If movies are saved in Blu-ray disc, we have to use media devices that can read Blu-ray discs to watch the movies. However, backing up Blu-ray to a USB hard drive can make it easier to watch Blu-ray movies on other devices, such as some computers have USB interfaces but no Blu-ray drives.

Now, I'll show you three ways to copy Blu-ray to USB hard drive.

Note: It is against the law to copy Blu-ray for commercial use even though you own the Blu-ray disc. It is suggested that you should consult your local law before you start to copy Blu-ray.

Solution 1: Copy Blu-ray to USB hard drive with Leawo Blu-ray Copy

As one of the best Blu-ray backup software, Leawo Blu-ray Copy can not only copy Blu-ray to hard drive or USB hard drive, but also copy DVD and ISO files. When copying Blu-ray, Blu-ray Copy can decrypt the encrypted Blu-ray disc. Thus, regardless of which region the Blu-ray disc belongs to and which technology protects the Blu-ray disc, Blu-ray Copy can complete the copy task and transfer the backup files to USB hard drive easily. What's more, Leawo Blu-ray Copy don't cause any loss of quality when it backs up Blu-ray, which means that we don't have to worry about playing backup Blu-ray movies in USB hard drive will affect the viewing experience. In addition to making perfect 1:1 clone of Blu-ray, Leawo Blu-ray Copy can also compress video from the original Blu-ray disc. If the original Blu-ray disc is BD-50, Blu-ray Copy can compress the original BD-50 to BD-25. If your USB hard drive isn't big enough to hold the files in the Blu-ray disc, you can try compressing video in the Blu-ray disc.

Here are the specific steps to use Leawo Blu-ray Copy to copy Blu-ray to USB hard drive:

Step 1: Run Blu-ray Copy

Have Leawo Blu-ray Copy installed on your computer properly and run it. Blu-ray Copy is part of Leawo Prof. Media. You can also download the Leawo Prof. Media to use the function of Blu-ray Copy.

blu-ray-copy-win blu-ray-copy-mac

In order to get full functional services, you'll have to buy the registration code for Leawo Blu-ray Copy. Blu-ray Copy costs $44.95 for one-year use and costs $99.95 for lifetime use. It's lower than the average price for similar programs and Leawo Blu-ray Copy is one of the most powerful ones.

leawo-Prof-Media-interface

Step 2: Load Blu-ray movies

(1) After running Prof. Media, click the "Blu-ray Copy" button from the first page you see to launch Blu-ray Copy.

open-Blu-ray-Copy

(2) There is a tip in the middle of the following screen to inform you that you can drag the source Blu-ray data folder into the program. Another way to add Blu-ray movies is to click "Add Blu-ray/DVD" and "Add from CD-ROM". If you have placed the Blu-ray disc in your computer's Blu-ray drive, then after you click these buttons, you will see the menu containing the Blu-ray disc. Click it to start importing the data from the Blu-ray disc into the program.

load-Blu-ray

Step 3: Relative Blu-ray/DVD copy settings

(1) Choose copy mode. At the bottom of the page, there are three different copy modes for the user to choose, including: "Full Movie", "Main Movie" and "Custom Mode". We simply select a mode.

select-copy-mode

(2) Choose subtitle and audio track. After importing the Blu-ray file, the software will display all the data in the imported Blu-ray disc, including all video, tracks and subtitles in the Blu-ray disc. Video, track and subtitle information from Blu-ray will be displayed in the left area of the software page. We can choose which subtitles and tracks to back up.

select-subtitles-and-audio-track

(3) Choose disc type. Select the Blu-ray format from the Blu-ray format drop-down menu in the lower left corner.

compress-Blu-ray

Step 4: Start the copy

Before backing up your Blu-ray, you need to set up a few things about it. Click the "Copy" button at the top of the software's video player window will bring up a sidebar with multiple options on the right side of the software page.

click-Copy-button

(1) Select "Folder" as the target of the output file under "Copy to" option.

set-Copy-to-option

(2) Set the file name in the "Disc Label". Before starting the Blu-ray backup, in the "Disc Label", we can also name the Blu-ray backup file.

set-file-name

(3) In the "Save to" option, set the save location on computer. Because we want to save the backup files of the Blu-ray on the USB hard drive, we need to set the specific file storage location in the "Save to" option.

set-save-location

Finally, click the "Copy" button to start copying.

star-copy

After the backup is complete, click "Finish" button.

click-Finish-button

Solution 2: Rip Blu-ray to video for USB hard drive with Leawo Blu-ray Ripper

In addition to backing up Blu-ray to USB hard drive directly, we can also rip Blu-ray to video in another format. This way can back up Blu-ray to USB hard drive, and the backup video can be played by most common players.

Leawo Blu-ray Ripper is an excellent Blu-ray ripper software that rips Blu-ray to lossless video and audio in more than 180 formats, such as: ripping Blu-ray to video in MP4. Besides, Blu-ray Ripper can also be used as a Blu-ray player, Blu-ray editor, and 3D movie creator.

