Updated on:Jul 5, 2022
FoneLab is one of the best recovery apps for Android because its Windows version offers one-click recovery, allowing you to painlessly retrieve everything from lost photos to your WhatsApp messages, voice recordings, and shared documents.
All you need to do is connect your Android device to your PC, open FoneLab, and begin the recovery process. From there, you follow the recovery wizard, which will take you through a series of simple steps.
The free version of FoneLab can preview recoverable data, but only the paid version can recover selected file and there’s only one single-user licensing option.
Key features:
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Pricing:
| Product | Windows | macOS |
| Android Data Recovery | $44.76 | $44.76 |
| Broken Phone Data Extraction | $31.96 | - |
| Android Data Backup & Restore | $20.76 | $20.76 |
| All Products | $97.48 | $65.62 |
Mobile app: No.
Best for: As long as you’re willing to accept its higher price, FoneLab can offer you a convenient and modern approach to Android recovery that never fails to deliver great results.
Disk Drill is a do-it-all data recovery software capable of recovering lost data from all kinds of devices, including Android smartphones and tablets. The Mac version can recover deleted data directly from the internal memory or Android’s SD card, while the Windows version is limited to SD card recovery.
Both versions of Disk Drill support over 400 file formats, including all image, video, audio, and document formats commonly found on Android devices. When recovering lost files with Disk Drill, you don’t need any special knowledge or skills because the entire process is completely intuitive and designed to take as little time as possible. Found files can be previewed before their actual recovery takes place, which makes it easy to recover only what you really need.
Included with Disk Drill are multiple extra tools to help you better protect important data and keep your storage devices organized. For example, Disk Drill’s duplicate file finder is great for finding duplicate photos stored on your Android’s SD card and deleting them to free up valuable storage space.
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Pricing:
| Disk Drill Basic | Can recover up to 500MB of data (Windows version only) |
| Disk Drill PRO | $89.00 |
| Disk Drill Enterprise | $499 |
Mobile app: No.
Best for: Disk Drill is the best Android phone data recovery solution for Mac users, but it can also offer a lot to Windows users.
iMobie PhoneRescue is an elegant and versatile data recovery application that can help you retrieve lost data not only from your Android device but also from any iOS device, such as iPhone or iPad. As such, this solution is perfect for people who use both mobile operating systems and know that it’s best to have a data recovery application ready at hand before data loss occurs.
One handy feature supported by iMobie PhoneRescue is the ability to unlock any locked Android device without performing a factory reset. This feature can help you retrieve your data if you ever forget your password or break your fingerprint sensor.
When it comes to Android data recovery, iMobie PhoneRescue supports all common file types, including videos, images, audio, messages, contacts, and calendar information. If your device isn’t rooted, you will be given the option to begin the rooting process right from the app.
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Pricing:
| Free Edition | Enables to scan Android device |
| 1 Year Plan | $39.99 |
| Lifetime Plan | $55.99 |
| 1-year business license | $299 |
Mobile app: No.
Best for: Because of its all-inclusive nature, iMobie PhoneRescue is best for Android users who may occasionally need to recover lost data from an iOS device.
MiniTool Mobile Recovery for Android is the most basic recovery app for Android featured in this article, but it still gets the job done even though it hasn’t been updated in a while. Its biggest strength is the ability to restore a limited number of files for free, which is something not many Android data recovery software solutions can do.
Because MiniTool Mobile Recovery for Android was last updated in 2017, it doesn’t perform nearly as well as Disk Drill and other data recovery software applications that receive updates on a regular basis. It also doesn’t look nearly as good, although we have to admit that its user interface is beginner-friendly despite being outdated.
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Pricing:
| Free Edition | Recover 10 files for free |
| 1-Year upgrade | $39.00 |
| Lifetime upgrade | $49.00 |
Mobile app: No.
Best for: MiniTool Mobile Recovery for Android is best for users who want to recover only a very small amount of data from an Android phone or tablet and do so without paying any money.
