How to Recover Deleted Word Documents (.doc, .docx) on Mac/PC Easily?

How to recover deleted word documents to avoid large losses? In this article, you can find 6 different ways to recover deleted or lost Microsoft Word documents on Windows or Mac computer easily.

• Filed to: Document Recovery • Proven solutions

Summary:

Did the 20-page report that you have been working on for the past one week disappear suddenly from your computer? Did you misplace your data due to a corrupted operating system? Microsoft Word is a well-known application across the global community. The possibilities associated with Word application are countless. However, it is difficult to rely entirely on a computer for safeguarding their preservation. It is evident that power outages, corrupted operating system, accidental deletion, and other reasons lead to the loss of the data in Microsoft Word document. So, this post is going to show you how to recover deleted, lost or corrupted Word documents on Mac or Windows computer easily.

There are 6 different ways to help you retrieve a Word document that you saved over, you can test them one by one or directly choose the all-round solution to get MS word back on your PC or Mac. Now, you can learn these solutions as follows:

Part 1. Best Word Recovery Software: The All in One Method to Recover Deleted Word Documents

Many recovery solutions you can find contain limitations, which make it impossible for users to recover all the deleted files from a computer. It is here that you will find Recoverit (IS) for Mac (or Recoverit (IS) as the all-in-one solution for recovering not only deleted word documents, but also lost or corrupted word file. The application uses a robust algorithm, which is capable of penetrating deep into the hard disk of the computer and retrieve all kinds of files in any loss situations with ease. Furthermore, the program offers four different recovery methods, which makes it comfortable and profitable for the user in identifying documents and recovers the same.

Recoverit (IS)

Let's check the main features of the best Word Recovery Software:

  • Be able to recover all types of files (Word, PPT, Excel) from Microsoft Office 2016, 2013, 2010, 2007 or below version.
  • Recover files from various disks, such as computer, external hard drive, memory card, portable devices, and so on.
  • Ability to start and pause scan, which a user can continue after a while, and allows you to save the scan result for future use.
  • Preview functionality lets users look for the content before extracting.
2,582,169 people have downloaded it

Step-by-Step Guide to Recover Word Documents/Files from MS Word 2007/2010/2013/2016 or Above

Step 1. Download and install Recoverit (IS) software on Windows or Mac computer, then launch it after finishing the installation. 

[NOTICE] All screenshots used here are captured from the Mac version. Windows users can follow the instructions and perform the same steps on your own PC.

Step 2. Then you need to select the location where you delete the word document, click the "Start" button, the program will display all the files according to the signatures rather than file names or folder names.

select the location

Step 3. The scanning time is higher for this recovery mode. Therefore, it is important for you to be patient. It may take additional time due to the presence of the data on the selected drive. After completion of the scan, Recoverit (IS) will display the recoverable contents in the preview window. You can choose a file to see the preview of the content and decide whether the file is important or not.

You will notice a cluster of records available within the window. You have to go through the preview to see the content and mark those files for recovery. Continue with the process, and once you have checked all the necessary files, click the "Recover" button at the bottom of the window.

preview and recover word file mac

The Data Recovery program will then pop-up a message asking you to choose the destination for saving the selected files. It is advisable to use an external device as the saving location to ensure that there is no loss of the recovery data. Additionally, the process is useful when you have a corrupted hard disk or operating system. After selecting the path, wait for the program to complete the recovery process. The time consumed is dependent on the size of the recovery data. Wait until the process is complete before you can browse the saving location to see the recovered content.

Part 2. How to Recover Lost Word Documents from Recycle Bin?

This method may only work if you actually deleted the file and it is now in the recycle bin. We know you know how to do this as well but here’s how to do it anyway.

Open the recycle bin by clicking in its icon on the desktop. You should then be able to see all of the files that have been deleted. If you see the missing doc, right-click on it and then choose "Restore".

find lost word document

It will be restored to the original fil location. In case, you don't remember how to find the folder, simply search for it like we did in method 1. If, however, you don't find the document in the Recycle folder, it may mean that you never deleted it or you may have emptied the recycle bin at some point.

Part 3. How to Retrieve Deleted Word Documents by Searching the Original?

If you are lucky, then there is a probability that the original document still exists somewhere on the computer. The following steps will be helpful in looking for the same using the original document.

Step 1. Press the Windows icon to open the menu bar. From the window, choose "Search" option.

searching the original document

Step 2. In the Windows desktop search pane, choose "Click Here to Use Search Companion" option, if that is available.

open windows search

Step 3. Once the search companion window opens up, select "All Files and Folders" option.

retrieve deleted word document by searching for original version

Step 4. Enter the title of the document that you wish to find in the file name box.

enter the title of word file for searching

Step 5. Click the search button to allow Windows to search for the emotional document.

In the search results window, if you do not notice any list containing the documents with the name entered in the search box, you can initiate a new search by using the file format of the document. Rather than entering the title of the document, you can search for *.doc or *.docx format, which will in return open up all the files ending with that format. You can then look at for the file that you wish to retrieve from the list generated by the search result.

