top

How to Recover Lost iPod Data and Music

If you need to recover iPod data because you've lost music or videos, you've come to the right place. With Disk Drill, iPod data recovery for the Mac is a breeze. Whether your iPod won't mount or you've overwritten files by mistake, Disk Drill works for iOS-based iPod Touch and classic iPods as well. It provides a simple and effective way to recover music from an iPod. macOS Big Sur Ready!
Free Download
Upgrade to PRO
It's easy to forget that every man-made device – even one as nifty as the Apple iPod – has its faults. One day it's working fine. The next, it won't boot up without a full system restore. Or perhaps a friend mistakenly synchronizes your iPod with his computer. A mere two clicks of the mouse is all it takes to lose your precious music and settings.

Making regular back-ups is essential (so you are told) but you didn't make them, and now you're here. Luckily it's not as hopeless as it might seem. Using Disk Drill, iPod data recovery software for Mac OS X, it's remarkably easy to recover songs and videos that have been recently deleted. Read on for a quick overview. For detailed tutorials, see How to Install Disk Drill and How to Recover Lost Files with Disk Drill Basic in the CleverFiles Knowledgebase.

Recover Deleted Data From Any Type of iPod

No matter what kind of iPod you have, Disk Drill can recover its lost music. Whether its the newest iPod touch or a well-used iPod classic, this reliable recovery software can scan its storage and recover lost and deleted files quickly and easily.
  • iPod Classic
    iPod Classic
    1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th
  • iPod Mini
    iPod Mini
    1st, 2nd
  • iPod Nano
    iPod Nano
    1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th
  • iPod Shuffle
    iPod Shuffle
    1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th
  • iPod Touch
    iPod Touch
    1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th
  • Other iOS devices
    Other iOS devices
    iPhone, iPad, etc...
Note: Disk Drill supports any device with iOS 5-13

File Types Supported for iPod Recovery

Disk Drill enables you to recover any types of files or data stored on your iPod or iPod Touch. As the tool scans your iPod you will be able to restore your Camera Roll, Photo Stream, Photo Library, Contacts, Messages, Mail, and all mail and message attachments, You can also recover Voice Memos, Reminders, Calendar information, Bookmarks for Safari, and Text Notes. If it was stored on your iPod, Disk Drill can get it back for you after an accidental deletion.
  • Camera Roll

  • Photo Stream

    Photo Stream

  • Photo Library

    Photo Library

  • Contacts
  • Messages

  • Message Attachments

    Message Attachments

  • Call History
  • Calendar
  • Notes
  • Voice Memos

  • Safari Bookmarks

    Safari Bookmarks

  • Other Files

    Other Files

Performing an iPod Music Recovery with Disk Drill

If you have an iPod or Nano and lose your music, here is the procedure to get your tunes back with Disk Drill. Your chances of a successful recovery diminish over time, so you should attempt the recovery as soon as you discover you have lost data. Stop downloading anything else to the iPod until recovery is complete to avoid overwriting the files you want to restore.

1. Download and Install Disk Drill

Download and install Disk Drill free iPod recovery software for Mac. The free trial version allows you to preview the files that can be recovered before investing in the tool.
ipod recovery software

2. Connect your iPod to your computer

Connect your iPod to your Macintosh and launch Disk Drill. You will be presented with a list of disks available for recovery. Select your iPod from the list so you can begin to retrieve your songs.
free ipod recovery software mac

3. Scan iPod for lost data

Click the Recover button. This starts the scanning process through which Disk Drill searches the iPod’s storage to identify deleted files that it can restore. You can select the type of scan you want to use. Allowing the tool to use all its scanning capabilities in optimal order gives you the most complete recovery. Recently deleted items may be found with a quick scan. It’s worth a try if you are in a hurry.

You can also direct Disk Drill to recover lost files from an iOS iPod from an iTunes backup. The software can extract specific files from the backup without requiring a full iTunes restore. This saves a lot of time when you need to recover just a few files.
ipod data recovery

4. Preview the recoverable files

Preview the files that have been found in the scanning process. Depending on the type of data you are attempting to recover, the items may be found in different folders identified by Disk Drill. For example, older devices are treated like any other disk while newer models like an iPod touch use iOS data recovery techniques.
free ipod recovery software

5. Recover your music and data from the iPod

Click the Recover button again to complete the recovery. We suggest saving the data to your computer and reloading it to your iPod when the recovery is finished. This recommendation is designed to minimize the probability of file corruption while recovering your lost data. When recovery is complete, you can move the data back to your iPod and be on your way.

