Software & Apps > Apps 430 430 people found this article helpful 10 Best Free Disk Partition Software Tools Free partition manager programs for Windows that let you shrink, expand, combine, and split partitions By Tim Fisher Tim Fisher Facebook Twitter Senior Vice President & Group General Manager, Tech & Sustainability Emporia State University Tim Fisher has more than 30 years' of professional technology experience. He's been writing about tech for more than two decades and serves as the SVP and General Manager of Lifewire. lifewire's editorial guidelines Updated on March 2, 2023 Tweet Share Email Tweet Share Email Apps Best Apps Payment Services Partition management software programs let you create, delete, shrink, expand, split, or merge partitions on your hard drives or other storage devices. You can certainly partition a hard drive in Windows without extra software, but you won't be able to do things like resize them or combine them without some extra help. Safe, easy-to-use partition tools weren't always available, and even when you did find something you liked, it was expensive. These days, there are plenty of completely free programs that can do the job that even the novice tinkerer will love. Whether you're expanding your Windows system partition, shrinking it to make room for an operating system dual-boot setup, or combining your two media partitions for those new UHD movie rips, these free tools will surely come in handy. 01 of 10 MiniTool Partition Wizard Free What We Like Supports lots of common disk partitioning tasks Lets you extend the system partition without having to restart Simulates changes before you save them The program is really easy to use Works well in all modern versions of Windows What We Don't Like Dealing with dynamic disks is not supported Some features that look free are only available if you purchase the program Attempts to add another program to your computer during setup Our Review of MiniTool Partition Wizard MiniTool Partition Wizard includes more partition management tools than most similar programs, even ones you might pay for. Not only does the free version support regular functions like formatting, deleting, moving, resizing, splitting, merging, and copying partitions, but it also can check the file system for errors, run a surface test, wipe partitions with various data sanitization methods, and align partitions. In addition to the above, MiniTool Partition Wizard is able to move the operating system to a different hard drive, as well as recover lost or deleted partitions. There's also a file recovery program, disk space analyzer, and benchmark tool built-in. One thing we don't like is that it doesn't support manipulating dynamic disks. Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, Vista, and XP are the confirmed supported operating systems. Download MiniTool Partition Wizard 02 of 10 AOMEI Partition Assistant SE What We Like Includes an easy-to-use, step-by-step wizard Changes you make are queued and not applied until you specifically apply all of them at once Lots of useful features are included Many of the options are readily available without having to sift through menus Can run from a bootable program to work with a hard drive that doesn't have an OS installed What We Don't Like Some features are only available if you pay for them Unable to convert between primary partitions and logical partitions Can't convert dynamic disks to basic disks Our Review of AOMEI Partition Assistant Standard Edition AOMEI Partition Assistant Standard Edition has a lot more options that are out in the open (as well as hidden away in menus) than many other free partition software tools, but don't let that scare you away. You can resize, merge, create, format, align, split, and recover partitions with this program, as well as copy whole disks and partitions. Some of the partition management features are limited and offered only in their paid, professional version. One such feature is the ability to convert between primary and logical partitions. You can also use AOMEI's tool to create a bootable Windows flash drive, move an operating system to an entirely different hard drive, and wipe all the data from a partition or drive. If you want extra features like dynamic to basic disk conversions, you have to pay. This program can be used in Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, Vista, and XP. Download AOMEI Partition Assistant Standard Edition 03 of 10 EaseUS Partition Master Free Edition What We Like Easy to understand with lots of useful options Makes it easy to upgrade the system drive to a larger HDD Several helpful options and functions Changes are previewed before they're applied The program updates often with improvements and new features Can convert to MBR and GPT What We Don't Like Doesn't work for commercial use; only personal No support for managing dynamic volumes Features like disk cloning and migrating aren't free Shows an ad every time you close the program Your email address is required to get the download Our Review of EaseUS Partition Master Managing the size of a partition in EaseUS Partition Master is dead simple thanks to their easy-to-use slider that lets you drag left and right to shrink or expand a partition. Changes you apply to a partition with this program aren't actually applied in real-time. Modifications