Part 4. How to Restore Word Documents from Word Backups?

If the steps mentioned above did not retrieve any documents that you are searching for, you could use the Word backups, a place where Microsoft Word creates a backup of the original document. Retrieving deleted Word documents using Word backups is only possible when the backups feature is active in Word. Secondly, it is also necessary to know the location of the deleted file. If you have the backups enabled, follow the steps below to retrieve the deleted files.

Step 1. Open the Word document and choose the file type from the upper left corner of the screen.

go to settings in word

Step 2. From the menu opened under the File tab, select "Open" feature.

recover documents in word

Step 3. Selecting the feature will allow you to browse to the folder where you last save the document. From the file formats, you have to select *.wbk to look for the backup file created by Word. You can then select the document that you wish to recover and click "Open".

If the process was not successful, then you can carry out a manual procedure, where you would be opening the folder containing the backup files created by Word. You can access the folder by navigating to the Options tab.

open wbk backup file in word

Once the menu of the options tab opens up, you need to choose "Save" from the left side of the screen. Selecting this feature will provide information containing under me the category on the right side of the screen. In the same screen, under the Autorecover file location, you will notice the path of the folder where Microsoft Word stores the backup of the documents. Click the "Browse" button to open the folder directly. You can then search for the files within the folder.

how to recover a deleted word document

Part 5. How to Find Lost Microsoft Word Document by Auto Recover?

Whenever you restart Word, there are always auto recover files in the left pane. If the Word Recovery Task pane doesn't open up, don't despair! You can find the Auto recovery files yourself. Just follow these very simple steps to do it. This works with Word 2010 and above.

Step 1. Within Microsoft Word, go to "Tools" and then select "Options".

Step 2. Under the "File Locations" tab, double click on "Auto Recover Files" and note the path location. Now click "Cancel" and close the window.

Step 3. In Windows Explorer or My computer open up the folder that you made note of. Search for any .asd files. You can also conduct a search like the in method one only this time look for .asd files.

how do i recover word doc docx

Part 6. How to Recover A Word Document by Searching for Temporary Files?

If you fail to get lost word documents back by searching from Recycle bin, Word backups, original, Auto Recover, you may be able to find your file in the Temporary files folder. This is where files such as downloads that weren't saved, program files that accumulate when updates are downloaded and many other temporary files are located. You can access it through Windows Explorer or by searching for the temporary files in in Windows Search. Just like we did in number 3 above, click on the Start Menu and then enter the filename of the lost document in the search box. But in order to find temporary files you need to add the extension .tmp.

Browse through the results to find the document you are looking for. It will have the same filename you used when saving it. it is also important to note that temporary files may contain the (~) symbol so entering that symbol may help you find the document faster. When you find a temporary Word document, you may need to repair it to have any chance of editing it. It is also a good idea to save it in a different location to avoid losing the document again.

how to restore word documents after crash

Write in the End

Here are 6 different ways to retrieve deleted, lost or corrupted Word documents in Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016 or above version.

Which method are you ready to try first?

Obviously, only the first method can works on both Windows and Mac computer, and it can deals with all kinds of data losing issues for you. And it not only a simple Word Recovery software, but also can performs well as other file recovery or hard drive recovery software.

Cool, right? If your Word document is lost, deleted or corrupted, why don't you try Recoverit (IS) software to get them back immediately?

Elva

staff Editor

Hot Articles

How to Recover Previous Version of Word Document? [5 Ways]
Working hours to lose all data at the last minute can be frustrating. Learn how to recover previous version of Word document to alleviate the stress.
How to Recover Deleted Sheet in Excel: Step-By-Step Guide
Are you wondering how to recover deleted sheets in Excel? If so, keep reading to learn different ways to restore your worksheets in no time.
3 Best Free PDF Password Removers to Unlock Your Files Online
Learn about the three top PDF password remover online and find out how to easily unlock your PDF files without any software.
How to Recover Previous Version of Excel File?
Don't worry when you lose your unsaved excel files, here are 5 proven ways to tell you how to recover previous version of excel files.
How to Recover Unsaved PDF Files from Crashed Computer/Mac?
This article will tell you how to recover unsaved PDF files from crashed Computer/Mac, and how to avoid computer/mac from crashing.
Deleted Permanently? How to Recover Deleted Files from OneDrive Recycle Bin
How long do files stay in OneDrive? How do I recover permanently deleted files from OneDrive from the Recycle Bin? How to recover deleted files from the Recycle Bin in OneDrive will all be answered.
5 Solutions to Recover Deleted Excel Files from Recycle Bin that You Shouldn't Miss
This article compiles 5 solutions on how to recover excel deleted from Recycle Bin. These solutions also offer ways to recover recently deleted files from Recycle Bin and unsaved excel files.
Steps to Recover Deleted Google Sheets, Docs, or Slides
A guide on how to recover a deleted Google Slide, Doc or Sheet with ease under circumstances where it accidentally gets deleted from the interface.
Home > > Resource > Document Recovery > How to Recover Deleted Word Documents (.doc, .docx) on Mac/PC Easily?