Best USB Recovery Tool in 2023 | The Expert’s Choice

15 minutes read

Are you confused while choosing a reliable USB recovery tool? Then worry not! We have got it covered. In this article, we have summed up some of the best reliable USB Recovery tools you can opt for to get your job done without any hassle or trouble. If you are looking for some quick tool with assured performance then you can hands down opt for Remo Recover tool.

Written By
Updated On

In this article we will discuss a few top best USB recovery tools to consider for recovering deleted or lost data from a USB drive, and also find what are the factors to consider while selecting the tool. Let's get started. Before we head to the top 5 flash drive recovery tools let us understand some basic information about the USB storage device. 

As we all know USB drives have been in the market since late 2000. We proactively use these flash drives for transferring the videos, audios, photos, etc. It is a storage data that includes flash memory that come with various types like Security flash drive, Music flash drives, Boot flash drives, etc. There are other various flash drives based on USB ports as follows.

  • USB 3.1, USB 3.2 flash drive:-  These types of USB have a fast read and write speed of nearly 1250 MB/sec and 2500 MB/sec.
  • USB 3.0 flash drive:- A USB 3.0 flash drive operates far faster than a USB 2.0 one. A 3.0 flash drive can transmit data at a rate of 625 MB/sec. Due to its rapid read, write, and transfer rates, USB 3.0 thumb drives are becoming more and more popular among flash memory stick users.
  • USB 2.0 flash drive:- The USB 2.0 interface can transport data at a maximum rate of 60 MB/sec. It is now often used on numerous PCs. The speed of your computer's 2.0 port will therefore be utilised to transfer data even if you use a USB 3.0 pen drive.

Even though flash drives are quite often used due to their mobility. However, these drives are not free from data loss.  

Is USB Recovery Tool Necessary?

Yes, there are few manual methods like checking for the accidentally deleted data in Recycle Bin, File History, Back and Restore, etc., these methods have a success rate about 30% overall completely depending on whether you have enabled backup or not. However, if you have tried manual methods and it did not yield expected results then you can consider the final resort for recovering the lost data using the USB recovery application.

Now you might be wondering how to select the USB recovery tool and what are the parameters to consider while selecting the right USB recovery software.

What to Consider When Selecting a USB Recovery tool?

CriteriaDescription
1. User Interface:A good USB recovery application should be easy and self explanatory. Since any new user using the tool should feel easy to navigate and get back the lost data.
2. Performance:A good flash drive recovery software should be powerful in recovering the lost data from the USB drive without any hassle. There is no point in investing in software which takes ages to scan the drive and get back the lost data.  
3. Ability to Recover Data from Various Data Loss Scenarios:  The tool should be capable of performing recovery from simple to complex data loss scenarios like accidental deletion, formatting, corruption, partition loss, etc.    
4. Support Multiple File Systems:The tool should be able to support multiple file systems like: NTFS, NTFS5, FAT32, exFAT, FAT16, APFS, HFS, HFS+
5. Compatibility: A good USB flash drive recovery tool should be compatible with Operating systems like Windows, Mac, etc. They should be compatible with various storage devices like USB, SD card, SSD, Hard Drive, etc.
6. Pricing:  Price is an important criteria to look up with respect to the feature and performance of the pen drive recovery utility. Since there are few free tools available in the market that wont deliver the expected results and few of the softwares are too pricey and some are affordable as well.

How did we Decide which USB Recovery tool is the Best?

Based on the above factors like:- 

  • User Interface
  • Performance
  • Ability to Recover Data from Various Data Loss Scenarios
  • Support Multiple File Systems
  • Compatibility
  • Pricing

We have tried and tested the software and came up with the best top 5 USB recovery software you can consider to recover your lost files from the pen drive.

We discovered that these software applications were the most dependable during USB data loss, despite the fact that some are simpler to use and some are more expensive.

For your internal or external drives, each offers unique strengths and drawbacks that you should take into account. These suggestions can assist you in selecting the best course of action and secure restoring of your lost files.

What are the Top 5 Best USB Recovery tools?

To help you choose the best USB Recovery Software, we have tested some of the top USB recovery software under a particular data loss scenario. The test environment created is as mentioned below:

Test Environment

  • Storage Device: Kingston USB drive
  • Data Loss Scenario: Deletion
  • Test Case Scenario: I accidentally deleted a file from my USB, because for some reason there were duplicate files with the same file name. And when I deleted the duplicate files, the other files also got permanently deleted.
  • Amount of Data Deleted: 4 GB
  • File System: FAT32
  • Softwares tested under the above scenario: Remo Recover, Recoverit Wondershare, Disk Drill, Stellar, Recuva.
Trustpilot RatingSoftwareInstallation Difficulty
4.5⭐Remo RecoverEasy
3.8⭐Recoverit WondershareEasy
4.5⭐Disk DrillEasy 
4.7⭐StellarLittle time consuming 
4.3⭐ Recuva Easy

1) Remo Recover for Windows:

