How to Recover Deleted Videos from Any Device

Let’s face it: accidentally deleted videos – it happens. Though the situation can be stressful, the sooner you act on it, the higher the chance you get them back. But now the question is, what is the most effective way to retrieve your precious video? In this article, we’ve put together all the necessary information you need to recover lost videos from Windows, Mac, Android and iPhone. Read on to find the solution that suits you best!

What to Do After Video Being Deleted?

Your precious videos can get lost or deleted due to a variety of reasons, including accidental deletion, formatted storage devices, virus attack, damaged software, update bugs, power surge or more. However, there is still a possibility that you can find deleted videos with inbuilt device options and right tools. The key is to not overwrite deleted video data if possible, increasing the highest chance of video recovery. Securing regular backups is also important to portect precious videos.

How to Recover Deleted Videos on Windows PC & Laptop

Method 1. Restore deleted videos from Recycle Bin

Recycle Bin keeps all the deleted files temporarily which means they will stay there until you manually empty it. As long as you didn’t use Shift + Delete when you carried out the deletion, the videos should still be kept in the recycle bin. All you need to do is go in there and retrieve the files following the below steps:

1. Find the Recycle Bin on the desktop and double-click it.

2. Locate the video files in the Recycle Bin.
3. Check the original location of the files. This is where the videos are restored to. The Original Location can be toggled by right-clicking the blank space and choosing View > Details.

4. Right-click on the video files and choose ‘Restore’. To choose multiple files, hold down Ctrl while selecting. To choose a range of files at once, hold down Shift while clicking on the first then the last file.

The videos will then be restored back to its original location. If you already emptied the bin or used Ctrl+delete, however, your video files will unfortunately not be found in the Recycle Bin. Then it’s time to try out the other methods described below.

Method 2. Recover deleted videos using File History on Windows 10/11

File History is an embedded system function on Windows 10 and 11. It regularly backs up different versions of your files in various locations and save them in an external drive or network location, from which your files can be restored. Backing up your files regularly can save you time and unnecessary stress. If you are not in the habit of it already, it will be a good idea to start now.

How to back up files using File History:

1. Connect an external hard drive to your computer.
2. In the search box on the task bar, type in ‘File History’.
3. Click File History (Control Panel).
4. Click ‘Select a drive’ and choose the hard drive or network you want to use.
5. Turn on File History.

How to restore deleted videos using File History:

1. Connect the external storage device your videos are saved in.
2. In the search box on the task bar, type in ‘Control Panel’ and select it from the results.
3. In the search box of the Control Panel, type ‘File History’. Select ‘Restore your files with File History’ from the list of results.
4. Follow the instructions to restore your videos.

Method 3. Recover deleted videos using ONERECOVERY

When the above-stated common methods fail to do the trick, it is better to employ professional software to assist you. Data recovery software is a cost-effective and time-saving option to restore your lost files. It saves you the time and energy of figuring things out by yourself at only a fraction of the price you get in professional data recovery shops. 

ONERECOVERY is a professional video recovery software that can handle data loss for over 1,000 scenarios including accidental deletion, formatting errors, virus attacks and more. Due to its high compatibility with a wide range of file types and storage devices, ONERECOVERY can offer solution to almost any case of file loss. It is especially suitable for video loss, for it can extract the video fragments from your storage device and restore them back to the video’s original version, be it ultra HD, 4K or 8K. Reliable and easy to use, it is trusted by millions of people. This handy yet powerful little tool can recover your lost video in just 3 simple steps:

1. Install and launch ONERECOVERY. Connect external hard drive to your computer, if applicable.
2. Select desktop, usb drive or any storage device to scan.
3. Preview recoverable videos and click “Recover“ button

How to Recover Deleted Videos on Mac

Method 1. Recover deleted videos from Trash

Once the video files are deleted on Mac, they are moved to the Trash folder. At this point, the trash icon will appear to be full of crumpled paper, which indicates there are deleted files in it. As long as the folder is not emptied, you can recover the video files from it successfully. All you need to do is to follow the below steps:

1. Click the Trash folder on your Mac to open. The Trash folder is represented by a white trashcan icon located on your Mac’s dock at the bottom of the screen.

2. Find the deleted video files you want to recover and select them.
3. Two-finger tap or right click the files and select Put Back from the dropdown menu. The files will be restored to their original location before they were deleted.

Method 2. Retrieve deleted videos from the Photos app

Similar to the Trash folder, the Photos app will keep deleted photos and videos for up to 30 days. If you were using the Photos app when you deleted the files, they can be easily restored by following the below steps:

1. Open the Photos app.
2. Select ‘Recently Deleted’ from the left-hand menu.
3. Select the video files you wish to recover.
4. Click ‘Recover’ in the top right corner of the window.

Method 3. Recover deleted videos from a Time Machine Backup

Time Machine is an in-built function on Mac that regularly backs up your personal data such as app, music, photos, and of course, videos. When you fail to restore the lost videos from Trash or Photos, you can try out your luck with Time Machine.

