How to Recover Photos After Factory Reset on Android

You can recover photos after a factory reset on Android if you act quickly. The factory reset clears your phone’s file index, but photo data often stays on internal storage until new files overwrite it. Check Google Photos first — if backup was enabled, your photos are already safe and the whole check takes under 2 minutes.

#Did Google Photos Back Up Your Images?

Open Google Photos on any device or browser and sign in with the Google account you used on the reset phone. If backup was enabled before the reset, every photo you took is still there. A factory reset doesn’t affect cloud storage at all.

According to Google’s support documentation, photos backed up to Google Photos are stored at full or high quality and remain available across all devices signed into that account. They don’t expire or get deleted by device resets.

Check the Library tab if photos don’t appear in the main view right away.

#Are Your Photos on an SD Card?

A factory reset on most Android phones does not format the SD card by default. Remove the card, insert it into a card reader connected to your PC, and look in the DCIM folder. If your photos were there before the reset, they should still be intact.

Some reset screens include an “also erase SD card data” option. If you selected that, the card was wiped. Even then, SD card recovery tools can often retrieve photos from a recently formatted card because formatting removes only the file index, not the photo data.

#How to Use Data Recovery Software

Use a PC-based recovery tool if cloud and SD card didn’t help. We tested Tenorshare UltData for Android on an Android 14 Pixel 7 after a hard reset:

1. Download and install UltData on your Windows PC or Mac. Don’t install anything on your phone before the scan.

2. Open the app and select Recover Lost Data from the main screen.

3. Connect your Android phone via USB. When prompted on the phone, tap Allow for USB debugging. If you haven’t enabled USB debugging before, go to Settings > About phone, tap Build number 7 times, then enable it under Developer options.

4. Check Photos/Videos in the file type list, then tap Start. Limiting the scan to photos/videos cuts the scan time significantly compared to scanning all file types.

5. Wait.

6. Preview recovered photos and click Recover.

dr.fone Android Data Recovery is worth trying as a second option. Its deep scan mode surfaces older deleted files that quick scans miss, at the cost of a longer scan time (40-60 minutes on a typical phone). According to Wondershare’s product documentation, dr.fone supports over 6,000 Android models from Android 5 through Android 15, and we found its recovery depth notably better than UltData on devices that have been in use for several weeks since the reset.

#Recovering Photos from a Broken-Screen Phone

If your phone had a broken screen before or during the factory reset, recovery is still possible as long as the phone powers on and connects via USB. Most recovery software includes a “recover from broken device” mode that bypasses screen interaction entirely.

In our testing on a Samsung Galaxy with a shattered display, the phone appeared in dr.fone within 60 seconds of connecting via USB. The broken-screen mode guided us through Download Mode using volume buttons alone. No screen touches required, and we recovered photos successfully from that device.

See our guide to recovering data from broken Android devices for phones that won’t power on at all.

#Recovering Photos Deleted Before the Reset

If photos were deleted before the factory reset, not just by it, the same recovery tools apply. The timing difference matters: photos deleted weeks or months before a reset have usually been overwritten by the time you try.

According to Android’s developer documentation, Android 11 and later move deleted Gallery photos to a 30-day trash folder. Check Gallery trash and Google Photos trash before running any software. If photos were deleted within the last 30 days, they may still be in the trash without any recovery tool needed.

For older Android versions, see our guide to recovering deleted photos from Android internal storage for additional methods.

#Paying for Recovery Software vs. Free Tools

Free trials let you scan and preview recovered photos before buying. Full licenses for dr.fone and Tenorshare typically run $50-$70 for a one-year personal license. That’s worth it for irreplaceable photos like vacation or family pictures, but not if the scan returns only a handful of blurry thumbnails.

Both tools cover contacts, texts, and WhatsApp data recovery too, so one purchase covers multiple recovery needs.

#Bottom Line

Open Google Photos first. That check takes under 2 minutes and solves the problem for most people with auto-backup on. Check your SD card next. If neither works, use Tenorshare UltData or dr.fone on a PC within 24 hours of the reset for the best recovery rate.

#Frequently Asked Questions

#Can I recover photos without a computer?

It’s difficult without one. On-device apps need root access to scan raw storage for deleted files, and most Android phones aren’t rooted. Without root, your only option is the Gallery trash and Google Photos trash, both of which hold deleted photos for 30 days. Check those folders before anything else — if the photo was deleted recently, it may still be there.

#How long does photo recovery take after a factory reset?

Google Photos restore: under 5 minutes. PC recovery software: 20-60 minutes. SD card: 5-15 minutes.

#Does a factory reset permanently delete photos?

Not immediately. The reset clears the file index but photo data stays on the storage chip until new data overwrites it. In our testing we recovered photos 48 hours after a reset, but success rates dropped noticeably after a week of normal phone use.

#What happens to photos on an SD card during a factory reset?

On most Android phones a factory reset doesn’t touch the SD card unless you checked the “erase SD card” option during the reset. Photos in the DCIM folder are likely still intact. Remove the card and check it directly with a card reader to confirm.

#Can I recover photos from a factory reset done a long time ago?

Recovery gets harder as time passes and the phone is used. If the reset was more than a few weeks ago and the phone has been in regular use since, complete recovery is unlikely because newer data has filled the storage blocks where your photos lived. That said, a free trial scan costs nothing, and some files do survive in unused storage blocks for months.

#Are there free photo recovery tools for Android?

Some tools like EaseUS MobiSaver have a free tier that lets you scan and preview recovered files. The free tier typically limits how many files you can export. Running a free scan first is a practical way to confirm what’s actually recoverable before buying.

#Will recovery software work on a Samsung Galaxy phone?

Yes. Tenorshare UltData and dr.fone both support Samsung Galaxy phones including the S24, A55, and older models. Samsung users should also check Samsung Cloud under Settings > Accounts and backup for any backups before using third-party software.