How to Copy a DVD on a Mac with 3 Best Ways (2023)

Lafanda
02/06/2023

DVD Copy

You may have known how to copy DVD on Windows 10 or other Windows system versions as they provides some handy tools like Windows DVD Maker. However, for Mac users, when it refers to how to copy a DVD on Mac, it seems there isn't a tool called Mac DVD Maker. Actually, no! In this blog, we have collected several easy ways to help you make copy of DVD on Mac without hassle, including both encrypted and protection-free discs. Now, grasp and compare them to select the best method to try.

How to Copy a DVD on Mac with the Best DVD Copy Software (for Protected DVDs)

Today, most DVDs would be encrypted with protections to prevent DVD content from being abused illegally, especially those sold on the market. Hence, the first method introduced here would mainly guide you to copy protected DVDs to Mac. To process it, a professional DVD copying software, VideoByte DVD Copy can bring the help.

VideoByte DVD Copy is well compatible with DVDs of all types, thus allows you to copy both protected and homemade DVDs on Mac/Windows with original output quality at 1:1 ratio guaranteed. Despite this, VideoByte DVD Copy is also equipped with the built-in compression method to maintain a good balance to copy DVD Mac, keeping nice image effects while duplicating DVDs on Mac but saving a lot of storage for your computers at the same time.

Overall Features of VideoByte DVD Copy:

Retain the 1:1 original quality to copy both protected and homemade DVDs.
It is able to rewrite the DVD content to a black disc of popular disc types such as DVD-5, DVD-9, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+RW, DVD+R DL, DVD-R DL and DVD-RAM.
Pre-check the disc label, chapters, etc. before copying and well preserve them for you.
Offer 3 copy modes to best customize the DVD copy content in personal preferences.
Save your time by setting the DVD writing speed to "×2.0 - Recommended" or "Max".

After learning more about VideoByte DVD Copy, we also take a simple look at the detailed steps on how to copy a DVD on Mac via this software:

Step 1. Load DVD Source in VideoByte DVD Copy

First, please install VideoByte DVD Copy on Mac. When the setup completes, insert the Protected DVD disc and run VideoByte DVD Copy. By navigating to File > Select Source, you are able to select loading the disc in it.

Step 2. Choose Target to Output

When the DVD is detected and loaded in the software, please turn to File > Select Target and choose the file format you want to save the DVD media on Mac.

NOTE: If you have to copy the protected DVD to another blank disc, you need an extra hard drive for inserting the disc to let VideoByte DVD Copy detect it as an output location.

Step 3. Select Mode to Copy DVD Copy DVD on Mac

Subsequently, you can choose a copying mode to copy DVD Mac in your requirement. VideoByte DVD Copy provides three options, including Full Copy, Main Movie, and Customize to copy the DVD content flexibly.

Step 4. Set Output Options and Copy DVD

When tapping the Next button, you will be allowed to set the output options before starting the DVD copying process. After making the choices, simply tap Start and process to copy DVD on Mac.

When the copying process completes, the DVD movies will be well converted to the unprotected status in your selected output location on Mac desktop.

How to Copy a DVD on Mac with Built-in Tool (Unprotected DVDs Only)

For the unprotected DVDs, Mac OS X provides a hidden method to copy the content without extra software or extensions installed, which is by utilizing the built-in Disk Utility feature. It offers customized speed options to define the copying efficiency on Mac by yourself. Below provides the guidance on how to copy a DVD on Mac with it in several easy steps:

NOTE: The Disk Utility DVD copying feature would not guarantee lossless quality in duplicating DVDs Mac. Hence, to ensure the DVD duplication at 1:1 ratio, you need help from professional DVD copy software like VideoByte DVD Copy.

Step 1. First, please insert the DVD you wish to copy to Mac. Subsequently, turn to Applications >> Utilities >> Disk Utility.

Step 2. On the left pane, turn to DVD section and select to load your DVD by going to File >> New >> New Image from [your DVD's name].

Step 3. Please type a name for the content, subsequently, select the DVD/CD Master option under Image Format. When complete, simply tap Save to confirm to make copy of DVD on Mac.

The copied DVD can directly be saved on your Mac. If you also consider to copy it to another blank DVD disc, simply take out the original DVD disc and insert the blank one. Subsequently, select the blank disc as an output destination in Disk Utility and start burning the DVD image to it by tapping the Burn button.

How to Copy DVD to Mac with HandBrake (Free Option)

Handbrake also plays a free role if you don't know how to copy a DVD to Mac without paying a penny. This popular DVD copy software will ensure reliable quality to copy DVD movie to Mac, although its operation would be a bit more complicated, and also lack of ISO image or VIDEO_TS Folder output format to select.

However, you need to pay attention that Handbrake doesn't support copying protected DVDs originally. Instead, you need to process further operation to install libdvdcss file to read and copy protected DVD on Mac. The following step will walk you through the detailed procedures to do it:

Step 1. If you need to copy protected DVDs on Mac via HandBrake, first, you need to install libdvdcss to Mac.

Mac OS X Yosemite or older OS: directly install libdvdcss.pkg and process the installation through double-clicking it.
Mac OS X El Capitan or later: install Homebrew and awake the command line window for access libdvdcss for installing it on Mac.

