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To format a USB drive on a Mac, use Disk Utility: back up anything you need, show all devices, select the physical USB drive, and click Erase. Choose a file system and partition scheme for the computers that will use it. Formatting deletes the drive’s contents.
Before you erase the USB drive
- Copy files you want to keep somewhere else. Apple warns that erasing a storage device deletes its contents.
- Check the selected device carefully. You will erase the selected drive, so confirm its name and capacity before proceeding.
These precautions follow Apple Support’s Windows-formatting guide and general erase and reformat guide.
Choose a file system and partition scheme
A file system determines how a computer organizes files on the drive. A partition scheme describes how the drive’s partitions are arranged. They are separate choices in Disk Utility, and both can affect compatibility.
| Where you plan to use the drive | File system | Partition scheme |
|---|---|---|
| Primarily with a modern Mac | APFS, the file system used by macOS 10.13 or later | GUID Partition Map for Intel-based and Apple silicon Macs |
| With Windows; drive is 32 GB or less | MS-DOS (FAT) | Master Boot Record for compatibility with all Windows-based computers |
| With Windows; drive is over 32 GB | ExFAT | Master Boot Record for compatibility with all Windows-based computers |
| With an old PowerPC Mac | Choose a Mac file system compatible with that system; Apple’s cited guidance does not specify a complete legacy file-system recommendation | Apple Partition Map |
Apple recommends MS-DOS (FAT) for Windows-compatible disks of 32 GB or less and ExFAT for those over 32 GB. Apple’s separate file-system guide describes APFS and the available formats, while its partition-scheme guide explains scheme compatibility. For Windows compatibility across Windows-based computers, Apple lists Master Boot Record as the scheme choice.
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Format the USB drive in Disk Utility
- Open Disk Utility. Find it in Applications > Utilities, or search for “Disk Utility” on your Mac.
- Show the full device hierarchy. In the menu bar, choose View > Show All Devices.
- Select the physical USB drive. In the sidebar, choose the top-level drive—not just a volume indented beneath it. Check its name and capacity to distinguish it from other disks.
- Click Erase. If the dialog offers a Scheme menu, choose the scheme that matches your compatibility goal in the table above. Choose the file system separately under Format.
- Enter a volume name. For the Windows-format workflow, Apple’s guide specifies a maximum of 11 characters.
- Click Erase and wait for the operation to finish. Click Done when Disk Utility reports completion.
Apple’s external-storage initialization guide covers the Disk Utility workflow. If Scheme is unavailable, Apple says to select the storage device at the top of the hierarchy; a volume may not expose that option.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What formatting does—and does not—do
Ordinary formatting erases the files, but it should not be treated as guaranteed secure data destruction. Apple says secure erase options are available only for some storage devices and are not available for SSDs. Apple’s guidance suggests considering FileVault when you begin using an SSD for added security; that is not a method for securely erasing an external drive that has already been formatted. See Apple’s erase and reformat guidance for these limitations.
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