Formatting your USB drive is an efficient way to erase all your data, freeing the drive to be used elsewhere. While this is the most common reason people format a USB drive, other use cases exist.
If you're trying to use the same USB drive between macOS and Windows, formatting it can be easy to ensure the file system is compatible with both operating systems before you start using the drive. Formatting a USB drive can also improve performance, remove pesky viruses, and allow you to customize security settings.
