How to Recover Deleted Folders [Even Permanently Deleted]

Once you spot that you have lost your folder, check your Recycle Bin for the deleted folder. If it's there, just hit 'Restore' to send it back to where it was. If you can't find it, try using File History (assuming you had it set up). Go to the spot where the folder used to be, right-click, and select 'Restore previous versions' to see if there's a backup available.

Now, let us focus on recovering deleted folders on Windows! Check the following 5 methods and a detailed tutorial to recover deleted folders on Windows 10/11. But here you can first take a quick look at what you should or shouldn't do before you recover deleted folder:

Where Deleted Folders Go on Windows

Where the deleted folders go on your Windows devices? Before you start trying to get that deleted folder back, it's helpful to understand what happens when you delete something. A lot of people think that "deleted" means it's gone right away—but most of the time, it's not.

Usually, when you delete a folder the normal way, Windows just moves it to the Recycle Bin. You can think of the Recycle Bin like a temporary trash can—it's still there until you take it out for good. But watch out: sometimes deleted stuff doesn't go there at all. Here's when that happens:

• 🟦The folder's too big. The Recycle Bin has a size limit (usually around 5–10% of your drive). If what you're deleting is bigger than that, Windows will just wipe it for good.
• 🟩You hold down Shift while deleting. That's like saying, “Skip the Bin—just delete it!”
• 🟧It's on a USB stick or memory card. Stuff deleted from removable drives usually doesn't go to the Recycle Bin. (Though bigger external hard drives usually do.)
• 🟨You use the Command Line. If you're typing delete commands there, nothing goes to the Bin—it's just gone.

Method 1. How to Recover Deleted Folders with Software

The first and most recommended method to recover deleted folders on Windows is by applying data recovery software. No matter if you have lost your folders because of accidental deletion, sudden power off, system crashes, internal hard drive corruption, or other situations. You can use EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard to recover deleted folders quickly.

• Recover deleted files from desktop on Windows 10 and also can restore folders from Windows Recycle Bin.
• Recover deleted folders from internal hard drives, USB flash drives, external hard drives, and other storage devices.
• Fit your needs when recovering files and folders before repairing external hard drives or after formatting the HDD/SSD.
• Ensure most files will be recovered with deleted folders, including videos, photos, emails, documents, and audio.

After launching EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard, check this guide to recover deleted folders on Windows.

Step 1. Select a folder to scan for lost files

Launch EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard. Double click "Select Folder" to browse the the location where you lost the folder and click "OK" to scan the lost folder. 

Step 2. Find and preview found files in the lost folder

If you remember the folder name, type the folder name in search box to quickly find the lost files. Then, open the found folder and double-click to preview scanned files. Or you can use the Filter feature to find a certain type of files. 

Step 3. Recover and save the lost folder 

Last, select the folder and files you need, click "Recover" and choose a new & secure location on your PC or cloud storage like OneDrive, Google Drive, or Dropbox to keep the recovered data. 

Method 2. Retrieve Deleted Folders from the Recycle Bin

You know how when you drag a file to your computer's trash, it feels like you've thrown it away? Well, it's actually more like you've just moved it to a "maybe later" pile. Windows doesn't wipe the file out immediately. It just shuffles it over to the Recycle Bin and tells your hard drive, "Hey, the space that file was using is now up for grabs... but don't fill it up just yet." If you delete your folders using the right-click on Windows 10, you can find Recycle Bin on Windows 10 and restore your deleted folders.

Step 1. Ensure you have not deleted the folders with the Shift + Delete shortcut, and you should know the differences between shift delete and delete. You cannot find a shift-deleted folder in the Recycle Bin.

Step 2. The Recycle Bin will be found on the desktop by default, and the icon looks like a trash can.

Step 3. Double-click the Recycle Bin icon will enter the Recycle Bin folder. Find the deleted folder and right-click it. Then, choose "Restore" to put it back.

Method 3. Recover Deleted Folders by Restoring to Previous Version

If you have Windows restore points, you can restore Windows 10/11 to a previous version, and the previous version sometimes is called shadow copy. How to restore deleted folders with Windows system restore point? Keep reading to find out:

Step 1. Open the File Explorer on Windows 11/10. If you encounter File Explorer not responding, you can restart it to fix the problem.

Step 2. Navigate to the upper folder of the deleted one.

Step 3. If the deleted folder was the top folder of a drive, right-click the drive and choose the option to restore prior versions.

Step 4. To restore a deleted folder, choose the most recent version that contains it, and click "Restore".

Method 4. Restore Deleted Folders with Backup and Restore

If you haven't created any backups manually, you'd better check Windows Backup and Restore to take a chance. Windows Backup and Restore is a built-in backup utility that can rescue lost folders with system backups. Check this tutorial to restore deleted folders:

Step 1. Open the control panel on Windows 10/11 using the search box.

Step 2. Choose Back Up and Restore (Windows 7), then click it.

Step 4. Click "Restore my files", then you can search for lost folders by clicking "Browse for folders".

Step 5. Then, you can find the lost folder and follow the prompt to restore it.

Don't forget to share this passage to help more Windows users recover deleted folders!

Method 5. How to Recover Deleted Folders with File History

The last method to recover deleted folders on Windows is using File History. The program regularly copies the files in your Favorites and Contacts directories, Desktop, and Libraries. It is not difficult to use File History to recover deleted folders:

Step 1. You can access the File History option by opening the Control Panel> System and Security > File History.

Step 2. Select the folder that contains your deleted folders, and choose the right record that contains your deleted data.

Step 3. Click the Restore button in the center, and the selection will return.

Conclusion

We believe you have recovered deleted folder using the five methods we recommend. While using Windows 10 or 11, you can find many useful tools to help you out of data loss. If you don't have any useful backups on your computer and Windows Backup and Restore is not activated, you should try EaseUS data recovery software.

Recover Deleted Folders FAQs

If you have more questions about recovering deleted folders on Windows, don't leave this page. You can check four frequently asked questions to learn more:

1. How to recover permanently deleted files on Windows?

You will need EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard to recover permanently deleted files on Windows:

• 1. Launch the software and hover on the target drive or folder where you lost your files.
• 2. The scanning will start, and you can preview the files to ensure they can be opened after recovery.
• 3. Click the Recover button to recover deleted files.

2. Why a deleted folder is not in the Recycle Bin?

The deleted files might have been permanently removed if they were not in the Recycle Bin. When this occurs, the files' space will be designated as empty and can be overwritten by new information. It is also possible that you have not really deleted the folder and you just moved it to another partition.

3. Where can I find recently deleted folders?

You can find recently deleted folders in the Recycle Bin on Windows. If you deleted files and folders on Windows, they would move the files and folder to the Recycle Bin by default. If you want to recover these folders, right-click in the Recycle Bin and choose 'Restore'.

4. What is the best folder recovery program?

The following recovery software will help you recover lost folders on Windows:

1. 1. EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard
2. 2. Recuva
3. 3. PhotoRec
4. 4. Recover My Files
5. 5. Wise Data Recovery