Don’t freak out if you’ve just realized all your vacation photos are gone from SanDisk SD card. There is still hope. Your memories might not be lost forever and you could recover them with help of SanDisk data recovery software.
Therefore, in this review, we shared 7 available options for restoring files from a Sandisk SD card. We have found both free and paid options with their pros, cons, pricing, and more. So, find out which option is best to pick!
Part 1: How Do We Choose Sandisk SD Card Recovery Software?
Before choosing a tool for SanDisk SD Card Recovery, you must know what exactly you are looking for. Among factors to consider are:
- File format support – Identify type of your lost files, be that photos, videos, documents, and so on, and ensure that recovery software supports these formats.
- File System Compatibility- Know file system of your SD card which is usually FAT32, exFAT, or NTFS, and download software that supports it.
- Case of Data Loss – Determine cause of the loss, whether due to deletion, formatting, corruption, or hardware failure, and select appropriate software for that.
- Scan Modes – Quick scan is fast but less thorough. Whereas deep scan is slower but more detailed. Thus, based on how urgent and important data is choose a recovery tool that offers both modes.
- Preview Feature – Look for SanDisk recovery software that allows file previews before restoration to ensure data integrity.
- User Interface – Consider ease of use based on your technical skills. Also, check user reviews for overall experience.
- Price and Features – Compare features to your needs and pick SanDisk recovery software within your budget.
- Additional Features – Consider extras like bootable media creation, RAID support, and file repair.
Part 2: The 7 Sandisk SD Card Recovery Software Solutions
Check out our review of 7 best SanDisk card recovery software free & paid with their pros and cons. This will help you know which option will be best for your restoration needs:
Top 1: Tenorshare 4DDiG
Our top pick, 4DDiG is a professional SanDisk SD Card Recovery tool that is easy to use, featuring a guide to ease your learning curve. The tool can recover 2000+ file types from memory cards and many other storage devices. It also supports an abundance of file systems, including NTFS, exFAT, FAT16/FAT32, and ext4.
You can scan individual folders, and pause and resume scans as needed. Additionally, it offers SanDisk extreme pro-recovery through reclaiming a wide variety of file types, including RAW files, archives, audio files, images, videos, documents, and many others.
| Pros | Cons |
| Allows scanning and previewing of files free of cost.Fast scan times with low resource use and high recovery rate.Recover deleted files, including rare formats like FLAC audio.Well-organized display of recovered files.You can scan for specific file types.Supports SanDisk card recovery for Mac & Windows.Applicable to all data loss scenarios. | Limited recovery for formatted or corrupted drives.The free version only previews a few file types. |
Top 2: SanDisk RescuePRO
RescuePRO is a user-friendly SanDisk SD card recovery software that can reclaim photos, various raw image formats, audio recordings, and standard video formats. It supports various flash drives like SanDisk memory cards, USBs, CFexpress, etc. What’s more, RescuePRO can recover files from Sandisk SD card including documents, spreadsheets, archives, and so forth. It also offers secure media wiping to permanently erase devices after recovery and allows you to create copies of failing drives for easier recovery.
| Pros | Cons |
| User-friendly, even for non-technical users.Budget-friendly for basic SanDisk card recovery needs.Efficient at recovering deleted files from memory cards.Offers SanDisk card recovery for Mac and Windows systems. | Limited support for file formats.May have difficulty with heavily corrupted data due to less advanced algorithms.Doesn’t support RAW image formats and fragmented videos recovery.Lacks deep scan and file repair features. |
Top 3: Recuva
Recuva by Piriform offers fast scanning to quickly recover files from Sandisk SD card, along with a deep scan option for a more thorough search. It can also reclaim data from formatted SanDisk cards and includes a secure overwriter to permanently delete sensitive files. What’s more, this SanDisk data recovery software supports restoring virtual hard drives and allows you to preview files before recovery.
| Pros | Cons |
| Easy-to-use interface and fast scans.The free version has all essential recovery features.Low impact on system performance.Free preview of files before recovery. | Scanning is not as fast as some of its competitor software.Supports Windows-only. It is not available for macOS or Linux.Lacks customization options and advanced recovery features.Cannot recover from drives with corrupted volume headers.Advanced features like virtual hard drive support require a Pro version. |
Top 4: TestDisk & PhotoRec
TestDisk and PhotoRec are powerful SanDisk card recovery software free to use and ideal for users familiar with command line or using QPhotoRec interface. You can use TestDisk for recovering lost partitions, repairing file systems, rebuilding damaged file systems, and undeleting files on formats like FAT, exFAT, NTFS, and ext2. While PhotoRec can recover files from SanDisk SD card particularly images, documents, and so forth. It supports 440+ file formats and works even if your memory card file system is corrupted.
