How to Format 64GB SD Card/USB Flash Drive to FAT32

"I can't format my Sandisk Ultra 64GB MicroSD to FAT32. I used Windows right-click format and Disk Management, there is no FAT32 option under File System. Then I tried CMD format command, I received the error message saying the volume is too big for FAT32. Do you know how to format a 64GB SD card to FAT32?"

Why Cannot Format SD Card to FAT32 in Windows 10/8/7

Usually, like the USB drive, SD cards with 32GB or lower storage is set to FAT32 by default. While exFAT is set as the default file system for larger SD cards with 64GB or 128GB. As some special devices only support the FAT32 file system, like the 3Ds SD card, it requires users to format the SD card to FAT32, no matter how large it is.

Due to the limitation of FAT32, the Windows system doesn't support creating a FAT32 partition on a more than 32GB disk partition. As a result, you cannot directly format a 64GB memory card nor USB flash drive to FAT32. So what will you do when you must format a 64GB SD card to FAT32?

Fortunately, besides the Windows built-in utility, when you cannot format your 64GB SD card or USB flash drive to FAT32, you still have a chance. A third-party & powerful FAT32 format tool can help resolve this issue effectively. Read on and download the remarkable formatting tool for help.

Full Guide to Format SD Card to FAT32

Speaking of the SD card format tool, some of you may try to search online, spending time and energy to test the found tools. Here, we'd like to recommend you try Qiling Partition Master.

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Unlike the Windows built-in utilities, it breaks the limitations of FAT32 on Windows PC and storage devices. In other words, you can directly format your 64GB, 128GB, and even larger SD card to FAT32 without losing storage capacity as well as affecting the SD card read/write speed. Besides FAT32, this software also supports formatting your device to NTFS, ReFS, FAT16, Ext2, Ext3, etc.

Connect your SD card to your computer and start to format your 32GB/64GB/128GB SD card to FAT32 with ease.

Step 1. Launch Qiling Partition Master, click the partition you intend to format and choose "Format" in "Disk management" page.

Step 2. In the next window, set the Partition label, File system, and Cluster size for the partition, then click "Proceed".

When the formatting process finishes, you can directly unplug your SD card and use it on other devices for game storing or photography again. You can also use it on your Windows and Mac computers without any issues.

If you prefer to resize or partition the SD card, you can follow How to Partition a Hard Drive in Windows 10 for help.

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FAT32 vs. NTFS vs. exFAT: Which Is The Best for Your SD Card?

Besides FAT32, NTFS & exFAT are also available while formatting an SD card using Windows utilities - Disk Management, File Explorer, CMD or third-party partition manager. But do you know which is the best format for your SD card? Here in the following, we'll show you the difference between FAT32, NTFS and exFAT, and give you a suitable suggestion to choose the right file system for your SD card or USB drive.

Comparison Among FAT32, NTFS and exFAT

FAT32, exFAT, and NTFS are all compatible file systems on Windows PC. Here is a basic comparison:

Comparison	FAT32	NTFS	exFAT
Supported OS	Windows 95/2000/XP /7/8.1/8/10	Windows 10/8/7/XP /Vista/2000	Windows Vista/7/8 /8.1/10
Max Cluster Size	64KB	64KB	32768KB
Max Formatting Capacity	32GB	2TB	16EB
Max File Size	4GB	256TB	16EB

Next are a conclusion of the advantages and disadvantages of the three popular file systems that will help you understand their application case better.

Highlights:

FAT32 is not as efficient as NTFS, but it owns a greater compatibility with other operating systems. As for the compatibility, FAT32 is still the most widespread one.
NTFS is regarded as the most modern file system which is widely used on system drive by default.
exFAT is regarded as an alternative file system to replace FAT32, with greater compatibility than NTFS on more devices and operating systems.

Limits:

FAT32: 4 GB maximum file size, 8 TB maximum partition size.
NTFS: No realistic file-size or partition size limits.
exFAT: No realistic file-size or partition size limits.

Which File System Should You Choose for SD Card?

Which file system should you choose for your SD card or USB drive? Follow the suggestions below to set a suitable format for your devices:

FAT32

Applies to: Small SD card, USB drive with 32GB or smaller storage, gaming storage card, etc.

If your SD card storage is smaller than 32GB, and you don't plan to store large files (larger than 4GB for a single file) on the card, FAT32 is the best format.

Whenever you need to convert NTFS to FAT32 on 64GB SD card or 128GB USB drive, you can apply Qiling Partition Master with the steps on this page for help.

exFAT

Applies to: Cellphone storage, camera, digital camera, camcorder, GoPro, DJI Drones, etc. large SD cards.

If your SD card or USB is 64GB or even bigger, or you need to store large files (single file bigger than 4GB), exFAT is recommended. Although it's similar to FAT32 as of compatibility, it doesn't have any storage limitations.

NTFS

Applies to: Large USB drive or external hard drive, Windows hard drive partitions, etc.

NTFS is a Windows-based file system, and it adopts more advanced technology than that of FAT32 and exFAT. If you are simply using the SD card between your Windows computer and the digital device, meanwhile, do not expect any file size or storage size limitation, use NTFS to achieve the best SD card performance. Again, Qiling Partition Master is the unique solution to convert FAT32 to NTFS without formatting or losing data.

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How to Format SD Card to FAT32 - FAQs

1. Can I format a 64GB SD card to FAT32?

Since the 64GB has exceeded the maximum FAT32 capacity limit, Windows File Explorer and Disk Management won't allow for formatting it to FAT32. However, Qiling Partition Master can make it without trouble. Download Qiling FAT32 formatter

Connect the 64GB sd card to your Windows computer
Click the SD card and choose Format
Select FAT32 as the file system

2. How do I change from exFAT to FAT32?

Click on the exFAT partition and choose Delete Volume.
Click again on the unallocated partition and choose New Simple Volume.
Follow the wizard to create a new partition and assign the volume as a FAT32partition.

Read more about how to convert exFAT to NTFS or FAT32.

3. Can you format a 128gb SD card to FAT32?

In the same way to format a 64GB SD card to FAT32, you need to download Qiling Partition Master to format a larger 128GB SD card to FAT32. No matter what capacity of your SD card is, you can directly format the SD card without losing disk storage with the help of the most efficient and powerful SD card formatting tool.