• FAT32 format can be read and written to on both the operating system- Mac and Windows. There are many people who like to use the drive on both Mac and Windows, and others use it as a device for storage for TV shows and thus reformatting to FAT32 is necessary.
• Mac devices on the other hand run on either Mac OS Extended or APFS. If your drive is an APFS format or a Mac OS format you can format your drive easily but if it is a FAT32 format this may be a problem. If you have made the mistake of buying a flash drive they run on a FAT32 file format you don't have to discard it altogether.
• Another easy solution. In Disk Utility, go to the partition tab and click 'options.' Choose the 'Master Boot Record' instead of the default Apple-based choices. Once I found this, I can, so far, easily format my flash drives with FAT32 on the Mac and have them readable on a PC.

Some USB drives can’t be used directly with a Mac system until you format them to be compatible with the macOS extended file system. There are basically two ways to format USB to FAT32 on Mac; Terminal Command and Disk Utility and in case you lose important data while formatting, it is possible to recover the data using a data recovery tool. We’ll look at all these in detail in this article.

Reasons to Format USB to FAT32 on Mac

To format a USB Flash Drive to FAT32 in macOS follow these steps. Step 1 - Connect the USB Connect the USB Fash Drive to the macOS computer. Step 2 - Open Disk Utility.

There are a number of reasons why you need to format USB to FAT32 on a Mac. Let’s look at some of these in detail.

1. Formatting your USB to FAT32 is the most appropriate thing to do because it can be written and read on both Mac and Windows operating systems.

2. Since many USB drives can’t be used on Mac PC directly, formatting it to FAT32 makes it usable whether you want to use it on Mac or Windows.

3. If you plan to use the drive to store different file formats, especially video files, formatting the USB to FAT32 is actually necessary.

Please note that it is recommended that you back up your USB drive first before you format it to avoid losing important data. Let’s look at the step-by-step guide to format USB to FAT32 on Mac.

Method #1: How to Format USB to FAT32 on Mac with Disk Utility

Follow the steps highlighted below to format a USB drive to FAT32 on Mac:

Step One: Connect the USB drive that you want to format into your Mac system.

Step Two: Navigate through the menu to Applications and then Utilities. Click twice to open the program.

Step Three: Choose the drive that you would like to format and click 'Erase'.

Step Four: Although this step is optional but it is recommended. Rename the USB and select 'MS-DOS(FAT)' as the format.

Step Five: Select 'Master Boot Record' for the scheme and click 'Erase' to format USB to fat32 on Mac.

When the formatting process is completed, the USB flash drive is ready to use as a FAT32 file system and you can begin to save data on it again. Note that any previous data you have on it would have been erased during the formatting process.

Method #2: How to Format USB to FAT32 on Mac with Terminal Command Line

Follow the step by step guide to formatting a USB drive to FAT32 on Mac using Terminal Command Line:

Step One: Insert your USB drive to the Mac system.

Step Two: Click 'cmd + space' to run the spotlight. Type in 'Terminal' and then click the 'Enter' key.

Step Three: Type in 'diskutil list' to locate your USB drive.

Mac Os Format Fat32

Step Four: Type 'Sudo Diskutil eraseDisk FAT32 MBRFormat/'(put the name of the location of your USB flash on your Mac PC).

Please note the following:

• 'Sudo' offers you the user right
• 'Diskutil' locates the disk utility program
• 'eraseDisk' gives the command to format the drive
• 'FAT32' identifies the file system
• 'MBRFormat' commands the disk utility to commence formatting with Master Boot Record

When this process is completed, type in 'diskutil list' in the command again to review the status of the USB drive and to see if it has been successfully formatted. You can start using your USB with the FAT32 file system to save data.

Method #3: How to Recover Lost Data after Formatting USB

It’s possible to forget to backup your data before your format your USB. When this happens, you lose all data saved on the USB prior to formatting. Well, you don’t have to fret if you experience this as you can recover your lost data from formatted USB on Mac. To do this, you need a trusted data recovery tool. We strongly recommend iBeesoft Data Recovery software as the best software available to recover formatted data from your USB drive.

iBeesoft offers an effective and powerful USB recovery Mac tool to help you resolve any data loss issues fast and completely. It is 100% safe and you can depend on it to completely recover lost files from Mac format USB FAT32 bootable.

Your Safe & Professional USB Format Recovery Software

• It’s fully compatible with APFS drive/volume under macOS High Sierra and the latest macOS.
• Completely recover files from formatted SD card, USB drive, hard disk, and other external devices on Mac.
• Easily restore permanently deleted folders and files from emptied trash on Mac and restore deleted files from the hard drive and other storage devices.
• The unformat USB program fully supports data recovery for all types of USB and it also supports various file formats, including exFAT, NTFS, FAT, and HFS, among others.

