Alternatives to Disk Drill
A data recovery app for macOS and Windows that scans drives and devices for lost files. The listings below can replace it for an important use case. Each note says what changes if you switch.
The original
Disk Drill
A data recovery app for macOS and Windows that scans drives and devices for lost files.
Replacements
Listings that take over the same core job as Disk Drill.
EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard
A consumer data recovery program for restoring deleted or lost files from drives and memory cards.
EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard also runs on Windows and Mac with a freemium model, handling deletion, formatting and partition loss, and larger recoveries need a paid edition.
Stellar Data Recovery
Commercial software for recovering deleted, lost or formatted files from computers and storage media.
Stellar Data Recovery covers Windows and Mac with a free preview before paying, though its many overlapping editions can make choosing one confusing.
Wondershare Recoverit
Commercial data recovery app for restoring deleted or lost files on Windows and Mac.
Wondershare Recoverit is another closed-source Windows and Mac recovery app with a guided interface, recovering from internal drives, SD cards and USB drives on a paid plan.
Recuva
A Windows tool for recovering deleted files from hard drives, memory cards and USB sticks.
Recuva is Windows only, recovers from memory cards, USB sticks and external drives with a deep scan mode, and keeps some features in a paid Pro edition.
TestDisk & PhotoRec
Recovers lost partitions, makes non-booting disks bootable again, and undeletes files from FAT, exFAT, NTFS and ext filesystems.
TestDisk and PhotoRec are free and open source under GPL-3.0 for Windows, macOS and Linux, but use a text menu interface and PhotoRec loses file names.
DMDE
A disk editor and data recovery tool that reconstructs lost files and directory structures.
DMDE runs on Windows, macOS and Linux, rebuilds directory trees after formatting and adds a disk editor, while the free edition is limited to 4000 files per directory.
Windows File Recovery
Microsoft's free command-line tool for recovering deleted or lost files on Windows.
Windows File Recovery is a free Microsoft tool for Windows 10 2004 and later, but it works only from the command line with no graphical interface.
DiskGenius
Combined partition manager, data recovery tool and backup utility for Windows.
DiskGenius is Windows only and combines file and partition recovery with partition editing and backup, while recovering more than small files needs a paid licence.
Also worth comparing
These listings name Disk Drill as their own alternative, so the relationship runs both ways.
IsoBuster
A Windows data recovery program for optical discs, hard drives, USB sticks, memory cards and disk images.
Disk Drill runs on Windows and Mac with a simple interface and recovers lost partitions, but the roster does not list optical disc recovery, and full recovery needs PRO.
Similar software
Related functionality, not a direct replacement.
GNU ddrescue
A command-line data recovery tool that copies raw blocks from failing disks while working around read errors.
The Sleuth Kit
Command-line tools and a C library for analysing disk images and recovering files in forensic work.
SpinRite
A bootable maintenance and data recovery utility for hard drives and other mass-storage devices, from GRC.
Hiren's BootCD PE
Bootable Windows PE rescue environment full of diagnostic and repair tools.
