Encountered the ‘MacOS Can’t Repair the Disk’ Error? Here’s What You Should Do

So, Disk Utility says “macOS can’t repair the disk”? Isn’t that what it’s supposed to do? Disk Utility typically handles common disk issues without trouble, but sometimes, it hits a wall. While this message can sound severe, it doesn’t necessarily mean physical damage. Most of the time, it’s just file system corruption or a software conflict, issues we’ve seen (and fixed) many times. We’ll show you exactly what you can do with a few clear steps.

Check Your Drive and Secure Your Data

The ‘macOS can’t repair the disk’ error message is often accompanied by: “You can still view and copy files but can’t save anything on the disk anymore. Please format the disk as soon as possible.” Given this warning, no matter the core cause of the issue, it would be smart to make securing your data your first step. If you can access your files without issues, simply copy and paste them to a different storage device, like an external drive or cloud backup.

We’ll go through repair methods that don’t require drastic steps like formatting (which erases all data), but we’ll also cover formatting as a last resort if those options don’t work. So it’s a good idea to back up everything first. Remember: at this stage, you don’t know the real condition of the drive or how bad the issue is, and the longer you wait, the more you risk losing your data.

In cases where you can’t access or copy files normally—if the drive throws an error when you try to copy or access files, or it refuses to mount in Disk Utility—you’ll need data recovery software. Our team has tested plenty of data recovery tools, and for this job, we’d go with Disk Drill. Here’s why it’s the best choice here:

• Disk Drill works with various file systems, including APFS, HFS+, FAT32, and exFAT, so it’s ready for whatever type of disk you have.
• Disk Drill includes S.M.A.R.T. monitoring, which checks the drive’s health in real-time. This feature helps you quickly see if the problem might be more serious.
• It offers a Byte-to-Byte Backup feature that creates a complete image of your drive, which makes it possible to recover data from an exact copy. This reduces further wear on the damaged drive.
• The interface is straightforward and the tool walks you through each step, so no extra tech skills needed.
• It offers high recovery rates, even with heavily corrupted or partially readable disks.

To get started with Disk Drill, make sure you download it from the official website—only the official one. Avoid third-party download sites since they can put your data at risk and might not have the latest, safest version.

Disk Drill comes in three versions:

• Basic (Free): Lets you scan your drive and preview files you can recover.
• PRO: Unlocks full recovery features and extra tools for data retrieval.
• Enterprise: Built for professional or multi-user setups with advanced options.

Once Disk Drill is installed, use its S.M.A.R.T. monitoring feature to check your drive’s health. Open Disk Drill, then go to the S.M.A.R.T. status section to see your drive’s health indicators.

If Disk Drill shows green “Good” or “OK” statuses, that’s a good sign. It means the drive itself is fine, so the issue likely involves the file system or macOS rather than physical damage. Once we fix the “disk utility can’t repair disk” problem, you should be able to move your data back and keep using the drive.

However, if Disk Drill shows warnings or errors, it’s a sign the drive has deeper issues. We would not recommend using it after you recover your data and even after you fix the issue, it’s probably time to consider a replacement. If, of course, you care about the safety of the data that will be stored on this disk. Let’s get to rescuing your data now.

Step 1: Create Byte-to-Byte Backup

Let’s get back to recovery. If S.M.A.R.T. shows issues with your drive, you can still pull data off it, but we’d recommend using Disk Drill’s Byte-to-Byte Backup feature. This tool copies everything on the drive—even from damaged areas—so you can recover files without putting more strain on the failing disk and risking irreversible data loss.

Here’s how to do it:

1. Open Disk Drill and choose Byte-to-Byte Backup from the left sidebar.
2. Select the drive with issues from the list of available devices.
3. Pick a safe location on another drive to store your backup file. Make sure you’ve got enough space for a full copy of the damaged drive.
4. Hit Create Backup to start the process.
5. Disk Drill will create a complete backup image of your drive. When it’s finished, you’ll see the backup file in the location you chose.

Step 2: Recover Data From Disk that Cannot Be Repaired on Mac

Once you’ve created a backup image of your drive, you can recover data directly from this disk image. This approach is safer since it doesn’t involve further interactions with the unstable drive.

Here’s how to recover data from the backup image using Disk Drill:

1. Open Disk Drill and go to the Data Recovery section.
2. Select Attach disk image… at the bottom of the window. This will let you load the backup image you just created.
3. Locate and select the backup image file, then click Open to attach it as a virtual disk.
4. Once the image loads, select it from the list of devices and click Search for lost data.
5. While Disk Drill scans for data, you can click Review found items anytime to see what’s already been found. You’ll see files organized into categories like:
   • Existing files (files currently accessible on the drive).
   • Deleted or lost (files that were deleted or lost due to errors but are still recoverable).
   • Reconstructed (files recovered from raw data that may not have full file names or structures but are still usable).
6. Select the files you want to recover. If you need everything, check the box at the top to select all items.
7. Click Recover and choose a safe location on a different drive to save the recovered files. You’ll need the PRO version to recover them.

Now that you’ve copied your files from the drive or recovered them with Disk Drill (whether directly or from a disk image), your data is secure and off the problem drive. With everything backed up, we can go ahead and try a few fixes to get your drive back to work.

