How to Move Files to a USB Flash Drive or External Drive on a Mac

What you need: A Mac and a USB flash drive or external drive. Have the drive's cable or adapter if it uses one.

Before you begin: Save and close the file. Moving puts it on the external drive and removes it from its original folder. These steps move one file or folder at a time.

1. Click Finder (the blue smiling face) in the Dock, the row of app icons along the edge of the screen.
2. In the menu bar at the top of the screen, click Go, then Computer.
3. Connect the external drive to the Mac. Connect the drive's power supply if it has one. If the Mac asks whether to allow this new accessory to connect, click Allow.
4. Wait for the drive to appear in the Computer window and remember its name.
5. Click Go at the top of the screen, then the folder where you keep the file, such as Documents or Downloads. Open a folder inside it by clicking that folder twice quickly. Continue until you see the file you want.
6. Click the file or folder once. Click Edit at the top of the screen, then Copy followed by the selected item's name. Nothing has moved yet.
7. Click Go, then Computer, and double-click the external drive you identified in step 4.
8. Hold down the Option key. While holding it, click Edit at the top of the screen, then click Move Item Here. Release Option after clicking. If asked to replace an existing item, click Stop to keep it, then go to step 11 to disconnect the drive.
9. Leave the drive connected until the move finishes. Check that the item appears on the drive.
10. Repeat steps 5–9 for any other files or folders you want to move.
11. Click Go, then Computer. Click your external drive once, then click File and Eject followed by the drive's name.
12. Wait for the drive to disappear from the Computer window, then unplug it. If the Mac says the drive is in use, leave it connected and stop here.

Expected result: The item appears on the external drive and has left its original folder.