PhotoRec vs Wise Data Recovery

PhotoRec9.1Visit Wise Data Recovery8.7Visit

Higher score PhotoRec #3 in File Recovery Software 9.1/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 1 of 2 features Visit PhotoRec

vs

Wise Data Recovery #7 in File Recovery Software 8.7/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 1 of 2 features Visit WiseCleaner

• PhotoRec fits best

  Free file carving across many file types

• Wise Data Recovery fits best

  Windows recovery with bootable-media support

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Side by side

Feature	PhotoRec 9.1/10 Visit ↗	Wise Data Recovery 8.7/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.1	8.7
Ranking	#3 in File Recovery Software	#7 in File Recovery Software
Best for	Free file carving across many file types	Windows recovery with bootable-media support
Pricing model	Free	Free plan + paid
Starting price	None	$79.95/device/yr
Free plan	✓	✓
Free trial	—	—
Deployment	Desktop	Desktop
Platforms	Windows, macOS, Linux	Windows
Support	Community, Docs	Email, Docs · 24/7
Built for	Solo, Small business	Solo, Small business
Features PhotoRec 1/2 · Wise Data Recovery 1/2
Bootable recovery	Not checked yet	✓ (best)
RAID recovery	✓ (best)	Not checked yet
Specs
Supported device types	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Supported file systems	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Free recovery limit	Not checked yet	2 GB
Supported operating systems	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Our review
Pros	Recovers from damaged filesystems using file signatures Supports more than 480 extensions across more than 300 file families Runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux; supports disk images and RAID autodetection	Recovers files from local drives, memory cards and removable storage Filters by file type, size, modified date and keywords, with file previews WinPE bootable-media recovery can help with crashed systems
Cons	Signature-based carving is narrower than a general recovery toolkit Command-line operation may be less approachable for some users Community and documentation are the listed support channels	The free plan allows up to 2 GB of recoverable data Pro starts at $79.95 per PC per year Available for Windows, with desktop-only deployment
Our verdict	PhotoRec is a free, open-source recovery utility from CGSecurity for people who need to retrieve files from damaged or reformatted media. It scans hard disks, CD-ROMs, memory cards, USB drives, and disk images, looking for file signatures… Read the review →	Wise Data Recovery is desktop software for Windows PCs that scans local drives and removable storage for deleted files. It is aimed at people who need to recover documents, photos, videos, audio, email, archives and other file types from… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• PhotoRec — where it wins

  • Recovers from damaged filesystems using file signatures
  • Supports more than 480 extensions across more than 300 file families
  • Runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux; supports disk images and RAID autodetection

  Where it doesn't

  • Signature-based carving is narrower than a general recovery toolkit
  • Command-line operation may be less approachable for some users
  • Community and documentation are the listed support channels

• Wise Data Recovery — where it wins

  • Recovers files from local drives, memory cards and removable storage
  • Filters by file type, size, modified date and keywords, with file previews
  • WinPE bootable-media recovery can help with crashed systems

  Where it doesn't

  • The free plan allows up to 2 GB of recoverable data
  • Pro starts at $79.95 per PC per year
  • Available for Windows, with desktop-only deployment

• PhotoRec9.1/10 · Free plan

  A free recovery utility for scanning drives and images by file signature, not filesystem.

  Visit PhotoRecFull verdict →
• Wise Data Recovery8.7/10 · Free plan

  Windows file recovery with filtering, previews and bootable-media support.

  Visit WiseCleanerFull verdict →