Updated on May 06, 2024

If you need a bootable USB format tool or utility to format any hard drives and storage devices without booting the computer, stay and follow this tutorial. On this page, we'll focus on recommending a reliable bootable USB hard drive format utility and show you how to format your hard drive partitions without booting into Windows.

USB bootable format tool

    Best Bootable USB Hard Drive Format Utility for Windows [Free Download] This refers to a search query or article title seeking the best tool for formatting a USB hard drive to be bootable on a Windows operating system. The term "free download" indicates that the recommended utility is available without cost.

    Are you searching for a formatting utility that can boot from a USB drive, enabling you to format a hard drive without needing an operating system or a Windows installation disc? Thankfully, tools Partition Master can function as the top bootable USB hard drive format tool with its "Create Bootable Media" feature.

    tools Partition Master

      Here are the translations in English:
    • Supported Operating Systems: Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7/XP/Vista and Windows Server versions.
    • Supported Devices: HDDs, SSDs, External hard drives, USB flash drives, SD cards, etc.
    • Complexity Level: Easy
    • Price: $19.95/month

    Features in tools Bootable Format Tool - Partition Master: 1. Bootable Disk Creator: Enables users to create a bootable USB or CD/DVD to perform disk formatting and partition management outside of the operating system, ensuring safety during system crashes or infections. 2. Disk Formatting: Supports various file systems such as FAT, FAT32, NTFS, and exFAT for formatting hard drives, SSDs, or external storage devices, providing a fresh start for data storage. 3. Partition Management: Allows users to create, delete, resize, move, hide, and format partitions to optimize disk usage and manage storage space efficiently. 4. Resize/Move Partition: Helps reallocate disk space by expanding or shrinking partitions without losing data, enabling users to balance storage allocation for different purposes. 5. Copy Partition/Disk: Offers the functionality to clone an entire partition or disk to another, useful for backup or upgrading to a larger drive. 6. Disk Conversion: Converts primary partitions to logical ones, MBR disks to GPT, or vice versa, catering to different system requirements. 7. Check File System: Scans and repairs file system errors, ensuring data integrity and improving overall disk performance. 8. Surface Test: Conducts a thorough test on the hard drive to detect bad sectors, helping diagnose potential hardware issues. 9. Disk Information: Displays detailed information about connected disks, including capacity, partition layout, file system, and health status. 10. User-friendly Interface: Provides an intuitive and easy-to-navigate interface for users with different levels of technical expertise. 11. Data Protection: Prioritizes data safety during all operations, offering options to backup important files before making any changes. 12. Multi-language Support: Available in multiple languages to cater to a global user base. 13. Compatibility: Works with various operating systems, including Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista, and XP. 14. Technical Support: Offers assistance and resources for troubleshooting and resolving any issues that may arise during use. 15. Frequent Updates: Regular software updates ensure compatibility with the latest hardware and improvements in functionality.

    Tools like Partition Manager software enable you to create a bootable USB to wipe a hard drive or format a hard drive, even when the Windows OS cannot boot. They can also perform other tasks, such as: 1. Resize/Move partitions to optimize disk space usage. 2. Create, delete, or format partitions for better organization. 3. Convert between different file systems, like NTFS to FAT32 or vice versa. 4. Merge adjacent partitions to combine storage space. 5. Split a large partition into smaller ones for better management. 6. Hide or unhide partitions for security purposes. 7. Check and repair disk errors to maintain data integrity. 8. Clone a hard drive to upgrade or backup your system. 9. Recover lost or deleted partitions in case of accidental data loss. 10. Allocate free space from one partition to another without data loss. 11. Manage RAID arrays for enhanced data storage reliability. 12. Bootable media creation to perform disk management tasks outside of Windows. 13. Disk conversion between MBR and GPT styles for compatibility with different operating systems. These tools provide a comprehensive solution for managing your hard drive and ensuring optimal performance and data safety.

