FREE PhotoRec Alternative: Recove Files with 3 Steps

MyRecover is a FREE photorec alternative to help you recover deleted or lost files within 3 simple steps.

By @Dervish Last Updated December 12, 2024

“Which is the best data recovery program in Windows?”

People who have lost data will be familiar with PhotoRec to some degree. It is used to recover data from hard drives that have been lost data. It is popular because it is free and open-source software.

However, things will not always go as planned. You will notice that users are dissatisfied with this app. For example, why is PhotoRec not finding files, why is it so slow, etc?

   
   
   
       

Is there an alternative program to PhotoRec?

       

In order to recover data from a crashed HDD. PhotoRec does some job but a bit poorly.

       

- Question from Techforum

   

As you can see, users are quite unsatisfied with the performance of PhotoRec, and therefore, a bunch of users is seeking a better PhotoRec alternative to rescue their precious data.

If you have the same needs, this article will be worth reading. We will walk you through how to select a good data rescue utility from seas of eligible apps; then, a tool will be recommended; also, the features and usage are ready to help you as well.

How to choose PhotoRec alternatives?

Then, how to pick a suitable one? The goal for users is just to recover data from hard drives easily.

To meet the needs of most users, generally, good data recovery software should possess these features or points including but not limited to:

  • Easy. It should be simple to understand and use, with no added pressure or stress on users.
  • Efficient. It ought to be effective in data recovery. The more (kinds of) data it recovers, the better it is. Speed is also a criterion.
  • Comprehensive. It needs to apply to a variety of data loss scenarios, solving various problems for users.

Users will be much more demanding when choosing a Windows data recovery tool. Just move on to the next part to view and check the top 1 app.

Excellent PhotoRec alternative to recover files easily and quickly

Taking these and more into consideration, among a large amount of data recovery tools, the best one is to be recommended – MyRecover.

▶ PhotoRec vs. MyRecover

By comparing the two, you could figure out which one is better and preferable.

  MyRecover PhotoRec
Usability
  • GUI provided, user-friendly;
  • Easy to operate;
  • 3-step process;
  • No GUI;
  • Complex command-line user interface;
  • Difficult to learn and operate;
Efficiency
  • 200+ recoverable file types, including photos, videos, audios, office files, zip files, etc.;
  • 100+ recoverable data types, including photos, videos, documents, and zip files;
Convenience
  • Support data recovery from specific directory/file type;
  • Deleted data could be recovered with the original filename, format, and directory;
  • Select wanted files to recover, saving disk space;
  • Only scan the whole hard partition or unallocated space;
  • Recovered files will lose their filenames;
  • Scanned files will be recovered right away, unselective and space-wasting;
Speed
  • 5 - 40 min;
  • 30 min – 1 hr+;
Compatibility
  • Specially designed for Windows;
  • Support Windows 11/10/8/7 SP 1 & Server;
  • Compatible with File Systems:  NTFS/exFAT/FAT32/ReFS;
  • Cross-platform;
  • Support Windows/Linux/Mac/DOS;
  • Compatible with FAT/NTFS/exFAT/ext2/3/4;

Using the competent, convenient, comprehensive, and compatible data recovery tool – MyRecover is much more recommended.

▶ Easy process to recover data from hard drive using MyRecover

Now follow the detailed guide to use this excellent PhotoRec alternative to recover data from hard drives readily.

Notes:✎...
It is suggested to store the recovered data in another drive. 
This tool is specially designed for Windows users, even Server users could restore data using it. E.g., you could recover data from Windows Server 2016 with ease.
Download SoftwareWin 11/10/8/7/Server
Secure Download

Step 1. Install and run the MyRecover > Find the location and click Scan.

Step 2. Scanned files will be listed. Use filters to view and search your wanted files, e.g., extensions, file types, size, path, and so on.

Step 3. Go to Deleted files > refer to the original location >select the deleted files to restore > Recover x files. Or go to Other missing files > select specific types of data.

It not only works well with a healthy hard drive but also with a formatted drive. Using it, it will be an easy task to recover data from formatted hard drive as well.

Wrapping up

This article has introduced the best PhotoRec alternative – MyRecover. It features competency, convenience, compatibility, etc., facilitating users to recover deleted and missing files from internal/external HDD/SSD/USB/memory cards, etc.

You could easily pick the best helper by checking the comparison between PhotoRec and this app.

What is also important is that a backup habit is necessary for all users for the sake of data safety.

A foresighted user will use professional data backup software for Windows to protect their valuable data. With its useful features, like Disk Backup, System Backup, File Backup, etc., your data will be safe and sound when accidents occur.