EaseUS MobiSaver for Android is a free android data recovery software tool for Windows and Android that can recover lost files, messages, contacts, photos, music, and videos from Android devices. The Windows version of the tool revolves around a simple 3-step approach to data recovery, and it supports both internal memory recovery as well as SD card recovery.
First, you need to connect your Android device to your computer. Then you need to launch EaseUS MobiSaver for Android and instruct it to scan the connected device. Finally, select the files you want to recover and specify a local restoration folder.
The Android version of EaseUS MobiSaver is equally easy to use, allowing you to recover deleted photos, pictures, images, videos, contacts, WhatsApp messages, and conversations with a few simple taps. You can recover data from your device’s internal storage and its memory card. Scan results can be narrowed down using straightforward filters, making it easy to find exactly what you’re looking for.
Both versions of EaseUS MobiSaver for Android work only with rooted devices, and you need to purchase a license to unlock unlimited recovery. Despite these limitations, it remains a solid option that does what it promises to do.
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Pricing:
| License | Windows | Android |
| Free version | Preview only | 20 jpg or mp4 files per day |
| Home/Personal Use | $39.95 | $5.99 |
| Business Use | $399.00 | - |
Mobile app: Yes.
Best for: EaseUS MobiSaver for Android is a user-friendly tool for Windows and Android that can be recommended to all users who can take advantage of its excellent text and contact restoration capabilities.
If you think that Tenorshare UltData for Android looks like a carbon copy of FoneLab, then you’re absolutely right. Clearly, one of these two recovery apps for Android believes that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but we don’t know which.
However, the fact that Tenorshare may be a copy of another successful Android data recovery app doesn’t make it any less capable of recovering data from Android phones and tablets.
The latest version of Tenorshare UltData for Android supports over 6,000 Android devices, including all popular smartphones and tablets from leading brands like Samsung, Huawei, and Google. You can install this phone data recovery app on any modern Windows or Mac computer, but the macOS version works only if your Android device is rooted.
There’s also an Android version of Tenorshare UltData that lets you recover your data without you having to first connect your mobile device to a computer. The Android version is easy to use, offers the ability to preview deleted files before their recovery, and more. Just like most other similar apps, it can deliver the best results possible only if your Android device is rooted, so keep that in mind if you decide to give it a go.
Key features:
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Pricing:
| License | Windows | macOS | Android |
| Freemium | Scan and preview files | Scan and preview files | Free 2 file recovery |
| 1 Month License | $35.95 | $55.95 | - |
| 1 Year License | $39.95 | $59.95 | - |
| Lifetime License | $49.95 | $69.95 | - |
| Business 1-Year License | - | $72.95 | - |
| Unlimited Files Recovery | - | - | $4.99 |
Mobile app: Yes.
Best for: Tenorshare UltData for Android is one of the best for Windows users who want to quickly and effortlessly recover lost data without root.
7-Data Android Recovery is an older Android data recovery software application that hasn’t really kept up with the times as well as other recovery applications, which is evident from its outdated user interface.
But if we put looks aside and focus on 7-Data Android Recovery’s streamlined recovery process, it will be instantly clear why it still deserves a place on this list. To recover lost data with this application, you simply need to connect your Android device, scan it, preview recoverable files, and save them on your computer. As long as you enable USB debugging beforehand and turn on USB storage, you should have no trouble at all getting your data back.
If you do experience some issues while using 7-Data Android Recovery, you can always contact the company behind it and ask for support since all license types include free technical support on demand.
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Pros:
Cons:
Pricing:
| 1 Year | $39.95 |
| Home | $49.95 |
| PRO | $79.95 |
| Enterprise | $399.95 |
Mobile app: No.