  • Product Name: Remo Recover
  • Version: 6.0
  • Software Provider: Remo Software
  • Supported file formats: 500 Plus
  • Supported file systems: NTFS, NTFS5, FAT32, exFAT, FAT16, APFS, HFS, HFS+
  • Compatibility: Windows, Mac Operating System.
  • Price: (For Windows): 6 months licence - $79.97, 1 month licence - $69.97, (For Mac): Basic edition: $59.97, Media edition: $69.97, Pro edition: $179.97.
  • Trustpilot rating: overall 4.5 stars out of 5
remo recover home page

Test Case Scenario:

As discussed in the above section of the article we have run a test on a Windows computer. 

remo recover scan verdict

Result: The tool was able to recover 92012 files. In that i was able to recover my permanently deleted files within 14 mins and 28 sec.

ProsCons
The tool is pretty self explanatory, once the Quick Scan completed the tool automatically initiated the Deep Scan.I was not able to preview certain files using the Preview feature. However, after saving them on the computer I was able to preview them.
The software successfully found 92012 files. In that i was able to get back my deleted files PNG, JPEG, MP4, WAV, etc.Some of the recovered files failed to open
The tool has an Advanced filter which helped me recover specific files.   

Here are some of the Reviews:

trustpilot review

Source: Trustpilot

techradar review

Source: TechRadar

If you are looking to download the Remo Recover tool, you can click on the below button.

2) Recoverit Data Recovery:

  • Product Name: Recoverit
  • Version: 11.0.4.5
  • Software Provider: Wondershare Recoverit Data Recovery Software
  • Supported file formats: more than 1000
  • Supported file systems: APFS (Encrypted), ExFAT, FAT16, FAT32, HFS+ Encrypted, HFS, HFSX, NTFS.
  • Compatibility: Windows, Mac Operating System.
  • Price: Premium- $99.99/year, Standard- $79.99/year, Essential- $69.99/year
  • Trustpilot rating: overall 3.8 stars out of 5.
recoverit data recovery software home page

Test Case Scenario:

As discussed in the above section of the article we have run a test on a Windows computer. 

recoverit scan verdict

Result: The tool was able to recover 41685 files. In that i was able to recover my permanently deleted files within 14 mins and 28 sec.

ProsCons
You can recover data by File Location, File Type, Time, File Size, Tags.Once the software completes the Quick scan process then only you will be able to view the data.
It allows you to search for specific files with the Search Feature.The scanning of the drive takes more time. And the Can't detect your hard drive? Will not immediately search for the drive instead it will ask you to contact the Tech support page. 
The tool allows you to recover data for free up to 500 MB. 

Here are some of the Reviews:

recoverit review

Source: Trustpilot

recoverit review by trustradius

Source: Trustradius

3) Disk Drill:

  • Product Name: Disk Drill
  • Version: 5.2.817.0
  • Software Provider: Cleverfiles
  • Supported file formats: more than 366
  • Supported file systems: FAT16/FAT32/exFAT, NTFS, NTFS5, HFS, HFS+, APFS, EXT2/EXT3/EXT4.
  • Compatibility: Windows, Mac Operating System.
  • Price: $89.00 (Lifetime licence)
  • Trustpilot rating: overall 4.5 stars out of 5.
disk drill home page

Test Case Scenario:

As discussed in the above section of the article we have run a test on a Windows computer. 

disk drill scan time verdict

Result: The tool was able to recover 41657 files. I was able to recover my permanently deleted files within 6 minutes.

ProsCons
The tool has simple user interfaceThe tree structure of the recovered files is not automatically generated; you need to navigate to the Review Found Items tab.
You can recover the data by Pictures, Video, Audio, Documents, Archives, Other.The Preview usually gets displayed in the small screen on the right side of the screen. You need to click on the upper right corner of the screen to open the Preview into a separate window.
It allows you to save the recovered files up to 500 MB.There are no separate intervals for Quick Scan and Deep Scan.
The tool allows you to recover files based on the File Size, Date Modified, Recovery Chances. 

Here are some of the Reviews:

disk drill trustpilot review

Source: Trustpilot

g2 review

Source: G2.com

4) Stellar Data Recovery:

  • Product Name: Stellar
  • Version: 6.0.0.1
  • Software Provider: Stellarinfo
  • Supported file formats: 300 plus
  • Supported file systems: NTFS, FAT, FAT16, FAT32, exFAT, Ext2, Ext3, Ext4, HFS, HFS+, and APFS.
  • Compatibility: Windows, Mac Operating System.
  • Price: Standard: $59.99, Professional: $89.99, Premium: $99.99
  • Trustpilot rating: overall 4.7 stars out of 5.
stellar home page

Test Case Scenario:

As discussed in the above section of the article we have run a test on a Windows computer. 

stellar scan verdict

Result: The tool was able to recover 83590 files. In that i was able to recover my permanently deleted files within 16 mins and 45 sec.

