- Why is the SD card not showing on Mac?
- How to Fix Mac Not Reading SD Card?
- How to recover data from an SD card that is not showing up on Mac?
- What To Do If the SD card not showing up in Disk Utility?
Why is the SD card not showing on Mac?
Firstly, in this situation any of the following 3 devices can be at fault:- SD card
- Card reader or SD card adapter
- Mac or MacBook
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- Card reader not working: Memory card readers are relatively simple devices with no moving parts, But sometimes they tend to get corrupted, the great news is that a new memory card reader costs just a few dollars, buying one just to verify that the card reader you've isn’t faulty.
- Incompatible file system: the most recent version of macOS supports several file systems, including APFS, HFS+, FAT32, and exFAT. However, there are many other file systems that macOS doesn’t support. If you utilize one among them, your Mac won’t read the SD card in any respect.
- Data corruption: Digital data can become corrupted due to various reasons and digital data corruption can even make your entire SD card inaccessible.
- Physical damage: Due to the smaller size of the flash memory cards it’s easy to mechanically damage the SD card and make it unreadable.
- Problems with macOS: Known for its reliability, macOS might not be a known troublemaker as far as operating systems are considered, but that doesn’t mean that users never experience issues with it. Sometimes, all it takes is one malware infection to make macOS stop working.
How to Fix Mac Not Reading SD Card?
If your SD card is not showing up on your Mac, there are a few fixes that can solve the problem. Follow the solutions one by one, along with the detailed step-by-step instructions for each.1. Expert Tip to Fix SD Card Not Mounting Mac Error
When an SD card or any drive is not showing up on Mac the thumb rule to be followed before trying various methods to fix the issue "SD card won’t show up on Mac" is to “clean the SD card contact points”. It might be basic but it's definitely worth a try. Because, in the long run, your SD card or Mac might have developed a small layer of dust on the contact points resulting in this error. Along with cleaning the SD card contact points also blow a gust of air into the card reader to clear out any existing dust. After cleaning the SD card and card reader insert it again to check whether your Mac is recognizing your SD card. Nevertheless, if your Mac does not recognize the SD card, the error might be critical. Please follow through with the rest of the article to fix the error.Warning: Under any circumstances, if you feel that the SD card is corrupted, your first priority should be to recover data from the SD card.
2. Check whether the SD card is working properly
If Mac is not recognizing the SD card it can be because the SD card is damaged or it might have encountered some error. The best way to make sure that the SD card is functional is by connecting the SD card to another Mac or Windows computer and troubleshooting it. (Make sure you also check the card reader along with the SD card) Additionally, while troubleshooting the SD card on another computer, check for a few unusual errors that signify that the SD card is damaged. For example, an SD card not formatting error is one such issue that will not allow Mac to mount the SD card. Next, the “disk utility can’t repair this drive error” is also an error that signifies that the SD card is completely damaged. So, look out for such error messages while the SD card is connected to another Mac. If both SD card and card reader are working on another computer, then the error might be on Mac. If the SD card is not working on another computer, then remove the SD card and connect the card reader separately and check if it is working or not.3. Change the Settings Showing SD Cards
To Find and Open the SD card on Mac
- Open Finder.
- Click on the Finder option at the top menu of your Mac and choose Preferences.
- Click on the tab.
- Check the External Disks box.

4. Check If The Finder Preferences Have Been Set Up Properly
- Open Finder.
- Click on the Finder Option at the upper left of your Mac and select Preferences
- Click on the Sidebar tab.
- Check the External Disks box under Locations so that you can locate the SD card on Mac's Finder.
- Next, launch the Finder again and check if you can see the SD card showing up in the Finder sidebar.

