Maybe you were trying to free up storage on your Mac, deleting a large batch of old files, and didn’t notice that something important was among them. Or perhaps you deleted a file on purpose and only later realized you still needed it. Whatever happened, you may still be able to get them back.
If you are constantly battling storage limits, you might also want to check out this guide on how to keep your iPhone’s photo sizes under control to free up space elsewhere. Keep reading to learn how to retrieve accidentally deleted files.
If you deleted files without using the Option + Command + Delete shortcut, which permanently deletes them, and haven’t emptied the Trash yet, here are two simple ways to get your files back.
Undo the Deletion
If you realized you removed the wrong file immediately after deleting it and haven’t performed any other actions in Finder, you can use the Undo command to quickly bring it back. If you have already moved, renamed, copied, or deleted other files, the Undo command will reverse one of those newer actions instead.
Step 1: Open Finder from the Dock.
Step 2: Click Edit in the menu bar and select “Undo Move of [File Name]”. Check the file name shown in the command to make sure Finder is about to restore the item you need. Alternatively, press Command + Z immediately after deleting the file. For those who love maximizing productivity through automation, check out how to create iPhone shortcuts using Apple Intelligence prompts.
Step 3: Check the file’s original folder. It should appear there again.
Recover Deleted Files on Mac from Trash
If some time has passed since you deleted the file or you’ve already performed other actions in Finder, you can restore it from the Trash instead. This method works for files deleted from your Mac’s internal storage and for files removed from an external drive while it was connected to your Mac.
If the missing file came from an external HDD, SSD, or USB drive, reconnect that device before checking the Trash. macOS keeps trashed items associated with the drive they came from, so they won’t be available when the external storage device is disconnected.
Step 1: Click the Trash icon in the Dock. Or open Finder and select “Trash” from the sidebar.
Step 2: Choose the files or folder you want to recover. If there are many items in the Trash, switch to list view and use information such as the file name, type, or deletion date to help identify the correct ones.
Step 3: Right-click it and select “Put Back”. They will return to their original location.
Note: If your files were synced with iCloud Drive before you deleted them from your Mac, you can also try to restore them from iCloud. Go to iCloud.com > Drive > Recently Deleted, choose the files you need, click the three dots next to them, and select “Recover”.
Deleted files are typically kept there for up to 30 days. While you’re managing your Apple ecosystem data and security credentials across different platforms, you can also learn how to sync Apple passkeys iCloud Keychain with Windows 11. If you can’t find the files in Recently Deleted, try iCloud’s data recovery feature
If you can’t find the files in Recently Deleted, try iCloud’s data recovery feature. Go to iCloud.com, click the grid icon in the top-right corner, and select “Data Recovery”. Then choose Restore Files, select the files you want to retrieve, and click “Restore”.
How to Recover Permanently Deleted Files on Mac
If you’ve already emptied the Trash or permanently deleted files using a shortcut, the methods above won’t help. But don’t worry. Below, I’ll show you how to recover permanently deleted files, whether you have a backup or not.
If you permanently deleted your files and don’t have a backup, Mac data recovery software is an effective option to try. The most important thing to remember is to stop using your Mac as soon as possible. Every new file you create, app you install, or download you make can overwrite the space where your deleted files are still stored and make recovery less likely.
Restore Permanently Deleted Files with Time Machine
If you had Time Machine set up before deleting your files, you can recover them from there. Time Machine is a built-in macOS feature that automatically creates backups on an external drive or supported network storage, so an older copy of your deleted file may still be available.
Step 1: Connect the drive you use for your Time Machine backups to your Mac.
Step 2: Open Finder and go to the folder where the deleted file was originally stored.
Step 3: Click the Time Machine icon in the menu bar and choose “Browse Time Machine Backups”. If you don’t see the icon, go to System Settings > Menu Bar, scroll down until you find Time Machine, and check the box next to it. (Note: If you use multiple operating systems for your workflow, you may also find it helpful to know how to share Safari and Edge bookmarks between Mac and Windows.)
Step 4: Use the timeline or arrows to go back to a backup created before the file was deleted.
Step 5: Choose the file or folder you want to recover and click “Restore”.
Recover Permanently Deleted Files from Cloud Storage
If you backed up or synced your files with a cloud storage service such as Google Drive or Dropbox before deleting them from your Mac, check your cloud account. Deleted files are often kept in a separate Trash folder for a limited period, giving you another chance to restore them.
Here’s how to restore files from Google Drive:
Step 1: Open Google Drive in your browser and sign in to the same Google account that was used to sync or upload the missing files.
Step 2: Click “Trash” in the left sidebar. Look through the deleted items for the file or folder you need. If there are many files, use the available sorting and search options to narrow down the list.
Step 3: Choose the files or folders you want to recover.
Step 4: Right-click the selected items and choose “Restore”. Google Drive will move them out of Trash and return them to their previous location in Drive.
Step 5: If you need them stored locally on your Mac again, download them or allow the Google Drive desktop app to sync them.
Note: Google Drive doesn’t keep files in Trash indefinitely. For personal accounts, items in Trash are automatically deleted after 30 days. Because cloud retention policies can vary between services and account types, check the Trash as soon as you realize a file is missing.
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