Best for: 7-Data Android Recovery can be recommended to users who prefer its traditional user interface, as well as those who would like to take advantage of its generous volume discounts.
| Software Name | Price | Android Versions | Supported Devices | Latest Update |
| FoneLab | $20.76 – $97.48 | Android OS 4.0+ | 6,000+ | March 3, 2022 (Version 3.1.30) |
| Disk Drill | Free – $499 | Android OS 2.3+ | All Android devices (via USB, excluding MIPS-based) | March 2, 2022 (Version 4.6.380) |
| iMobie PhoneRescue | $39.99 – $299 | Android OS 4.0+ | Covering literally all Android devices | March 11, 2019 (Version 3.1.30) |
| MiniTool Mobile Recovery | Free – $49.00 | Android OS 4.2.2+ | Multiple Android phones and tablets | Version 1.0 |
| EaseUS MobiSaver | Free – $399.00 | Android OS 4.0+ | 6,000+ | March, 2019 (Version 5.0) |
| Tenorshare UltData | Free – $72.95 | Android OS 5.0+ | 6,000+ | September 2, 2021 (Version 6.6.0) |
| 7-Data Android Recovery | $39.95 – $399.95 | Compatible with different versions of Android OS | Unknown | January 15, 2019 (Verrsion 4.3) |
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Disk Digger Disk Digger is an Android data recovery program that allows you to retrieve lost and deleted files either from your memory card or internal memory. It has a “wipe free space” feature that permanently deletes recoverable files from the device and you can store recovered files through Dropbox, Google Drive, or email. It didn’t make our list on account of its root requirement and its tendency to degrade the quality of the media files it recovers. |
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FonePaw FonePaw isn’t one of the more popular data recovery programs, but that’s not to say that it isn’t perfectly capable. You’ll need to install the app on your computer before you can utilize the Android version, but it can retrieve more than just lost/deleted files. You can also get back call histories, text messages, contact details, etc. We left it out of our best list because it has trouble with larger files, is prone to slowdowns, and is incapable of selective scans. |
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iMyFone D-Back iMyFone D-Back offers data recovery for a variety of platforms, including Android, iOS, Windows, and Mac. While it has some excellent features for most of these platforms, the Android version feels particularly watered down. It also comes with a needlessly long recovery process and some compatibility issues. On the plus side, there's a trial version that you can try out before investing. |
Recovering deleted files from Android devices is straightforward, but you need to understand the differences between internal and SD card recovery.
Most Android devices sold today are equipped with an SD card slot (typically microSD) that makes it possible to easily add additional storage space. This storage space can be used to store photos, videos, documents, and sometimes even app data. It can’t, however, be used to store system data, which is always recorded in internal memory.
If the files you want to recover are on your SD card, then you’re in luck because SD card recovery doesn’t require you to go through any extra steps. But if the files reside in internal memory, then you need to first root your device to access them.
Yes, Android data recovery is safe because reputable data recovery software for Android uses a read-only approach to recovery, which means that it never modifies or deletes any data stored on your Android device.
However, complete Android file recovery from internal storage can typically be performed only with rooted devices, and there’s a lot that can go wrong during rooting. The worst-case scenario is that you make a critical error or experience a sudden power outage that results in your smartphone or tablet getting bricked, which is a slang term that Android enthusiasts use to describe devices that have become completely unresponsive.
If you want to stay on the safe side, we recommend you limit yourself to the recovery of data stored on your device’s SD card, as described in the previous section. Better yet, regularly back up all important data to a safe location so that you never need to perform data recovery from your Android phone.
How to recover deleted files from an Android SD card
How to Recover Data From a Corrupted SD Card on Android and Fix It
How to Recover Lost.Dir Files on Your Android Device
How to Recover Deleted Photos From an Android SD Card
How to Recover Deleted Music Files (on Windows and Android)
How to Recover Files from a Micro SD Card in 5 Steps
The “Gallery” app in newer Samsung phones comes with a “Trash” feature that holds on to your deleted photos and videos for 30 days before expunging them completely. To restore “trash” files, just follow these simple steps:
Note: To make sure that the “Trash” feature is enabled, navigate to Gallery > Menu > Settings and turn on “Trash”.
Alternatively, you can restore your photos if you’ve made a backup via Samsung Cloud.