1. Open the folder where your deleted videos were located.
2. Hit the command key and tap the space bar to open Spotlight.
3. Type ‘time machine’ and hit return.
4. Use the arrows and timeline to browse the snapshots and backups.
5. Select the videos and click ‘Restore’.
6. The restored video files will be returned to their original location.

How to Recover Deleted Videos on Android Phone & Tablet

Method 1. Retrieve deleted videos from the recently deleted folder

The Gallery app on the Android system has a folder that keeps deleted photos and videos for a period of time, generally 30 days. It is called something like Trash or Deleted items. Below are the steps to take on a Redmi phone:

1. Go to the system default Gallery app.
2. Select the ‘Albums’ tab.
3. Scroll all the way to the bottom.
4. Open the ‘Deleted items’ folder.
5. Press and hold the video files you want to recover to select them.
6. Tap ‘Restore’ at the bottom of the screen.

Method 2. Restore deleted videos with Google Photos

Google Photos is a popular app for photo and video storage. As long as you enabled its backup function, recovering lost videos should be a fairly quick and easy job. All you need to do is to check its Trash folder, which keeps deleted photos and videos for 60 days before they are permanently deleted, so act quick! Here’s how to do it:

1. Tap the Google Photos app on your phone to open it.
2. Go to Library > Trash and find the deleted videos.
3. Press and hold the videos to select, or tap ‘Select’ in the top right corner.
4. Tap ‘Restore’ in the bottom right corner. The restored videos should be put back to Google Photos Library and your gallery app.

Method 3. Recover videos from Google Drive

If you have backed up your videos before loss, you can easily retrieve them from Google Drive to your Android device.

• Go to Google Drive website or you can log into your Google Drive app on your device
• A list of videos and photos your backed with Google Drive will be displayed
• Select the videos you wish to restore and download them to your device.

How to Recover Deleted Videos on iPhone & iPad

Method 1. Restore deleted videos from Recently Deleted

If the videos were deleted while using the Photos app, check your Recently Deleted folder, which keeps the deleted files for up to 40 days. Follow the below steps to recover them:

1. Tap the Photos app icon to open it.
2. Select Albums and scroll down to Recently Deleted under Utilities.
3. Select the videos you want to restore and tap ‘Recover’.

Method 2. Restore deleted videos from iCloud

Follow the below steps to retrieve videos from your iCloud account:

1. Navigate to iCloud.com
2. Log into your account by filling in your username and password.
3. Open iCloud Drive.
4. Find and select the videos you want to download.
5. Tap ‘Download’ at the top of the page.

How to Recover Deleted Videos on Samsung?

Method 1. Try Inbuilt Samsung Recovery Options

Go into your Samsung Settings app and see if you have any storage utilities enabled that can restore recently erased videos from the phone or SD card memory. For example, the Samsung Gallery have a Recycle Bin allowing restores if automatic cloud backups weren’t set up.

Method 2. Retrieve from Cloud Backup

If you have enabled cloud backup on your Samsung phone, you may be able to recover videos and photos from cloud. Samsung devices have inbuilt cloud backup options such as Samsung Cloud, Google Drive, and OneDriev. To recover deleted videos from Samsung phone using cloud, follow these steps:

• Go to Settings app > Cloud and Accounts > Samsung Cloud
• Sign into your Samsung account
• Tap “Download” to restore videos to your Samsung phone

Method 3. Recover Samsung Videos with Kies

Samsung has developed Kies for managing and synchronizing data between Samsung devices and computers. Apart from primary functions, it also can be utilized to recover deleted videos on Samsung devices. Check step-by-step guide on how to retrieve Samsung videos with Kies:

• Download and install Kies on your computer. Then connect your Samsung device to the computer
• Launch Kies and go to Backup/Restore > Restore > choose backup file
• Click “Restore“ to initiate the recovery process

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I Recover Youtube/Tiktok Video on My Phone?

Yes, you can retrieve deleted or lost Youtube videos or Tiktok draft on your smartphone. For example, you can restore Youtube video from recycle bin, backup, archive.org, shared sites. Even if all methods fail, you still can recover precious files with professional video recovery software!

Is It Possible to Retrieve Video from SD Card or USB Drive?

Yes, you can seek help from data recovery software that can address over 500+ data loss scenarios. It supports video recovery from various storage devices including camera, sd card, hard drive, usb flash/pen drive and more.

How to Back up Videos to Prevent Losing?

1. Use cloud storage – Services like Google Photos, Amazon Photos, and iCloud automatically back up videos on your devices like phones, tablets and laptops. They provide free storage tiers to regularly sync media.
2. Enable phone backup – Connect your phone to your computer and turn on backup syncing via software like iTunes (iPhone) or Smart Switch (Samsung). This copies videos to your PC storage.
3. Create video file copies – Manually or automatically make extra copies of video files on external hard drives and USB thumb drives. This provides physical backups you can retrieve if your devices fail.

Summary

Now you know how to recover deleted videos from any device including Windows PCs, Macs, Android, iPhone and iPads, Samsung phones and tablets. While inbuilt restore options or device settings may do the trick, third-party video recovery software offers the robust and quick way to retrieve accidentally deleted video files. Just remember – the key is to regularly back up your files, which makes the recovery process much quicker and easier.