All new Macs are already bundled with APFS. APFS replaced the outdated macOS file system called HFS Plus. APFS (Apple File System)ĪPFS is the format introduced by Apple in early 2017 for iOS devices.

Let’s take a closer look at each file format for external drives for your Mac. What is the best format for an external Mac hard drive? Keep reading, and we will explain the differences between disk formats in more detail, as well as how to format a hard drive for your Mac.

If you want to be able to work with your hard drive on both Mac- and Windows-based computers, then you will have to choose other formats. If you are only going to use the hard drive on your Mac, then you should choose the HFS+ format. There are also FAT32 and ExFAT formats, which are compatible with both operating systems. Mac computers use a different file system called HFS+. For example, if you buy a new HDD, you will most likely first have to format the external disk to be able to use it on your Mac. This often causes difficulties when opening external drives on a Mac. Why do you need to reformat an external hard drive for your Mac?īy default, most models of hard disk drives (HDDs) and solid-state drives (SSDs) are formatted for a Windows operating system.

Formatting drive to ntfs on mac