Top 5 Disk Drill Alternatives for Mac

If you’ve Googled "Mac data recovery" recently, you already know Disk Drill. Owing to a massive marketing footprint and a slick interface, it has positioned itself as the default recommendation for the average Mac user. On the surface, it looks ideal: modern, polished, and giving the impression that recovery is mostly a matter of clicking the right buttons.

And for everyday situations, that still holds up. Deleted files, emptied Trash, lost photos from an external drive—Disk Drill can usually surface something.

But once things get even slightly more complicated, cracks start to show. Beyond its moderate recovery success rates, absence of a shared mode in Disk Drill is a real practical friction. It makes the scanned drive unusable until the scanning process completes. On large volumes this can bring work to a standstill—something competing tools like Stellar handle more efficiently.

If you are reading this, the marketing hype has likely faded, leaving you with a tool that can’t quite get you over the finish line.

Why Disk Drill Works—Until It Doesn’t

Developed by CleverFiles and promoted heavily through a vast network of affiliate blogs, Disk Drill is primarily a consumer-level tool. Featuring an intuitive UI and simple controls, it’s designed around accessibility.

This simplicity comes with a tradeoff, however. The software offers limited capabilities for dealing with deep data corruption, especially for multimedia. Still, it may be effective for handling certain data loss situations including:

• Deleted files from HDDs and non-flash storage devices
• Minor corruption resulting from software crashes
• Light corruption in virtual disk images

However, macOS itself has changed dramatically. Modern Macs—with APFS complexities, aggressive SSD TRIM commands, and system-level encryption—make the situation hostile for data recovery. This is where Disk Drill hits a hard ceiling.

Josie on Trustpilot says:

“I rarely leave reviews, but my experience with Disk Drill has been very upsetting… Disk Drill Basic couldn’t preview my files at all… I upgraded to PRO thinking it would solve the issue, but it didn’t recover a single file.”

Technically, Disk Drill supports common file systems like NTFS, FAT32, APFS, and HFS+. Under the hood, it relies heavily on intact metadata and struggles the moment that gets damaged.

During our tests, Disk Drill struggled with:

• Recovery from formatted APFS volumes
• Data recovery over a network
• Volumes that appear as RAW or unreadable
• Recovering compressed images and videos
• Preserving original folder hierarchy after deep scans
• Large multimedia files that were fragmented before deletion
• Reconstructing files once metadata is damaged—often surfacing large volumes of data stripped of filenames and folder structures
• Returning a high volume of duplicate files with minimum intelligent filtering
• Real-time support during high-stakes data crises
• Does not provide any refunds

The upside? You aren’t stuck with the “default” choice. Below are specialized alternatives that prioritize deep reconstruction over speed, offer granular control, striking a better balance between usability and recovery depth.

Top 5 Disk Drill Alternatives (Based on Our Tests)

We evaluated a wide range of Mac data recovery software and shortlisted the five best alternatives to Disk Drill for you, choosing each one for its ability to handle specific data loss scenarios and technical skill levels. Feel free to explore the options, your ideal recovery tool is likely on this list.

1. Stellar Data Recovery for Mac (Best Overall Disk Drill Alternative)

Stellar Data Recovery for Mac strikes a rare balance between usability and recovery depth. While the interface is modern and approachable, the underlying engine delivers consistently high recovery rates across APFS, HFS+, NTFS, FAT32, exFAT, and EXT4 file systems.

A standout differentiator is its photo and video repair capability. During testing, this clearly separated Stellar from Disk Drill and similar tools. Instead of merely retrieving corrupted files, Stellar was often able to repair them—turning unusable media into viewable content.

Usability

Installing Stellar Data Recovery for Mac was quite straightforward. We downloaded the installer from the official website and followed the setup wizard through to completion without friction. The interface is divided into two functional areas:

Central pane:  It focuses strictly on the recovery task at hand, allowing for granular control over the scan. You can narrow down the search criteria immediately by selecting specific data types (e.g., Audio, Videos, Documents) before the scan begins.

Sidebar: It provides quick access to other core functions like "Recover Non Booting Mac," “Create Image," and “Virtual Machine Recovery,” alongside standard Preferences.

