Data recovery is one of the few IT services where it is difficult to obtain a universal price upfront — and for good reason: every case is unique. The price depends on the nature of the failure, and not on the amount of files to be saved. Here is an honest guide to understanding what you will actually pay, and why.
Official price list at Belgium Data Recovery
To avoid any surprises, here are the indicative rates applied within our laboratory depending on the storage medium and the severity of the failure:
| Medium | Logical failure | Hardware failure |
|---|---|---|
| Hard Drive HDD / SSD | 270 € to 420 € | 600 € to 880 € |
| USB Flash Drive | 270 € to 380 € | 440 € to 750 € (Electronic failure / Chip-off) |
| Memory Card | 270 € to 380 € | 440 € to 750 € (Electronic failure) |
| NAS (per drive) | 490 € to 830 € | 650 € to 1 290 € |
| RAID / server (per drive) | 620 € to 1 020 € | 800 € to 2 250 € |
What actually influences the price?
Several technical factors explain the variations in a quote:
- The type of failure: A logical failure (deletion, formatting, file corruption) requires computing time and algorithmic reconstructions. A mechanical failure (broken read/write heads, seized motor) requires opening the drive in an ISO cleanroom and purchasing identical donor parts to temporarily repair the media.
- The storage structure: On a NAS or a RAID 5, it is not just a matter of reading the drives, but manually reconstructing the parity algorithm and block distribution (chunks) to find the original file tree.
- The initial state of the media: A drive that has already undergone unsuccessful recovery attempts by a third party or that has been opened outside a cleanroom is much more complex — and sometimes impossible — to process.
Beware of overly attractive offers
Some providers display unrealistic bait prices ("Data recovery from 29 €") to encourage sending the material, before multiplying the final invoice once the drive is received. Stay vigilant against these practices:
- Hidden and mandatory diagnostic fees (even in case of recovery failure).
- The obligation to pay before having received visual proof that your data has been saved.
- Local repair shops that improvise as laboratories but do not possess a cleanroom, which is essential to open a drive without instantly destroying the magnetic platters.
Our transparency policy at Belgium Data Recovery
Because losing data is a stressful situation, we eliminate all financial uncertainty with clear commitments:
- 100% Free Diagnostics: We analyze your media without any fees to precisely identify the failure.
- Fixed quote before intervention: You know the exact amount before our work begins.
- "No Cure, No Pay" Charter: If we do not succeed in recovering your essential files, you owe us absolutely nothing. No handling fees, no technical fees.
The best saving remains prevention: An external backup system costs less than 80 € today. A laboratory recovery service requires advanced expertise and equipment (such as PC-3000 stations). Take the time to set up your backups!