exist only virtually, which means you're only seeing a preview of what will happen if you save the changes, but nothing is actually set in stone yet. Changes don't take effect until you click the Execute button. We particularly like this feature so things like expanding and copying partitions can be done in one swipe instead of having to reboot between each operation, thus saving tons of time. The list of pending operations is even shown on the side of the program so you can clearly see what will happen when you apply them. You can also password protect EaseUS Partition Master, hide partitions, upgrade the system drive to a larger bootable drive, merge partitions, defragment a drive, and copy Windows to a different hard drive. One thing we don't like about this program is that several features are only available in the full, paid version, but are still clickable. This means you might sometimes try to open something in the free version only to be prompted to buy the professional one. It works with Windows 11, 10, 8, and 7. Download EaseUS Partition Master 04 of 10 GParted What We Like Works no matter what operating system is installed (or even if there isn't one) Every change can be applied nearly instantly without a reboot Lets you hide partitions Adjusting the size of a partition is really easy Supports lots of file systems What We Don't Like Takes longer to start up because you have to boot to the software Partitions are easy to miss because they're hidden in a menu Takes much longer to download than most disk partitioning programs No redo option (just an undo) Our Review of GParted GParted runs entirely from a bootable disc or USB device, but it still has a full user interface like a regular program, so it's not at all difficult to use. Editing a partition's size is easy because you can choose the exact size of the free space before and after the partition, using either a regular text box or a sliding bar to visually see the size increase or decrease. A partition can be formatted in any one of several file system formats, some of which include EXT2/3/4, NTFS, FAT16/32, and XFS. Changes GParted makes to disks are queued up and then applied with one click. Because it runs outside the operating system, pending changes don't require a reboot, which means you can get things done that much quicker. A small but particularly annoying issue is that it doesn't list all the available partitions on one screen like most other free disk partitioning programs. You have to open each disk separately from a drop-down menu, which is actually easy to miss if you're not sure where to look. This download takes up a few hundred megabytes of space, much larger than most of the other programs on our list, so it may take some time to download. Download GParted 05 of 10 Active@ Partition Manager What We Like It's really easy to use and understand Some changes you make can be restored from a backup Many common disk partitioning tasks are supported What We Don't Like Can't copy partitions Extending the system partition might not work for you Won't downsize locked volumes Active@ Partition Manager can create new partitions out of unallocated space as well as manage existing partitions, like resizing and formatting them. Simple wizards make it easy to walk through some of these tasks. No matter what kind of file system you're using, this tool should be able to handle it, with support for all the common ones, like FAT, HFS+, NTFS, and EXT2/3/4. There are other features, too, like imaging a whole drive for backup purposes, converting between MBR and GPT, creating FAT32 partitions as large as 1 TB, editing boot records, and rolling back changes by auto-backing up partition layouts. When Active@ Partition Manager resizes a partition, you can define the custom size in either megabytes or sectors. Unfortunately, it can't resize locked volumes, which means it won't let you change the size of the system volume. This program should work just fine with Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, Vista, and XP, as well as Windows Server 2012, 2008, and 2003. Download Active@ Partition Manager This software is also able to enlarge the system partition, but in our testing, we find that it always results in a BSOD. 06 of 10 Macrorit Partition Expert What We Like Program interface makes it easy to use and understand what you're doing Supports common and advanced features Queues changes until you apply them all at once Everything you're able to do is shown outright; no hidden menu options There's a portable option What We Don't Like Doesn't support dynamic disks Free for personal use only Can't manipulate disks bigger than 32 TB We love Macrorit Partition Expert's user interface because it's super clean and uncluttered, making it very easy to use. All the available operations are listed out on the side, and none of them are hidden away in menus. Some actions you can perform to a disk include resize, move, delete, copy, format, and wipe a volume, as well as change the volume's label, convert between a primary and logical volume, and run a surface test. Like most of the partition management software in this list, Macrorit's program doesn't actually make any changes to the partitions until you apply them with the Commit button. One thing we don't like is that it doesn't support dynamic disks. This