Formatting SD card is quick and easy. Thanks to your Mac’s Disk Utility. Find out the complete steps in this guide on how to format SD card on Mac effectively.
Part 1. How to Format SD Card on Mac via Disk Utility
SD cards are highly popular forms of storage devices especially for electronics such as smartphones, DSLRs and more. These tiny chip-like storage devices are lifesavers for our everyday use.
Can't format SD card Mac? Before you can use the SD card completely, you need to know how to format an SD card first.
In this tutorial, we will teach you how to format SD card on Mac using the Disk Utility. First, you have to understand that formatting an SD card or micro SD card will erase all data saved on the card as set a file system format for the SD card.
To ensure that all your files such as photos and videos are safe, copy these media files or create a backup.
Once you are done taking backups, follow these steps on how to format SD card on Mac:
- Mount your SD card or micro SD card to your Mac. Make sure that the metal contacts face down and pointing towards your computer.
Before inserting your SD card, verify if your Mac supports an SD card slot otherwise you can use an SD card adapter.
- Launch the Disk Utility. You can do this by going to Finder, then go to Applications and select Utilities
- Find and select your SD card from the left sidebar.
- At the upper toolbar, click Erase
- Create a name for the SD card and select the file system format you want to use. If you have an SD card with 64GB or larger, choose ExFAT. If you have 32GB or smaller then choose FAT32. Macs with SD card slots running on OS X 10.6.5 or later can use the exFAT file system.
- Wait until formatting is complete and click done.
- Safely eject your SD card/micro SD when finished.
Don’t be too excited to pull out the SD card without safely ejecting it from your Mac. Just make sure you are not bypassing some operations and cause issues on your SD card.
After safely removing your card, you are now able to use it in whatever purpose you wish such as using it in another device.
Part 2. How to Format SD Card on Mac without the SD Card Slot
After 2016, Mac Book releases did not include SD card slots which meant getting an extra piece when you needed one.
You can get a USB SD card reader or adapter depending on the Mac device you own. The price ranges from $7-$30.
Once you have the card reader ready, you can follow the same guide mentioned in the first part of the article to format the SD card without the SD card slot.
How to Select the Correct File System Format
Mac supports the SD 1.x, 2.x, and 3.x standards. Your SD card slot should work with:
- 4MB to 2GB – Standard SDs
- MMC (Multimedia Cards)
- 4GB/32GB - SDHC (Secure Digital High Capacity)
- 4GB to 2TB - SDXC
- UHS‑II - up to 2TB for iMac Pro only
Your device also supports SD card adapters for MiniSD, MicroSD and even higher densities including MiniSDHC and MicroSDHC.
Each SD media has a different transfer rate. You can check with the package to determine the transfer rate of your SD card. Mac desktops have faster transfer speed in which you can check it by:
- Click the Apple menu
- Go to About This Mac
- Click System Report
Mac notebooks, on the other hand, use the USB bus to communicate with the SD card slot at a maximum speed of up to 480Mbit/s.