| Pros | Cons |
| Free and open-source.Effective for both partition recovery and basic file recovery.PhotoRec has a GUI option (QPhotoRec) for easier use.Provides SanDisk card recovery for macOS, Windows, and Linux. | TestDisk’s command-line interface can be intimidating for beginners.TestDisk setup can be complex, with some unnecessary steps.Limited recovery in complex data loss scenarios.PhotoRec’s large list of recovered files without categories can be overwhelming.PhotoRec often recovers files without their original names. |
Top 5: R-studio
R-Studio is a comprehensive SanDisk recovery tool that enables data recovery from SD cards and other different types of storage devices like HDD, SSD, and USB. It supports many kinds of file systems such as NTFS, FAT, exFAT, HFS+, and ext2/3/4. Moreover, it can reclaim data from corrupted RAID systems. This SanDisk extreme pro-recovery tool can create virtual RAIDs for recovery and manage disks and partitions like creating, resizing, and deleting partitions. It also lets you preview files before recovery and monitors disk health to help prevent data loss.
| Pros | Cons |
| Offers extensive data recovery, disk management, and RAID reconstruction features.Recover data from various scenarios like deletion, formatting, and hardware failures.Lets users check files before recovery.Provides technical support, FAQs, and user forums.Works on Windows, macOS, and Linux. | May be overwhelming for beginners.Expensive compared to its counterparts.Could be more user-friendly. |
Top 6: DMDE Free Edition
The DMDE Free Edition is a useful tool for recovering files lost due to accidental deletion, drive issues, or viruses from your SanDisk card. It can also run from a USB drive without installation, reducing risk of data overwriting. You can use this SanDisk card recovery software for free to recover files visible in selected directory. What’s more, it can locate and recover hidden or lost partitions and offers tools for rebuilding RAID configurations.
| Pros | Cons |
| Allows unlimited file recovery by breaking them into smaller batches.Portable app that runs from a USB stick, avoiding data overwrite during installationCan recover hidden drives and partitions not visible to Windows.Offers a disk editing mode for advanced users.Supports RAID reconstruction for disaster recovery. | Limited to 4,000 files per recovery session.A complex interface may be difficult for beginnersThe free edition only recovers files visible in selected directory.Cannot recover entire folders from directory tree.Documentation could be more detailed. |
Top 7: iCare Data Recovery
The Free Version of iCare Data Recovery offers unlimited SanDisk SD card recovery of recently deleted files with Quick Scan. While Pro version adds Deep Scan, RAW/Deleted Partition recovery, and up to 1GB of free data recovery. This SanDisk extreme pro-recovery tool supports NTFS, FAT32, and exFAT partitions, though with some limitations. It can recover documents, photos, and videos based on file signatures, and can also recover lost partitions. The software is also lightweight on system resources.
| Pros | Cons |
| Free unlimited recovery of recently deleted files.Light on system resources, suitable for less powerful machines.Recovers 600+ file types, including videos, pictures, and office documents.Supports various storage devices for data recovery and a wide range of Windows versions (2000 to 11). | Slower scanning speed compared to other tools.The interface could be more visually appealing and user-friendly.The free version lacks deep scan and RAW/deleted drive recovery features. |
Part 3: How to Recover Files From Sandisk SD Card?
After reading review of 7 best SanDisk data recovery software, are you wondering how our top pick, 4DDiG Data Recovery tool works? Here’s a simple stepwise guide to using this robust SanDisk recovery tool:
Step 1: Install SanDisk recovery software on your computer. Then, connect your SD card to same computer and use a card reader if necessary.
Step 2: Once recovery tool shows your SD card, click “Scan.” You can choose specific file types (photos, videos, etc.) before scanning.
Step 3: The tool will scan your SD card for recoverable data. You can pause or stop scan anytime.
Step 4: After scan, preview files to confirm their quality before recovering. To avoid overwriting, hit “Recover” to save recovered files to a different location.
Final Verdict
We’ve reviewed 7 SanDisk SD card recovery tools above, both free and paid. We’ve evaluated these tools on basis of format support, compatibility, scan modes, preview features, interface, price, and support. The free options like RescuePRO, Recuva, and TestDisk & PhotoRec offer varying functionality.
On other hand, paid SanDisk data recovery software like 4DDiG Data Recovery, R-Studio, and DMDE are great choices for more advanced features and better recovery rates. However, 4DDiG stands out as best overall for its ease of use, high recovery rate, support for 2000+ file formats, and extra features like file repair.