---
title: "Restoring something from the Recycle Vault"
url: https://storagestudio.us/wiki/restoring-from-the-recycle-vault
category: "Safety & undo"
tags: ["recycle vault", "restore", "safety"]
summary: "Open the Recycle Vault, select what you want back and click Restore to return it to where it came from, or choose a folder instead. Nothing is ever overwritten — if the name is taken, the restored copy lands alongside it."
updated: 2026-10-01T05:37:08.000Z
---

# Restoring something from the Recycle Vault

Open the Recycle Vault, select what you want back and click Restore to return it to where it came from, or choose a folder instead. Nothing is ever overwritten — if the name is taken, the restored copy lands alongside it.

To get something back, open the **Recycle Vault**, select the item and click **Restore**. It goes back to the folder it came from. If something with the same name is already there, nothing is overwritten — the restored copy lands alongside it with "(restored)" added to its name.

## Step by step

1. Open the **More** menu → **Recycle Vault…**.
2. Find the item. The list is newest first; type in **Search** to narrow it. Each row shows where the item came from, how it was removed and how many days are left.
3. Select it. Hold ⌘ or ⇧ to select several.
4. Choose how to bring it back:
   - **Restore** puts it back in its original folder.
   - The button beside **Restore** ("Restore the selected items to a folder you choose") asks for a folder; pick one and click **Restore Here**.
5. A short message confirms the result — for example "Restored 3 items."

Restored items leave the vault list, because they're back on your disk.

```mermaid
%% caption: What happens when you restore an item
flowchart TD
  A[Select an item and click Restore] --> B{Is it stored on your external drive?}
  B -->|Yes, and the drive is not connected| C[Nothing happens - connect the drive and try again]
  B -->|No, or the drive is connected| D{Is the name already taken in that folder?}
  D -->|No| E[Put back under its own name]
  D -->|Yes| F[Put back alongside, with restored added to the name]
  E --> G[Removed from the vault list]
  F --> G
```

*Flowchart — What happens when you restore an item. Outline:*

- Select an item and click Restore
  - leads to Is it stored on your external drive?
- Is it stored on your external drive?
  - Yes, and the drive is not connected: leads to Nothing happens - connect the drive and try again
  - No, or the drive is connected: leads to Is the name already taken in that folder?
- Is the name already taken in that folder?
  - No: leads to Put back under its own name
  - Yes: leads to Put back alongside, with restored added to the name
- Put back under its own name
  - leads to Removed from the vault list
- Put back alongside, with restored added to the name
  - leads to Removed from the vault list

## Undoing the most recent removal

**Undo last removal** brings back everything from the most recent removal in one step — for example every file belonging to an app you just uninstalled, or the copies you just removed from one duplicate set. You don't need to select anything first.

## When something is already there

Restoring never replaces a file. If the original folder already has an item with the same name, the restored one is renamed — "Report (restored).pdf", then "Report (restored 2).pdf" and so on — and both are kept. Compare them and remove the one you don't want.

## Messages you might see

| Message | What it means |
|---|---|
| Restored N items. | Everything you selected is back |
| Connect your external drive to restore those items — their contents live on the drive. | The items are stored on your external drive, which isn't connected. Plug it in and try again |
| Couldn't restore those items. | None of them could be put back. Try **Restore** with a different folder |
| Some couldn't be restored. | Added to the count when only part of the selection came back |

An item marked **needs drive** in the list is stored on your external drive. Its magnifying-glass button, which reveals the recoverable copy in Finder, is unavailable until the drive is connected.

## Before you delete for good

If you're not sure whether you'll need something, restore it first and delete it in Finder later — once you use **Delete permanently** in the vault, there's nothing left to restore. Items are cleared automatically after about six months, and sooner if the vault runs out of its share of the drive. See [The Recycle Vault](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/recycle-vault).

See also: [How Storage Studio keeps every change reversible](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/how-storage-studio-keeps-you-safe) · [Finding and removing duplicates](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/duplicates) · [Uninstalling an app completely](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/uninstalling-an-app) · [Restore Points](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/restore-points)

## What links here

- [Emergency Space: when the disk is full right now](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/emergency-space)
- [Finding and removing duplicates](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/duplicates)
- [How Storage Studio deletes things](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/how-deletions-work)
- [How Storage Studio keeps every change reversible](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/how-storage-studio-keeps-you-safe)
- [Missing moved apps: hide, recover or remove](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/missing-moved-apps)
- [Restoring from a backup](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/restoring-from-a-backup)
- [Reviewing, stopping and checking a clear-up](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/reviewing-a-clear-up)
- [Storage Studio and emptying the Trash automatically](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/compared-with-empty-trash-automatically)
- [Temporary files you can't see](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/temporary-files)
- [The Recycle Vault](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/recycle-vault)
- [Uninstalling an app completely](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/uninstalling-an-app)
- [Which copy Storage Studio keeps](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/which-copy-is-kept)