5 Ways to Recover Deleted Voice Memos from iPhone 2024

User Concern

“How do I recover deleted voice memos on iPhone 14 running iOS 17? I just recorded a voice memo. While playing it back, I inadvertently touched the trash (delete) icon. The memo was immediately removed. It did not even ask for confirmation. How can I get it back?”

More and more iPhone users tend to record information via Voice Memos. With this voice recorder, they can jot down any information, such as songs, lectures, ideas, thoughts, etc., whenever and wherever without writing.

However, bad things always happen without warning. Users may often get into situations of losing important voice recordings on iPhone. Have you ever lost voice memos due to accidental deletion, iOS update, factory reset, device jailbreak, damaged, or broken?

It's not the end; you still have chances to get them back. Here we'll share several methods to recover deleted voice memos from iPhone. Also, you can learn how to protect your voice memos from future loss.

Is It Possible to Recover Deleted Voice Memos?

YES. You can certainly recover deleted voice memos on your iPhone. The first thing you should do is check the Recently Deleted folder. If, unfortunately, you can't find the deleted Voice Memos from that folder, you can rely on third-party tools to get them back.

There is a database storage system known as SQLite on your iPhone. Before permanently deleting the voice memos, they will be saved in the database storage system as "Allocated" data. When they are deleted, they will still be saved in the storage system and be marked as "Unallocated."

But the "Unallocated" data cannot be viewed. You need a tool to extract and recover the "Unallocated" data to a computer.

Way 1: Check Whether You Have Shared the Voice Memos

Before you take any further measures to recover deleted iPhone voice memos, check whether you have shared them with your computer via AirDrop, or emailed them to your friends. Don't forget to check the audio/video editing tools with which you might have edited the voice memo files.

Way 2: Recover Voice Memos from Recently Deleted Folder

When you delete a voice memo from your iPhone, it will stay in the Recently Deleted folder for 30 days and then be erased permanently. If you lost voice memos within this period, you can recover them from the Recently Deleted folder:

• Open the Voice Memos app and tap the "Recently Deleted" folder.
• Find the recording that you want to recover and tap on it.
• Click on "Recover" and then "Recover Recording".

Here is a suggestion: You can go to iPhone Settings > Voice Memos > Clear Deleted and select "Never." After that, the voice memos will not be automatically removed from the Recently Deleted folder.

Way 3: Restore Deleted Voice Memos from Synced Devices

If you have synced voice memos to iCloud or iTunes before, the deleted voice memos will remain on the synced devices. You can easily restore them from those devices. Here we will show you how to sync voice memos from iTunes back into iPhone:

• Connect your iPhone to the computer and launch iTunes.
• On the left pane, tap "Songs" and choose the voice memos in the playlist.
• Drag the voice memos up to your iPhone listed in the Devices.

Way 4: Fully Restore Deleted Voice Memos from Backup

If you have backed up your iPhone to iTunes or iCloud before, you can easily get back voice memos by restoring the device from the backup.

Restore from iTunes Backup:

• Connect your iPhone to the computer that you've made a backup and open iTunes.
• Select your iPhone icon and click on "Restore Backup".
• Choose the recent backup and tap "Restore." All data from iTunes, including voice memos, will be restored to your iPhone.

Restore from iCloud Backup:

• On your iPhone, go to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone, then choose "Erase All Contents and Settings."
• Set up the iPhone, and on the "Apps & Data" screen, tap on "Restore from iCloud Backup."
• Sign in to your iCloud account, choose the last backup, then click on "Restore."

Note

Please note that the iTunes/iCloud restore method has some drawbacks. When you choose to restore from the backup, all the existing data on your iPhone will be overwritten, which means that you are at risk of new data loss. And it is impossible to recover only voice memos, all settings and content will be restored as well. If you want to find a better solution, move ahead.

Way 5: Recover Deleted Voice Memos on iPhone without Backup

What if you didn't make any backup before deleting voice memos from your iPhone? Don't fret. The deleted voice memos are not completely erased from the device and there are still chances to recover them with the help of professional data recovery software, such as, FoneGeek iPhone Data Recovery.

This tool provides users with an easy and quick way to recover deleted voice memos from iPhone with or without backup. Unlike restoring from iTunes/iCloud backup, FoneGeek iPhone Data Recovery allows you to preview the deleted data and selectively recover what you need only.

Key Features of FoneGeek iPhone Data Recovery:

• Supports recovering data from built-in apps on iPhone as well as 3rd-party apps, including photos, videos, contacts, messages, voice memos, notes, Safari history, WhatsApp Viber, Kik, etc.
• Recover iPhone data lost due to various reasons, such as accidental deletion, virus attack, factory reset, iOS update, jailbreak, device not responding, device locked, etc.
• Supports backing up your iPhone/iPad/iPod data and extracting different types of data to your computer without restoring the device. (No Data Loss)
• It is fully compatible with the newest iPhone 15/14/13 and iOS 17/16.

Here is the step-by-step guide on how to recover deleted voice memos from iPhone without backup. Download FoneGeek iPhone Data Recovery and install it on your computer to proceed.

Step 1: Launch FoneGeek Voice Memo Recovery software on your Mac or Windows PC, choose the "Recover Data from iOS Device" mode and connect your iPhone to the computer to start the process.

Step 2: Choose "Voice Memos" and click on "Scan". The program will start scanning the connected device for lost data. The whole process will take a moment.

Step 3: When the scanning has been done, the recoverable voice memos will be listed for you to preview in detail. After the preview, you can select the deleted ones and click "Recover to PC" to save them in a folder on your computer.

Bonus: Simple Ways to Protect Voice Memos from Loss

• Duplicate Voice Memos: You can create a duplicate of any important voice memo for backup. Just open the Voice Memo app and select the voice recording you want to make a copy. Then click on the three dots and choose "Duplicate."
• Share Voice Memos: You can also share important voice memos with any iOS device on the same Wi-Fi network. You can share via AirDrop, Message, Mail, Dropbox or add to Notes on your iPhone.
• Sync to iCloud & iTunes: To avoid unexpected loss of important voice memo recordings, you can sync them to iCloud and iTunes. When the recordings are deleted from your iPhone by mistake, you can still access them on other devices.

Conclusion

In this article, we have explained 5 different methods to recover deleted or lost voice memos from iPhone - check your shared voice memos, restore from recently deleted folder, synced devices, iTunes or iCloud backup, or use a third-party iPhone data recovery tool.

Hope that you have successfully retrieved your deleted voice recordings after trying these methods. Among them, FoneGeek iPhone Data Recovery is the best choice. You can download the free trial version to verify that this program can retrieve your deleted voice memo.