Table of Contents
- How to Recover Unsaved PowerPoint on Mac [5 Solutions]
- How to Recover Deleted PowerPoint Files on Mac [3 Solutions]
- How to Avoid PPT Files Unsaved on the Mac [Tips]
- Conclusion
- Unsaved PowerPoint Recovery Mac FAQs
About the Author
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It's possible to recover unsaved PowerPoint files on the Mac. You can apply the built-in feature "Open Recent" to bring back the recently opened PowerPoint presentations that you haven't saved. You can also go to the AutoRecovery folder or the TMP folder to check the unsaved PPT files. Also, there are specialized unsaved PowerPoint recovery software like EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac that can help you recover unsaved PowerPoint files on the Mac.
My pathetic worthless excuse for a laptop (macbook air) decided to freeze when I tried to save my document for the first time, which I have been working on for the entire day. The only option was to force quit, of course with autorecover turned on I expected to see my document when I reopened powerpoint but NO it's all gone. I've tried everything but can't find it。 from Reddit
You may find many posts about unsaved PowerPoint recovery Mac in the Microsoft Community, Reddit, Apple Community and other forums, lost of people have encountered similar issues. You may need to recover unsaved PowerPoint files on a Mac because of the following situations:
- ⚠️Microsoft Office PowerPoint Fore Quit: PowerPoint crashes or becomes unresponsive, forcing you to relaunch it.
- ⚠️Accidentally Click Don't Save PowerPoint on Mac: You close the PowerPoint presentation and instinctively hit the wrong button, discarding your changes.
- ⚠️Sudden Power-Off or System Shut Down: A dead battery, a macOS update prompt, or a random reboot interrupts your workflow.
- ⚠️Forget to Click "Save" in PowerPoint on Mac: You get distracted and close PowerPoint without saving.
If you have been troubled with similar PowerPoint problems, you'll learn all the possible solutions in this passage to recover unsaved PPT files on your Mac. Keep reading to find all the detailed tutorials on Mac unsaved PPT recovery.
How to Recover Unsaved PowerPoint on Mac [5 Solutions]
PowerPoint software closes unexpectedly without being saved. What do I do? If you have the same question, PowerPoint's AutoRecover feature periodically saves your presentation while you're working, which can be used to recover unsaved changes after a crash or unexpected shutdown. Here's a table that can help you learn more about all five solutions for unsaved PPT recovery:
💡Ease of Use | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐ | ⭐ | ⭐⭐ |
✅Success Rate | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐ | ⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐ |
📒Supported Scenarios | All data loss cases (unsaved, deleted, corrupted, overwritten) | Unsaved but recently closed files | Power outages or crashes | Sudden crashes, system temp storage | File overwritten or deleted with Time Machine enabled |
🔍Extra Features | File preview before recovery, supports all Office formats, advanced scan | / | / | / | Full system restore, not file-specific |
🚫Limitations | Paid software (free trial available) | Works only if the file was listed in "Recent" | Works only if AutoRecover is enabled & not cleared | Not reliable, files often overwritten | Works only if Time Machine was previously set up |
Before you recover unsaved PowerPoint files on Mac, watch this video first. It provides you with more details on Mac PPT recovery.
- 00:29 - Method 1. Recover PPT on Mac from Time Machine Backup
- 01:19 - Method 2. Recover Deleted and Unsaved PPT with Software
- 02:23 - Method 3. Recover Unsaved PPT on Mac with Autosave
- 03:07 - Method 4. Recover Unsaved PowerPoint Files from Temp Folder

Fix 1. Recover Unsaved PowerPoint Files on Mac with PPT Recovery Software
There are lots of Mac recovery tools, but to achieve the best PPT/PPTX recovery result, you need to choose the best Mac data recovery software. Considering the product quality, usability, and versatility, we recommend you try EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac.
It is a powerful Mac data recovery software that works perfectly well to recover unsaved Word documents on Mac and PowerPoint files that you forgot to save. With this recovery tool, you can even recover deleted PPT files on Mac.
You can check the following tutorial to restore unsaved .ppt files on Mac:
Step 1. Launch the software on your Mac and click "Hardware Disk" > choose a disk and click "Search for lost files". If you want to recover unsaved PPT from the other storage device, remember to connect it to the Mac in advance.

Step 2. This software can help you recover unsaved files on a Mac. After clicking the scan button, all the lost files will show up in the window, and you can click "Type" > "Unsaved Documents" to find the unsaved PPT work pages on Mac.

Step 3. You can double-click the PowerPoint file to preview it. After ensuring the PPT file is the wanted one, click "Recover" to save it.

