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NTFS-3G macOS Sonoma/Ventura: Read Write NTFS in macOS?

Updated on Wednesday, January 3, 2024

iBoysoft author Vain Rowe

Written by

Vain Rowe
Professional tech editor

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Jessica Shee

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NTFS-3G macOS: How to Read/Write NTFS in macOS for Free?

Summary: Want to have full read-write access to your Microsoft NTFS-formatted drives for free on macOS Ventura/Monterey/Big Sur? This post from iBoysoft will introduce to you a free NTFS for Mac called NTFS-3G and the best NTFS-3G Mac alternative -- iBoysoft NTFS for Mac.

NTFS 3G

The NTFS file system is the default file system of Windows. For Apple Macs, however, it's only able to read NTFS drives, so you will find your Mac external hard drive read-only. Luckily, we have a handful of NTFS for Mac free software that enables us to read and write NTFS without any hassles.

Being one of them, NTFS-3G macOS is totally free. However, the NTFS-3G Mac cannot run on macOS Sonoma/Ventura/Monterey/Big Sur. Let me put it simply, you can only read NTFS drive on Mac but cannot write to NTFS drive in macOS Ventura/Monterey/Big Sur by applying the NTFS 3G Mac freeware.

Table of Contents:

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Does free NTFS-3G support macOS Sonoma/Ventura/Monterey/Big Sur?

No. NTFS-3G is an open-source and cross-platform NTFS driver. But for macOS, it's only compatible with macOS 10.12 Sierra and earlier.

The possible reason originates from its developer - Tuxera, the same maker of the well-known Tuxera NTFS for Mac. The developer has put most of their time and effort into the paid edition, so it's very likely that they won't continue to upgrade NTFS-3G for macOS Catalina or later versions of macOS.

But both of the two NTFS for Mac not working on macOS Sonoma up till now.

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Is there any NTFS-3G for macOS Sonoma/Ventura/Monterey/Big Sur alternatives?

Fortunately, there's free software as an alternative to NTFS-3G - Mounty. In addition, some paid NTFS for Mac also support the latest macOS Sonoma, macOS Ventura, macOS Monterey, and macOS Big Sur.

iBoysoft NTFS for Mac is now able to support NTFS for macOS Ventura to macOS High Sierra. It is an effective NTFS for Mac tool that allows you to mount, unmount, read and write NTFS on Mac. 

This NTFS for Mac Sonoma/Ventura/Monterey/Big Sur software can not only mount NTFS volumes in read-write mode automatically, but also has a lot more useful NTFS for Mac solutions such as unmounting, ejecting, repairing, or erasing NTFS volumes.

Moreover, any external drives including SD cardsexternal hard drivesUSB flash drives, etc. formatted with other file systems (except for APFS) can be reformatted to NTFS on Mac with iBoysoft NTFS for Mac.

Best NTFS for Mac - iBoysoft NTFS for Mac

  • Read and write NTFS volumes on Mac
  • Mount and unmount NTFS volumes
  • Repair NTFS file system errors
  • Erase data on NTFS disks
  • List and open all attached external drives
  • Reformat other file systems to NTFS
  • Support macOS 14/13/12/11/10.15/10.14/10.13
  • Compatible with Apple Silicon M1 and M2 Mac

 Read-only & risk-free

 

How to write to NTFS drive on Mac with iBoysoft NTFS for Mac?

Step 1: Download and install iBoysoft NTFS for Mac on your Mac.

Step 2: Launch iBoysoft NTFS for Mac and insert the external Windows NTFS volume on Mac.

Write to NTFS drives in macOS Monterey with iBoysoft NTFS for Mac

Step 3: Write to the external Windows NTFS volume after getting a notification that the drive has been mounted in read-write mode successfully.

If this software solves your problem, share it with more people!

 

Bonus tips: What to do if NTFS-3G is unavailable for macOS 14/13/12/11?

Puzzled by the NTFS 3G Mac software cannot write on macOS 14 Sonoma, macOS 13 Ventura, macOS 12 Monterey and 11 Big Sur scenario? Don't worry, you can view the bonus tips to gain read-write support on your macOS Ventura, macOS Monterey, or macOS Big Sur Mac for money-free.

Method 1: Reformat NTFS to exFAT.

Steps on how to format NTFS on Mac are necessary here. exFAT works perfectly as a means to read, write and transfer files between Windows and Mac. But before reformatting, please make a backup of your data on the NTFS drive to avoid data loss. 

If unfortunately, the data loss happened to you. Be easy, you can also recover lost data from formatted hard drives with iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac

Method 2: Use Apple's Terminal

  1. Plug an NTFS drive into your Mac.
  2. Go to Applications > Utilities > Terminal.
  3. Type the following command line in your Terminal app, and enter your admin account password when prompted.sudo nano /etc/fstab
  4. Type the command line below, please replace the DISKNAME with your drive name, and then press Enter.LABEL=DISKNAME none ntfs rw,auto,nobrowse
  5. Press ctrl+o to write the information to the file, then press Enter to save.
  6. Press ctrl+C and ctrl+x to exit the editor window.
  7. Eject the NTFS drive and then reconnect it.
  8. Go to the Finder menu, type /volumes, and press Enter, then you can drag and drop the NTFS drive to the sidebar where you can access it easier.

Although the command line grants you full write support to the NTFS drive on macOS Ventura, macOS Monterey, or Big Sur, note that it can easily cause your Mac damage and data loss if you make tiny mistakes. Therefore, you'd better take advantage of a safer and more stable way.

Final thoughts

Indeed, NTFS-3G exactly allows you to write and modify your NTFS formatted hard drive on Mac for free. However, it fails to offer you write and edit support if you're running macOS Big Sur or any later macOS version.

Don't worry, iBoysoft provides you with a wonderful NTFS for Mac Sonoma/Ventura/Monterey/Big Sur toolset -- iBoysoft NTFS for Mac. It can work as a perfect NTFS-3G Mac M1 replacement software to write to any NTFS drive.

Let more people know about this useful tutorial ASAP!

 

FAQ about NTFS-3G macOS

A

NTFS 3G is supported by some macOS versions. If you're running macOS 10.12 Sierra to macOS 10.15 Catalina, NTFS 3G enables you to gain full write and edit support to your NTFS hard drive. But if you're applying other macOS versions, there is no possibility to write and modify your NTFS drive with NTFS 3G. You can run iBoysoft NTFS for Mac alternatively.

A

Yes, absolutely you can use NTFS 3G on your Mac. You can download the NTFS 3G for Mac on GitHub access first (https://github.com/tuxera/ntfs-3g), install it on your device, and then you can use it on your Mac.

A

To be honest, NTFS 3G stops offering assistance for macOS Big Sur and any later macOS versions. Hence, you cannot write to your NTFS drive even if you install NTFS 3G for Mac on your device. You're recommended to apply iBoysoft NTFS for Mac software, which allows you to gain full write and modify support on your macOS Sonoma, macOS Ventura and macOS Monterey.