How to Recover Formatted SD Card Free

Losing all your important data can be a nightmare - especially due to formatting your SD card by mistake. But don't panic just yet! There is still hope for regaining your photos, videos, and other files without spending a penny. Here, you will learn about the entire process of erasing a memory card and how to recover a formatted SD card for free.

Table of contents

Part 1: Overview of Formatting an SD Card and What It Does

Part 1: Common Reasons Why You Format the Memory Card

Part 2: Can Erased Memory Card Files Be Recovered

Part 3: 4 Ways to Recover Formatted SD Card Free by Tool

Part 4: 2 Ways to Formatted SD Card Recovery without Software

Part 5: Tips to Help You Avoid Re-Formatting Your SD Card in the Future

Part 6: Frequently Asked Questions About SD Card Format Recovery in PC/Mac/Android

Overview of Formatting an SD Card and What It Does

Formatting a memory card is a process that erases all data on the card and sets up a new file system, making it compatible with your device. It's a crucial step when using a new card or when an existing one is not working correctly.

Here's a general overview of what happens when you format an SD card:

• 🗞️ Erasure of all data: Formatting removes all the files and folders from the memory card, including visible and hidden data. This includes photos, videos, documents, and any other files you might have stored on the card.
• 🛠️ Setting up a file system: The formatting process sets up a new file system on the SD card. This could be FAT32, exFAT, or NTFS, depending on what your device supports. The file system manages how data is stored and retrieved on the card.
• 🔍 Checking for errors: The process will check the memory card for errors or bad sectors. If found, the system will mark them as unusable to prevent data corruption in the future.
• ⚙️ Compatibility: Formatting ensures the card is compatible with your device. If you insert an SD card that has yet to be formatted, your device may not recognize it or be able to write data to it.
• 📉 Space Recovery: If your memory card is full or almost full, formatting will free up its storage space.

Common Reasons Why You Format the Memory Card

• 🚫 Error Messages: If you frequently encounter error messages when accessing files on your SD card, it might be due to file corruption or a faulty file system. Formatting the card can resolve these issues.
• ⚠️ Compatibility Issues: If a memory card is not functioning correctly with a device, formatting it can solve the issue. Different appliances use different file systems (like FAT32, exFAT, or NTFS), and if the card's file system is incompatible with the device, it won't work correctly.
• 🚀 Performance Improvement: Over time, as data is repeatedly written to and deleted from the SD card, it can become fragmented, leading to slower performance. Formatting can improve the speed and performance of the card.
• 🦑 Virus or Malware Infection: If the memory card is infected with viruses or other malware, formatting can eliminate these threats. However, this should be a last resort after attempting to remove the malware using antivirus software.
• 😃 Starting Fresh: If you've purchased a used SD card or plan to sell or give away your own, formatting is an excellent way to ensure all previous data is completely erased.
• 🏚️ Freeing Up Space: While deleting files also frees up space, formatting ensures all data, including hidden or system files, are removed, providing maximum available storage.

Whether you have formatted the SD card intentionally or accidentally, your precious memories, shots, and other files are lost. Don't give up, and there is still hope of retrieving data from a formatted SD card free.

Can Erased Memory Card Files Be Recovered?

Yes, you can restore the formatted SD card free. When you format it, the file system marks the space as available for new data, but the original files are still there until new data overwrite them.

It's worth noting that even if a memory card has been formatted multiple times, file recovery might still be feasible. But the chances of complete recovery are significantly reduced. Therefore, you can follow the following tips for the success rate of SD card format recovery free.

• ⛔ Please Don't Use the SD Card. After realizing you have formatted your card, stop using it to avoid overwriting the existing data.
• ⏱️ Perform formatted SD card recovery as soon as possible. If there is no backup, try professional tools to help you extract erased data. However, to avoid overwritten files, please do not install the program on your SD card.

How to Recover Formatted SD Card Free by Tool

Losing all your data due to accidental formatting of your memory card can be frustrating, especially if you don't have a backup. To rescue lost files, using free data recovery software is your best option. Here, you can use iBeesoft Free Data Recovery. Here are its main features:

Free download and install iBeesoft recovery software, and then follow the steps below to recover data from a formatted SD card free:

1. Connect Your formatted SD card to your computer.
2. Open the iBeesoft data recovery software.

3. Select your SD card from the list of available drives to scan.

4. Once the scan is complete, select the recoverable items and click "Preview" to check them.

5. Select the lost files and click 'Recover' to choose a safe location on your computer to save them.

3 Alternative Tools to Formatted SD Card Recovery Free

Although iBeesoft has a high success rate in recovering lost files from formatted memory cards, other options exist. Therefore, you can also consider the following three alternatives.

Alternative 1. Recuva

It is a free file recovery software developed by Piriform, the creator of CCleaner. It can help recover files from a pen drive, memory card, disk, or any other drive that Windows can read. While Recuva does offer a simple wizard for initial setup, its interface can be confusing for beginners.

