Emails have become an integral part of our daily communication, whether for personal or professional purposes. However, sometimes due to accidental deletion or any other reasons, you may lose important emails from your account. Losing emails can be a distressful experience, but the good news is that there are several Windows data recovery software and manual methods available online that you can try to restore your lost emails.
This comprehensive guide will walk you through the best methods to recover lost emails in Windows, ensuring that your important messages are restored efficiently.
Understanding the Causes of Lost Emails
Before you proceed with methods to restore your lost emails, it is important to find the exact cause of this scenario. Some of the main reasons why emails get deleted are:
- Accidental Deletion: One of the most frequent reasons for losing emails is accidental deletion, i.e., when you accidentally delete emails from your account.
- Corrupted Email Files: Corruption in email files, especially in email client databases like PST or OST files in Microsoft Outlook, can cause the deletion of your emails.
- Virus or Malware Attacks: Malicious software like viruses or malware can damage the email client or specific messages, causing the deletion of emails on your account.
- Synchronization Errors: Sync issues between your email client and the server can also result in emails not appearing or disappearing.
- Human Error: Mismanagement or unintentional overwriting of files may also lead to missing emails.
How do I Recover Deleted Emails in Windows?
In this next section, we’ll explore some simple methods to recover your deleted emails on Windows PC. Just go with these methods one-by-one to reclaim your lost messages easily:
Method 01: Check the Trash Folder or Deleted Items
Most of the email clients come with the Deleted Items or Trash folder where all your deleted emails are stored temporarily. Before diving into other methods to restore deleted emails, it is important to check these folders first. Here are quick steps to recover lost emails in Windows using the Deleted Items or Trash folder:
- Firstly, open the email client you are using.
- Go to the Deleted Items or Trash folder.
- Locate the deleted emails you need to restore.
- If found, move it back to the inbox or desired folder.
Method 02: Recover Lost Emails from Archive Folder
Many email services automatically archive old emails. If you have enabled archiving, your missing emails might be in the Archive folder. To restore lost emails from there, you need to:
- Launch your email client and check for an Archive folder.
- Browse through the folder to locate your missing emails.
- Move the emails back to the inbox or another relevant folder if needed.
Method 03: Use the Search Function
Sometimes, the emails are not actually lost but misplaced in another folder. In such cases, you can use the search functionality to locate your missing emails. For this:
- Open your Email client.
- Go to the search bar and enter the keywords, sender name, or subject of the email you are looking for.
- Review the search results for the missing email and save the required one back to your account.
Method 04: Use Third-Party Windows Data Recovery Software
If the above-mentioned methods to recover lost emails in Windows get failed, you can use a Windows data recovery software to restore your emails. Tools like Stellar Data Recovery Standard is an all-in-one Windows data recovery software that allows you to restore lost or deleted emails, photos, videos, and other types of files.
You can use the Stellar data recovery standard software to restore lost files from different storage devices, including SD cards, HDDs, SSDs, etc. It even supports the recovery of files from formatted, corrupted, or encrypted drives. The software is compatible with both Windows and Mac devices and allows you to restore deleted files in three simple steps.
Here’s how to recover lost emails in Windows using the Stellar Data Recovery Standard software:
Step 1: Download and install the Stellar Data Recovery Standard software on your Windows device. Launch the software and from the homepage, select Emails and click Next.
Step 2: Choose the folder/drive where your offline emails were stored and click Scan to initiate the scanning process. Wait till the scan is completely done.
Step 3: Once the scanning is done, preview the recoverable results on the screen and choose the Emails you want. Click the Recover button to save them at the desired location on your device.
Tips to Prevent Future Email Loss
After recovering your lost emails, it’s time to take preventive measures to avoid similar incidents in the future. Here are some tips that you can consider to avoid sudden loss of emails on Windows devices:
- Enable Auto-Backup: Use cloud-based email services or backup tools to regularly back up your emails.
- Archive Emails Regularly: Archiving helps keep your inbox organized and reduces the chances of accidental deletion.
- Update Email Clients: Keep your email client updated to benefit from the latest security patches and features.
- Avoid Overloading Folders: Keep email folders organized to reduce the risk of misplacing or losing emails.
Conclusion
If you ever lose important emails on your account, don’t worry. With the aforementioned Windows data recovery software and manual approaches, you can recover your lost emails effectively. This guide provides multiple methods to recover lost emails in Windows, whether they were deleted, misplaced, or affected by file corruption. Moreover, you can consider preventive measures such as enabling auto backups, updating email clients, etc. to protect your emails from such losses.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Can I recover permanently deleted emails?
Yes, in many cases, permanently deleted emails can be recovered depending on your email service or client. You can even use Windows data recovery software such as Stellar Data Recovery Standard to restore your permanently deleted emails.
How long do deleted emails stay in the Trash or Deleted Items folder?
The duration varies depending on the email provider. For example: deleted emails of Gmail, Outlook and Hotmail remain in the Trash folder for 30 days but those of Yahoo Mail remain for 7 days only.
Can I recover emails without using third-party software?
Yes, you can check the Trash/Deleted Items folder or use the email client’s built-in recovery features, such as Outlook’s Recover Deleted Items to recover emails without additional software.