Navigation is linear, with a prominent "Next" button guiding the user to the subsequent steps of the recovery process.

Performance

On an M1 MacBook Air, Stellar scanned a 233.76GB volume, completing the process in 5 minutes and 17 seconds, and returned 226.63GB of recoverable data—impressively fast for a volume of this size. Upon completion, the "Scanning Completed Successfully" dialog provides a clear summary of the results.  

The interface effectively categorizes scan results into three tabs:

• Classic List
• File List
• Deleted List

The Deleted List proved particularly useful, isolating 20,162 deleted files (80.51 GB) that had been removed from the system, separate from existing data. The built-in preview tool helps verify file integrity—displaying full visual previews before committing to the final recovery.

What Makes Stellar a Better Disk Drill Alternative?

Stellar Data Recovery for Mac behaves less like a consumer app and more like a recovery toolkit. It handles formatted APFS volume, non-booting Macs, and corrupt disk images with ease, prioritizing depth and control over the "one-click-fix" promises. This philosophy is obvious the moment you launch the tool.

The interface is clean and linear, letting you define exactly what you need before you even start scanning. Crucially, the results aren't just dumped into one massive pile. The separation of the "Classic List," "File List," and "Deleted List" is a massive time-saver, preventing valid system files from hiding the actually deleted data you’re looking for.

In our testing, this structure translated into real-world results. Stellar recovered 20,162 deleted files, keeping their original filenames and folder paths intact. Under the exact same conditions, Disk Drill’s Deleted or lost filter only surfaced 4,800 files. While Disk Drill did return a large amount of reconstructed data, most of it consisted of duplicates and files that lacked usable context.

Where Stellar filters, organizes, and de-duplicates during the scan, Disk Drill defers that responsibility entirely to the user—extending recovery time and increasing post-recovery cleanup. Add disk imaging, drive health monitoring, and genuine media repair to the mix, and Stellar Data Recovery for Mac clearly stands out as the tool you use when "good enough" isn't cutting it.

2. EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac (Best for Beginners and Guided Recovery)

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard is designed for first-time users. It positions itself as a "guided" solution for those overwhelmed by file systems and partition tables. For straightforward recovery cases—accidentally deleted documents, photos, or other file types—it offers a predictable, low-effort experience.

Usability

EaseUS offers a simple one-step installer. The interface is minimalist and modern, defaulting to a clean dark mode that feels at home on macOS. Unlike Stellar’s utility-focused sidebar, EaseUS groups its tools by user intent: SD Card, iCloud Recovery, and Unbootable Mac are top-level menu items, not hidden features.

One thoughtful inclusion we noticed immediately in the sidebar is the "Advanced Features" section, which places Video Repair and Disk Backup front and center. This encourages users to create a disk image before attempting recovery—a critical safety step that other tools often bury in settings menus.

Performance

We ran EaseUS on the same M1 MacBook Air and 233.76GB volume used in our previous tests and it managed to surface 166,569 files (81.71GB). Results were organized by file type (Documents, Pictures, Videos, Audio, Emails), making browsing easy for casual users, but this can be limiting when searching for specific files.

While EaseUS performs reliably for common recovery cases, it offers less transparency and control over how results are reconstructed compared to Stellar. There is limited separation between deleted, existing, and reconstructed data, and advanced filtering options are relatively restrained.

Notably, during our tests on a formatted APFS volume, EaseUS surfaced significantly fewer recoverable files than Stellar, suggesting a weaker raw-signature and post-format reconstruction capability. It remains reliable for common scenarios, but may feel restrictive once recovery scenarios become more complex.

What Makes EaseUS a Better Disk Drill Alternative?

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac improves on Disk Drill primarily by reducing ambiguity for first-time users. Instead of dumping mixed results that require manual filtering, it leads users step by step—from scan to review—without requiring file system knowledge.

In our testing on the same MacBook, EaseUS completed its scan and presented the results immediately in clearly labeled categories. This file-type style organization makes it easier for beginners to locate common data quickly, especially when recovering everyday files like office documents or photos.

