With VMWare Fusion 11.1.1 and Ubuntu 18.04 LTS I was able to successfully format a Seagate 4TB Disk connected via USB 3.0 on my Mac OSX 10.13.6 Laptop using gparted to the ext3 fileformat which then later can be read using Fuse ext2 solutions. These third party tools allow to format flash drive on your mac. But if want to format a flash drive without using third party tools then. In this case you can use disk utility program to format pen drive on mac. Step 1: Connect your Flash Drive with mac through USB port. Step 2: Now launch Disk Utility now move to Applications Utility. Connect the flash drive that you want to format. Go to Applications and Utilities and launch Disk Utility. The application will appear on the screen, and you will see the main window, with a list of available storage devices on the left and various disk management options on the right.
For Apple Mac users, there are two ways to format USB flash drive to FAT32, including Disk Utility and Terminal command line. Refer to detailed steps of using both tools for FAT32 format. Formatting would erase data completely, make sure that you have a data backup. Otherwise, you can use data recovery software to recover data from a formatted USB drive.
Are you looking for a secure way to format USB to FAT32 on Mac? You are at the right place. Follow here, you can find two methods that will assist you in doing so on your storage device. And if you lost data during the formatting, reliable Mac file recovery software is ready to help anytime:
| Workable Solutions | Step-by-step Troubleshooting |
|---|---|
| Method 1. Use Disk Utility | Connect USB to Mac > Go to Applications > Utilities > Disk Utility > Select USB and click 'Erase'...Full steps |
| Method 2. Use Terminal Command | Connect USB to Mac > Hit cmd + space keys > Type terminal and hit Enter...Full steps |
| Bonus Tip. Recover Formatted Data | If you lost data due to formatting, run EaseUS file recovery software > Scan and recover formatted data...Full steps |
How to Format a USB Flash Drive with Mac to FAT32
Computer users who use a USB might have the demand for formatting it to the FAT32 file system. Compare with the other commonly used NTFS file system on a flash drive, FAT32 has a compatibility advantage across many operating systems.
It's a universal format that is compatible with Mac OS X/macOS, Windows, Linux, and DOS systems. So, if users anticipate using the flash drive with more than one operating system, they will definitely benefit from the FAT32 file system. For Apple Mac users, there are two ways to format a USB flash drive to FAT32, namely Disk Utility and Terminal command line. Below are the detailed steps of the FAT32 format with both methods.
Method 1. Format FAT32 on Mac [Disk Utility]
To format USB to FAT32 with Disk Utility will erase all data on the flash drive, so before you doing so, please do remember to check whether you have saved useful data to another secure device in advance.
To format the USB drive to FAT32, follow the next steps:
Step 1. Connect the USB flash drive to your Mac computer.
Step 2. Go to Applications >Utilities > Double click and open Disk Utility.
Step 3. Select your USB flash drive on the sidebar, choose Erase.
Step 4. Rename the USB flash drive (optional).
Step 5. Choose the format as MS-DOS (FAT) for Format, Master Boot Record for Scheme. Then click Erase.
Wait for the process to complete, then you'll get an empty new USB flash drive with FAT32 as the file system. You can use it for saving data again.
Method 2. Format FAT32 on Mac [Terminal Command Line]
The command-line behavior does the same way to erase data with the Disk Utility. Again, create a backup before taking this action.
To format FAT32 on Mac with Terminal, follow the next steps:
Step 1. Connect the USB flash drive to your Mac computer.
Step 2. Hit cmd + space to run Spotlight, type: terminal, and hit Enter.
Step 3. Type: diskutil list and find out which disk is your USB drive.
Step 4. Type: sudo diskutil eraseDisk FAT32 MBRFormat /dev/disk2.
- sudo gives you user right.
- Diskutil calls disk utility program.
- eraseDisk commands to format.
- FAT32 sets the file system.
- MBRFormat tells disk utility to format with a Master Boot Record.
- /dev/disk2 is the location of the USB drive.
Wait for the process to complete. After this, you can type 'diskutil list' in the command again to check if the formatting has been successful.
