Windows 10 Recycle Bin Missing, How to Restore Disappeared Recycle Bin

Issue: Windows 10 Recycle Bin Missing

User case: "I have been looking for Recycle Bin on Windows 10 since the day it was upgraded. I can not find it anywhere on my laptop. All I come across is CDF-MS file titled $recycle.bin.cdf-ms of 564 bytes. I double-click and try to open but nothing works. Where is my recycle bin and why is it missing?" - A user question in answers.microsoft.com

When you have a new computer or reinstall Windows, by default, Windows 10 Recycle Bin, as well as My Computer (or This PC) should appear in the top left corner of the desktop, letting you access it quickly.

However, sometimes, the Recycle Bin icon is missing from the desktop and you have no idea where is the Recycle Bin in Windows 10. If you are looking for the disappeared Recycle Bin, the methods below can help you find it.

Why Does Windows 10 Recycle Bin Icon Disappear  

If the Recycle Bin is missing from your Windows 10 computer, the reasons may be as follows:

• The Recycle Bin icon was not added to the desktop
• Mistakenly delete the Recycle Bin icon
• Windows updates cause Recycle Bin disappeared
• Tablet Mode is enabled on Windows 10 PC
• Malware or virus infection

Take the following solutions to restore the missing Recycle Bin to your desktop.

Add Recycle Bin to Desktop in Desktop Icon Settings

Finish the below steps to add Recycle Bin icon to your Windows 10 desktop.

Step 1. Go to Settings and click "Personalization".

Step 2. Click "Themes" and then choose "Desktop icon settings".

Step 3. On the Desktop Icon Settings screen, check "Recycle Bin", then select "Apply > OK". Then, you should see the Recycle Bin icon displayed on your desktop.

You can also hide Recycle Bin from the desktop on Windows 10 by unchecking the Recycle Bin box.

Turn Off Tablet Mode on Windows 10 PC

If the Tablet Mode is turned on on Windows 10, the desktop icons may not display, including Recycle Bin. You can try to turn off the Tablet Mode and make the Recycle Bin appear.

Step 1. Press Windows + I keys to open "Settings". Then, click "System".

Step 2. Click "Tablet Mode" on the left pane.

Step 3. On the Tablet Mode screen, toggle off "Hide app icons on the taskbar in tablet mode" and "Automatically hide the taskbar in tablet mode".

Create Recycle Bin Shortcut from $RECYCLE.BIN

If you removed the Recycle Bin shortcut from the desktop, you can follow the way below to recreate a Recycle Bin icon by using the $RECYCLE.BIN folder.

As the $RECYCLE.BIN is a system-protected folder, which is hidden by default, you need to make it shown on your Windows 10 PC.

Steps to Show Hidden $RECYCLE.BIN

Step 1. Press Win + E keys to open File Explorer. Click the "View" tab.

Step 2. Choose "Options", and click "Change folder and search option".

Step 3. Click the "View" tab, under Advanced settings, scroll down to select "Select Show hidden files, folders, and drives". Then, uncheck "Hide protected operating system files(Recommended)".

Step 4. Click "Apply" and "OK" to keep the changes.

Steps to Create Recycle Bin Shortcut on Desktop

Step 1. Go back to File Explorer, click "This PC > C drive".

Step 2. Find $RECYCLE.BIN folder. Right-click it > click "Send to" > click "Desktop (create shortcut)".

Step 3. Go to your desktop, then you will find Recycle Bin icon there.

Open Missing Windows 10 Recycle Bin in File Explorer

You can find Recycle Bin in File Explorer.

Press Win + E keys to open File Explorer. Click the > icon in the address bar. In the drop-down menu, choose "Recycle Bin".

Recover Missing Recycle Bin Using Windows PowerShell

Check how to display Recycle Bin by using command lines in Windows PowerShell. 

Step 1. Click the Search button, and type PowerShell.

Step 2. Right-click Windows PowerShell from search results, and choose "Run as administrator".

Step 3. Type shell:RecycleBinFolder and press Enter. Then, the Recycle Bin window will occur on your screen.

Recover Deleted Files from Recycle Bin on Windows 10

If you have restored the disappeared Recycle Bin on Windows 10 with the way above, but find that the files you need are missing from the Recycle Bin, how can you retrieve lost files?

Try using ultimate Windows data recovery software - EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard to help you restore deleted files from Recycle Bin.

What can EaseUS data recovery software do?

• Restore lost files from HDD, SSD, USB flash drive, external hard drive, SD card, camera, etc.
• Recover deleted emails, photos, videos audio, music, and documents from any storage
• Restore files from formatted, inaccessible, or corrupted storage devices
• Recover files on Windows 10/8/7/Vista/XP, Windows Server, and macOS 11.2 ~ 10.9

Now, free download this file recovery software to restore lost data from Recycle Bin.

Step 1. To specifically recover files from emptied Recycle Bin on Windows 11/10/8/7, hover the mouse pointer over the "Recycle Bin" option under the "Locations" section and click "Scan".

Step 2. EaseUS data recovery software will start a quick scan immediately for all deleted files, and later a deep scan will launch automatically to scan more lost files. After the scanning process, you can use the "Filter" feature to select a specific file type, such as Pictures, Word, videos, etc. 

Step 3. Once you locate the files you want to restore, you can double-click it for a full preview. Then, select the target files and click "Recover". We suggest you select a different volume or an external USB drive to save the recovered files to avoid data overwriting.

To Sum Up

You may try the methods provided in this article to fix Windows 10 Recycle Bin missing problem. After Recycle Bin recovery, you can apply EaseUS data recovery program to get back the lost files from Recycle Bin in simple steps.