IPHONE
How to recover deleted notes on an iPhone (iOS 27)
In short
In Notes, go back to Folders and tap Recently Deleted. Touch and hold the note, tap Move and pick a folder, such as Notes. iOS 27 has no Recover button. Deleted notes are removed after 30 days.
6 of 6 steps show a real screenshot from our iPhone 17e. Each step was checked against the maker's own instructions, linked at the end.
Steps
- 1
A note deleted by mistake
Swiping left on a note shows Share, Move and Delete. Delete sends it to Recently Deleted.
- 2
Tap Recently Deleted
Tap the back arrow until you see Folders. Recently Deleted is below Notes, with the number of notes in it.
- 3
Find the note
The page says deleted notes are removed from your devices after 30 days, which may require Notes to be open, and that deletion from iCloud may take up to 40 more days. Our note had no days-left label.
- 4
Touch and hold, then tap Move
Touch and hold the note. Ours showed only Move and Delete: there is no Recover button.
- 5
Pick a folder
Select a Folder lists your folders under iCloud. We tapped Notes.
- 6
The note is back
It left Recently Deleted and is back in Notes, under Today.
If you do not see this option
- No Recently Deleted folder? Apple says it only shows when there are deleted notes in it, so there is nothing to recover. Source: Delete and recover notes in Notes on iPhone
- Note deleted more than 30 days ago? Apple says notes are permanently removed after 30 days. Only a backup made before that can bring it back. Source: Delete and recover notes in Notes on iPhone
If this does not work
- A shared note is not there? Apple says a shared note you do not own is removed from your list only and does not go to Recently Deleted. Open it again from the shared link.
- Want to delete it for good now? In Recently Deleted, swipe left on it and tap Delete. Ours warned that this cannot be undone.
- The note was in a Gmail or Yahoo account? Recently Deleted applies to notes stored in iCloud. Apple says a third-party account usually keeps a deleted note in the Trash folder of that account in the Mail app. Open it there, then copy and paste the text into a new note.
- Notes from one account vanished at once? Check Settings, Apps, Notes, Notes Accounts, tap the account and make sure Notes is on. Apple says to repeat this for each account if you use more than one.
- Not sure it was deleted at all? Search first. Apple suggests typing a word or the title in the Search bar with All Accounts selected. Search only sees the titles of locked notes, so check your locked notes too.
- Prefer a Recover button? On a computer, iCloud.com has one. Apple's steps: go to icloud.com/notes, select Recently Deleted, select the note, then select Recover. The note moves to the Notes folder.
Good to know
Notes can also hold recordings: how to record and transcribe audio in Notes.
A recovered note goes back into the folder you picked with its text, checklists and attachments as they were. It keeps working on your other devices through iCloud.
About this guide
- Device
- iPhone
- Shown on
- iOS 27.0.1 (iPhone 17e)
- App
- Notes
- Path
- Notes › Folders › Recently Deleted › Move
- Real screenshots
- 6 of 6 steps
- Checked
- October 2026
- Sources
- 3 official, linked below
Sources
Links checked October 2026. Menus and features can change with updates.Spotted a mistake? Menus change with updates, and we want every step to match your screen. Email us about this page or use the contact form. We read every report, and fixes are listed on What changed.
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