How to Connect GoPro to Your Mac

This article explains the various ways you can transfer files from a GoPro camera to a Mac computer. Information in this article applies to Macs with macOS Catalina (10.15) through OS X Lion (10.7).

Transfer GoPro Files Using an SD Card

The easiest method of copying files from the GoPro to your Mac is to use an SD card. The caveat to this method is that you need to buy a micro SD card reader. If you have a Mac that has only USB-C ports, you need to purchase a micro SD card reader that can connect via USB-C.

Here's how this method works:

1. Open the bottom door on the GoPro to give you access to the SD card.

2. Pop out the SD card.

3. Insert the SD card into the slot on the reader.

4. Connect the SD card reader to your Mac.

5. Open the Finder.

6. Click Untitled in the left navigation pane. If the SD card has a name other than Untitled, click it.

7. Double-click the folder named DCIM and then double-click the folder named 101GOPRO.

8. Two-finger tap (or right-click if using a mouse) any file you want to copy. To select more than one file, click and hold the Command key while selecting the files you want to copy.

9. Two-finger tap one of the selected files and click Copy X Items, where X is the number of files selected.

10. In the Finder app, navigate to the location where you want to copy the files.

11. Two-finger tap (or right-click if using a mouse) and select Paste X Items, where X is the number of items to be pasted. The files are copied to the Mac.

12. Eject the SD card from the Mac before removing the reader.

Transfer GoPro Files Using Image Capture

The Mac operating system includes Image Capture, a piece of software that gives you access to the GoPro. You need a USB-C cable to connect the GoPro to the Mac. Here's how to make this happen:

1. Plug the USB-C cable into the USB-C port of the GoPro and then plug the cable into one of the Mac's USB-C ports.

2. Turn on the GoPro.

3. Open Image Capture by clicking on it in the Applications folder or by clicking the Launchpad app on the Dock, typing image into the search field, and then clicking Image Capture.

4. Click the name of your GoPro in the left navigation window.

5. Select the folder to house the imported files from the Import To drop-down menu and click Import All.

6. After the import is complete, close Image Capture and unplug the GoPro from the Mac.

Transfer GoPro Files With GoPro Quik

GoPro has its own solution called Quik. The free software is installed in the same way you install any app on the Mac—download the file and double-click to begin the installation process.

After it is installed, follow these steps to import the files from the GoPro:

1. Plug your GoPro camera into your Mac and turn on the camera.

2. Click the LaunchPad on the Dock.

3. Type quik and click the GoPro Quik launcher.

4. Log in with your GoPro account username and password.

5. Click Import Files and wait for the import to complete.

When the import is complete, you can find the files in the Movies folder, ready to be used. Close Quik and unplug the GoPro from the Mac.

Time to Make Magic

You now have the files copied from the GoPro camera to your Mac. Open those files in your editor of choice to make video magic.