How to Recover Files Deleted from the Recycle Bin

To recover permanently deleted files (those not present in the Recycle Bin), you can check your backups, such as those created using the File History tool on Windows. If you don’t have any backups or if they don’t contain your files, then you can try data recovery software like Disk Drill:

1. Download and install a Disk Drill on a drive that doesn’t contain data to be recovered.
2. Select your drive that lost the files and initiate a scan.
3. Preview recoverable files and select those you need.
4. Choose a safe recovery location (not the original drive).

If you’re absolutely sure the data was emptied from the Recycle Bin, you should follow the steps below:

1. Search any and all physical or built-in Windows backups to see if a copy of your data is still available.
2. If no backup has the data you need, and you’re working with an internal SSD, it’s highly recommended that you create a disk image of the disk to prevent further loss by TRIM.
3. Install Disk Drill to a separate, unaffected drive, scan the drive that lost the files, and recover the deleted files. 

Recover deleted files from the Windows 10 Recycle Bin with these steps:

1. Open the Recycle Bin by clicking its icon.
2. Locate the items you wish to recover.
3. Select the files or folders for recovery by holding CTRL and clicking each one.
4. Right-click and choose Restore to recover the data to its original location.

If your Recycle Bin is emptied and the files are no longer recoverable, see if File History has a backup copy of the data you’d like to restore. Or, you can use data recovery software to scan the drive and recover the deleted Recycle Bin files.

To recover files from the Windows 11 Recycle Bin:

1. Locate the Recycle Bin icon on your desktop and double-click it.
2. Select each file you want to recover by holding CTRL as you click each one.
3. Either click and drag the selected files to a safe location outside the Recycle Bin or right-click any selected file and choose the Restore option to move the selected files to their original locations.

If the Recycle Bin has already been emptied, a copy may be available in OneDrive (or its Recycle Bin) or a File History backup. An important factor to keep in mind, however, is that the majority of modern PCs and laptops use SSDs, which can make data recovery more difficult.

The only way to truly recover deleted files from the Recycle Bin without software is by restoring from a backup. Windows 10’s primary backup utility is File History, so it’s worth checking if a copy of your files is available. Windows 11 also has File History but focuses more on OneDrive for cloud-based storage, which may also hold a copy of your data.  Alternatively, you can use CHKDSK to repair issues with the drive if the data is simply inaccessible.

Files that are too large or deleted with shift-delete will skip the Recycle Bin. Likewise, if the Recycle Bin has been disabled, all data will be permanently deleted. Files that have skipped the Recycle Bin can be recovered either by restoring from a backup or using a data recovery tool to get them back.

Yes, you can. The free trial version of Disk Drill enables you to recover up to 100 MB of data before upgrading to the pro version of the software. That’s plenty to validate real recoverability and rescue your must-have files. It’s the best way to discover the power and intuitive ease of operation of the tool by performing a real data recovery without any financial commitment.

The process of emptying the Recycle Bin cannot be undone. However, there are other ways of getting the emptied Recycle Bin data back. Start by checking backups created by Backup and Restore, File History, OneDrive, and any third-party backup utilities. Failing to produce a backup, you can download data recovery software like Disk Drill to scan the drive and recover the data.

Each of your internal and external HDDs and SSDs has a hidden $RECYCLE.BIN folder. When you open the Recycle Bin, it will show you all deleted files across all Recycle Bins on connected drives. Therefore, the Recycle Bin is always there, just hidden, and the data itself will only be kept for 30 days by default.

Deleted files that are sent to the Recycle Bin will remain there until they’re deleted when the Recycle Bin is emptied, the Recycle Bin exceeds its allocated strage size (after which Windows will automatically delete the oldest items when needed), or Storage Sense is enabled and configured to empty the Recycle Bin periodically (every 30 days by default).