Creating a Windows 11 Install USB on MacOS (Updated)

Why you need this article

If you’re a Mac user looking to install Microsoft Windows 11 on your computer, or your only backup system is a Mac, you’ll need a bootable Windows 11 USB drive. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the process of creating a Windows 11 install USB using only Microsoft and Apple-supplied tools and software utilities.

Requirements

1. A Mac computer running macOS (compatible with Boot Camp).
2. A Windows 11 ISO file, which you can download from the official Microsoft website.
3. A USB flash drive with at least 8 GB of storage capacity.
4. A stable internet connection.

Instructions

1. Download the Windows 11 ISO:

• Open your web browser on your Mac.
• Go to the official Microsoft website and navigate to the Windows 11 download page.
• Follow the prompts to download the Windows 11 ISO file. Make sure to select the correct edition and language.

2. Prepare the USB Flash Drive:

• Insert your USB flash drive into an available USB port on your Mac.
• Launch the Disk Utility tool. You can find it by searching for “Disk Utility” using Spotlight or by navigating to “Applications” > “Utilities” > “Disk Utility.”

3. Format the USB Drive:

• In Disk Utility, select your USB drive from the list of drives and click the “Erase” button in the top toolbar.
• Choose a name for your USB drive (e.g., “Windows 11 Install”) and select ExFAT as the format.
• Click the “Erase” button to format the drive. This will erase all existing data on the USB drive.

4. Get the Windows 11 ISO Path (Important Update):

• Note: Mounting the ISO is generally an unnecessary step and can cause “resource busy” errors later.
• Locate the downloaded Windows 11 ISO file on your Mac (usually in the “Downloads” folder).
• Right-click on the ISO file, hold down the “Option” key, and select “Copy [Filename] as Pathname”. You will use this exact absolute path in Step 7.

5. Use Terminal to Find Your USB Drive:

• Open the Terminal application. You can find it in “Applications” > “Utilities” > “Terminal.”
• In Terminal, type the following command to identify the USB drive’s device name: diskutil list
• Look for your USB drive in the list. It should be labeled something like /dev/diskX where X is a number (e.g., /dev/disk2).

6. Unmount the USB Drive:

• Before writing to the disk, you must unmount it to prevent a “resource busy” error. In Terminal, run the following command (replace /dev/diskX with your specific drive identifier): sudo diskutil unmountDisk /dev/diskX
• If you accidentally mounted the Windows 11 ISO earlier, be sure to unmount that as well.

7. Copy the Windows 11 ISO to the USB Drive:

• In Terminal, use the dd command to copy the file. Replace /path/to/windows11.iso by pasting the path you copied in Step 4, and replace /dev/diskX with your USB drive’s identifier.
• Added Tip: Add status=progress to the end of the command so you aren’t left guessing if the terminal froze while it transfers! sudo dd if=/path/to/windows11.iso of=/dev/diskX bs=1m status=progress
• Warning: Be very careful when using the “dd” command, as it can erase data on your hard drive if you input the wrong disk number. Double-check the device name to ensure you’re writing to the correct drive.
• You will be prompted to enter your Mac’s administrator password because of the sudo command. When typing your password, the characters will remain hidden.

8. Wait for Completion:

• Wait for the dd command to complete. This may take some time depending on your USB drive’s speed. You can watch the transfer speed and bytes copied thanks to the progress flag.
• Once finished, Terminal will display a final message indicating the number of records in/out and bytes copied.

9. Eject the USB Drive:

• After the command completes successfully, safely eject the USB drive using the following command: diskutil eject /dev/diskX

Conclusion

Congratulations! You’ve successfully created a bootable Windows 11 install USB drive using only Microsoft and Apple-supplied tools and utilities. You can now use this USB drive to install Windows 11 on your Mac using Boot Camp or on a PC.