    01

    Bootable Features in USB Formatter tool:

    • 1. Format the operating system drive
    • 2. Format data volume when the computer cannot boot
    • 3. Clean up the hard drive without booting into Windows
    • 4. Format external hard drive, SD card, or hard drive partitions without starting Windows
    02

    Bonus Features in Bootable Format Tool:

    • 1. Extend, shrink, delete, create, and merge partitions on a PC without booting into Windows.
    • 2. Clone hard drive, or migrate the operating system to SSD/HDD when the OS fails or crashes.
    • 3. Convert the OS disk between MBR and GPT formats.
    Here they are in American English: 1. 中文 (Chinese): Chinese 2. 英语 (English): English 3. 法语 (French): French 4. 德语 (German): German 5. 西班牙语 (Spanish): Spanish 6. 意大利语 (Italian): Italian 7. 日语 (Japanese): Japanese 8. 韩语 (Korean): Korean 9. 阿拉伯语 (Arabic): Arabic 10. 俄语 (Russian): Russian 11. 葡萄牙语 (Portuguese): Portuguese 12. 印地语 (Hindi): Hindi 13. 泰语 (Thai): Thai 14. 越南语 (Vietnamese): Vietnamese 15. 土耳其语 (Turkish): Turkish 16. 希腊语 (Greek): Greek 17. 荷兰语 (Dutch): Dutch 18. 丹麦语 (Danish): Danish 19. 瑞典语 (Swedish): Swedish 20. 挪威语 (Norwegian): Norwegian

    Next, you'll learn how to successfully format any device using a reliable disk formatter on your computer without having to boot up the computer. Additionally, feel free to share this article to assist more users encountering similar issues.

    Here they are in American English: 1. 中文 (Chinese): Chinese 2. 英语 (English): English 3. 法语 (French): French 4. 德语 (German): German 5. 西班牙语 (Spanish): Spanish 6. 日语 (Japanese): Japanese 7. 韩语 (Korean): Korean 8. 俄语 (Russian): Russian 9. 阿拉伯语 (Arabic): Arabic 10. 葡萄牙语 (Portuguese): Portuguese 11. 意大利语 (Italian): Italian 12. 荷兰语 (Dutch): Dutch 13. 印度尼西亚语 (Indonesian): Indonesian 14. 泰语 (Thai): Thai 15. 土耳其语 (Turkish): Turkish 16. 越南语 (Vietnamese): Vietnamese 17. 希腊语 (Greek): Greek 18. 波斯语 (Persian): Persian 19. 乌尔都语 (Urdu): Urdu 20. 印地语 (Hindi): Hindi

    Once you have this software, let's proceed and follow the instructions below to address your concerns now.

    # Guide 1: Create a Bootable USB Format Tool

      Here are the translations for the provided text: 1.
    • Duration: 2-5 minutes
    • Translation:
    • Duración: 2-5 minutos
    • 2.
    • Tools: An empty USB drive, a health-running Windows, and tools Partition Master.
    • Translation:
    • Herramientas: Un disco USB vacío, una versión de Windows en buen estado y las herramientas Partition Master.

    Tools like Partition Master bootable software come in handy when something goes wrong with your computer's operating system, especially when you can't boot it at all. To format a hard drive on an unbootable computer, you must first create a bootable USB format disk.

    Let's get started creating a bootable USB formatting tool following these steps:

    Step 1. To create a bootable disk of AOMEI Partition Assistant, you should prepare a storage media, like a USB drive, flash drive, or a CD/DVD disc. Then, connect it to your computer properly.

    Step 2. Launch AOMEI Partition Assistant, and locate the “Bootable Media” feature on the left. Click on it.

    Step 3. You can select USB or CD/DVD when the drive is available. However, if you don't have a storage device on hand, you can also save the ISO file to a local drive and burn it to a storage medium later. After making your choice, click "Create" to begin.

      Review the warning message and click "Yes".

    Step 4. When the process is complete, a pop-up window will ask if you want to restart your computer from the bootable USB.