Step-by-Step Guide on How to Recover Data from Formatted USB on Mac

The first thing is to download and install iBeesoft Data Recovery for Mac on your system. It is fully compatible with the latest macOS and it is virus-free. Follow the step-by-step guide below to recover files lost after format USB to FAT32 on Mac.

Step One: Select the file type(s) that you want to recover format USB files on Mac. By default, all file types are checked. So, you have to uncheck files you don’t want.

Step Two: Connect the USB drive and choose the directory to scan. In the open window, you’ll see external hard drives. Select an appropriate location where you have lost files and click the 'Scan' button to launch the scanning for lost USB files.

Step Three: Recover data lost after format a USB drive to FAT32 on Mac. All files will be displayed in the result window at the completion of the scan. Click the directory on the left side of your Mac screen to preview the files. Select the files you want to recover and click 'Recover' to save the files on your Mac PC. If you can’t find the lost files you are looking for, try the 'Deep Scan' for further search.

If you’ve been wondering about how to format USB to FAT32 on Mac and how to recover lost files, the comprehensive guide highlighted above will help you format your drive and recover any lost files at the end of the formatting process.

Summary :

When you get a new USB drive and want to format it, you may wonder: what is the best format for USB drive? Well, the best format for USB drive is different for different operating systems and devices. This article will show you how to choose the best format for USB flash drive.

Nowadays, USB flash drive is widely used on various electronic devices due to its portability. Before you use a new USB drive, you need to first format it. Well, what is the best format for USB drive? How to choose the best format for USB drive?

Before you try to choose the best format for your USB drive, you need to know what file system it is in.

What Is File System?

What is file system?

In computing, a file system or filesystem controls how data is stored and retrieved. With a file system, the information placed in a storage medium will be separated into pieces and each piece will have a name, so the information is easily isolated and identified this way. Each group of data is called a file.

File system is the structure and logic rules used to manage groups of information.

File systems can be used on a numerous variety of storage devices and media types. There are many different types of file systems; each of them has different storage devices that they are the most suitable for.

What is the best format for USB drive? Well, it depends on how you plan to use your USB drive.

How to Choose the Best Format for USB drive

Basically, to choose the best format for USB flash drive. The two most important things you need to consider are the operating systems you plan to use it with and the sizes of the files that you are most likely to transfer and store.

The following contents list some commonly used file systems. To better understand which one is the best file system for USB drive according to your needs, you can view the compatibility, pros and cons of these file systems one by one.

When you get a new USB drive, you can follow this guide to choose the best thumb drive file system for your portable drive.

NTFS vs HFS+ vs FAT32 vs exFAT vs Ext 2,3,4

1. NTFS: The New Technology File System (NTFS), a proprietary journaling file system developed by Microsoft, is the default file system of the Windows NT family.

• Compatibility: Windows XP/7/8/10, Linux (read-only for some distributions), MacOS(read-only), Xbox One
• Pros: journaling, no realistic file size limitations; support for file compression, high security
• Cons: can be read-only for Mac OS, or be written by Mac with the help of third-party software

2. HFS+: The Hierarchical File System (HFS+) is the file system modern MacOS versions use by default. If you want to use your USB drive on Mac devices, you can format USB to HFS+.

• Compatibility: MacOS, Linux(readonly), Xbox 360/One
• Pros: journaling, encrypt or compress files or folders
• Cons: cannot be read by the Window unless using third-party software

3. FAT32: The File Allocation Table 32 (FAT32) was the standard Windows file system before NTFS. And it is widely recognized by almost all operating systems. Most portable devices also support FAT32.

• Compatibility: Windows, Mac, Linux, Chrome OS, Android, Chrome OS, Android, Xbox 360/One, PS3, PS4, printers, projectors…
• Pros: compatible with almost all versions of Windows, Mac, Linux and practically any device with a USB port
• Cons: cannot store a single file which is larger than 4GB; cannot create a FAT32 partition that is larger than 8 TB (Windows only recognizes 2TB)

4. exFAT: The extended File Allocation Table (exFAT) is similar to FAT32, but does not have the limits of FAT32 file system. It can be used where NTFS is not a feasible solution, but a greater file-size limit than the standard FAT32 file system is required.

• Compatibility: Windows, Mac OSX 10.6.5 and above, PlayStation 4 (with MBR, not GUID), Xbox One, Android
• Pros: good for larger file sizes and drives, compatible with both Windows and Mac OS
• Cons: Microsoft restricts its usage by license obligations.

