How to Recover Unsaved or Deleted Excel Files?

Suppose you have been working for many hours on a very important Excel sheet containing a series of data, complex graphs, and crucial charts, and then your system shuts down due to a power failure, Excel crashes, or the sheet is closed accidentally without saving.

It becomes frustrating, but don’t be so concerned if you are stuck in a similar situation, as you can now recover unsaved Excel files within minutes.

The worst thing that can happen to you is that you just realized that you made a huge mistake in the Excel sheet a couple of hours ago and have done a lot more work after that, so undoing is not an option.

This is where this article lends you a helping hand. Whether you want to recover deleted, unsaved, or overwritten Excel files, this read covers everything you need.

Part 1. The Ultimate Solution for Recovering Deleted or Unsaved Excel Files

Suppose your Excel file is lost without saving or is deleted accidentally. In that case, it is always better to use a third-party data recovery tool designed explicitly to restore lost or deleted Excel sheets. Having this solution in hand, you won’t have to search on the internet every time you face this problem. In addition, third-party dedicated tools can help you recover Excel files in most cases.

Now the question that may come to your mind would be: which third-party data recovery software to choose? Right? Though many such tools are available on the market, you can’t trust them until you get familiar with their potential features and a range of other factors.

Simply put, shortlisting a credible tool often becomes a tough nut to crack. If you need a tool you can trust, try Wondershare Recoverit - a free data recovery software. It has helped millions of people worldwide recover data lost or deleted for various reasons. This utility deeply scans your lost data and allows you to preview it before recovering.

Key Features

Recoverit offers a wide range of features you need to restore overwritten, unsaved, or deleted Excel sheets. A few of them that set this tool apart are given below.

• It has a visually appealing user interface design that offers easy navigation for users of all skill levels.
• It supports 500+ data recovery scenarios.
• Recoverit offers support for more than 1,000 file formats, including Excel.
• This tool enables you to recover unsaved or deleted Excel files from over 2,000 storage devices.
• It features a 95% data recovery rate - the highest in the industry.
• You can preview the scanned data before you recover it.

How to Recover an Unsaved/Deleted/Overwritten Excel File Using Recoverit?

With this tool, you just need to follow the steps to get your Excel files back, as given below.

Step 1: Once you install Recoverit on your device, open the tool and enter the Hard Drives and Locations tab.

Step 2: Now, choose the storage location or drive where your Excel files were lost. Once you select the drive, an automatic scan will be started.

Step 3: While Recoverit scans your lost files, you can see the progress at the bottom. In addition, you have the option to stop or resume this process once you find the Excel sheet you want to restore. Using the Search field, you can directly search your files by entering the File Size, Time, or File Type.

Step 4: This tool allows you to preview the scanned Excel files to ensure they are the ones you wish to recover. Tap on the Preview button to preview the Excel sheet, as shown below

Step 5: If this is the file you need, hit the Recover button. Then, choose a specific safe location on your computer and save the recovered Excel file right away.

Part 2. Scenario 1: Excel Suddenly Crashed/PC Suddenly Died

One of the common reasons associated with losing your files is that your Excel program suddenly crashes or the system shuts down for any reason, like hard drive failure, power failure, or more. In that case, the built-in features, AutoRecover and AutoSave, can help you get your lost files back. Enable the mentioned features by following the steps below.

Step 1: Go to the File menu, click Options, and choose Save.

Step 2: Now, check two boxes, as shown below.

Once you have enabled the feature, it will help you get your file back if you close it without saving it. Re-open the Excel program, and you will see the available files under the Document Recovery tab, as shown below.

Part 3. Scenario 2: Quitting Excel with an Unsaved File

Clicking the Save button or pressing CTRL+S while working on Excel sheets is something that many users forget to do. It is another common cause of temporarily losing your files. If this is the case, the Recover Unsaved Workbooks feature of the Excel program can be a good solution. Here is how you can use this feature.

Step 1: Go to File and tap on Recent Workbooks.

Step 2: Now, scroll down to find Recover Unsaved Workbooks and click on it.

Part 4. Scenario 3: Accidentally Overwriting an Excel File

While working on a large number of Excel files, sometimes, you may overwrite them accidentally. If you have mistakenly overwritten an Excel file, don’t panic, as you can use the File History feature of Windows or the Excel program for instant file recovery. Here is how you can do that.

Step 1: Go to your Windows search bar. Type “restore.” Then, choose Restore your files with File History. You will now see a File History window on the screen.

Step 2: Now, tap on the left arrow sign to search for the folder with the previous version of the overwritten Excel sheet. Choose the desired file and tap on the Restore sign to recover the file you need.

Part 5. Scenario 4: Accidentally Deleting Excel Files

Have you accidentally deleted the Excel file you were working on? No worries. Windows usually saves the temporarily deleted files in the Recycle Bin. So, you can simply go to this location and look for the file you just deleted. Here is how you can recover deleted Excel files from the Recycle Bin.

Step 1: Open the Recycle Bin.

Step 2: Search for an Excel file that is deleted accidentally.

Step 3: Once you find it, right-click on it and choose Restore, as shown below.

Note: If the Recycle Bin is empty or you can’t find the desired file you wish to get back, try using Wondershare Recoverit to restore the file in no time. This data and hard drive recovery software allows you to restore lost, deleted, or unsaved Excel files from more than 500 scenarios.

Ending Note

Excel files play a crucial role in keeping huge data, maintaining it, and visually analyzing it efficiently. These files are prone to deletion and corruption. Sometimes, your Excel program may crash or the computer may shut down all of a sudden. As a result, you may lose the Excel sheet you have been working on for many hours.

Other reasons for losing your Excel sheets include closing the file without saving it or accidental deletion. If you want to recover unsaved, deleted, or overwritten Excel files without compromising the data they have, try Wondershare Recoverit - an unmatchable data recovery utility you need.