Free Ways to Format SDXC to FAT32 in Windows 11/10/8/7

Here, we will teach you how to format SDXC card to FAT32 file system in Windows 11, 10, 8, 7. The free AOMEI Partition Assistant Standard can easily format large SDXC card (64GB, 128GB, or etc) to FAT32.

Posted by @Emily December 17, 2024 Updated By @Emily May 12, 2023

Why format SDXC card to FAT32?

Basically, an SDXC card is formatted to exFAT by default, but some devices cannot recognize exFAT. For example, the PlayStation 4 supports exFAT while the PlayStation 3 does not. The Xbox One supports it while the Xbox 360 does not. So, some users ask “Can I format exFAT to FAT32” because FAT32 that is more compatible than exFAT.

How do you format SDXC to FAT32 in Windows 11/10/8/7?

When it comes to formatting SDXC card to FAT32 in Windows 10/8/7, you can try the Windows inbuilt tools first.

Keep in mind: formatting process will erase everything on the SDXC card, so you had better clone SDXC card to another disk to make a data backup.

Method 1. Format SDXC card to FAT32 via Windows File Explorer

As long as you insert an SDXC card into your computer, you can see an added partition in File Explorer. Right click on it and select "Format". Then a small window will pop out where you are allowed to select "FAT32" as the file system, tick "Quick Format" and click "Start" to begin the formatting process.

Method 2. Format SDXC card to FAT32 via Windows Disk Management

First of all, open Disk Management by right clicking on "This PC/My computer"-> "Manage"-> "Disk Management". Then you will see the basic information on your disk. Right-click the SDXC card and select "Format", then select "FAT32" at the File system drop-down and click "OK".

Method 3. Format SDXC card to FAT32 via Diskpart

Diskpart can also format SDXC card into FAT32 by running some commands. First enter the command windows: press "Win+R" at the same time, type "cmd", run the program as administrator. Then type the following commands one by one and remember to hit enter after each.

  • diskpart

  • list volume

  • select volume n (n refers to the volume number of SDXC, ensure you input the right number, or you will format the wrong disk.)

  • format fs=fat32

Wait until it is done.

Failed to format 64GB/128GB SDXC card to FAT32

Although the three methods above are quite popular choices for formatting SD card to FAT32 file system in Windows 10/8/7, they don't work in the following situations.

  • When the SDXC card is write protected, becomes RAW format, virus infection, or has some bad sectors, you will receive a formatting error message saying Windows was unable to complete the format.

  • When the SDCX card is over 32GB, you will not be able to format it to FAT32 via the traditional ways listed above, even using Diskpart, and you may meet such error as The volume is too big for FAT32.

Successfully format large SDXC to FAT32 in Windows 11/10/8/7

In order to avoid the above situations, you can turn to a professional partition manager like AOMEI Partition Assistant Standard. This freeware can successfully format over 32GB SDXC card, USB flash frive, pen drive, or other external hard drive to FAT32 in Windows 11/10/8/7 and Windows XP/Vista (all editions). Besides, it can also help format the hard drive that becomes RAW or read only because of corrupted file system. Moreover, it is able to format drive to Ext4/Ext3/Ext2 in Windows.

Below is how to format 128 GB SDXC card to FAT32 (example):

Step 1. Connect your SDXC card to your Windows PC via a card reader and make sure it is detected. And free download the AOMEI Partition Assistant Standard.

Download Freeware Win 11/10/8.1/8/7/XP
Secure Download

Step 2. Install and run this partition manager to enter its main interface. Right-click the partition of SDXC card and select "Format Partition".

Step 3. Choose "FAT32' under file system menu and click "OK".

Step 4. Back to the main interface, click "Apply" to start formatting the card.

Other appealing features of AOMEI Partition Assistant

  • Move partition to another location on the same disk;

  • Copy partition to another hard drive or partition;

  • Clone MBR system disk to MBR disk, clone MBR data disk to GPT (vice versa) and clone GPT data disk to GPT;

  • Transfer OS to SSD to speed up computer;

  • Rebuild MBR (Master Boot Record) to fix some common boot issues;

  • Convert data disk between MBR and GPT partition table without deleting partitions;

  • ...

Conclusion

In this article, we have shared 4 free ways to format SDXC to FAT32 in Windows 10/8/7. If you need to format large SDXC card such as 64GB, 128GB to FAT32 file system, AOMEI Partition Assistant Standard is highly recommended.

If you upgrade to AOMEI Partition Assistant Professional, you can unlock more advanced disk partition management functions. For example, you can convert system disk between MBR and GPT without data loss, clone Windows partition to SSD/HDD, split partitions, align SSD partitions to solve "SSD slowing down" issue and so on. For Windows Server users, there is also the specialized AOMEI Partition Assistant Server Edition.