How to Recover Deleted Photos from Android and iOS

We have all been there. Your finger slips, you tap the wrong button, and suddenly your favorite photo—or worse, a whole album—is gone. A cold wave of panic hits you. You wonder, “Did I just lose that forever?”

The good news is: Probably not.

In 2025, modern smartphones are designed to save us from our own mistakes. Whether you use an iPhone or an Android device (like Samsung, Pixel, or Xiaomi), there are several safety nets built into the system. Even if you think you deleted a photo “permanently,” it might still be hiding in your storage, waiting to be found.

This guide will walk you through the exact steps to get your memories back.

Step 0: Stop Using Your Phone Immediately

Before you try any tricks, you must follow this golden rule: Stop taking new photos.

When you “delete” a file, the phone doesn’t actually wipe the data instantly. Instead, it marks that space as “free” so it can write new data over it later. If you download a new app or take 50 new pictures, you might overwrite the old deleted photo. Once that happens, it is gone forever.

Put your phone in Airplane Mode to stop background updates and follow the steps below.

Phase 1: The “Oops” Folder (Recently Deleted)

Most people don’t realize that deleting a photo usually just moves it to a different folder. It sits there for 30 days before it is actually erased.

For iPhone (iOS) Users

Apple makes this very easy. If you deleted a photo, it is sitting in a special album.

1. Open the Photos app.
2. Tap on Albums at the bottom (or “Collections” in newer iOS versions).
3. Scroll all the way down to the “Utilities” section.
4. Tap on Recently Deleted.
5. You will need to use FaceID or your passcode to open this folder.
6. Find your photo, tap it, and press Recover.

For Android Users (Google Photos)

If you use a Pixel, Motorola, or any phone that uses Google Photos as the main gallery:

1. Open the Google Photos app.
2. Tap on Collections (or “Library”) at the bottom.
3. Tap on the Trash or Bin icon.
4. Hold your finger on the photo you want to save.
5. Tap Restore.

For Samsung Users (One UI Gallery)

Samsung phones have their own separate Recycle Bin inside the Samsung Gallery app.

1. Open the Gallery app.
2. Tap the Menu (the three horizontal lines at the bottom right).
3. Select Recycle bin.
4. Tap Edit, select your pictures, and choose Restore.

Note: If you emptied these folders manually, move on to Phase 2.

Phase 2: Checking Cloud Backups

Sometimes, you might delete a photo from your phone’s internal storage, but a copy still exists in the cloud. This is your invisible safety net.

Check iCloud (For iPhone)

Even if your phone is empty, iCloud might still have the original file, especially if you have “iCloud Photos” turned off on your device but enabled on the web.

• Go to iCloud.com on a computer.
• Log in with your Apple ID.
• Click on Photos.
• Check the “Recently Deleted” folder on the website. Sometimes this folder has files that are not showing up on your phone due to sync errors.

Check Google Photos (For Everyone)

Many iPhone users install Google Photos as a backup. Many Samsung users do the same.

• Open the Google Photos app (or go to photos.google.com).
• Check the Archive folder. Sometimes we accidentally “archive” a photo instead of deleting it. This hides it from the main view but keeps it safe.

Check OneDrive or Dropbox

Did you ever install Dropbox or Microsoft OneDrive to share a file for work? These apps often have a feature called “Camera Upload” that automatically saves every photo you take. Check these apps just in case—you might find a backup you forgot you created three years ago.

Phase 3: Recovery Apps (The “Last Resort”)

If the photos are not in the “Recently Deleted” folder and not in the cloud, they are likely gone from the visible system. Now, you need digital tools to dig deeper.

Best Tool for Android: DiskDigger

Android allows apps to scan the internal storage more easily than iPhone.

• Download: Get “DiskDigger” from the Play Store.
• The Free Scan: The basic scan can find “thumbnails” (lower quality versions) of your deleted photos. This works on almost any phone.
• The Full Scan: If your phone is “rooted” (a technical modification), it can find the full-resolution original photos.

Warning: Be careful with random “Recovery Apps” on the Play Store. Many are fake. DiskDigger is one of the few trusted names.

Best Tool for iPhone: Computer Software

You cannot run a real recovery scan directly on an iPhone because of Apple’s security. You must plug your phone into a computer (Mac or PC).

• Trusted Software: Look for tools like PhoneRescue or Dr.Fone.
• How it works: These programs scan your iPhone’s database for “ghost” files that haven’t been overwritten yet.
• The Catch: Most of these tools will let you scan for free to see if the photo is there, but they will ask for payment to actually recover the file.

Phase 4: The “Hidden” Places You Missed

Before you give up, check these two often-ignored locations.

1. Messenger and WhatsApp Did you send that photo to your mom, your partner, or a friend?

• Go to your chat with them.
• Tap on their name and look at “Media” or “Shared Photos.”
• Even if you deleted the photo from your gallery, the copy you sent in WhatsApp or iMessage usually stays there forever.

2. Email Drafts Did you try to email the photo to someone? Check your “Sent” or “Drafts” folder.

When Is a Photo Truly Gone?

It is important to be realistic. If you deleted a photo more than 30 days ago, emptied the trash, and never backed it up to the cloud, the chances of recovery are very low.

Modern phones use “File-Based Encryption.” Once the system decides a file is truly deleted, it deletes the encryption key for that file. Once the key is gone, the data is just scrambled noise that no software can read.

Conclusion

Losing a photo feels terrible, but it is rarely a total disaster. Most of the time, the “Recently Deleted” folder or a forgotten Cloud backup saves the day.

The best way to avoid this panic in the future is to automate your safety. Turn on Google Photos backup today. It is free (up to 15GB) and works on both iPhone and Android. It runs quietly in the background so that the next time you tap “Delete” by accident, you can just smile and download it again.