Solution 1: Use Disk Utility in Recovery Mode

When Disk Utility can’t repair your disk in standard macOS mode, try Recovery Mode. We’ve seen this approach work many times, with the drive fully repaired in Recovery Mode without the need for formatting. Disk Utility often manages to fix issues here that it couldn’t handle in standard mode (this mode lets Disk Utility work without interference from background macOS processes). This method works for both external and internal drives.

Here’s how to access Disk Utility in Recovery Mode:

1. Shut down your Mac.
2. Follow these steps based on your Mac model:
   • Apple Silicon (M1 and M2 Macs): Hold down the power button until you see “Loading startup options.” Select Options, then click Continue to enter Recovery Mode.
   • Intel-based Macs: Turn on your Mac and immediately hold Command (⌘) + R until the Apple logo or spinning globe shows up.
3. When the macOS Utilities screen appears, select Disk Utility and click Continue.
4. In Disk Utility, locate your drive on the left side of the window.
5. Click First Aid at the top, then click Run when prompted. Disk Utility will scan the drive for errors and try to repair them.
6. If Disk Utility repairs the drive, restart your Mac normally, and check if the drive is accessible.
7. If Disk Utility still can’t repair the disk, you may need to try other options, like using Terminal commands or, as a last resort, formatting the drive.

If that didn’t work, let’s try one more thing before we resort to formatting.

Solution 2: Use the FSCK Command in Single-User Mode

If Disk Utility in Recovery Mode couldn’t repair your drive, the FSCK (File System Consistency Check) command in Single-User Mode might help. FSCK is a command-line tool that checks and repairs file system issues.

Here’s how to use FSCK in Single-User Mode:

1. Shut down your Mac.
2. Boot into Single-User Mode (Intel-based Macs). Turn on your Mac and immediately hold Command (⌘) + S until you see a black screen with white text (command-line interface).
3. For Apple Silicon Macs Single-User Mode isn’t directly available. Instead, start in Recovery Mode (hold the power button on startup), go to Utilities > Terminal, and use the FSCK command there.
4. In the command line, type: /sbin/fsck -fy
5. Press Return to run the command. FSCK will scan the drive for errors and attempt repairs.
6. When FSCK completes, check the output. If you see “File system was modified,” repeat the command until you get “The volume appears to be OK.” If FSCK can’t fix the issue, it may indicate a more severe problem.
7. Once complete, type: reboot
8. Press Return to restart your Mac normally.

Solution 3: Reformat the Drive

If Disk Utility can’t repair the disk in Recovery Mode and the FSCK command didn’t work in Single-User Mode, reformatting may be your only option left. This step will erase all data on the drive, but since we backed up your data, you’re clear to move forward with it. From our experience, if the issue isn’t physical and the S.M.A.R.T. status shows “OK,” reformatting should fix everything. You shouldn’t see the “disk utility can’t repair this disk” message on your Mac after this, and the drive should work normally again.

Here’s how to reformat the disk if it cannot be repaired on Mac:

1. Open Disk Utility (you can do this in standard macOS or Recovery Mode if needed).
2. Select your drive from the list on the left.
3. Click Erase at the top of the window.
4. In the dialog, give the drive a name, choose the format (typically APFS, Mac OS Extended or ExFAT), and click Erase.
5. Once Disk Utility finishes the process, check if the drive is now accessible.

Solution 4: Reinstall macOS (For System Drives)

If you have the rare case where you see the “macOS can’t repair the disk” message on your internal (system) drive, you can’t simply reformat your system drive in macOS. Instead, you’ll need to enter Recovery Mode, erase your system drive, and then reinstall macOS. This process refreshes the OS and often fixes deeper file system or software issues that affect your main drive.

Here’s how to do it:

1. Restart your Mac and enter Recovery Mode.
2. Once in Recovery Mode, open Disk Utility from the macOS Utilities menu.
3. Select your system drive from the list on the left, then click Erase. Choose the appropriate format (usually APFS for newer macOS versions) and confirm to erase the drive.
4. After formatting the drive, go back to the macOS Utilities screen and select Reinstall macOS. Follow the steps to download and install a fresh version of macOS.
5. Allow the installation to complete. The installation typically takes 20 to 30 minutes. Do not interrupt the process to avoid potential issues.
6. Your Mac may restart several times during this process, which is normal. Once it finishes, your system should boot up with a clean installation of macOS.

What to Do if the Disk Cannot Be Repaired on Mac?

By our estimates, in about 8 out of 10 cases where you see the “disk utility can’t repair this disk” message on Mac, the methods we covered above can restore the drive to a fully functional state. Sometimes, though, the drive might be on its last legs. But even then, it’s often possible to retrieve files from it before it fails, with recovery software like Disk Drill.

If you’re not comfortable with DIY methods, or if the data is too important to risk, a professional data recovery service can help. These services have tools and skills that go beyond what home-level software can do. Be careful, though—avoid services that charge “per gigabyte of recovered data” since recovery is a complex process that doesn’t really work that way.

Look for reliable providers with a “no data, no charge” policy, so you only pay if they actually recover your files.