    • Reboot Now: This means you wish to restart the current computer and enter the Tools Bootable Media to manage your disk partitions without an operating system.
    • Done: This indicates that you do not want to restart the current PC, but instead want to use the bootable USB on a different computer.
    Select if you want to boot PC from the bootable USB

    Note: To use the bootable disk on a new PC, you need to restart the target computer and press F2/F8/Del to enter BIOS, and set the USB bootable disk as the first boot disk.

    Just be patient, the computer will automatically boot from the USB boot media and launch into the WinPE tool desktop.

    Enter tools WinPE Desktop

    #Guide 2: Format Hard Drive Without OS using a Bootable USB Format Tool

    • Duration: 3-5 minutes
    • Tools: A USB bootable formatting tool, a Windows PC (either bootable or non-bootable)

    How do you manage your hard drive or removable storage devices right now? Connect the created bootable USB hard drive formatting utility to your computer, restart your PC by pressing F1/F8 or Del to enter BIOS, and set your computer to boot from the bootable USB formatting tool.

    Then, you can take the following steps to format your hard disk without running Windows now:

    Step 1. Run AOMEI Partition Assistant, right-click the hard drive partition you intend to format and choose "Format".

    Format Hard Drive Partition - Step 1

    Step 2. In the new window, set the Partition label, File system (NTFS/FAT32/EXT2/EXT3/EXT4/exFAT), and Cluster size for the partition to be formatted, then click "OK".

    Format Hard Drive Partition - Step 2

    Step 3. You'll then see a warning message; click "Yes" to proceed.

    Format Hard Drive Partition - Step 3

    Step 4. Click the "Execute 1 Task(s)" button to review the changes, and then click "Apply" to begin formatting the partition on your hard drive.

    Format Hard Drive Partition - Step 4

    If you find this USB bootable formatting tool useful, don't forget to share this page to assist more of your friends online in formatting their computers without needing to boot into the operating system like pros:

    These languages are already in English. If you meant to translate them into another language, please specify the target language.

    See, this is how you can easily format a hard drive or clean up your disk data even when the computer is unbootable or dead with the help of tools like Partition Master.

    How Did We Select a USB Bootable Format Tool, and Why Choose Tools?

    I need to create a bootable USB drive containing an HDD formatting tool. The purpose is to format an SSD which currently doesn't have an operating system. I need to format this SSD for a Windows 10 installation, but the built-in Windows formatting tool isn't working, so I'm looking for an alternative solution. Any recommendations? - posted by u/crankytownie from reddit.com

    Are you having the same problem? And why did we recommend Partition Master as the best bootable formatting tool? Keep reading, and you'll find the answers below:

    bootable usb format utility

    Quick Guide on Choosing the Right Formatting Tool

    Here are four questions that also serve as our selection criteria. You can follow them sequentially to determine whether a given tool meets your requirements:

      1. ? Price: Is the USB bootable format tool within your budget?
      2. ? Features: Can the tool actually enable you to format a hard drive or SSD without booting the computer?
      3. ? Supported Device Types: Does the format tool support formatting the specific type of disk drive you have?
      4. ? Supported OS: Is the bootable format tool compatible with your current operating system?

    How We Select Bootable Format Tools Translation: How We Choose Bootable Formatting Tools

    Here's a checklist that outlines how we selected bootable format tools and when you might need a bootable USB format tool to format hard drives or storage devices in Windows:

    ? Number of bootable formatting tools tested: 10 tools
    ? Amount spent on the test: $499
    ⌛ Duration of testing these tools: 1 week
    ? Operating systems tested on:

    Windows 11/ 10/ 8/7/XP, and Windows Server systems.

    ?️ Tools tested: Partition Master, Rufus, DiskInternals, IN-Magic Partition Resizer, and more.

    Why Choose Tools?