EaseUS also stands out in how it anticipates user errors. It handles Apple silicon permissions proactively, guiding users through Recovery Mode requirements where other tools assume familiarity. While it lacks the depth of Stellar, it offers a calmer, more predictable experience than Disk Drill—provided the recovery scenario doesn’t involve formatted APFS volumes or heavy metadata loss.

3. R-Studio for Mac (Best for Advanced Users and Complex Recovery Process)

R-Studio is a technically challenging tool. It has replaced the simplistic "one-click" recovery method with an interface similar to a flight deck with multiple dials and switches. Unlike tools designed for consumers where recovery of files is a simple process, R-Studio provides detailed scanning options and supports the retrieval of files at much deeper levels through raw recovery and low-level reconstruction. It supports many types of file systems and includes tools such as hex-level viewing; RAID reconstruction; sector-basis scanning; and network recovery.

Usability

Out of the box, R-Studio leans toward classic forensic and technical recovery utilities, with multiple panes displaying disks, partitions, scan progress, and file systems simultaneously. This can overwhelm casual users but rewards those who need full visibility into the recovery process.

The sidebar provides access to active projects, available devices and volumes, and custom scans. Advanced recoveries such as RAID parameter tuning or *.dd/raw image processing are available without extra plugins.

The learning curve here is steeper than EaseUS or Stellar, but the payoff is direct control over how the software interprets and reconstructs damaged data. For users comfortable with terms like “sector size” and “raw signatures,” R-Studio provides freedom that many consumer tools abstract away.

Performance

A full scan of the same 233.76GB APFS volume completed in 12 minutes 51 seconds. While slower, R-Studio surfaced fragments and partially overwritten data that other tools missed. Its filtering options allow results to be sorted by file signature, modification date, and likelihood of integrity make it particularly effective in heavily corrupted scenarios.

Unlike more guided tools, R-Studio does not prioritize presentation over process. Scan progress is detailed and may take longer depending on depth settings, but the resulting dataset tends to be richer where metadata is missing or fragmented.

What Makes R-Studio a Better Disk Drill Alternative?

R-Studio for Mac is not about simplicity. Control, transparency, and recoverability are the main components for many of the greatest challenges of data recovery today. In the most difficult data recovery situations, when Disk Drill scan is unable to restore usable data from a fragmented or partially corrupt disk volume, R-studio's deep scanning and signature-based engine can still scan raw sectors and recreate file structures that other tools are unable to identify.

For advanced users the difference is practical, not theoretical. R-Studio exposes recovery parameters that let you: choose raw signature lists to tailor scans for specific file types, adjust scan depth and intensity, examine hex previews and sector-level data before recovery, and reconstruct RAID arrays.

In contrast, Disk Drill’s results page often presents a large set of “reconstructed” files without context or filtering power, requiring manual sorting through undifferentiated fragments. Put simply, where Disk Drill stops at surface-level recovery with minimal user input, R-Studio hands control to the user and lets expertise drive the result.

4. Prosoft Engineering Data Rescue (Best Mac-native Conservative Recovery)

Data Rescue has long been trusted in the Mac community. It handles standard file recovery and includes a disk cloning utility that is genuinely useful for failing drives. Plus, you only need a single license to run Data Rescue on both macOS and Windows, especially useful for those who switch between platforms. It supports most common file systems, including HFS+ and APFS.

Usability

In terms of design, Data Rescue feels dated. On a modern system like macOS Tahoe, the launcher is minimal to a fault: four generic buttons with no explanations or tooltips to guide you. The rigidity continues into the recovery workflow itself: there is no option to resume a paused scan, and you are forced to view results in a single, unchangeable list format.

However, rigidity is intentional. The workflow encourages you to "Clone" a failing drive first, then scan the clone—a best practice that Disk Drill mentions but Data Rescue forces you to consider.

Performance

It may not be the fastest scanner, but Data Rescue is incredibly reliable for HFS+ and older mechanical drives. It finds fewer RAW files than Disk Drill, but the ones it does are far more likely to be intact. It’s less effective on modern APFS encryption than Stellar, but rock-solid for external mechanical hard drives.