Bonus Tip: How to Recover Data from Formatted USB
Formatting the USB would erase the data on it completely, so please make sure that you have a backup. If you don't, you can count on data recovery software to retrieve the lost data.
EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard has both Windows and Mac versions, so it's a good choice for data recovery, no matter you're using a PC or Mac. For Mac users, it only takes a few clicks for the software to scan and display the formatted data. To guarantee an effective data recovery without spending money to no avail, you can install the Mac data recovery free version for the first trial. You can preview all the found data before the final recovery.
To recover data from a formatted USB flash drive on Mac, follow the next steps:
Step 1. Correctly connect your USB flash drive to your Mac. Launch EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac. Start selecting the flash drive and click 'Scan' to let the software search lost files on it.
Step 2. After a quick scan and deep scan, all files will be presented in the left panel in the scan results.
Step 3. Select files you want to recover and click the 'Recover Now' button. Don't save the recoverable files to the USB drive itself in case of data overwriting.
by Shirly Chen, updated on 2019-05-10 to Mac Data Wipe
Before we recycle, lend, sell or abandon a USB flash drive, we should remove all the personal data on the USB flash drive. Formatting or reformatting is the efficient and secure way to remove all data on the USB flash drive. It is very simple to format USB flash drive on Windows PC. However, it is not easy to format the USB flash drive under Mac OS. Actually, if we want to format a USB flash drive under Mac OS, we should find USB flash drive formatting software at first. Here are top 5 USB flash drive formatting software tools for Mac to help in formatting, reformatting, erasing USB flash drive under OS X or macOS.
Best 5 USB flash drive formatting software for Mac
USB flash drive formatting software for Mac can help us format, reformat or erase USB flash drive on Mac. Here are top 5 USB flash drive formatting software for Mac on the market to help us securely & efficiently format USB flash drive under Mac OS.
NO.1 USB drive formatting software for Mac – DoYourData Super Eraser
DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac is a powerful & easy-to-use data erasure software. It will quickly format the USB flash drive on Mac and permanently erase all data on the USB flash drive. Once the USB flash drive is formatted by DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac, all data will be lost forever. You will get a brand new USB flash drive. It is strongly recommended to format USB flash drive on Mac with DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac before you sell, donate, lend, give away your USB flash drive. Free download DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac >>
Format A Disk
NO.2 USB drive formatting software for Mac – Disk Utility
If you only want to format the USB flash drive on Mac, Disk Utility is the best choice. Just run this built-in application on your Mac, and use it to erase the USB flash drive. However, the data on the formatted USB flash drive could be recovered by data recovery software.
NO.3 USB drive formatting software for Mac – Start Menu for Mac
This start menu for Mac allows Mac users to format hard drive or external device on Mac. Download and install it on your Mac. Launch it from Launchpad, 'Disk Manager' can help you format USB flash drive on Mac. The formatted data also can be recovered by data recovery software.
NO.4 USB drive formatting software for Mac – Disk Wiper for Mac
Disk Wiper for Mac is another data erasure application. It will format USB flash drive under Mac OS and remove all data information on the USB flash drive permanently.
NO.5 USB formatting software for Mac – MacClean360
MacClean360 is all-in-one Mac cleaner and manager. It offers a tool “Disk Manager”. It can help Mac users securely and quickly format USB flash drive under Mac OS. Very easy to use and 100% safe.
Mac Disk Utility Format Options
The top 5 USB flash drive formatting software for Mac can help us easily and securely format USB flash drive under Mac OS. Just select one of them to format USB flash drive under Mac OS. DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac is the best USB flash drive formatting software for Mac. It is strongly recommended to use this data formatting software to format USB flash drive under Mac OS. Then the USB flash drive could be able to securely reused, recycled, resold, donated, etc. Free download DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac here:
Related Articles
Format Mac Disk For Pc
Permanently and securely erase data from hard drive or external storage device under Mac OS with certified data erasure methods.
Formatting Flash Drive On Mac
Hot Articles