    Should you trust Partition Master? Absolutely. Here's what other professionals and users think of this software:

    ✒️ Editors' Thoughts: These are the editors' thoughts or opinions.
    The WinPE bootable disk creates a copy of Tools Partition Master Professional on external storage. This allows you to boot into Tools Partition Master Professional from that device without needing to start up Windows. - by VICTOR CORDA from SOFTWAREHOW

    User Feedback:

    Final Verdict

    Therefore, when you are looking for a reliable bootable USB format tool, consider using AOMEI Partition Assistant. It can help you create a reliable bootable USB formatting utility, allowing you to format any hard drive for regular use without needing to boot into Windows.

    Frequently Asked Questions About Bootable USB Format Tool

    If you have more questions or doubts about the bootable USB format tool, follow and find answers in the subsequent questions:

    < strong > 1. Is there a free bootable USB hard drive format utility? < /strong >

    The answer is no. Some of you may think that the Windows PE bootable disk might help. Unfortunately, the Windows PE bootable disk only works to boot up an unbootable computer and temporarily access files on hard drive partitions. It couldn't assist you in managing disk partition drives.

    What about third-party formatting tools? Most formatting tools that support creating a bootable USB disk are not free. Some are even extremely complex.

    < strong > 2. Can you format a USB from BIOS? < /strong > No, you cannot directly format a USB drive from the BIOS. BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) is a firmware that initializes and provides basic services to the computer during the boot process. It does not have the functionality to format external storage devices like USB drives. To format a USB drive, you typically need an operating system (such as Windows, macOS, or Linux) where you can use built-in tools or third-party software for formatting purposes.

    No, you cannot format a USB drive directly from the BIOS settings. However, you can use a reliable bootable USB formatting tool, such as tools Partition Master with its Creator feature, to format the device without needing to boot into Windows.

    To format a bootable hard drive or USB, follow these general steps: 1. **Backup Data**: Before formatting, make sure you've backed up any important data on the drive since the process will delete everything. 2. **Insert the Drive**: Plug the hard drive or USB into your computer's appropriate port. 3. **Open Disk Management**: On Windows, press `Win + X` and select "Disk Management". On macOS, open "Disk Utility" found in the "Utilities" folder within "Applications." 4. **Identify the Drive**: In Disk Management or Disk Utility, locate the drive you want to format. It'll usually show up as unallocated space or without a volume. 5. **Choose Format Options**: - **Windows**: Click "Format", then under "File System", choose "NTFS" (recommended for most uses) or "FAT32" (if compatibility with multiple OSes is needed). Leave the "Allocation Unit Size" at default. - **macOS**: Click "Erase", then under "Format", pick "ExFAT" (for cross-platform use) or "Mac OS Extended (Journaled)" (for macOS only). 6. **Name the Volume**: Optionally, assign a name to the drive. 7. **Start Formatting**: Hit "OK" or "Erase" to begin formatting. This could take a few minutes depending on the drive's size. 8. **Create Bootable Disk**: Once formatted, use the appropriate tool (like Windows' "Media Creation Tool" or macOS' "Startup Disk Creator") to write the boot image to the drive. 9. **Verify**: Afterward, restart your computer and check if it boots correctly from the drive to ensure everything's working as expected. Note that exact steps might vary slightly depending on your operating system version.

    To format a bootable hard drive or bootable USB, you can simply follow the instructions provided in this guide:

    • Connect the bootable hard drive or USB to your PC, then press Windows key + R and type diskmgmt.msc, and click "OK".
    • Open Disk Management, right-click on the drive you want to format, and select "Format".
    • Set the partition label and file system format.
    • Check the box for "Perform a quick format."
    • Click "OK" to begin formatting.

    < strong > 4. What is the best formatting software? < /strong >

    Numerous tools and software are available for formatting hard drive partitions, USBs, or external storage devices. Three built-in, free formatting utilities in the Windows operating system are File Explorer, Disk Management, and Command Prompt. These can be utilized by experienced users to format various devices.

    If you're not familiar with computing, you can seek assistance from reliable formatting software. Tools like Partition Master, HDD Format Tool, and FAT32 Formatter are all trustworthy formatting utilities. For a comprehensive guide to finding the best formatting software, you can refer to this page: 6 Best Hard Drive Format Tools/Software.