Recover a lost recording made with Descript's in-app recorders

If Descript closes unexpectedly during a recording, you may need to recover your content. This guide explains how recovery works for recordings made using Descript’s built-in Editor recorder or screen recorder. Learn more about Descript's recorders.

Need to recover a Rooms recording?

This article covers recordings made with the Editor recorder or screen recorder only.
To recover a recording from Descript Rooms, see how to recover a lost recording from a Room.

How recovery works

When something goes wrong during a recording (the browser crashed, app closed unexpectedly, network interruption, etc.) You’ll see the error message 

“Something went wrong. Please refresh and check the project sidebar to see if your recording is there.”

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What happens next

Descript will try to recover recording to your project automatically. If successful, the recovered recording will be added to the project files in the sidebar.

If Descript can’t recover the recording automatically, you’ll be prompted to download a backup copy to your device instead.

  • If on web: the recovered file will be saved to your browser’s default download location—usually your Downloads folder.
  • If on the desktop app: you’ll see a “Save file as” dialog pop up, where you can choose the save destination.

If you don’t see a recovery prompt

  • First, check your Project files. Your recording may have been recovered, but not added to the composition. If you see it there, drag it into your script to start working with it.
  • Refresh your browser tab or the Descript window. Use Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + R on desktop to refresh the window. Avoid refreshing multiple times in a row, as your file may still be uploading in the background.

Use the same app or browser to recover your file

Recovery only works in the same browser or app you recorded with. You can close and reopen it—but you must recover in the same environment (e.g., Chrome or the desktop app).

How to check if recovery worked

  • If recovery was successful, your recording will appear in the Project files folder.
  • If you downloaded a file to your device, import it manually.

Still need help?

If you’ve followed these steps and still can’t find your recording, contact our support team. We’re here to help.