APFS Not Showing Up in Disk Utility? How to Format External SSDs on Mac- 2026

If you tried to format your external SSD or USB flash drive to APFS on your Mac and noticed the APFS option was missing from the dropdown menu, you aren't alone! In this updated step-by-step tutorial, we look at the exact reason why APFS doesn't show up in Disk Utility and how to easily fix it.

The secret lies entirely in your drive's scheme setup. Out of the box, many external drives use older partition schemes that don't support Apple's modern file system. We’ll show you how to change your partition map to GUID to instantly unlock the APFS formatting options.

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⏱️ TIMESTAMPS
00:00 - Introduction & The Missing APFS Problem
00:26 - Opening Disk Utility on macOS
00:44 - The Crucial First Step: Show All Devices
01:04 - Selecting the Root External Drive (Not just the Volume)
01:21 - Why APFS is Missing (Master Boot Record vs. GUID Partition Map)
01:43 - Selecting GUID Partition Map to Unlock APFS
02:03 - Erasing and Formatting the Drive
02:38 - Verifying the APFS Format & Testing
03:07 - Checking Drive Info & Wrap Up

#apfs

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These "How To" videos are intended to help accomplish tasks for MacBook, iPad and iPhone users.

Видео APFS Not Showing Up in Disk Utility? How to Format External SSDs on Mac- 2026 канала MacMingle