Disk Drill alternative for Apple Notes: what NoteRescue does differently

By Kayabyte · Last updated 2 November 2026

Short answer: Disk Drill scans a disk for deleted files; NoteRescue reads the Notes database inside your Time Machine and iPhone backups and lists the notes that are missing or changed. On a modern Mac a note is a record inside one database, not a file, so in our view a file-undelete scan is a poor fit for a single deleted note, while a backup from before the loss usually still holds it. Disk Drill is the better tool for lost files such as photos; NoteRescue is built for the notes. We make NoteRescue, so check Disk Drill’s own pages.

Vendor pages checked on 2 November 2026: CleverFiles’ Disk Drill pricing page and its guide to recovering deleted notes on a Mac.

What each one does

	Disk Drill	NoteRescue
Built for	Recovering deleted files from a drive	Finding lost Notes, Contacts, Safari data, Calendar events, Reminders and Voice Memos in backups
How it finds notes	Scans the drive; CleverFiles’ own Notes guide says results depend on the drive and are not guaranteed, and the Notes data is one SQLite database	Reads the Notes database inside each Time Machine snapshot and iPhone or iPad backup, read only
Shows which notes are missing	Not described in its Notes guide	Yes, compared with the notes on your Mac today
Reads iPhone backups	Its Notes guide does not mention them	Yes, encrypted ones too with your password
Gets one note back without swapping your Notes data	Not guaranteed per its own guide	Yes: export, or a new “Recovered” folder in Notes
Free part	Free scan; recovery is paid when checked	Free scan; one free proof item per app
Price when checked	Lifetime licence USD 149 or one-year subscription USD 89 on its pricing page	Notes USD 24.99 once, other apps USD 14.99 to 19.99, or All apps USD 39.99; USD 15 upgrade from NoteRescue 1
Platforms	See CleverFiles	Mac only, macOS 14 or later

NoteRescue 2 overview: one scan lists what is missing in Notes, Contacts, Safari, Calendar, Reminders and Voice Memos

When Disk Drill is the better choice

You lost photos, documents or other files from a disk, a card or a USB drive.
You need a disk scan for something that is not in any backup.

When NoteRescue is the better choice

You lost notes and have a Time Machine or iPhone backup from before the loss.
You want to see which notes are missing and bring back only those.
You also lost contacts, Safari bookmarks, calendar events, reminders or voice memos from the same backups.

Limits of NoteRescue

It needs a backup that still holds the note; locked notes are counted but never opened; iCloud-only notes that were never in a backup cannot be recovered. Reminders cannot be imported back automatically, Safari tab groups return as bookmark folders, and Contacts from a Mac snapshot come without photos. It needs Full Disk Access and works offline.

Steps with NoteRescue

Open NoteRescue, allow Full Disk Access and press Scan. The scan is free and only reads your backups.
Open the Notes row and filter to Missing.
Select the notes and choose a folder.
Export them, or recover them into Notes, where they appear in a new Recovered folder.

Download NoteRescue and scan for free · macOS 14 or later

Questions

Is NoteRescue a Disk Drill alternative for Apple Notes? For notes inside Time Machine and iPhone backups, yes. For files lost from a disk, no: that is what Disk Drill is for.

Can Disk Drill recover deleted Apple Notes? CleverFiles’ guide offers a disk scan, and says recovery is not guaranteed. A note is stored inside one database, so a scan rarely returns a single clean note.

Does NoteRescue work without a backup? No. It reads backups. If a note was never in one, nothing can recover it.

Does NoteRescue recover more than Notes? Yes, NoteRescue 2 also recovers Contacts, Safari, Calendar, Reminders and Voice Memos from the same backups.