How to Format SSD to FAT32 in Windows 10/8/7? Your Quick Guide Is Here

Can you format SSD to FAT32? And if yes, what formatting tool would you use to format SSD to FAT32 file system for certain purposes? On this page, we will offer you a complete guide on how to prepare an old or new SSD and format it to FAT32 successfully with a reliable FAT32 formatting tool in Windows 11/10/8/7.

We'll now proceed with the quick guide on how to format SSD to FAT32:

The solutions on this page can also help you format SSD in Windows 11.

Yes, you can format an SSD as FAT32 in Windows. Here's how: 1. **Open File Explorer**: Click on the folder icon in the taskbar or press `Win + E` keys. 2. **Right-click on the SSD drive**: In the left pane, locate your SSD drive, usually labeled with a letter (e.g., E:, F:), right-click on it, and select **Format**. 3. **Choose File System**: In the Format dialog box, under the "File system" dropdown, select **FAT32**. 4. **Check the options**: You may want to check the "Quick Format" option to speed up the process. Note that formatting will erase all data on the drive, so ensure you back up any important files first. 5. **Format the Drive**: Click on the "Start" button to begin the formatting process. It should complete relatively quickly. 6. **Confirm**: A warning message will appear, reminding you that formatting will delete all data. Click on "OK" if you're sure. Please note that there is a size limitation for FAT32. It cannot partition volumes larger than 32 GB, so make sure your SSD is within this limit if you choose FAT32. If it's larger, you might want to consider NTFS, which is more suitable for larger drives and offers better security and performance features.

Can you format an SSD to FAT32 on Windows? Yes, it's possible to format an internal SSD to FAT32 on a Windows computer.

Note that due to limitations of the Windows FAT32 file system format, users cannot directly format an SSD, HDD, or external drive larger than 32 GB to FAT32 using the built-in formatting tools (File History or Disk Management).

If you also need to format SSD to FAT32, don't worry. Below, you will learn the complete process of formatting SSD to FAT32 without losing any data with a professional SSD formatting tool - AOMEI Partition Assistant.

Part 1: Preparing the SSD Before Formatting It to FAT32

Applies to: Both older and newer SSDs.

Before formatting, you need to prepare your SSD. The process differs slightly between an old SSD and a new one, so make sure you follow the right steps for your SSD:

#1. Back up data from the old/used SSD

If you plan on formatting an older or used SSD, it's essential to check for and back up any important data on the disk to a secure alternate location first. You can choose to manually copy these files to another spot, or use a reliable free backup software like Todo Backup Free to back up all your files at once.

Here's a quick guide on how to back up your SSD drive in one go: 1. **Get a backup medium**: First, you'll need an external hard drive or another internal drive with enough space to hold your SSD data. Make sure the new drive is the same size or larger as your SSD to accommodate everything. 2. **Connect the backup drive**: Plug in the backup drive to your computer using a USB cable or adapter. Ensure it's properly installed and recognized by your PC. 3. **Launch backup software**: On Windows, you can use the built-in "Backup and Restore" tool, or third-party software like tools Todo Backup, Acronis True Image. For Mac, you can choose "Time Machine" or use an app like SuperDuper!. 4. **Create a backup**: Open your backup software and select "Create a new backup" or a similar option. In Windows, choose "Set up backup" and follow the prompts. With Time Machine on a Mac, simply assign the backup drive as the destination. 5. **Select source and target**: Designate your SSD drive as the source and then choose your external hard drive as the target location. 6. **Start the backup**: After verifying all settings, initiate the backup process. This might take some time, depending on the size of your SSD and your computer's speed. 7. **Monitor progress**: During the backup, you can continue using your computer, but avoid large file reads or writes to prevent interference with the backup. 8. **Complete and verify the backup**: Once the backup is done, check the new drive to ensure all files have copied correctly. You might also want to do a test restore to confirm the integrity of the backup files. 9. **Keep your backup up to date**: To keep your data current, remember to run incremental or differential backups regularly, which only back up files changed since the last backup. Adjust these steps according to your operating system and available resources. Always make sure you understand the backup process before doing anything significant to prevent data loss.

Step 1: Choose what to back up

Create Disk Backup Step 1

Step 2: There are four backup categories, Files, Disk, System, and Mail. Click on Disk.

Create Disk Backup Step 2

Step 3. You can back up either the entire disk or a particular partition. Choose as needed and click OK.

Step 4. Choose the location where you want to save your backup.

Select the backup destination location

Step 5: For disk/partition backup, you can choose to save the backup to a local drive or NAS.

Step 6: Once the backup is completed, the task will appear on the left. Right-click on any task to manage your backups further, such as restoring backups or creating incremental ones.

#2. Initialize and create partitions on the new SSD

A brand new SSD that hasn't been initialized won't be detected by Windows, and you won't be able to format the SSD without a partition. Here's how to prepare a new SSD drive in Windows:

Step 1: Initialize the SSD

Connect the SSD to a Windows PC via a USB-to-SATA cable > Open Disk Management, right-click on the SSD > Select “Initialize Disk” > Set the SSD to GPT or MBR.

Step 2: Create partitions:

In Disk Management, right-click the Unallocated space and select New Simple Volume > assign a new drive letter to the SSD, set the volume size and file system (default is NTFS) > Finish.

