How to format usb stick on macbook？

Formatting via Disk Utility

Back up data: Formatting a USB stick will erase all data on it. Therefore, make sure to back up important files on the USB stick to another storage device in advance to avoid unnecessary losses.

Insert the USB stick: Plug the USB stick into the USB port of your MacBook and ensure a stable connection.

Open Disk Utility: There are several ways to do this. You can click the Apple icon in the upper – left corner of the screen, select “System Preferences”, find and click “Spotlight” in the system preferences, and type “Disk Utility” in the search box to open it. You can also go through “Finder”, enter the “Applications” folder, then enter the “Utilities” folder, and double – click the “Disk Utility” icon to launch it.

Select the USB stick: In the Disk Utility interface, you will see a list of all storage devices connected to the computer on the left, including hard drives, solid – state drives, and USB sticks. Locate and click on the USB stick you want to format.

Click “Erase”: After selecting the USB stick, click the “Erase” button in the top menu bar to enter the formatting settings interface.

Choose file system and partition scheme: In the popped – up dialog box, you can set parameters such as name, format (file system), and scheme. MacBooks support multiple file systems, such as APFS, Mac OS Extended (Journaled), MS – DOS (FAT), and exFAT.

APFS: Suitable for the latest versions of the macOS system, offering higher performance and security.

Mac OS Extended (Journaled): Suitable for older versions of the macOS system, with good compatibility and stability. It is the recommended format for devices used with MacBooks.

MS – DOS (FAT): A common format for both Windows and macOS systems, which allows data transfer between different systems. However, it has a file – size limit of 4GB, so it is generally only used when compatibility with old devices is required.

exFAT: Suitable for cross – platform use, with broad compatibility, and is the preferred format if you plan to use the USB stick on both Windows and macOS devices.

For the partition scheme, usually select “GUID Partition Map” unless your applications require another scheme for compatibility. If you are formatting the USB stick for use on a Windows computer, you need to select “Master Boot Record” as the partition scheme and choose MS – DOS (FAT) if the disk size is no more than 32GB, or exFAT if the disk size exceeds 32GB.

Set security options (optional): If available, click “Security Options”, use the slider to select the number of times to overwrite the erased data, and then click “OK”. Security erase options are only applicable to certain types of storage devices. If the “Security Options” button is not available, Disk Utility cannot perform a secure erase on the storage device. This step is optional, and you can choose the appropriate security level according to your needs. The higher the security level, the longer the formatting time.

Click “Erase” and then “Done”: After confirming that the settings are correct, click the “Erase” button to start the formatting process. The time required to complete the formatting may vary depending on the size of the USB stick and the selected file system. Please be patient and wait for the formatting to complete. Do not unplug the USB stick or turn off the computer midway. After the formatting is complete, click “Done”.

Formatting via Terminal

Insert the USB stick: Plug the USB stick into the USB port of your MacBook.

Open Terminal: Press the “Command” and “Space” buttons together to bring up “Spotlight Search”, click on the magnifying glass icon, and type “Terminal” to open it. If you can’t open “Spotlight Search”, you can navigate to the “Finder” directory, go to the “Utilities” folder, and find “Terminal” inside.

List storage devices: Type the command diskutil list in the Terminal window and press Enter to display a list of all mounted devices in the system. Locate the USB stick you want to format in the list. The USB stick is usually labeled as /dev/diskX, where X is a number.

Format the USB stick: Use the command diskutil eraseDisk file_system disk_name disk_identifier to format the USB stick. Replace file_system with the desired file system format, such as jhfs+ for Mac OS Extended (Journaled), hfs+ for Mac OS Extended, fat32 for MS – DOS (FAT), and exfat for ExFAT. Replace disk_name with the name you want to give to the USB stick, and disk_identifier with the actual identifier of the USB stick obtained from the previous step. For example, to format a USB stick to Mac OS Extended (Journaled) and name it “My Disk”, the command would be diskutil eraseDisk jhfs+ My Disk disk.