How to Recover Deleted Screen Recordings on Android, Windows, and Mac

TL;DR:

Restoring a missing screen recording depends entirely on whether the video finalized successfully before disappearing, requiring you to prioritize native system trash folders and backup utilities over third-party software scans.
    ● On Windows and Mac, check default save locations like the Videos/Captures folder for Xbox Game Bar or the Desktop for the Mac Screenshot toolbar before attempting to restore an earlier copy via File History or Time Machine.
    ● Android users must rely on the device Gallery Trash, Google Photos, or app-specific backups, because desktop recovery scanners cannot reliably access or recover permanently erased files from encrypted phone internal storage.
    ● When utilizing local recovery tools like Recoverit for detectable computer drives or external media, immediately stop saving new files to the source drive to prevent overwriting, and output the recovered video to a different healthy disk.

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To recover a deleted screen recording, first check the recording app's saved-video folder and your device's Trash, Recycle Bin, or Recently Deleted area. On Windows, check Videos > Captures for Xbox Game Bar recordings and the location selected in Snipping Tool. On a Mac, check the location chosen in the Screenshot toolbar. If a recording was saved and later deleted from a detectable computer drive, backups or file recovery may help. A recording that never finished saving may have no recoverable video file.

Before you try: Stop creating recordings or downloading files to the storage device where the video disappeared. Preserve any existing copy and use a different healthy disk for recovered output. File recovery is not the same as repairing a corrupted recording.

Part 1. Where Do Screen Recordings Go Before They Are Deleted?

A missing screen recording may still be saved under a different filename or location. Identify the recording tool before assuming that a video was deleted.

Check the Original Save Location

Windows: Xbox Game Bar saves recorded clips to the Videos/Captures folder under the signed-in user profile, typically as MP4 files. Snipping Tool recordings may be saved to the destination selected by the user; check its saved or copied result before assuming an automatic file exists. See Microsoft Game Bar guidance.

Mac: The Screenshot toolbar (Shift + Command + 5) can save a screen recording to Desktop or another destination chosen under Options. See Apple Screenshot settings. Android: Check the screen recorder app's recordings list, Movies/Screen recordings folder where supported, and Gallery or Photos videos.

Choose a Recovery Path Based on the Device

Part 2. Recover Deleted Screen Recordings on Android

Android accounts for a substantial part of this topic's search intent, but phones have different recorder apps and storage policies. The safest first checks use the device's existing gallery and backup features.

Check the Recorder Folder and Gallery Trash

Step 1. Open the screen recorder app or the device Gallery and check recorded videos. Search using the approximate date and any Screen recordings album. On Samsung devices, Gallery and My Files may expose Trash or Recycle Bin depending on the version.

Step 2. If the file was deleted, open the applicable Gallery Trash, select the screen recording, and choose Restore if offered. The restore window depends on the application and may expire.

Result: Verify the restored video opens and contains the expected footage. If nothing appears, check the device's other photo backup accounts. Do not install unverified APKs that promise to bypass Android encryption.

Check Google Photos and Device Backups

Step 1. In Google Photos, confirm the correct Google account and search Videos or the date of the recording. In Collections > Trash (wording can vary), select an eligible item and tap Restore.

Interface note: This is an older Google Photos menu. In current app versions, use Collections and Trash when available; the image identifies the feature, not today's exact navigation.

Step 2. If no copy exists, review any backups previously enabled in your gallery, cloud storage or recording app. See Google Photos recovery instructions for current eligibility and retention rules. An item permanently erased from encrypted phone storage cannot reliably be brought back through an ordinary desktop disk scan.

Part 3. Restore Screen Recordings on Windows

For recordings made on Windows, start with the Recycle Bin and built-in backup tools. Neither requires a full-disk recovery scan if a safe copy still exists.

Recover From Recycle Bin

Step 1. Open Recycle Bin and search by file name, date or original location. Check for MP4 recordings previously saved in Videos/Captures or the folder used by the recording tool.

Step 2. Right-click the matching video and select Restore; Windows returns it to its original folder. If Recycle Bin was emptied or the file was removed permanently, move to the backup check.

Restore an Earlier Copy With File History

Step 1. If File History was already configured and included the recording folder, open File History from Windows search or Control Panel. Select the relevant backup date and folder.

Step 2. Locate the missing video and use the restore control. Save to an alternate folder when preserving any newer existing version matters. File History cannot restore a file from a backup that was never created.

For current instructions, see Microsoft File History support.

Part 4. Recover Deleted Screen Recordings on Mac

On macOS, the first recovery action depends on whether the recording was sent to Trash or whether Time Machine had already backed up the save location.

Put the Deleted Video Back From Trash

Step 1. Open Trash in the Dock and find the screen recording. If the file is present, use Put Back from the contextual menu and confirm playback in the original folder.

If the file was never saved to disk, Trash will not contain it. Some recording tools hold unfinished exports in their own projects or temporary storage.

Restore a Previous Copy With Time Machine

Step 1. Open the folder where the recording used to be stored, then enter Time Machine using an existing backup. Navigate to a date before deletion and select the video.

Step 2. Restore the chosen copy, then check that it plays. Apple's Time Machine restore instructions provide the current procedure. This works only when a backup containing the file exists.

Interface note: The image shows an earlier macOS Time Machine file-restore view. Menu appearance can differ on newer macOS versions; use the Apple instructions linked above for the current navigation.

Part 5. Recover a Deleted Local Recording With Recoverit

If a screen recording was definitely saved and later deleted from a computer or detachable drive, local recovery software can be considered after checking backups. It cannot recreate a recording that was never written.

Confirm That the Recording File Was Saved

Check the recording tool's previous save folder and storage drive. If the file was on an external HDD, SSD, USB or SD card, stop using the source. Recoverit is relevant to logical deletion from a stable, detectable drive; overwrites and SSD TRIM can defeat recovery.

Scan the Original Drive and Save a Verified Copy

Wondershare Recoverit

Accidentally deleted a saved screen recording on Windows or Mac? Recoverit scans supported computer and external drives to locate lost video files. Preview recoverable recordings before saving them to another drive.

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Step 1. Install or run Wondershare Recoverit from a different healthy drive if possible. Select the original local volume that held the recording. Do not use phone-internal-storage or screen recorder app databases as if they were mounted computer drives.

Step 2. Scan the device and filter for the video format or original folder. Preview eligible results and check the date or duration.

Step 3. Recover any valid recording to a different healthy drive, then open it to check image, duration, and audio. If the output is damaged rather than missing, video repair is a separate issue.

For other missing video files, see Recoverit video recovery or memory card recovery when the deleted recording was stored on removable media.

Part 6. What If a Screen Recording Was Never Saved?

An unsaved screen recording is not the same as a deleted MP4. Check the recorder and any available drafts before trying software scans that may not find a completed file.

Distinguish an Unsaved Recording From a Deleted File

If the device lost power, the recording tool crashed or recording stopped unexpectedly, the app may never have finalized its output. Check its recent projects and autosave or recovery options. A video that exists but will not play belongs to a different repair workflow, not ordinary deleted-file recovery.

Prevent Future Recordings From Disappearing

Choose a known save folder before recording; verify that the file appears and opens immediately afterward; and keep another copy on separate storage. For valuable sessions, check storage space and perform a short test recording beforehand.

Conclusion

Screen recording video recovery begins with the correct storage location. Android users should check their recorder, Gallery Trash and Google Photos; Windows and Mac users can check deleted-item folders and existing backups. Recoverit may help with a recording that was previously saved to a detectable local drive, but cannot reliably reconstruct permanently erased phone-internal-storage files or unsaved recordings.