Why USB Flash Drive Won’t Show Up on Mac and How to Fix It

User Scenario: Mac Not Recognizing USB

Normally, when you plug a USB drive into your Mac's USB port, the drive should show up on the Desktop or be hidden in Finder, allowing you to access, view, and manage its contents. However, there may be instances where you get a “USB drive not showing up on Mac” issue, just like what some Quora users experienced:

You may ask, "Why doesn't my USB show up on my Mac?" or "How can I get my USB drive recognized on a Mac?" This article covers all the possible fixes for the issue of USB not showing up on Mac, which also applies to external hard drive not showing up on Mac or SD card not showing up on Mac. Scroll through the main contents and skip to the part that interests you most.

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Why isn't my USB showing up on my Mac?

There can be several reasons why a USB device is not showing up, including:

10 Solutions to Fix USB Not Showing Up on Mac

To find an effective solution for yourself, you need to spend time doing basic diagnostics, ruling out red herrings, identifying potential risks, and, finally, solving the problem!

Fix 1: Reconnect the USB drive or try a different USB port

Have you tried restarting your Mac once or twice? Before proceeding, remember that it's often the most effective way to resolve occasional hardware issues. If restarting the operating system doesn't fix the current problem, proceed with checking physical connections.

Step 1: Unplug the USB drive from the non-working USB port and insert it into another one. Try all available USB ports on your Mac.

Step 2: If you're using a USB cable or a USB-C adapter, unplug the drive and connect it directly to the USB port.

Step 3: Do you have another available Mac? If so, connect the USB drive to that computer.

The three steps to fix a USB drive not showing up on a Mac are quite basic but are useful in most cases. Each step helps us rule out issues with faulty/loose connections, non-functional USB ports, power shortages, and other superficial problems.

Solution 2: Show the USB flash drive on the desktop

Sometimes your Mac recognizes the USB flash drive but doesn't show it on the Desktop. In that case, go to Finder > Preferences > General and make sure the “External disks” option is checked. Then you should see the USB flash drive appear on your Mac's Desktop.

Fix 3: Show External USB Drive in Finder

Finder is another way we can check for connected external drives on a Mac. If your flash drive or USB stick isn't showing up here, go to Finder > Preferences > Sidebar. Under Locations, make sure the “External Disks” option is checked. This ensures that any connected USB hard drives or flash drives show up correctly in Finder.

Fix 4: Check the USB drive in System Information

If you can't find the USB drive on your desktop or in Finder, try looking for it in System Information, a place where everyday Mac users seldom go.

Step 1: Go to Applications > Utilities > System Information.

Step 2: Check whether your system detects the USB drive. Click on “USB” in the left pane, and then look for information about your USB flash drive.

Did the methods mentioned above help you solve your issue? If so, don't forget to share them with your friends.

Fix 5: Reset the USB Ports on Your Mac to Detect the USB Drive

Step 1: Restart your Mac and hold down Command-Option-P-R until you see the Apple logo.

Step 2: Press Command-Option-Esc to force quit any unresponsive apps.

Step 3: Plug in the USB device that isn't showing up on your Mac. If it still doesn't appear, click the Apple icon and choose Sleep.

Step 4: After a few seconds, press any key to wake the computer.

5. Turn off your Mac, unplug it from the power source, wait 15 seconds, and plug it back in.

If that fails, it could be a corrupt installation. Don't give up; try to fix it yourself.

Solution 6: Use First Aid to Repair the USB Drive and Fix the Issue of USB Not Showing Up on Mac

Step 1: Open Applications > Utilities > Disk Utility.

In the Disk Utility sidebar, select the USB flash drive, then click First Aid in the top toolbar and click Run. Disk Utility will automatically repair any errors it finds on the drive.

Step 3: Select the USB drive and click “Eject” from the toolbar at the top. Remove the USB drive, wait 10 to 15 seconds, and then reinsert it.

Unload and reload the USB so that it shows up.

Solution 7: Use the Terminal to Fix a Mac Not Recognizing USB Issue

Open “Utilities” in the Finder, then launch “Terminal” and type diskutil list followed by Return.

Step 2: Find the disk number for your USB flash drive by entering diskutil info disk2 (replace the number 2 with the disk number for your USB flash drive), then press Return.