After that, you can format the SSD to FAT32 with a reliable FAT32 formatter, as shown in Part 2 of the tutorial.

Part 2: How to Format SSD to FAT32 with FAT32 Formatter

When it comes to FAT32 formatting tools, many users complain that they can't format SSD to FAT32 using Disk Management, CMD, or PowerShell due to the FAT32 limitation. Windows only supports creating a single partition up to 32 GB in size with FAT32. Therefore, when attempting to format an SSD, HDD, or external hard drive to FAT32 via Disk Management or DiskPart CMD, many people receive the error message “The volume is too big for FAT32.”

Here, we recommend you try a third-party formatting tool – AOMEI Partition Assistant Professional, which has a flexible and advanced "Format" feature. This feature allows you to format an SSD larger than 32 GB to FAT32, NTFS, or EXT2/EXT3.

It perfectly gets around the 32GB limitation of FAT32 file system in disk management, making it easy to format SSD to FAT32 in Windows 10/8/7. To format SSD to FAT32, follow these steps:

Step 1: Run the disk partition tool, right-click on the hard drive partition you want to format, and select "Format."

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

Step 3: You'll see a warning; click “Yes” to proceed.

4. Click the “Execute 1 Task” button to review the changes, and then click “Apply” to begin formatting the hard drive partition.

After formatting the SSD to FAT32, you can use it as an external storage device or a highly compatible drive on both Windows and Mac computers. Apart from formatting the SSD, this FAT32 formatter can also help with:

Additional Tip: How to Convert NTFS SSD to FAT32

Note that if your SSD uses the NTFS file system and you just want to convert it to FAT32 without deleting all saved data, you can use the “Convert to FAT32” feature in Partition Master.

Step 1: Right-click on the partition of the target device and choose “Advanced” > “Convert to FAT”.

Step 2. Once the scan is finished, click on “Start” to begin the conversion from NTFS to FAT32.

Step 3. Click “Apply” to save all changes.

Conclusion

On this page, we'll introduce the complete process of formatting an old or new SSD with a reliable FAT32 formatter - AOMEI Partition Assistant, for all Windows users.

Aside from formatting SSD to FAT32, the Partition Master tool can also help you convert other large storage devices to FAT32, such as formatting a 128GB USB to FAT32, and more. You can also take advantage of its advanced features, like aligning SSD to 4K, to optimize your SSD's disk performance.

Aside from formatting SSD, Partition Master is always at your service for other partition management needs.

Further reading on formatting an SSD to FAT32

Aside from formatting SSD to FAT32, you may have more questions about SSD. We've collected some frequently asked questions and provided answers to each. If you have the same doubts, find your answers below.

Why Can't Windows 10/8/7 Format SSD to FAT32?

The FAT32 file system is compatible with Windows 10/8.1/7/Vista/XP, Windows 2000, and Windows 95. Being an older file system, it has some limitations regarding partition capacity and the size of individual files:

1). Maximum single storage capacity: 32GB.
2). Maximum file size: 4GB.

Due to these limitations, Windows doesn't allow formatting a drive larger than 32 GB as FAT32. The only options available are NTFS (for internal hard disks) and exFAT (for external storage devices). This is why you can't format a partition, SSD, USB drive, or SD card larger than 32 GB as FAT32 via Disk Management in Windows 10/8/7.

But sometimes, for some reasons, they have to format SSD to FAT32. For example, their device only supports the FAT32 file system.

To get the desired file system on your device, you only need to use the Partition Master tool, which allows you to bypass restrictions and easily format SSD to FAT32.

How to convert to FAT32?

The only way to convert the file system of a storage device to FAT32 is by formatting it to FAT32. You can do this with Disk Management, File Explorer, or a tool like the Partition Master recommended on this page.

Here's how you can format it to FAT32 using Disk Management:

1. Right-click "This PC" or "My Computer," and select "Manage." 2. Click "Disk Management," right-click the device you want to format, and choose "Format." 3. Name the drive and select "FAT32" as the file system. 4. Click "OK." Upon completing these steps, you will find that the target device has been formatted to FAT32.

How do I format my external hard drive to FAT32?

There are four ways to format a storage device – via Disk Management, Diskpart CMD, right-click format in File Explorer, and third-party formatting tools like Partition Master.

As stated on the page, FAT32 has a maximum partition limit. Thus, if your external hard drive is larger than 32 GB, you won't be able to format the device to FAT32 using the above three methods. You can only format the external hard drive to FAT32 via the steps in Part 2 with the help of the tool – MiniTool Partition Wizard.

Should I format my SSD as FAT32 or NTFS?

In most cases, if you plan to use an SSD on a Windows computer, it's highly recommended that you format the SSD as NTFS.

However, if you plan on using the SSD as an external drive for both Windows and Mac computers or as a gaming drive, you can format the SSD to FAT32.

Can a 1TB hard drive be formatted to FAT32?

Yes, when you need to format a 1TB hard drive to FAT32, you have two options:

1. Convert a 1TB hard drive with data from NTFS to FAT32 2. Format a 1TB hard drive to FAT32 using a FAT32 formatting software

If you have any of the situations above, you can use the "Convert to FAT32" and "Format" features of Partition Master to meet your needs. You can simply apply this software for assistance.