![usb drive format for mac usb drive format for mac](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/74gapNeJuYQ/maxresdefault.jpg)
macOS and Linux computers, however, can only read files stored on such a drive they cannot write to an NTFS-formatted drive. NTFS is native to Windows, and most hard drives are preformatted for this file system.
![usb drive format for mac usb drive format for mac](https://www.intego.com/mac-security-blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/du3.png)
![usb drive format for mac usb drive format for mac](https://www.anysoftwaretools.com/wp-content/uploads/erasing-flash-drive-mac.png)
But if you buy a drive secondhand or if you plan to switch between operating systems, you may still need to reformat it for use on Windows.
#Usb drive format for mac portable
If you buy an external drive-such as one of our recommended portable or desktop hard drives, portable solid-state drives, or USB 3.0 flash drives-you may need to reformat it to work with your operating system of choice, since different operating systems use different file systems to process data.Īlthough it’s true that any drive is compatible with both Windows and macOS once it’s formatted properly, most drives come preformatted for Windows out of the box.