Many users have recovered deleted or unsaved presentations from their Macs successfully with EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac:
- 💡I'm happy with EaseUS data recovery software. I'm a teacher and I have lots of PPT files for my class. But I lost my files due to system corruption. Fortunately, EaseUS saved my life. I get back my PPT files with EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard. Thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!!! from Trustpilot
- 💡I have been using EaseUS Data Recovery software since 2019, and it has consistently proven to be an invaluable tool for recovering lost data. Recently, my hard drive became corrupted, and I feared I had lost all my important files. However, thanks to this software, I am able to retrieve everything with ease. The support available is fantastic and response time is within minutes or even seconds! i highly recommed this product. from G2
Share this functional PPT recovery tool on social media to inform more users who are facing an unsaved file issue!
Fix 2. Recover Unsaved PPT Files with the Open Recent Option
Usually, when your files are not saving because of a software force quit, your unsaved files will appear again when you reopen the software if you have enabled AutoSave.
Microsoft PowerPoint for Mac has a brilliant, built-in feature designed specifically for this kind of disaster. You can directly recover unsaved PPT files in Microsoft PowerPoint.
Step 1. Launch Microsoft PowerPoint on your Mac, and it's crucial that you start from a new blank presentation or the main startup window.
Step 2. Now, click "File" from the menu bar.
Step 3. Move the pointer to the "Open Recent", and you'll see some recently opened PPT files show up, including the unsaved one. Select and open the presentation and save it this time.
This utility actually works based on the AutoRecover feature; you need to enable this feature in advance.
AutoRecover, a feature that is available in some Office applications, attempts to recover files automatically in the event of an application or system crash. It does this by periodically saving a copy of the file in the background. By default, AutoRecover saves a recovery file every 10 minutes. - Microsoft Support |
It's simple to turn on this AuoSave/AutoRecover feature in the Microsoft PowerPoint for Mac. Once you have opened a presentation, check the left coner, you'll see a "AutoSave" button, toggle on the button to enable this feature.
Fix 3. Restore Unsaved PowerPoint Files from AutoRecovery Folder
AutoRecover, a built-in feature in Microsoft Office, is able to restore your PPT files from the AutoSave PowerPoint Mac location after a system crash. It will save a copy of your PowerPoint in the background every 10 minutes (by default).
Thus, it's possible to find the backup of your desired PowerPoint in the AutoRecover folder. But where are PowerPoint recovery files stored on a Mac? Follow the steps below to auto-recover PowerPoint Mac:
Step 1. Click "Go" > "Go to Folder".
Step 2. Go to the PowerPoint autosave location on Mac by navigating to: /Users/Library/Containers/com.Microsoft.Powerpoint/Data/Library/Preferences/AutoRecovery.
Step 3. If you find the file you need, open it with Microsoft Office and save it on your computer.
- Notice:
- If you unsaved your PowerPoint file by clicking "Don't Save", the AutoRecovered files will be deleted because the Office thinks that they are not needed. If that's how you make your PPT files unsaved, this method will not work for you. How do I recover a deleted PowerPoint presentation on a Mac? Please skip to the deleted recovery part.
Fix 4. Recover Not Saving PowerPoint Files on Mac from TMP Folder
macOS will keep the temp files that the software has created. MS Office PowerPoint will also keep temporary files, and you still have a chance to recover unsaved PPT from the Temp folder on Mac:
Step 1. Wake up the Mac Terminal with the Spotlight.
Step 2. In Terminal, enter open $TMPDIR, and you will be directed to the TMP folder used to keep files temporarily.
Step 3. In the TMP folder, find and open the "TemporaryItems" folder. In it, right-click the desired unsaved PowerPoint file and open it with Microsoft PowerPoint.
Step 4. Save the PPT file by clicking on "File" > "Save As" and save it to another location.
Fix 5. Recover Unsaved/Overwritten PowerPoint Files from Older Versions
At last, if you set up a regular Time Machine backup on your Mac, you may be fortunate to restore the previous version of the lost PowerPoint files that were deleted, corrupted, overwritten, and unsaved.
Step 1. Go to Finder and open the folder where the disappeared PowerPoint file was located.
Step 2. Select Enter Time Machine from the Time Machine menu to find the Time Machine backups you created.
Step 3. Filter a time before the PowerPoint file was lost, corrupted, or overwritten. Click on the file and then click Restore.
If the four methods above can't help you recover your unsaved PowerPoint files, you may not be able to get them back anymore. To prevent such terrible things from happening, you should develop a good habit of saving your files frequently or at least decrease the Auto-Save interval.
However, if your PPT file has been saved before but was missing after a system crash, using the data recovery for Mac to recover it is well worth trying.
How to Recover Deleted PowerPoint Files on Mac [3 Solutions]
After learning how to recover unsaved PowerPints files on macOS, you can follow these three methods to recover deleted or overwritten PPTs on a Mac:
Method 1. Recover Deleted PowerPoint on Mac with Recovery Software
EaseUS file recovery software also offers a great basic feature for recovering deleted PowerPoint files on a Mac from any device. Suppose your PowerPoint files are lost due to deletion, formatting, or other misoperations. In that case, you have a rather high chance of getting them back with the help of Mac's effective data recovery software.
To guarantee a maximum PowerPoint recovery result on Mac, try not to overwrite the lost files by saving new data to the drive where the PPT files were lost. Download and apply it to recover deleted files on Mac now.
Steps to recover accidentally deleted PowerPoint on Mac:
Step 1. Launch the EaseUS recovery software on your Mac and choose a disk on which you have lost PPTs. You can also recover deleted or lost PPT files from USBs, SD cards, and external SSD/HDDs.