Step 2. Now please install and run Handbrake as well. You can directly insert the DVD disc and select to Open Source in Handbrake to load the DVD content.

Step 3. Subsequently, select the output settings on the main feed for converting the DVD videos to.

Step 4. When settings are completed, tap Start button provided on the top panel, and Handbrake will initiate the DVD copying process to copy DVD on Mac locally.

Comparison Table: Find Your DVD Copy Software for Macintosh

	Output Types	Quality	Built-in Editor	Copying Speed	Protected DVDs	Pricing
VideoByte DVD Copy	DVD disc, DVD ISO Image, VIDEO_TS folder	1:1 ratio	Yes	Speedy	Yes	Free trial provided (registered version starts from $24.95/month
Disk Utility	Apple File System (APFS), Mac OS Extended, MS-DOS (FAT), and ExFAT	Good	No	Slow	No	Free
Handbrake	FLV, WEBM, MP4, and many other formats	Good	No	Normal	Yes (extra extension required)	Free

Extra Tip: Copy DVD to Mac by Converting DVD to Digital

Instead of duplicating DVDs Mac to a disc or in DVD formats that are not compatible with most media players streaming, you are able to copy DVD to Mac by converting the disc to media files of mainstream digital formats and get rid of the DVD discs. For such a purpose, VideoByte BD-DVD Ripper is what you need.

VideoByte BD-DVD Ripper ensures the lossless DVD to digital copying process, enabling you to back up DVDs on Mac and output them in 300+ formats at original quality. It is able to bypass all types of disc protection, and is also compatible with Blu-ray discs ripping for you, bringing you pretty professional help in duplicating DVDs Mac.

Awesome Features of VideoByte BD-DVD Ripper

Get through all disc protections and copy both commercial or homemade DVDs/Blu-rays on Mac without hassle;
300+customized output formats and 1:1 lossless quality preserved;
Keep all audio tracks, subtitles, and chapters info while make copy of DVD on Mac;
One-tap to process DVD copying at 6X faster speed;
Extra built-in toolkit and editing functions to compress, adjust, enhance, and edit DVD videos before copying them.

The simple guide here will also show you how to copy a DVD on Mac and output as digital formats via VideoByte BD-DVD Ripper:

Step 1. Once insert the DVD disc to Mac, launch VideoByte BD-DVD Ripper and select "Load DVD" > "Load DVD Disc" from the upper-left place.

Step 2. Once the DVD content is loaded, select the titles you desire to copy, and also choose the subtitles or audio tracks you are going to copy together.
NOTE: By leaving the settings by default, VideoByte BD-DVD Ripper will copy all of them for you at once.

Step 3. Now, also navigate to the upper-left "Rip All to" drop-down menu and select the output format as well as a resolution you need to encode the DVD videos.

Step 4. Finally, give a go on the "Rip All" icon, VideoByte BD-DVD Ripper will process the DVD copying and export the videos as regular media files on Mac for you.

Rip to Option — Rip to Video/Audio/ISO/Folder

Rip a DVD to Computer — Click "Rip All" to Start Ripping DVD/Blu-ray Disc

FAQs of Copying DVDs with Mac

If you get more questions on how to copy a DVD on Mac, follow these FAQs to resolve your condition.

What's the Differences Between DVD Copying and DVD Ripping?

DVD copying refers to the process of getting media from one DVD saved to and another DVD disc, or put them in a DVD format like ISO or DVD folder such as VIDEO_TS. Such copied DVDs will behave just like how it performs in the original disc. It means that you can only play them via a DVD player but not common media players that only support streaming regular files.

DVD ripping performs completely different. Such feature will help you convert the media from DVD disc or DVD format/folder to a regular format such as MP3 and MP4, and can even perform to remove some disc protections for you. By ripping DVD to mainstream formats, the output files are playable on devices and, generally, media players. More importantly, you are able to preserve them as original files and documents without bringing the DVD discs everywhere and find a hard drive to play them.

How do I Copy a DVD to a Flash Drive on a Mac?

To copy a DVD to a flash drive on Mac, you need to get the DVD videos saved as a file before transferring them to the drive. Hence, you will need help from some DVD copying or ripping software. If you need to copy DVD Mac to DVD formats such as ISO image and VIDEO_TS folder, VideoByte DVD Copy can help. To rip them to digital formats such as MP4, MOV, etc., VideoByte BD-DVD Ripper is the tool you need.

Is It Legal to Copy DVD Mac?

Actually, the laws of some countries claim that it is illegal to copy DVDs to computer even you are the owners of them. However, if you just copy DVDs for backing up to avoid disc damage, or enable yourself to enjoy a more flexible DVD media streaming, it is totally legal to do it.

NOTE: So you should make sure that you are copying DVDs not for any commercial purpose but just for personal use.

Conclusion

Copying both homemade and commercial DVDs is not a tough work with the help of these three reliable DVD copy software. Accordingly, they all come with great advantages and also certain shortcomings. Therefore, just based on your requirements and select the most suitable program to resolve your confusion on how to copy a DVD on Mac. Next, just process it following the guide!