how to see deleted files and folders (Trash / Bin) on macOS

Here’s how to see deleted files and folders (Trash / Bin) on macOS:

Click the Trash (🗑) icon in your Dock.

If it’s not visible, open Finder and select Go → Go to Folder... (or Command + Shift + G).

Then type:

     ~/.Trash

and press Return.

You’ll see all deleted files and folders currently in the Trash.
You can right-click → Put Back to restore items, or Empty Trash to permanently delete them.

If you prefer the Terminal:

open ~/.Trash

This opens the Trash folder directly in Finder.

Or to list contents:

ls -la ~/.Trash

If you’ve emptied the Trash:

macOS permanently deletes the files, but data may still exist temporarily on disk sectors.
You can try file recovery tools such as:
- Disk Drill
- PhotoRec
- EaseUS Data Recovery
- TestDisk (free, Terminal-based)

💡 Recovery is only possible if new data hasn’t overwritten the deleted file’s space.

If you have multiple drives or user accounts:

You can open any of these via:

open /Volumes/<drive-name>/.Trashes

Here’s how you can add any folder (including hidden ones like .Trash) to Finder Favorites on macOS:

Use Go → Go to Folder… (Command + Shift + G) and type your path — for example:

   ~/.Trash

Press Return — the folder will open.
Drag the folder’s icon (the one next to its name in the Finder window title bar)
👉 to the left sidebar under “Favorites.”
You’ll see a blue line appear — drop it there.

✅ Done — it’s now permanently listed in your sidebar.

In Finder, go to the top menu → Finder → Settings (or Preferences).
Go to the Sidebar tab.
Enable or check the folders you want visible (like Home, Documents, Desktop, etc.).
For custom folders like ~/.Trash, you still need to use the drag method (Option 1).

If you prefer command line, you can create a Finder sidebar alias:

ln -s ~/.Trash ~/Desktop/TrashAlias

Then open Finder and drag TrashAlias into the sidebar.

To remove a folder from Favorites:

Just right-click → Remove from Sidebar (or drag it out until you see a small ✖️).