Here are the detailed steps on how to recover formatted SD card in Windows 10/11 free using Recuva:

1. Launch Recuva on your Windows PC.
2. Click the 'Next' button to start the free SD card format recovery process.

3. Choose the type of file you want to restore. This could be pictures, music, documents, videos, emails, or all files.

4. Click on the 'In a specific location' option, select your memory card, then click 'Next.'

5. After the scan is completed, select the recoverable files you want to save and click 'Recover.'

Alternative 2. Stellar Free Data Recovery

It is a comprehensive tool that helps restore lost data from various storage devices. The free SD card recovery software supports recovery from numerous data loss scenarios, such as accidental deletion, drive formatting, system crashes, virus attacks, etc. However, the scanning process can be slow, particularly when scanning larger storage devices.

Here are guides for using Stellar to recover lost files from a formatted memory card on a Mac or PC:

1. Download Stellar Free Data Recovery from the official website and install it on your system.

2. Open it on your computer and select what to recover.

3. Select your formatted SD card and click on 'Scan' to start the scanning process.
4. Once the scan is done, you can preview these files before recovering them to ensure you're restoring the correct ones.

5. Select the files you need and click 'Recover' to choose a destination to save the recovered files.

Alternative 3. Glarysoft File Recovery Free

It also known as Glary Undelete, is an accessible and user-friendly recovery software developed by Glarysoft Ltd. The free formatted SD card recovery software supports multiple file systems, including NTFS, FAT, NTFS + EFS, and more.

Here's how you can use Glarysoft File Recovery to retrieve deleted files from an SD card after formatting free:

1. Launch Glarysoft File Recovery on your computer.

2. Select the card you want to scan for lost files and click 'Scan.'
3. After the scan, a list of recoverable files will be displayed. You can find target items through conditional filtering.

4. Select your lost files and click on 'Restore.' After this, you must select a location to save these recovered data.

How to Formatted SD Card Recovery without Software

Although the free and easy way to get erased files is to use the tool, is it possible to recover data from formatted SD card free without using any software? Yes, you can! So, keep scrolling below to check them out.

Method 1. Restore Formatted SD Card Free with Command

This method will only work in some situations, but it's worth trying. Here is the step to recover deleted files using CMD:

On Windows PC:

1. Type 'CMD' in the search box in the lower right corner of the screen.

2. Find 'Command Prompt' in the list that appears and click 'Run as administrator.'
3. In the CMD window, use the cd command to navigate to the formatted memory card. For example: 'cd *:\' is the drive letter of your card.

4. Type 'attrib -h -r -s /s /d' and press Enter.

On Mac:

1. Click Application at the bottom of the screen.
2. Navigate to Utilities > Terminal and open it.

3. Types 'cd ~/.YourCard' > 'mv filename ../.' and press Enter.
4. Go to the formatted memory card to see the files that appear.

Method 2. Recover Files from a Formatted SD Card Free by Backup

This method only works if you have backed up the memory card before formatting. Here are the steps on how to extract lost data from backup:

In Windows 10/11:

1. Find your SD card in File Explorer.
2. Right-click and select 'Properties' and switch to 'Previous Versions.'

3. Select your most recent backup in 'Folder Versions' and click 'Restore.'

In macOS:

1. Connect the external drive that serves as an SD card backup to your Mac.

2. Open the 'Time Machine.'
3. Use the up and down arrows on the right side of the screen to browse the backed-up data.

4. Select what you need and click 'Restore.'

You can recover the formatted SD card for free through the above methods. But to avoid such a disaster from happening again, you can also check out the following tips.

Tips to Help You Avoid Re-Formatting Your SD Card in the Future

• ⏏️ Proper Ejection: Always safely eject your SD card from the device it's being used in. Abrupt removal may cause file system corruption of the memory card, resulting in access denied, formatting required, RAW file system, etc.
• 🏷️ Use Reliable Devices: Use devices that are reliable and compatible with your SD card. Some devices might not handle your SD card correctly, leading to errors that require formatting.
• 📈 Avoid Overfilling: Don't fill your SD card to its maximum capacity. Overfilling can lead to performance issues and increase the risk of corruption.
• 🎭 Regular Backup: Regularly backup your SD card data to another storage device. This way, even if you have to format your SD card, you won't lose any important files.
• 🛡️ Protect from Viruses: Use reliable antivirus software and only connect the SD card to secure, trusted devices to avoid viruses and malware.
• 🔌 Properly turn off devices such as digital cameras or drones: Removing the card while the device is still on may damage it, forcing you to format it to fix the error.

Remember, an SD card, like any other storage device, has a limited lifespan and will eventually need to be replaced.

Frequently Asked Questions About SD Card Format Recovery in PC/Mac/Android

Conclusion

In today's digital age, SD cards have become a common commodity in our daily lives. From storing our photos and videos to saving important documents and files, they have become an integral part of our lives. However, the memory card is not invincible, and sometimes it can be accidentally formatted, leading to data loss. If you want to regain these precious memories, it will be easy and free to recover formatted SD cards in Windows 10/11 and Mac through the multiple methods provided in this article. So act quickly to avoid your data being lost forever.