Feature-wise, the app covers the essentials with a disk cloner and a Mac-exclusive bootable recovery drive, both critical for dealing with physically failing or non-booting systems. It also includes FileIQ for teaching the software to recognize custom file types. But its RAID capabilities are a major letdown, restricted strictly to RAID 0 and JBOD.

What Makes Data Rescue a Better Disk Drill Alternative?

Where Disk Drill will repeatedly scan a degrading drive, Data Rescue insists on cloning first, treating the utility not as a bonus feature, but as a mandatory safety step. For older mechanical drives that are clicking or grinding, this "clone first, ask questions later" approach is often the only thing standing between recovery and permanent data loss.

Add in the ability to create a Mac-native bootable recovery drive and you have a tool built for precision. Yes, the interface looks like a relic and the RAID support is weak, but if you are dealing with unstable hardware where every spin of the platter counts, Data Rescue is a safer, smarter bet.

5. PhotoRec (Best Free/Open-Source Alternative)

PhotoRec takes a radically different approach. Bundled with the TestDisk utility, it doesn’t rely on file systems entirely and focuses on file carving by looking for the underlying data signatures of files (like the header of a JPEG or the footer of a PDF). Which makes it super useful in scenarios where the partition map is destroyed or the file allocation table is empty.

Usability

PhotoRec does not resemble a modern Mac application in any meaningful way. The interface is entirely text-based, running in a terminal window with keyboard-driven navigation. There are no previews, no graphical progress indicators, and no visual hierarchy to guide users through the process.

That said, the workflow is surprisingly linear once you understand it. Users select the target disk, choose the partition or raw device, define the file types to recover, and let the scan run. PhotoRec provides clear prompts at each step, but assumes a basic level of technical comfort.

Performance

PhotoRec’s performance is driven almost entirely by its raw scanning engine. In our tests, it recovered more raw files than almost any paid tool on this list. The focus on file signatures makes scan time lengthy, especially on large disks, but allows it to pull data from volumes that other tools may even fail to recognize.

Recovered files are renamed sequentially and stripped of metadata. For media recovery, this is often acceptable. For documents, validation can be time-consuming. There are no previews, no integrity checks, and no way to make out fully intact files from partially corrupted ones until after recovery.

What Makes PhotoRec a Better Disk Drill Alternative?

The argument for PhotoRec is simple: It’s completely, unrestricted free software. Disk Drill operates on a "freemium" model, meaning it lets you scan for free but demands payment to actually recover the data. PhotoRec has no paywall, no data limits, and no upsells.

For users dealing with severely corrupted, reformatted, or unreadable volumes and who are unwilling or unable to invest in paid software, PhotoRec can recover data Disk Drill simply cannot see.

If you are a student, a hobbyist, or simply someone dealing with severe corruption and can’t justify paying for software, PhotoRec remains a viable option, though the tradeoff is time spent sorting through unnamed files.

Important macOS Recovery Limitations (Before You Try Any Tool)

Modern Macs impose hard limits on recovery—regardless of software:

• TRIM on SSDs: If TRIM has executed, deleted data is often wiped almost instantly and recovery is impossible.
• Apple Silicon / T2 encryption: If a Mac won’t power on, the internal drive can’t be removed and scanned separately.
• Previews can mislead: Thumbnails don’t guarantee full-file integrity. Always preview the full file.

 Final Verdict

There’s no single "best" recovery software – only the right one for the right situation. If you want the strongest balance of recovery depth, structure preservation, usability, and practical utilities, Stellar Data Recovery for Mac is the most well-rounded option. It retains Disk Drill’s approachability while delivering far deeper, more structured results—and can actually repair corrupted media.

For non-technical users, EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard offers the safest, least intimidating experience. R-Studio is unmatched for complex, expert-driven recoveries. Data Rescue is the responsible choice for failing mechanical drives. And if cost is the deciding factor, PhotoRec delivers unmatched raw recovery at the expense of convenience.

Most paid tools let you scan for free. Always verify previews before purchasing. Data recovery is never guaranteed—clarity before commitment is essential.