program can run on Windows 11, 10, and older versions of Windows. A portable edition is also available. Download Macrorit Partition Expert 07 of 10 Cute Partition Manager What We Like Runs on any computer, with or without an OS It's easy to delete and create partitions Can format a drive to one of many file systems The download size is really small What We Don't Like No graphical user interface Takes a while to start using because you have to boot to the software Must enter the exact size of the partition you want to make Doesn't save changes automatically No option to restart or exit the program No longer updates Like GParted, Cute Partition Manager doesn't run from within the OS. Instead, you must install it to a bootable device like a disc or a flash drive. This means you can use it even if you don't have an operating system installed at all. This program can be used to change the file system of a disk and create or delete partitions. Any changes you make are queued up and can be undone because they are only applied when you save them. Cute Partition Manager is completely text-based. This means you can't use your mouse to select the different options — it's all done with the keyboard. Don't let this scare you off, though; there aren't that many menus, and so it's not really a problem. Download Cute Partition Manager 08 of 10 Paragon Partition Manager What We Like Supports plenty of basic features Walks you through a step-by-step wizard Previews changes before committing to them Supports common file systems What We Don't Like Missing features found in most disk partitioning tools Not every feature is free to use; some require you to upgrade to the pro version Not free for business usage; just personal If walking through wizards helps you feel more comfortable making changes to partitions, then you'll like Paragon Partition Manager. Whether you're creating a new partition or resizing, deleting, or formatting an existing one, this program has you move through a step-by-step process to do it. Common file systems like NTFS, FAT32, and HFS are supported. Unfortunately, a number of additional features are disabled, available only in the pro version. The supported operating systems include Windows 11, 10, 8, and 7. Download Paragon Partition Manager 09 of 10 IM-Magic Partition Resizer What We Like Quick install Lots of options Accessing all the options from anywhere is easy Shows a preview of what will happen after you save the changes What We Don't Like Some features only work if you upgrade to the paid version Free for home/personal use only IM-Magic Partition Resizer works very much like the tools mentioned above. It installs quickly and is super simple to use. With this tool, you can move partitions, resize partitions (even the active one), copy partitions, as well as change the drive letter and label, check the partition for errors, delete and format partitions (even with a custom cluster size), convert NTFS to FAT32, hide partitions, and wipe all that data off of partitions. All of those actions are extremely easy to find because you just have to right-click the device you want to manipulate. As you perform these actions, you'll see the program update in real time to reflect them so that you can see how it will look when everything has been applied. Then, when you're happy with the results, use the big Apply Changes button to put everything into action. If you have to reboot for anything to take effect, IM-Magic Partition Resizer will tell you so. You can also view the properties of any drive, to see its NT object name, GUID, file system, sector size, cluster size, partition number, physical sector number, total number of hidden sectors, and more. The only downfall we can see with this program is that a few of the features require that you upgrade to a paid edition. For example, you can't make the bootable media program that they support unless you pay for it. The official list of operating systems that you can install this software to is Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, Vista, XP, and 2000. Download IM-Magic Partition Resizer 10 of 10 NIUBI Partition Editor Free Edition What We Like Queues up all the changes and applies them at the same time Convert MBR to GPT without data loss Convert between logical and primary partitions without data loss Convert NTFS partitions to FAT32 without data loss What We Don't Like Bootable Media Builder works only in the paid edition Isn't free for commercial use NIUBI's partitioning tool is extremely capable, despite it being the free version. Like most of the programs from this list, you can manipulate partitions in several ways. There's an OS migration wizard and clone disk wizard, so if you need to do those things, it'll walk you through the whole process of choosing the source and destination locations. Over 10 operations are listed off the left of the program for easy access. These let you do things like resize/move the volume, merge two volumes, delete or format a volume, repair the file system, run a surface test, and more. This program runs on Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, Vista, and XP. Download NIUBI Partition Editor Free Edition How to Wipe a Hard Drive Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day Subscribe Tell us why! Other Not enough details Hard to understand Submit