Lost or deleted an RTF file on Windows 10/11? This article walks you through 5 straightforward solutions to recover your Rich Text Format documents. Whether the file was accidentally removed, lost after formatting, or disappeared due to a system crash, you'll find practical recovery methods here to get your data back with ease.
RTF (Rich Text Format) files are widely used because they preserve formatting, such as fonts, bold text, and alignment, while maintaining compatibility across different word processors, including Microsoft Word, WordPad, and LibreOffice. They’re lightweight, easy to share, and less prone to compatibility issues than some other document formats.
But like any digital file, RTF files can be accidentally deleted, corrupted, or lost due to formatting errors, malware attacks, or software crashes. When this happens, it’s essential to know the right recovery methods to bring your documents back.
Before panicking, remember that Windows has several built-in tools and strategies to help you recover RTF files. This section will explain each of these methods one by one, so you can choose the one that best fits your situation. Let’s go step by step.
The Recycle Bin is the first place to look if you’ve accidentally deleted an RTF file. When you delete (not using "Shift" + "Del") a file from your computer, it is sent to the Recycle Bin until the bin is emptied.
Step 1. Double click the Recycle Bin icon and open it.
Step 2. Look for the RTF files from the deleted items.
Step 3. Right click on them and choose "Restore" to return them to their original location.
If the deleted file doesn’t appear in the Recycle Bin, it may have been permanently deleted. Before trying more complex methods, you can also check if any backups are available.
If you've enabled File History on Windows 10 /11 before data loss, it may save file copies and allow you to restore files to previous versions.
Step 1. Locate the folder or drive where the deleted RTF files were stored in File Explorer.
Step 2. Right click on it and choose "Restore previous versions" from the context menu.
Step 3. Select a version from the list that was saved before the RTF file was lost, then click "Restore" to recover it.
Cloud backup tools are also a popular choice for many users today. If you’ve synced your local files to a cloud backup services like OneDrive, Google Drive, Dropbox, you can restore them from the cloud. Even if the files were permanently deleted locally, the cloud’s Recycle bin will still keep these deleted RTF files.
Step 1. Sign in to OneDrive with your account (Take OneDrive as an example here).
Step 2. Locate the "Recycle bin" section, search for your missing RTF files.
Step 3. Select them and click "Restore" in the left upper corner.
Cloud backup tools usually keep deleted files in the Rcycle bin for only 30 days, so act quickly before they’re permanently removed.
For more advanced users, Microsoft offers the Windows File Recovery tool, a command-line utility for restoring permanently deleted files. It can scan all the local storage devices like SD card, USB drives, HDDs, recovering deleted files from them. But it only compatible with Windows 10 and later versions.
Step 1. Download and install Windows File Recovery on your computer from Microsoft official channel.
Step 2. Open Windows File Recovery and run it as administrator.
Step 3. Type the command "winfr E: F: /regular /n *.rtf" and hit "Enter". Replace the drive letters "E" and "F" with your actual drive letters.
This will attempt to recover deleted RTF files from drive E and save them to drive F. Wait for the process to scan and press "y" to check the recovered RTF files in the destination folder path.
While powerful, this method isn’t beginner-friendly and requires comfort with command-line tools. Any small mistake, such as a typo, incorrect symbol, or missing space, can cause RTF file recovery to fail. So be sure to double-check your commands before starting the process.
In such cases, professional data recovery software like MyRecover is the last resort. It features an intuitive interface that simplifies the recovery process, allowing even novice users to quickly get started and complete data recovery independently with just a few clicks. In addition to RTF files, MyRecover supports recovering Notepad files, documents, audio, video, emails and more than 1000 file formats.
Here are the standout features of MyRecover.
✅No Command Line Needed – Simple GUI (graphical interface) for easy file recovery.
✅Higher Success Rate – Advanced deep scan for NTFS/FAT32/exFAT drives.
✅Smart Filtering – Recover files by type, date, or size with precision.
✅500+ Devices Support – Recover files from all types of devices like SSD, HDD, USB flash drive, SD card, cameras, game console drives and more.
✅Handle 500+ Data Loss Scenarios – Recover from deleted partition, formatted hard drive, emptied Recycle Bin, system crash, virus attack, etc.
✅OS Compatibility – Work not only on Windows 11 /10, but also on Windows 8.1/ 8/ 7 and all Servers.
Step 1. Download and install MyRecover on your computer from Microsoft Store, avoid installing it on the drive with lost RTF files.
Step 2. Launch it and choose the drive including deleted RTF files to scan, then click "Scan".
Step 3. Choose the files you intend to recover from the recoverable lists and click "Recover".
Step 4. Select a safe location to save the recovered files.
Once the process is completed, you'll see the message "Files have been recovered successfully". Then you can check the recovered files by clicking on the destination folder path or "Browse" button.
Sometimes the issue isn’t deletion but corruption. A damaged RTF file may refuse to open or display unreadable text. Here are solutions:
Since RTF is a universal format, trying to open it with an alternative like Word, LibreOffice Writer or Notepad may bypass corruption and allow you to save a readable version of the file. Additionally, you can try converting the RTF file to other formats such as DOCX or TXT.
Step 1. Open the RTF file with Word.
Step 2. Click the "File" tab and select "Save As".
Step 3. Select a location to save it and choose another file format under the "Save as type" tab.
RTF files are versatile and convenient, but they’re not immune to data loss or corruption. Fortunately, there are multiple strategies to recover deleted RTF files, from simple solutions like Recycle Bin and File History to advanced tools like the Windows File Recovery utility. And when all else fails, MyRecover provides a more reliable and user-friendly option.
Additionally, MyRecover offers a Professional version to meet users’ more advanced needs, allowing unlimited data recovery and real-time file preview functionality. With the right tools, no important document has to stay lost.