We have deleted all the data off of our SD card. However, when we try to use the card in our action camera, it still says “card full”. How can we fix this problem?
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How did you delete the files? Using a Mac or PC? is using a mac, you have to empty your Trash while the drive/card is still connected. Otherwise if you don’t, only the ‘reference’ to the files will be deleted, not the actual files themselves.
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I believe that your files is not deleted properly. Connect your SD card to PC and then check, if files is there then delete it on PC.
If files are not there but it still shows “card is full but no files”, then follow the below-steps to fix it.
- Connect your card to PC via card reader.
- On PC click Start and type CMD in search bar and hit ENTER button.
- Command Prompt Window will get open. Now type the following command: attrib -h -r -s /s /d g:*.* and hit ENTER.
- Here you need to replace “g:” drive with your SD card drive letter name.
Once the process gets complete, go back to “This PC/My Computer” and open the SD card and you will all your files reappear.
Now delete the files from memory card on PC itself that you do not want to free up space.
Information Source: 6 Solutions To Fix SD Card Says It’s Full But It’s Not [2022]
Deleting data from Memory Card can be time taking as you need to make a backup of your data on your PC/Laptop so that anytime you can get back your files whenever needed. I too once had to delete data from the memory card as it got corrupted.
I tried a few steps that helped me in deleting data and it really worked. So I would like to share with you.
Try Diskpart In Command Prompt
- Press the Windows + R key
- Type cmd to open Command Prompt
- Now, type exe
- Type diskpart and Enter
- After that type command list disk and enter
- It displays a list of all the disks on the system
- Now, type Select disk # (replace # with disk number of your memory card that you see in the Disk Management option)
- Then, type clean and Enter
- Let the process to be complete
- A message will display DiskPart succeeded in cleaning the disk
- After this close the Command Prompt
Try this step by step. It will really work. If you want to know more methods on How to Delete data from Memory Card Completely then visit the blog.
Thank you!
Your advice worked.
I made an account on here just to say thank you to you haha.
I typed this issue into a google search bar and it brought me to you which fixed my problem without having to download any software.
Once again you are a hero. 
Interesting to see how issues can be fixed. Good to be on here.
Thank you so much. I too googled the question and found the response in the forum. I have a Mac and your response worked perfectly.
Thanks bro, you really helped me! i thought my camera’s SD card was broken because i am on mac but you helped so thanks a lot!! 
I too made an account just to thank you for the advice because it worked for me. I am using an older camera so I thought my camera was broken or that I needed to buy a new SD card. Thank you!!
There could be a few reasons why you encounter this problem:
Hidden Files or System Files: Sometimes, hidden files or system files can take up space on the SD card.
File System Overhead: File systems like FAT32, exFAT, or NTFS use some space on the disk for their own management purposes. Even if you delete all visible files, this space may still be allocated.
Formatting Issues: If the SD card was not properly formatted or has become corrupted, it may not accurately report its available space. In such cases, formatting the SD card properly may resolve the issue.
Faulty SD Card: In rare cases, the SD card itself might be faulty.
Check out this article to learn how to fix the “sd card full but no files” issue.
I’ve had this happen to me! And I’d say most Windows users have run into this nuisance when switching to a Mac computer - SD card says full but nothing on it! I’m used to deleting files from external drives, including USB drives and SD cards, on my Windows PCs, meaning permanent deletion, but when I switched to a Mac, most of the deletions were basically moving files to the Mac Trash! And of course files on the SD card. So to solve this problem, simply empty the Mac’s Trash Bin. Or you can format the SD card on your camera settings to make it show empty to work again.
SD cards <= 32GB use FAT32 and larger ones use exFAT
formatting a card will restore available space
If your action camera still says “card full” after deleting all files, here’s how to fix it:
Empty the Trash (Mac Users)
If you deleted files on a Mac but didn’t empty the Trash while the SD card was connected, those files are still there.
Format the Card in the Camera
Most action cameras have a built-in formatting option.
Or Format the Card Using a Computer
If the issue persists, formatting on a computer can help.
Windows:
Right-click the SD card in File Explorer → Click Format → Choose FAT32 or exFAT → Click Start.
Mac:
Open Disk Utility → Select the SD card → Click Erase → Choose MS-DOS (FAT) or exFAT → Click Erase.
Read this article to understand other solutions to fix the issue, sd card saying full when empty.
Scenario 1 – Files deleted from an SD card on Windows
If you’ve removed files from your SD card using a Windows computer but the storage still appears full, try these steps:
- Check for hidden files
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Open File Explorer and navigate to your SD card.
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Go to the View tab.
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In the Show/Hide section, tick the box next to Hidden items.
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This will display any hidden files that may be taking up space.
- Run the Error Checking tool
Use the built-in Error checking feature on Windows to scan and repair the SD card for problems.
- Recover invisible files with data recovery software
If the files still don’t appear, try using recovery tools to restore them.
- Reformat the SD card
If none of the above works, reformatting the SD card will reset it and free up all storage space.
Scenario 2 – Files deleted from an SD card on Mac
If you’re using a Mac and have deleted files but the SD card still shows as full, follow these steps:
- Empty the Trash
On Mac, deleted files from an SD card are first sent to the Trash. The storage space isn’t released until you empty the Trash. If your card looks full, this is often the reason.
- Use Disk Utility First Aid
If your SD card says it’s full when it’s not, there may be file system errors.
- Open Disk Utility and run First Aid to check and fix these issues.
Once repaired, the SD card should correctly reflect available storage.
If you want to learn more about why your SD card says it’s full when it’s actually empty, as well as other ways to fix the issue, this guide should be helpful: SD Card Says Full But Nothing on It on Mac & Windows
