files by Google Trash, cloud storage, and any backups you have.You want to check these places out as soon as you can so you have a better chance of recovering the file. And be realistic if the file has been deleted permanently and you don’t have a backup you can not guaranty recovery.The best way to do this is to have none. Make copies of the things you can’t afford to lose. Turn on backups for photos and files that matter.