So what are you waiting for? Download Disk Drill, the best iPod data recovery software, for free today!
ipod classic recovery software
IMPORTANT: Starting with Disk Drill 4, iOS-enabled iPod Touch devices are also supported for data recovery. Though the recovery process is different for touch and classic non-iOS iPods, Disk Drill attempts to ensure the highest recovery rate possible. So, at this time you can recover iPod data from the iPod Touch, Classic, Nano, Shuffle and Mini.

Reasons You Might Lose iPod Data

  • Accidental Deletion
    Accidental Deletion
    It’s very easy for you or a friend to accidentally delete some of your favorite tunes from your iPod.
  • Failed Jailbreak
    Failed Jailbreak
    Attempting to jailbreak your iPod so you can install alternate software can result in data loss.
  • Virus Infection
    Virus Infection
    Downloading apps to your device poses the risk of a virus infection that can lead to lost or corrupted files.
  • iOS Upgrade
    iOS Upgrade
    A problem with an iOS upgrade can cause multiple problems with your device including lost data.
  • iOS System Crash
    iOS System Crash
    A sudden operating system crash can result in all kinds of issues with your iPod including data loss.
  • Restore to Factory Settings
    Restore to Factory Settings
    Mistakenly restoring your device to its factory setting will result in the loss of all its user data.

Recovering Data From a Corrupt iPod

If your iPod is not recognized by your Mac or you get a “Drive Not Formatted” message, your iPod may have been corrupted. This may limit the ability to perform an iOS recovery, but Disk Drill can still recover deleted photos from your iPod. Disk Drill will treat the device as a raw disk. Your data is still physically present on the device and can be restored with the following steps.
  1. Connect the iPod to your computer.
  2. Launch Disk Drill and select the iPod from the disk list.
  3. Click Recover to start scanning the device for lost data.
  4. Preview the recoverable data and make your selections.
  5. Click Recover again to perform the restore.
ipod music recovery
Protect

It's easy to protect your data

While you are recovering data from your iPod, it's a good time to give the data safety on your desktop Mac a second thought. We all know it's just a question of when you will have to deal with data recovery, why not protect your most important files and folders today? Disk Drill provides all the required data protection tools you will need: Recovery Vault and Guaranteed Recovery.
recover ipod music

Technical Specifications for Disk Drill for Mac

  • OS support
    OS support:
    Versions of Disk Drill are available for all versions of macOS from 10.5 through the newest version 11.0 named Big Sur.
  • Files Systems Supported
    Files Systems Supported:
    FAT/FAT32/exFAT, NTFS, HFS & HFS+, APFS, EXT3/EXT4 and any RAW disk
  • Hardware Requirements
    Hardware Requirements:
    Disk Space: 50 Mb minimum free space
    CPU: at least with x86
    RAM: at least 128MB

Alternative Methods of Recovering Lost iPod Data

Here are some other ways you can restore deleted music on your iPod. For them to be successful, you need to have backed up your iPod after obtaining the lost songs.
Method 1

Recover deleted iPod data from an iTunes backup file

  1. Open Finder on a Mac with macOS Big Sur 11.0. For older operating systems, open iTunes.
  2. Connect your device to your computer with a USB cable. Follow the onscreen prompts to provide your passcode or to Trust This Computer.
  3. Select the iPod when it appears in the Finder window or iTunes.
  4. Select Restore Backup.
  5. Choose the backup you want to use for recovery.
  6. Click Restore and wait for the process to complete.
  7. Keep your device connected after it restarts and wait for it to sync with your computer.
best ipod recovery software
Method 2

Recover iPod music and videos from an iCloud backup file

  1. Turn on your device. You should see a Hello screen. You will need to erase all content from the iPod before using this procedure.
  2. Follow the onscreen setup steps until you reach the Apps & Data screen, then tap Restore from iCloud Backup.
  3. Sign in to iCloud with your Apple ID.
  4. Choose a backup. File transfer begins after you select the backup.
  5. Sign in with your Apple ID to restore your apps and purchases.
  6. Stay connected and wait for a progress bar to appear and complete. Based on the size of the backup and the network speed, the progress bar might need a few minutes to an hour to complete.
  7. Now you can finish setting up your device. Content such as photos, music, and apps will restore in the background until everything has been recovered. Staying connected to your WiFi will speed up this process.
ipod touch data recovery

Frequently Asked Questions

Updated on by Disk Drill Team

Use data recovery software to get deleted data back on your iPod. Here’s how to do it with Disk Drill.