ProsCons
The tool has a user-friendly interface.The deep scan feature should be manually initiated.
The tool instals quickly.Scanning of the drive takes more time.
It allows you to select the file type before scanning the drive.Preview feature works moderately.

Here are some of the Reviews:

trustpilot review of stellar

Source: Trustpilot

capterra review

Source: Capterra

5) Recuva:

  • Product Name: Recuva
  • Version: 1.53.0.2083
  • Software Provider: CCleaner
  • Supported file formats: more than 100
  • Supported file systems: FAT, exFAT and NTFS 
  • Compatibility: Windows, Mac Operating System.
  • Price: Recuva Professional= $24.95
  • Trustpilot rating: overall 4.3 stars out of 5.
recuva home page

Test Case Scenario:

As discussed in the above section of the article we have run a test on a Windows computer. 

recuva scan of the drive verdict

Result: The tool was able to recover 16130 files. In that i was able to recover my permanently deleted files within 12 minutes and 47 secs.

ProsCons
The scanning speed of the tool is fastThe tool does not list out the actual files, you need to search for the actual files.
The tool works only on Windows OS machines.The Tree Structure looks complex
The tool has easy to use graphical interfaceThe Preview does not work effectively.
The tool has a small download size.You need to manually initiate the Deep Scan option.

Here are some of the Reviews:

trustpilot review of recuva

Source: Trustpilot

techradar review

Source: Techradar

Overall Comparison table for USB recovery tools

USB recovery toolsRemo RecoverRecoveritDisk DrillStellarRecuva
Graphical interfaceEasy to useEasy to UseEasy to UseEasy to UseModerate
Recovery speedFastFastFastModerateFast
Supported File FormatsSupports more than 500 file formatsSupports more than 1000 file formatsSupports more than 366 file formatsSupports more than 300 file formatsSupports more than 100 file formats
Supported File SystemsNTFS, NTFS5, FAT32, exFAT, FAT16, APFS, HFS, HFS+APFS (Encrypted), ExFAT, FAT16, FAT32, HFS+ Encrypted, HFS, HFSX, NTFS  FAT16/FAT32/exFAT, NTFS, NTFS5, HFS, HFS+, APFS, EXT2/EXT3/EXT4NTFS, FAT, FAT16, FAT32, exFAT, Ext2, Ext3, Ext4, HFS, HFS+, and APFS.FAT, exFAT and NTFS
Software PricingFor 1 month- 69.97$ For 6 months- 79.97$Premium - $99.99/year Standard- $79.99/year Essential- $69.99/year  $89.00 (Lifetime licence)  Standard: $59.99 Professional: $89.99 Premium: $99.99  Recuva Professional= $24.95    
Customer supportSupports both live chat and email chatSupports both live chat and email chatSupports both live chat and email chatSupports both live chat and email chatSupports live chat
Although there are many more file recovery programs than those mentioned above, we have only included those that can recover a wide variety of files and are easy to use. USB recovery programs that have freeware/slightly complex interfaces are not listed above. However, you can take a look at the honourable mentions below, that you can consider for deleted data or lost data recovery.

Honourable Mentions:

Some of the pen drive recovery tools you can also consider for recovering your lost data. 

  • iCare data recovery
  • R-studio
  • Photorec
  • MiniTool
  • iBoysoft

USB Recovery tool you can Avoid:

There are few tools you can avoid for recovering your data from a USB drive. Although these tools can recover data, but the Tree Structure is complex and least organised. Be  considerate while installing some of the freeware USB recovery tools because these tools might contain bloatware.

  • BPlan Data Recovery
  • Free Undelete

Conclusion:

The top 5 Flash drive recovery tools are listed in this post. You can browse the list and choose the tool that best suits your needs. Take regular backups of your data as an additional precaution against data loss. Avoid overwriting the drive with new data as well; doing so will lower the likelihood of data recovery. You can post any additional questions you may have about the topic in the comment box found below.

Frequently Asked Questions: 

How to Maximise the Chances of Data Recovery from USB?

To maximize the chances of data recovery first follow the below tips:
Avoid adding any new data upon encountering data loss. 
Stop using the drive immediately. 
Make sure you use a reliable data recovery tool to get back the data safely.
Upon recovering the data try saving the data on another external drive.

Is Data Recovery Software free?

Many USB recovery applications have functionally-restricted versions that let you examine recoverable files prior to paying for the full version. Some tools may also have fully functional versions that are absolutely free for personal use, however, they are not very reliable.

Can all file types be recovered using USB recovery software?

Numerous file types, including documents, images, videos, audio files, archives, and more, may typically be recovered using the majority of USB recovery software. 

About the Author: John Harris

With a decade of experience in data recovery, John Harris, Senior Editor at Remo Software, is your go-to specialist. His focus includes partition management, Windows solutions, and data troubleshooting, delivering insightful content that serves both users and search engines. John's expertise shines through in illuminating blog posts, untangling data loss intricacies across diverse storage platforms.…