Using a USB Drive on a Mac

Copying files to a USB drive on a Mac is easy to do. Macs can read and write to FAT32 and ExFAT formatted drives (which is the default format for most USB drives) so you can share files between Mac, Windows, and Linux. Plug in the drive. Then just double click the drive when it appears on the desktop, double click Macintosh HD, and select and then drag the files you want to copy from one window to the other and wait until the copying is completed. You can copy and paste files to copy them as well. Or, use Save As... from an open file and select the USB drive as the destination. When you are done can safely eject the USB drive by dragging it to the trash or click the eject button next to the drive's icon in the left column of any Finder window.

More Mac tips:

If you want to delete a file from the drive you can drag it to the trash and then from the Finder menu select Empty Trash. Secure Empty Trash takes longer but will make the file unrecoverable even with forensic file recovery software.

Unless you are going to use the drive to install OSX from (boot from USB and install OSX on another Mac) there is no need to format the drive in Mac HFS since they will only work on Macs.

You can reformat a USB drive on a Mac with the Disc Utility app. This is the Utilities folder, which is in the Applications folder. Use MS-DOS(FAT) or ExFAT and enable the GUID partition table to get the drive back to it's original file system which works on Mac, Windows, and Linux.

Macs can read but cannot write from USB drives that have been formatted as NTFS unless you buy additional software.

All of these same tips also apply to hard drives and SSDs in USB SATA enclosure, SD cards, microSD cards, and CF cards on a Mac.

[brandonmoonesawmy]

Thanks for this....best tutorial i have seen for this; was trying for ages but this sorted it! Cheers!

[vandini]

I think you chose the most pleasant sounding MAC voice and used him, to read out your script. :) Helpful vid.

[rodrigosoto]

Thank you for making this tutorial. It was really helpful.

[schoidz]

Thanks Man! Really helps me out for my 6th grade project

[Kymkatehitss]

when i drag my files to the usb it won't let me drop in the usb folder.... there a stop sign that pops up

[talesofoneself]

I never use a USB before and this is very helpful!!!!

[YinYangSara]

This helped me SO much thank you for making this!

[hecountstheirtears]

Thank you for this GREAT video. I had NO idea how us the flashdrive. NOW I feel like an expert. As an author, I need a place to store my manuscripts. Wish I had one of these when I wrote my first book, "He Counts Their Tears", (find it at Amazon, it's a psychological thriller) but thanks to this video I can use it for the Sequel. THANK YOU!!!

[Ray-ugyr]

Thank you for sharing this video . It became very useful for me .

[IIIIII]

When I plug it in the menu won't pop up. I am plugging in a Go Pro Hero 3+

[PiFromBRC]

It's under the "Finder" header. I'm doing this right now and am a complete n00b to mac. I'm moving some movies on my wife's MBP to synch them up with her iPad

[janadubcova]

Thanks a lot, u just saved my 4 usbs, as I was about throw them in bin... Thanks again, vey helpfull, even I do not understand properly these stuff, never mind, got it, thank u ;)

[NancyTelzerow]

When I plug in my usb drive nothing pops up. i see nothing anywhere.

[joythayyil]

If the USB drive or Pen drive is empty, then it is correct.
If the this USB contains some files and need to add files from I Mac to this drive, cannot be done, unless we need to erase the current files from the USB drive. If the files in the USB drive are important, it is not possible to erase, to give the way of copy another file from I Mac to USB drive. If there is no other way to copy from computer to usb drive (very easy in Windows, as we usually do), kindly give advice.

[furystorm]

Thanks now I can transfer my minecraft save file from my windows to my imac

[yoloman]

my mac wont let me copy and paste a folder into my hard drive kinda the same as usb it doesnt work

[HalifaxStudios]

i just got a macbook pro and i have to go and find my usb in the finder. i drag it to my desktop but when i do it just shows a gif of smoke and then it is gone. why is this happening?

[janwest]

Kingston-I want to download a series of dvds to 1 usb drive and these dvds each come up with audio_TS and video_TS files for each dvd, of course. Since those "names" are already on my usb drive, it's asking me to replace the previous files with the new ones. Can I rename these files and still have theme readable by the mac? Would love your advice.

[kayleighposey]

I plug in my flash drive and nothing will pop up at all and this is a school computer and most setting options are blocked off by administators.

[MrMalibujohn]

I have a 16 gb usb stick. When I insert it in the Macbook Pro, there is no icon on the desktop. How can I reformat it?
Thanks John