How to create bootable Windows 11 USB with Command Prompt

UPDATED 3/5/2025: You can use Command Prompt with the DiskPart tool to create a Windows 11 USB bootable media, and in this guide, I’ll outline the steps to complete the process.

On Windows 11, you can create a USB bootable media with several tools, including the Media Creation Tool and popular third-party tools like Rufus and Ventoy. However, you can also use Command Prompt to create a USB to boot a computer to install Windows 11.

Similar to using third-party tools, you will need a USB bootable media with at least 8GB.

In this guide, I’ll teach you the steps to create a USB flash drive to boot a computer to install Windows 11. You can also use these instructions on Windows 10.

Create a Windows 11 bootable USB with Command Prompt

To create a Windows 11 USB flash drive, use these steps:

1. Open the Microsoft Support website.

   Quick note: If you already have the ISO file, you can skip to step 7.

2. Select the Windows 11 option under the “Download Windows 11 Disk Image (ISO) for x64 devices” section.

3. Click the Download button.

4. Select the installation language.

   

5. Click the Confirm button.

6. Click the 64-bit Download button to save the Windows 11 ISO file on the computer.

   

7. Open Start. 

8. Search for Command Prompt, right-click the top result, and select the Run as Administrator option.

9. Type the following command to open Diskpart and press Enter:

   diskpart

10. Type the following command to determine the USB flash drive and press Enter:

    list disk

11. Type the following command to select the storage and press Enter:

    select disk 1

    Quick tip: The select disk 1 command as an example, but you have to replace 1 with the flash drive you want to use.

12. Type the following commands to delete everything from the USB flash drive and press Enter:

    clean

    

13. Type the following command to create a primary partition and press Enter:

    create partition primary

14. Type the following command to select the new partition and press Enter:

    select partition 1

15. Type the following command to make the USB flash drive bootable and press Enter:

    format FS=NTFS quick

16. Type the following command to assign a volume and a drive letter for the USB flash drive and press Enter:

    assign letter=X

    

    Change X for any available letter you want to use in the command.

17. Type the following command to quit the tool and press Enter:

    exit

18. Type the following command to mount the Windows 11 ISO file and press Enter:

    PowerShell Mount-DiskImage -ImagePath "C:\path\to\Windows11.iso"

    

    In the command, update the path with the location where you have stored the Windows 11 ISO file.

19. Type the following command to relaunch Diskpart and press Enter:

    diskpart

20. Type the following command to determine the drive letter for the mounted Windows 11 ISO file and press Enter:

    list volume

21. Type the following command to exit Diskpart and press Enter:

    exit

22. Type the following command to access the ISO file and press Enter:

    E:

23. Type the following command to open the “boot” folder and press Enter: 

    cd boot

24. Type the following command to update the volume boot code for the USB flash drive and press Enter:

    bootsect /nt60 X:

25. Type the following command to open the root of the mounted drive and press Enter:

    cd..

26. Type the following command to copy all the Windows 11 2024 Update installation files to the USB flash drive and press Enter:

    xcopy E:*.* X: /E /F /H

    

    In the command, change the “E” and “X” letters with the correct drive letters for the ISO image file and the USB flash drive, respectively.

Once you complete the steps, you can use the flash drive to start the computer and perform a fresh installation of Windows 11.

Update March 5, 2025: This guide has been updated to ensure accuracy and reflect changes to the process.