3. Type diskutil eject disk2 and press Return.

4. Type in diskutil list and press Return. Close the window when the USB drive disappears from the list.

5. Quit Terminal and open Console to check for disk errors.

Click on “Errors and Failures” to see if there are any errors.

Step 7: Plug the USB drive back into your Mac. If it mounts without error, your USB drive is fine.

Fix 8: Recover Data and Format a USB Not Recognized by Mac

Reformatting the disk can resolve many hard drive issues, including an USB not showing up, especially when you can see the USB icon but the files don't display. It doesn't make sense for a USB drive to show up empty, so you'll have to reformat the disk to make it usable again.

Note that reformatting will delete your data, so if it's important, you should follow standard procedures to ensure zero data loss.

Download tools Data Recovery Wizard for Mac, the professional Mac data recovery software to recover data from USB drive completely.

2. In Disk Utility, format the USB drive.

With this Mac USB Recovery tool, you can easily restore files from USB flash drive in just 3 steps:

Step 1: Launch the iTools Data Recovery Wizard for Mac.

Step 2: Scan the USB flash drive to find the lost files.

Step 3: Preview and recover files from USB drive.

Format the USB drive in Disk Utility:

Step 1: Open Utilities and launch Disk Utility.

Step 2: In the Disk Utility sidebar, select the missing USB flash drive.

Step 3: Tap the “Erase” button at the top.

Step 4. Enter the information needed to format your USB flash drive (name, format, and scheme).

Join the tutorial! Share this valuable information on your social media to help others with the same problem.

Fix 9: Update macOS and firmware

Does your Mac receive regular updates? It's possible that after an update, your Mac is no longer recognizing USB drives. Go to "Settings" to check if your Mac is running the latest version. If there's an available update, install it to bring your device up to date.

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Similarly, firmware updates can address various hardware issues, including the functionality of USB ports. Thus, keeping your software and firmware up to date will likely resolve the issue of your Mac not recognizing USB devices and get your USB drive back on track.

Method 10: Take the USB Drive to a Repair Center for a Mac That Doesn't Recognize It

Branded USB flash drives aren't expensive these days, and if you've tried all the suggested troubleshooting steps, but the drive still doesn't show up on your Mac, it's probably heavily damaged beyond your means to fix it.

If the flash drive or USB is severely damaged and unrecognizable by Mac, it will not show up, even temporarily, making data recovery on Mac difficult. Your last resort is to send the broken USB drive to a professional data recovery service center near you and let the experts attempt to retrieve your data.

You must be prepared for the cost of manual data recovery that obviously exceeds the software data recovery. Therefore, always try out the cost-effective plan with the Data Recovery Wizard tool to scan your USB drive first.

wrap-up work

In this article, we've gathered 10 practical solutions to fix the USB not showing up on Mac issue. Choose one of the listed methods and follow the guide's steps to get your drive visible and accessible again.

If you need to format USB drive, you can use Mac data recovery software to retrieve files and fix the issue without losing data.

"Frequently Asked Questions: Mac Not Recognizing USB"

More questions and answers about Mac not detecting pendrive or USB flash drive issues:

1. Why is my USB flash drive not showing up?

The reasons for a USB device not showing up can vary, including a non-functional USB port, damaged USB driver, virus infection, macOS issues, or USB connection problems.

How do I get my Mac to recognize my USB drive?

To get your Mac to recognize your external USB drive, start by checking your basic settings to ensure that your USB ports and Mac system configurations are functioning properly. After doing this preliminary check, you can attempt to fix the damaged USB drive by resetting the USB port, repairing the USB in Disk Utility, fixing the USB through Terminal, or formatting the USB drive.

If your Mac still doesn't recognize the USB device, continue checking for macOS and software update issues.

How do I fix the issue of USB drives not showing files and folders on my Mac?

To resolve the issue of USB files not showing up on your Mac, you can:

• Recover files or folders from a USB drive using Mac data recovery software
• Display hidden files on a USB flash drive
• Run "First Aid" to repair the USB drive when the device is damaged
• Format the USB drive to resolve issues with unseen files on a Mac

How to Fix an Undetected USB on a Mac?

To address the issue of a USB drive not showing up on a Mac, try the following solutions:

• Reconnect the USB drive to your Mac
• Plug the USB device into another USB port or a different Mac
• Update the USB device driver
• Show the USB drive in Finder or on the desktop
• Repair a corrupted USB
• Update to the latest macOS version
• Send your USB to a repair center