How to recover deleted files from an SD card on Mac

SD cards are used in a variety of devices and are popular for their portability. However, in contrast to its lightweight and portable properties, an SD card can be fragile. It can easily be physically or logically damaged during frequent use. Meanwhile, human errors, such as manual deletion and accidental formatting, may also lead to the loss of SD card data.

This article will introduce four effective methods to help you perform SD card recovery on Mac. We have also provided some countermeasures to ensure that you can recover all the deleted files from the SD card with maximum probability.

Tips to increase the probability of SD card data recovery on Mac

Your SD card files are not permanently gone after deleting, which means they are probably recoverable as long as you utilize the right methods; in many cases, they are just hidden away. You can’t access files labeled as "deleted" by the system through normal channels, but data recovery software can.

Perform the following steps immediately after accidentally deleting files on your SD card to increase the probability of recovering data 100%.

1. Stop using the SD card immediately🚫
   Saving new files on the SD card after deletion will cause the deleted files to be overwritten by the newly written data, resulting in permanent data loss.
   
2. Safely remove the SD card from the device⚠️
   If your SD card is installed on your phone or camera, you need to remove it safely to avoid some background programs still using the SD card.
   
3. Create an image for your SD card 💾
   Creating a disk image ensures that even if your SD card is corrupted, you have a second chance to recover your files from the image.
   

Method 1. Recover deleted SD card files from the Trash bin on Mac

The deletion on your Mac computer will move the deleted items to the Mac Trash folder. Therefore, the deleted files from an SD card plugged into your Mac will be moved into the Trash bin folder for 30 days until you empty it for permanent deletion.

Restore deleted SD card files on your Mac by the steps below:

Step 1. Open the Mac Trash bin folder by clicking the trash bin icon on the Mac Dock.

Step 2. Locate the deleted files from your SD card by name and date.

Step 3. Select the deleted SD card files you want to restore, double-click them, and click "Put Back" to return them to their original storage locations.

Method 2. Recover deleted files from SD card on Mac with data recovery software

The deletion that occurs on your devices, for example, clicking the "Delete" button on a smartphone or camera, removes the paths to deleted files, so you can't find them by normal means without an "Undelete" feature provided by the device itself.

In this case, EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac can help you locate deleted SD card files quickly. This powerful SD card recovery software provides an easy-to-understand solution; just follow the on-screen instructions to find the lost deleted SD card files easily:

Step 1. Launch EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac when connected to your SD card. Choose the "SD Card" tab.

Step 2. Click the "Search for lost data" button, and this powerful card recovery tool will quickly scan all the recoverable files on your SD card

Upon activating iCloud across your devices, the subsequent step involves configuring file accessibility on your iPhone. To achieve this, proceed to your device's settings, locate the iCloud section, and enable the specific file categories you intend to access on your Mac.

Step 3. After the scanning, you can view all types of files on your SD card. Locate the deleted files using the "Type / Path" tab or Filter feature. Preview them by hitting the eye icon, clicking the “Recover" button, and choosing a storage location to save the recovered files.

Method 3. Restore deleted files from SD card with Mac Time Machine

Time Machine makes it easy to back up your Mac's data and store it on a point-in-time basis. You can try to find the deleted SD card files in the backup instead if you habitually use Time Machine.

Open Time Machine, and choose "Browse Time Machine Backups" to find the deleted SD card files. Use the "Restore" option to return your deleted SD card files on your Mac.

Method 4. Restore deleted SD card files on Mac via cloud backup

Suppose your device offers automatic cloud sync storage, and this setting is turned on; you can find the files deleted on the SD card from the cloud synchronization folder.

For example, suppose you're using a GoPro camera, and you've checked the Auto Upload box in your GoPro Quik settings to upload your footage to GoPro Cloud. The deleted files from your SD card can be found in the cloud backup folder.

Final words

Restoring deleted files from Time Machine or cloud backups has the restriction that you have backed them up before deletion or that you have turned on the automatic backup to the cloud option. The deleted files from the SD card can only be recovered using data recovery software without advanced backups.

How can you recover deleted files from an SD card without any backup? EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac provides an effective solution. Recover deleted files from an SD card on a Mac using this intuitive interface tool, which allows you to find the deleted SD card files as soon as possible to avoid the annoyance of data loss.