CardRescue is macOS software for recovering photos and videos deleted from memory cards or lost after formatting, corruption, damage, or an inaccessible card. It also lists recovery cases such as camera shutdowns and cards moved between devices. Supported sources include SD, SDHC, SDXC, microSD, microSDHC, CompactFlash, xD Picture Card, Memory Stick, and other cards up to 256 GB. The software handles JPG, TIF, many raw formats such as Nikon NEF and Canon CRW or CR2, and videos including AVI, MOV, and AVCHD. To use it, select a card drive, file type, and destination folder. CardRescue scans the card, lists found files, and shows thumbnail previews before saving recovered media to a hard-drive folder. The maker says the program does not write to or change flash-card data. A free evaluation version scans and previews pictures before purchase. The single-user license costs 39.95 USD once, with permanent use, unlimited picture files and cards, free v6.x upgrades, and two years of upgrade protection. Recovery may fail when files have been overwritten.
Who it is for
It suits Mac users recovering media from supported memory cards, including deleted, formatted, damaged, or inaccessible cards. The evaluation version lets users scan and preview pictures before buying.
What is good
- Supports cards up to 256 GB
- Recovers photos, raw files, and videos
- Thumbnail preview before saving
- Read-only card operation
- Free evaluation scan
What to know first
- macOS only
- Recovery is not guaranteed
- Overwritten files may be unrecoverable
- License costs 39.95 USD once
Verdict
CardRescue focuses on memory-card media recovery with broad card and file-format support, previews, and read-only scanning. Its evaluation mode helps assess results, but overwritten data may still be lost.
CardRescue plans and pricing
All plansCompared on photo recovery software
- Free plan
- No
- Paid from
- 39.95 one-time
- Supported platforms
- macos
- Recovery sources
- SD, SDHC, SDXC, microSD, microSDHC, CompactFlash, xD Picture Card, Memory Stick, and other memory cards
- Scan modes
- both
- Raw photo recovery
- Yes
- Photo preview
- Yes