  1. Download and install Disk Drill for Mac.
  2. Connect the iPod to your computer and launch the app.
  3. Click Recover to scan for deleted data.
  4. Preview the files found by Disk Drill.
  5. Make your selections and specify a storage location for the recovered data.
  6. Click Recover again to finish the recovery.

Follow this procedure to get deleted music back on your iPod with Disk Drill.

  1. Download and install Disk Drill for Mac.
  2. Connect the iPod to your machine and start the software.
  3. Click Recover to start the scanning algorithms.
  4. Preview the music that can be recovered.
  5. Select the music you want to recover.
  6. Click Recover to complete the recovery.

Use the following steps to get your music off an iPod without using iTunes.

  1. Disconnect all iOS devices from your computer.
  2. Go to iTunes > Preferences.
  3. Click the Devices tab and check the Prevent iPods, iPhones, and iPads from syncing automatically box.
  4. Click OK and close iTunes.
  5. Connect the iPod to your computer. It will show up as a drive.
  6. Open the iPod drive and navigate to the iPod_Control > Music folder.
  7. Copy the music files to your computer.
Yes, it will. All current data will be lost when you restore your iPod from a backup.

Recover data from an iPod Touch with data recovery software.

  1. Connect the iPod Touch to your computer.
  2. Use the software to scan for deleted data.
  3. Select the files for recovery.
  4. Recover the lost data to your computer.

Here’s how to recover music from your iPod touch using Disk Drill recovery software.

  1. Connect the iPod Touch to your computer.
  2. Launch Disk Drill and select the iPod Touch from the disk list.
  3. Click Recover to scan the iPod Touch for lost music.
  4. Preview and select the files you want to recover and a safe storage location.
  5. Click Recover to restore the music to your computer.

Data recovery software will treat your iPod classic as a standard disk device. This allows you to recover your lost songs with an app like Disk Drill. Follow these steps.

  1. Connect the iPod Classic to a computer.
  2. Launch Disk Drill and choose the iPod from the disk list.
  3. Click the Recover button to initiate the scanning procedures.
  4. Preview the files that can be recovered by the app.
  5. Click Recover a second time to restore the files to a storage location that you have specified.
If you have lost your music after an unsuccessful sync, you can recover from a backup or try to restore the data with recovery software.
Disk Drill enables you to see all of the files it can recover for free before you invest a cent in the software solution.

The following procedure can be used to transfer music from your iPod library to your computer.

  1. Disconnect all iOS devices from your computer.
  2. Go to iTunes > Preferences.
  3. Click the Devices tab and check the Prevent iPods, iPhones, and iPads from syncing automatically box.
  4. Click OK and close iTunes.
  5. Connect the iPod to your computer where it will show up as a drive.
  6. Open the iPod drive and navigate to the iPod_Control > Music folder.
  7. Select the music files and copy them to your computer.

You can use three different methods to recover playlists from an iPod. They are:

  • Recover from an iTunes backup;
  • Restore from an iCloud backup;
  • Use data recovery software like Disk Drill for iPod data recovery.
Disk Drill 4
Recover iPod data for iPod Touch, Shuffle and others
Free Download
Upgrade to PRO

Looking for more on data recovery?

How do I recover lost data?
  • 100+ Million
    TOTAL DOWNLOADS
  • 850,000+
    PRO CLIENTS
  • BUSINESS & HOME USERS
    in 150+ countries

See what Disk Drill fans say

AN Jay
Disk Drill is a professional but extremely simple Mac data recovery software that helps you rescue data on your Mac disks, external or internal hard drives, memory cards, cameras, iPods Classic, etc. Disk Drill will recover deleted files on your Mac!
technologytell.com
Disk Drill is an excellent utility that has a place on every hard drive, especially if you use an iPhone, digital camera, or other digital devices. Erica Marceau
Used by world famous companies
Partners