USB stick does not show up
I plugged in my USB drive and nothing happens. How do I get my files?
Written by The CommonFixes team · fact checked by CommonFixes review desk
Last updated
Short answer
Either the port is not delivering power, or the drive has no letter assigned to it, so it is present but invisible. The quickest thing to try first: try every other port — Front panel ports and unpowered hubs are the usual weak points. Plug straight into a port on the back of a desktop or directly into a laptop. Most people are done in about 10 minutes.
Full walkthrough below: 4 steps for Windows and Mac, rated easy.
Sounds like this
- •No new drive in File Explorer
- •Light on the stick is off
- •Works on another computer
Why it happens
Either the port is not delivering power, or the drive has no letter assigned to it, so it is present but invisible.
Work through these in order
0% done- 1
Try every other port
Front panel ports and unpowered hubs are the usual weak points. Plug straight into a port on the back of a desktop or directly into a laptop.
- 2
Look in Disk Management
Right click the Start button and choose Disk Management. If the drive appears there without a letter, right click it, choose Change Drive Letter and Paths, and assign one.
- 3
Use Disk Utility on a Mac
Open Disk Utility, click View and then Show All Devices. If the drive is listed but greyed out, select it and press Mount.
- 4
Do not format it yet
If you are offered a format prompt and the files matter, decline. Try recovery software such as Recuva or PhotoRec first, because formatting makes recovery much harder.
If none of that worked
If the drive is invisible on three different computers, the controller inside has failed. Only a data recovery service can help, and it is worth the cost only for irreplaceable files.
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Who wrote this and how we checked it
The CommonFixes team
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We are a small group of people who spend our days repairing laptops and desktops for family, friends and small offices. Every guide here starts with a problem someone actually brought to us, and we only write down the steps that put the machine right.
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- Windows and Mac
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CommonFixes review desk
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Before a guide goes live, a second person walks through it on a real machine and checks each instruction against the maker's own support pages. Anything we cannot confirm is removed rather than guessed at.
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This guide was last updated on 10 August 2026. If a step no longer matches what you see on screen, tell us on the contact page and we will test it again.
A gentle reminder: back up anything you cannot afford to lose before major repairs. If a step ever feels risky, stop and ask a technician. There is no shame in that.