5. Unhide The SD Card
- Connect the SD card again to your Mac, wait a second so that Mac can recognize the SD card.
- Next, open Finder by clicking the smiley face on your desktop.
- Search for Locations in the left sidebar. If no storage device is listed here, then probably the SD card is hidden in the Finder.
- Select Locations, and then click on Show. If your SD card was hidden it will show up.
6. Set the SD card to Show up on Mac
Actually, there is a difference between the errors SD card not showing up on Mac and SD can mount on Mac. The difference is the SD card won’t show up means the system is just not displaying the SD card in the disk utility. In case of SD card won’t mount Mac, the SD card will be displayed in the disk utility but, it will be marked as unmountable or not recognized. Many users interpret both the issues as the same. First Mount the SD card manually. Right-click on the SD card and choose the Mount option beside it. This will help you to mount the card and access the files stored on it. If this does not resolve the issue then maybe the SD card is corrupted. Mac won't be displaying the SD card because maybe the external disks are disabled. When the external disks are disabled, the SD card will not show up. Here are the details on how to fix it.- Go to Finder > Preferences. In the preferences, window select the “General” tab where you can see the options
- Hard Disks
- External Disks
- CDs, DVDs, iPods
- Connected servers
- If the option External disks are unmarked or unchecked. Select it and make sure that option has a tick mark next to it.
7. Repair the SD Card with First Aid
First aid is a streamlined tool that will troubleshoot and rectify all the errors on SD cards. The following are the instructions on how to use it to mount your SD card on your device.- Go to Utility > Disk Utility and select the SD card that failed to Mount Mac
- Click on the First Aid option and wait for the process to complete
- After the completion of this process, issues related to SD card errors will be fixed.

Steps to format SD card on Mac:
- Connect your SD card to Mac via a card reader.
- Open Finder > Applications folder.
- Double-click on Utilities.
- Launch Disk Utility.
- Select your SD card on the left panel and click Erase on top.
- In the dialog box, name the SD card. Select the Format of the file system. You can choose ExFat or some other format.
- Click Erase.
- Click Done once the formatting process completes.

How to recover data from an SD card that is not showing up on Mac?
- Download Remo Recover Mac.
- Connect the SD card to your Mac system.
- Click on Recover Volumes or Drives, then click on Volume Recovery.

- Click on the SD card and choose between Normal and Advanced Scan.

- Follow through the easy steps provided through the tool and you can get all your data on the SD card back in no time.
What To Do If the SD card not showing up in Disk Utility?
By default, all disks and volumes should be visible on the left sidebar in the Disk Utility window. However, if the settings are changed somehow, you won’t be able to see the SD card in Disk Utility. Follow the below-mentioned steps to make the SD card visible in Disk Utility.- Launch Disk Utility.
- Click on View at the top menu bar.
- Select Show All Devices.

- Check if your SD card shows up in Disk Utility.
Troubleshoot the Card Reader
Here are the instructions to check the status of the card reader or SD card adapter. Connect the SD card reader without the card in it to the system. Now access Apple System Profiler or ASP.- Click on the Apple menu > select the About This Mac option.

Frequently Asked Questions
Steps to easily fix unreadable or unrecognized SD cards on Mac: a. Connect your SD card to a different computer or device. b. Examine the USB port. c. Restart your Mac after disconnecting the SD card. d. Examine the drive's format. e. Disk Utility can be used to repair an unreadable SD card.
When your Mac refuses to recognize your SD card, the first thing you should do is figure out what's causing the problem by answering the following questions: Is your memory card reader up to the task? Is it possible to access the SD card from a different computer? Is there a problem with the SD card? Once you've identified the issue, you can fix it with one of the solutions outlined in this article.
To commence, the SD card must have a file system that macOS recognizes. FAT32 is the most secure option, but exFAT could be used if you do need to store files larger than 4 GB. Then you'll need a memory card reader that's compatible, preferably one developed exclusively for Mac computers.
If your SD card is not getting recognized by Macbook Air the following might the reasons: a. The SD card reader might not be working. b. The file system of the SD card is incompatible with the SD card. c. Data in the SD card might be corrupt. d. The SD card is physically damaged. e. There might be problems with macOS.