5. Ext 2/3/4: The extended file system (Ext) was the first file system created specifically for Linux. If you plan to use the USB drive on Linux computers, you can format it to this file system.

• Compatibility: Linux, Xbox 360/One
• Pros: support for large file sizes and large drives
• Cons: cannot be read and written by Windows unless with third-party software, Ext 2 lacks journaling.

After the comparison, have you picked your best format for USB drive?

All in all, FAT32 is actually compatible for the most types of systems. It’s practically compatible with any device with a USB port, while NTFS and exFAT are not so much. HFS+ is specially used on MacOS, and Ext 2, 3, 4 file systems are created by Linux.

FAT32 - The Best Format for USB Drive

As you can see from above, FAT32 is supported on almost all devices, which makes it the choice of file system format selected by the most people for USB drive.

As long as you don't use it to transfer a single file larger than 4 GB, FAT32 is perfect and can be the best portable file system for USB drive due to its compatibility.

So we draw the conclusion that although FAT32 has its limits, it’s the best file system to use for most portable drives like USB drive, SD card, etc. Besides, most USB drives have small capacity because they are hardly ever used as the main data storage. Therefore, they will not be used to store large files. The limit will not affect you too much.

How to Format USB Drive in Windows or Mac

Format Flash Drive Mac Fat32 Terminal

After choosing the best format for USB drive according to your needs, you might start to wonder: how do I format USB drive to NTFS/FAT32/exFAT/EXT 2,3,4/HFS+ in Windows operating system or Mac? Well, don't worry. if you need to format USB drive to NTFS/FAT32/exFAT/EXT 2,3,4/HFS+ file system, please follow the steps as below.

Well then, how to format USB drive to FAT32/NTFS/exFAT/EXT 2,3,4/HFS+ if you have the need. Don't worry, the following part will show you the solution for Windows and Mac OS users.

The process for formatting a drive is different depending on the system you’re using. Let’s see how to format USB drive on a Windows PC first.

Format USB drive on Windows Operating System

To format USB drive in Windows operating system, it is recommended to use the free USB formatter MiniTool Partition Wizard Free Edition.

MiniTool Partition Wizard Free Edition is a free partition manager & USB formatter. It can help you resize partition, extend partition, format partition, convert FAT32 to NTFS, check file system, copy partition, migrate OS to HD/SSD and so on. As a free partition manager, it is equipped with many advanced features that cannot be found in Disk Management.

With its user-friendly interface, this free partition manager is worth trying.

First, you need to connect the USB drive to your Windows PC. Then you can follow the steps as below to format USB drive for Mac and Windows on a Windows PC.

Step 1. Download MiniTool Partition Wizard Free Edition by clicking the following button. Install and launch it to get its main interface.

Step 2. Right-click the drive you want to format and select Format Partition from the left action panel.

Step 3. At this page, specify the partition label, file system as well as cluster size. The cluster size is set by default.

Step 4. After resetting these parameters, you can click OK.

Step 5. Click Apply button on the upper left corner to allow the pending operations.

How To Format A Flash Drive To Fat32 On Mac

If you need to format USB drive to FAT32/NTFS/exFAT/Ext2/Ext3/Ext4, MiniTool Partition Wizard Free Edition can be your best USB formatter. You can also change your USB format with this tool at ease. Try it now!

Format USB Drive in Mac

If you want to use the USB drive on your Mac computer only, formatting it to be entirely Mac compatible file system is highly recommended, such as HFS+ file system. If you want to use the drive between a Windows and Mac machine, you can format it to FAT32.

You can follow the steps as below to format USB drive to HFS+ or FAT32 in Mac. Here I will format the drive to FAT32 for demonstration.

Step 1. Connect the USB flash drive to your Mac computer.

Step 2. Go to Applications and then click Utilities.

Step 3, Double click Disk Utility to open it.

Step 4. Select your USB flash drive on the sidebar, choose Erase.

Step 5. Name the USB drive, choose the MS-DOS (FAT) for Format, Master Boot Record for Scheme. Then click Erase.

Step 6. When it is finished, your USB drive will be formatted to FAT32 as the file system.

Wrapping Things Up

Mac Os Format Usb Fat32

If you don't know how to choose the best format for USB drive, this article could be a big help. If you don't know how to format USB drive to the best file system, this article can also resolve this issue for you.

Format Flash Drive On Mac To Fat32

If you have a different opinion about the best format for USB drive, please don't hesitate to share it with us. If you need any help formatting USB drive in Windows, you may leave it in the following comment zone. And we will reply you as soon as possible. You may also contact us via [email protected] if you need help.