Step 2. Click "Type" > "Documents" to find the PPT files on Mac. You can recover PowerPoints from this page if you have found the target files.

Step 3. You can also choose to preview the PPT by double-clicking. Click the Recover button after viewing the detailed information on the PPT.

Method 2. Restore Deleted PPT Files from Trash
Mac Trash is a recovery chance after deleting documents on Mac. All the deleted files will be transferred to the Mac Trash folder and remain there for a while. You can quickly restore the deleted PPT files in the Trash folder with the Put Back option.
Step 1. Locate the Trash on the destop or from Dock and double-click it to open the Trash folder.
Step 2. Find the deleted PPT files in the Trash folder > right-click the file > click "Put Back".
Method 3. Retrieve Permanently Deleted PPT Files from iCloud
If the PPT files are permanently deleted from your Mac because of overwriting, you should rely on Time Machine or iCloud backup. It is essential to create backups regularly, as they can help you restore important data. Log in with your Apple ID to iCloud's official website > click your personal profile photo > find Advanced settings > and click "Restore Files" to recover permanently deleted files on Mac.
How to Avoid PPT Files Unsaved on the Mac [Tips]
After solving the unsaved PPT issue on your Mac, it's time to learn some extra tips that can avoid this data loss problem in the future:
1️⃣Enable the AutoSave feature in Microsoft PowerPoint. You can set the interval to 5 or 10 minutes. This means even if you forget to save, PowerPoint is quietly saving a backup in the background.
2️⃣Save your PPT files after making changes. It's better to save your presentations every time you add something new or change something on it. Use the "Save" button or the Command + S shortcut to save your PPT files.
3️⃣Use cloud storage to save all the PPT versions. Save your new presentations directly to iCloud Drive, OneDrive, or Google Drive from the start. With cloud storage enabled, you can easily recover previous versions of PowerPoint on Mac.
4️⃣Update your application and macOS frequently. The outdated applications and macOS operating systems can easily cause unexpectly quit or crash.
If you think these prevention tips are useful, don't forget to share them on social media and help more PowerPoint users!
Conclusion
We have discussed 8 different solutions in this passage to recover unsaved or deleted PowerPoint files on a Mac. Have you found a suitable method to recover lost PPTs? EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac is highly recommended because it has a user-friendly interface and can handle deleted and unsaved files.
Haven't you downloaded this software yet? Click the following button and try the EaseUS recovery tool for Mac today!
Unsaved PowerPoint Recovery Mac FAQs
Here are some additional questions and answers about unsaved PPT recovery on Mac:
1. Is it possible to recover a PowerPoint you haven't saved on a Mac?
Yes, you can recover an unsaved PowerPoint on a Mac, thanks to its AutoRecover utility. Once you have enabled this option on Mac, you can file the unsaved PPT folder on Mac and recover these unsaved documents easily.
2. Does MS PPT have an AutoSave option on Mac?
Yes, there is an AutoSave option on Mac. You can save the PPT file manually by clicking the Save button or enabling AutoSave in MS Office PPT to make the file save automatically.
3. How do I recover an unsaved PowerPoint on a Mac?
You have many possible ways to recover an unsaved PowerPoint on a Mac:
- Apply EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard
- Recover from the AutoRecover Folder
- Recover from the Temp Folder
- Restore PPT's Previous Version
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Dany is an editor of EaseUS who lives and works in Chengdu, China. She focuses on writing articles about data recovery on Mac devices and PCs. She is devoted to improving her writing skills and enriching her professional knowledge. Dany also enjoys reading detective novels in her spare time.

Daisy is the Senior editor of the writing team for EaseUS. She has been working at EaseUS for over ten years, starting as a technical writer and moving on to being a team leader of the content group. As a professional author for over ten years, she writes a lot to help people overcome their tech troubles.
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