EaseUS vs. Recuva: which popular data recovery app is best? | Digital Trends (2024)

If you’re searching for the best data recovery software, EaseUS and Recuva are two names that will appear near the top of the results. Both are well-known and popular apps that can restore lost files.

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Pro appears in our guide to the best data recovery software, as does and Recuva Professional, each earning a place in different ways. However, one comes out on top in this head-to-head comparison of pricing, features, and customer support.

Tiers and pricing

If price were the only detail that mattered, Recuva Professional would clearly win. A one-year subscription costs only $25. Recuva can be installed on up to three computers, adding even more value to the subscription.

Since Recuva is owned by the same company that makes CCleaner, you’ll see an option to buy a bundle that includes Recuva Professional, CCleaner, and Speccy software. The last two are handy utilities but have nothing to do with file recovery.

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Pro is a much more expensive subscription but is a more complete solution. On the website, you’ll see three options: $70 per month, $100 per year, and $150 for lifetime use and upgrades.

The annual EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Pro subscription is equivalent to $8.33 per month, a huge discount if you think you’ll need to restore files again within the same 12-month period. Lifetime is clearly the best deal since you’ll never need to pay again.

Note that the EaseUS license covers only one computer. If you upgrade to a new computer, contact support for help with moving your license.

There’s a chance you’ll see a weekly subscription offer in a pop-up window. I saw a price of $40 for one week, which is a nice option since data loss should be a rare occurrence with modern technology.

Features

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Pro is very reliable. In my testing, it restored all recently deleted files and folders from my hard disk drive (HDD) files and fully recovered data after a quick format.

Recuva Professional found all my deleted HDD files and folders and restored them all. However, it lost filenames for about a third, replacing them with computer-generated names.

The scan and recovery times seemed about the same for both. I used an older and slower external USB drive for testing, so I didn’t judge the slow speeds harshly.

I also tried a solid-state drive (SSD) partition. The process was super-quick with both apps, requiring only a few seconds for scanning and less than a minute for recovery.

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Pro failed to recover deleted SSD files. Recuva Professional also reported no files were found. Unfortunately, that’s common with SSDs and one of the reasons HDDs might be better for long-term storage.

After a quick format of my SSD partition, EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Pro found and restored all files and folders. Recuva Professional couldn’t find any files with its quick scan or with a deep scan.

For my fifth round of tests, I plugged in an old thumb drive that couldn’t be read by any device. EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Pro found the lost partition and restored the missing files and folders. Recuva Professional also successfully recovered the data from the damaged thumb drive.

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Pro restored files in more situations and more completely than Recuva Professional.

Customer support and usability

I was impressed with the customer support for EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Pro. I got through to a live agent after waiting only a minute. I received a quick and helpful answer to my question and could get on with my day with minimal delay.

The low-cost Recuva Professional only offers email support, and it took a little over a day to get a response. It was a simple question and didn’t require ongoing emails, but the email thread could stretch long and take several days to resolve for more complicated problems.

Trustpilot reviews agree with my experience, rating EaseUS higher with 4.7 stars, while CCleaner, the company that makes Recuva Professional, received a respectable 4.4-star average. Each company has over 20,000 reviews.

Thankfully, both data recovery apps are easy to use and support articles on each company website answer common questions. Still, EaseUS has more responsive and accessible customer service with its live chat option.

Free versions

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Pro’s free version has the same features as the paid version, but it has a cap on use. You’ll need to buy a subscription to restore more than 2GB of files. That’s still a generous amount of data and could be all you need.

Recuva also has a free version and it allows unlimited data recovery. There are some restrictions, though. You can’t access virtual drives and won’t get automatic updates.

While the online support centers are open to everyone, neither company provides customer service to free users.

Which data recovery app is best?

While Recuva Professional is remarkably affordable at $25 per year, its restoration skills fall short of what EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Pro can achieve. If you’ve lost files that are essential to your work or that capture irreplaceable memories, EaseUS is worth the extra expense.

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Pro also comes with live support, which is very valuable in challenging situations. If you can’t get the data you want, it’s frustrating to have to wait until tomorrow or go back and forth via email for several days to get the answers you need.

The best file restoration app is EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Pro. It’s also earned a place on our guide to the best data recovery software for Mac. Recuva doesn’t make a version for macOS.

If you’re thinking about trying both, start with the free versions and avoid saving any files or organizing folders on the drive that’s missing data. Any changes could overwrite the files you’re hoping to recover.

You might also want to make note of the best data recovery apps for iPhone and for restoring files on an Android phone.