Now I'm going to show you how to use Leawo Blu-ray Ripper to rip Blu-ray to MKV for USB hard drive with no quality loss:

Step 1: Run Blu-ray Ripper

As mentioned earlier, you can download and install Blu-ray Ripper freely. Besides, Blu-ray Ripper is part of Leawo Prof. Media too. So you also can download the Leawo Prof. Media to use the function of Blu-ray Ripper.

blu-ray-ripper

Step 2: Load Blu-ray movies

(1) Click the "Blu-ray Ripper" button from the first page of Prof. Media to launch Blu-ray Ripper. It's important to note that the Leawo Blu-ray Ripper isn't free. Blu-ray Ripper costs $44.95 for one-year use and costs $99.95 for lifetime use.

open-Blu-ray-Ripper

(2) If the Blu-ray disc has been place in disc drive, click "Add Blu-ray/DVD" button and click "Add from CD-ROM" button. You will see the Blu-ray disc name. Click on it and the program will start to have the original Blu-ray data imported.

Blu-ray-Ripper-load-Blu-ray

(3) Click "Main Movie" button as the mode we rip Blu-ray to MKV.

Blu-ray-Ripper-select-mode

(4) The program gives you the option to select the videos you need to rip. Let's pick one of the videos.

select-video

(5) Click the "OK" button.

click-OK

Step 3: Specify MKV as output profile

Click the "MP4 Video" button.

set-output-profile

Select "Change" to choose MKV from "Format" as the output format.

select-MKV

Step 4: Rip Blu-ray to MKV

Clicking the "Convert" button will bring up a sidebar with multiple options on the right side of the software page.

(1) In the "Save to" option, set the save location on computer. Click "Convert" button to get the conversion started.

Blu-ray-Ripper-set-save-location

(2) Finally, click "Finish" button.

finish-conversion

Solution 3: Rip Blu-ray to MKV for USB hard drive with MakeMKV

MakeMKV is known for its ability to rip Blu-ray/DVD to video in MKV format without quality loss. So, we can convert Blu-ray to MKV via using MakeMKV, and then save MKV video to USB hard drive. In addition, using MakeMKV to rip DVD is free. However, there is only a 30-day trial period for using MakeMKV to rip Blu-ray. After that, users have to pay $50 for a registration key to continue using the feature. It is worth noting that MakeMKV only can rip Blu-ray/DVD to MKV. If you need to rip Blu-ray/DVD to video in another format, MakeMKV is not enough for you.

Here are the specific steps to use MakeMKV to rip Blu-ray to MKV and save the video in USB hard drive:

Step 1: Install MakeMKV

Firstly, download MakeMKV from online and install it on your computer.

MakeMKV-interface

Step 2: Run MakeMKV and import Blu-ray movies

If the Blu-ray data is stored on the Blu-ray disc, you need to put the Blu-ray disc on your computer's Blu-ray drive before you run MakeMKV. Then click the drive icon that appears after the program detects the Blu-ray disc to allow MakeMKV to load the contents of the disc into the program.

If Blu-ray movies are stored on your computer's hard drive, you'll need to click the button in the upper left corner to manually import the Blu-ray data into the program.

MakeMKV-import-Blu-ray

Step 3: Relative settings

In the "Output folder" option, set a folder in the USB hard drive as the save location to save the MKV video.

MakeMKV-set-save-location

Step 4: Rip Blu-ray to MKV

Click the "Make MKV" button on the right to let MakeMKV start ripping the Blu-ray movie to lossless MKV.

MakeMKV-star-conversion

Comparison between MakeMKV, Leawo Blu-ray Ripper and Leawo Blu-ray Copy

Let's compare the features of MakeMKV, Leawo Blu-ray Ripper and Leawo Blu-ray Copy.

Features MakeMKV Blu-ray Ripper Blu-ray Copy
Rip encrypted Blu-ray/DVD disc latest versions of AACS and BD+  
Rip Blu-ray/DVD disc/folder to MKV  
Rip ISO file to video    
Rip Blu-ray/DVD disc/folder to video in other formats    
Edit Blu-ray/DVD    
Convert 2D Blu-ray to 3D video    
Play back Blu-ray/DVD movies  
Select subtitles and audio tracks  
Preview subtitles and audio tracks  
mode Blu-ray full movie Blu-ray full movie, Blu-ray main movie and custom mode Blu-ray full movie, Blu-ray main movie and custom mode
Copy Blu-ray/DVD/ISO file to hard drive or blank Blu-ray/DVD disc    
Compress Blu-ray/DVD    
Copy Blu-ray/DVD to ISO file    
Copy 3D Blu-ray disc    
Copy encrypted Blu-ray/DVD disc    

According to the above introduction, we know that Leawo Blu-ray Copy, Leawo Blu-ray Ripper and MakeMKV are excellent software that can copy Blu-ray to USB hard drive. If you want to copy Blu-ray directly to your hard drive/USB hard drive, I'm sure Blu-ray Copy will solve your problem easily. After comparing the features of Leawo Blu-ray Ripper and MakeMKV, I think that Blu-ray Ripper is better than MakeMKV. If you want to rip Blu-ray to another video format, not just MKV, I think you'd better choose Blu-ray Ripper.