PhotoRec is a free, open-source recovery tool from CGSecurity. On a Mac it runs in Terminal, with a keyboard-driven text interface, and it saves what it finds with numbered names in folders called recup_dir.1, recup_dir.2 and so on. Reco is also free with no limits, but it’s a regular Mac app: you pick the drive, see thumbnails and previews as files are found, and get original names and folders back where the drive still remembers them.
If you’re comfortable in Terminal, or your Mac runs anything older than macOS 26, PhotoRec is an excellent choice. If you’d rather have a window, previews and named files, Reco does that for free on macOS 26 or later.
At a glance
| Reco | PhotoRec | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free, no limit | Free, no limit |
| Source code | Not open source | Open source (GNU GPL v2 or later) |
| Interface on Mac | Mac app with a window, thumbnails and previews | Text interface in Terminal, driven by arrow keys |
| macOS | macOS 26 or later; Apple silicon and Intel | macOS 10.15 or later (Intel 64-bit build; 7.3-WIP noted as running on M1). Also via Homebrew |
| Other platforms | Mac only | Windows, Linux, BSD and more |
| File names | Original names and folders where the drive still remembers them | Usually lost; files are named by disk position, in recup_dir folders |
| File formats | Photos, camera RAW, videos, documents | 480+ file extensions in about 300 file families |
| Drive access | Read-only | Read-only |
| Shows how intact each file is | Yes, before you save | Can keep broken fragments, marked with a “b” prefix |
| Pause and resume a scan | Yes, even after unplugging or restarting | Offers to resume an interrupted recovery |
| Video repair, drive health, wipe | Fix a Video, Drive Check-up, Forget for Good | Not part of PhotoRec (its sibling TestDisk recovers lost partitions) |
PhotoRec details are from cgsecurity.org, as of October 2026 (latest stable version 7.2, February 2024).
What PhotoRec does well
PhotoRec has been developed for many years; version 7.0 came out in 2015 and 7.2 in 2024. It’s open source under the GNU GPL, so anyone can read and check its code. It recognizes more than 480 file extensions, about 300 file families, which is far more than most apps, Reco included. Because it ignores the file system and reads the raw data, it can still find files when the file system is badly damaged or the drive was reformatted.
It runs almost everywhere: Windows, Linux, the BSDs, older Macs back to macOS 10.15 with the current build, and it can be scripted for batch work. CGSecurity says it uses read-only access to the drive it recovers from. Its sibling, TestDisk, can recover lost partitions and undelete files with their names on FAT, NTFS and ext2 file systems.
Where Reco is different
- A normal Mac app. Choose the drive from a list, watch thumbnails appear as the scan runs, and preview files before you save them. No Terminal, no
sudo. macOS asks for your password or Full Disk Access, and Reco explains which before it asks. - Names and folders. Where the drive still remembers them, files come back with their original names, folders and dates, not as thousands of numbered files to sort through. Show each file once hides repeated copies.
- Honest about each file. Every result shows how intact it is, so you can skip damaged files before saving.
- Camera files. Camera RAW from Canon, Nikon, Sony, Fujifilm, Panasonic, Olympus and Hasselblad, plus DNG, HEIC, MOV and MP4. Photos split in two pieces are rebuilt.
- Scans you can stop. Pause, quit, unplug or restart, and the scan continues where it stopped. The time left is measured, not guessed.
- More tools, all free. Fix a Video repairs clips that won’t play, using a working clip from the same camera as a pattern. Copy first images a failing drive before you scan it. Drive Check-up reads the drive’s SMART health. Forget for Good wipes an exFAT, FAT32 or Mac OS Extended drive so nothing can be recovered.
Like PhotoRec, Reco never writes to the drive it scans, and it won’t save recovered files onto it without a clear warning.
Which one should you use?
Use PhotoRec if your Mac runs an older version of macOS, if you need an unusual file format, if you want open-source software you can inspect, or if you’re recovering on Windows or Linux too.
Use Reco if you’re on macOS 26 or later and want to see what you’re getting before you save it, with names and folders where they survive. Both are free, so there’s nothing stopping you from trying both, one after the other, as long as you save the results to a different drive each time.
What neither can do
No app can recover data that’s been overwritten. On a Mac’s built-in SSD, TRIM usually erases deleted data soon after deletion, so recovery there usually finds little. SD cards, USB sticks and most external hard drives don’t do this, and recovery from them works much better. See recovering an SD card on a Mac for the steps.
Questions
Is there a PhotoRec GUI for Mac?
CGSecurity publishes QPhotoRec, a graphical version, but the ready-made Mac download of TestDisk and PhotoRec is used from Terminal with a keyboard-driven text interface. If you want a free Mac app with a normal window, previews and no limits, Reco is one option; it needs macOS 26 or later.
Does PhotoRec work on Apple silicon Macs?
As of October 2026, CGSecurity’s Mac download is an Intel 64-bit build for macOS 10.15 or later, and its download page notes that an M1 Mac can run the 7.3 work-in-progress version. You can also install it with Homebrew.
Why do PhotoRec’s recovered files have strange names?
PhotoRec reads the raw data rather than the file system, so the original names are usually lost. Its FAQ says it names files after their position on the disk, adding the original name only when it’s stored inside the file. Files go into folders called recup_dir.1, recup_dir.2 and so on.
Is PhotoRec safe to use?
CGSecurity says PhotoRec uses read-only access to the drive it recovers from. Save recovered files to a different drive, whichever tool you use.