Years of family photos were deleted, because my Dropbox Basic account went over-quota

Question

Hi,

I just discovered that Dropbox automatically deleted a large number of my files on March 21, 2026 because my Basic account was over the storage limit. The notification emails were going to an old email address that I rarely check, so unfortunately I did not see them within the 30-day recovery period.

The deleted files included many years of irreplaceable family photos, and I am devastated to have lost them.

I understand that the standard recovery period has passed, but I am hoping a Dropbox staff member can please escalate this and determine whether there is any possible way to recover these files from Dropbox's systems, backups, archives, or any other source.

I am willing to upgrade my account or pay for recovery if there is any possibility of retrieving them.

I have tried Deleted Files and nothing appears there. I also tried to contact support using the instructions on Dropbox's over-storage-limit help page, but I cannot find a way to submit a support request with my Basic account.

Could a Dropbox staff member please help me or escalate this to someone who can determine whether any copy of these files still exists?

Thank you so much for any help you can provide.

Jay · Answer

Hi @BagofDesign, thanks for your message.

We understand your frustration about the loss of your photos, and how important they are to you.

Unfortunately, since the recovery deadline in the email has passed, these files have been permanently removed from our system and can no longer be restored.

We're sorry we can't be more helpful on this matter.

BagofDesign · Answer

this is so devastating. they were there for 10 years and no issue. i thought i could count on dropbox :(

Nancy · Answer

Thanks for posting on our forum today, @BagofDesign.

I’m afraid that, if the files have been deleted more than 30 days ago, our support team won’t be able to restore them.

Upgrading your Dropbox account wouldn’t help in this case either, as the additional recovery window you’ll acquire doesn't work retroactively.

The only thing I can suggest is to check your computer (or any other devices/backup solutions you may be using) to see if there could be a copy of those files there.

I’m really sorry to be the bearer of bad news.