How to Compress a Video on iPhone

Apple’s answer to compressing a video you’ve already recorded is to open it in iMovie and export it at a lower resolution. iMovie adds the export to your library as a new video, so both take up space until you delete the original. Apple’s steps are written for iPhone 12 or later with iOS 26 or later; on older versions they may differ.

Compress a video with iMovie (free)

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   Step 1: Start a project

   Open iMovie, tap Start New Project, then Movie.

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   Step 2: Choose the video

   Tap Media, then Video, tap the video you want to compress and tap Create Movie. Tap Done.

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   Step 3: Open the export options

   Tap the Share button, tap Save or Share Video, then tap Options.

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   Step 4: Pick a lower resolution

   Choose a resolution such as 720, 540 or 360, then tap Done.

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   Step 5: Save

   Tap Save Video to add the smaller copy to your photo library, or Save to Files.

Apple lists these approximate sizes for one minute of video at each export resolution, and suggests 540p for social media and 360p for text messages:

• 1080p (the default for the iPhone camera and iMovie): 70–105 MB
• 720: 19–27 MB
• 540: 12–16 MB
• 360: 6–9 MB

Trim a video in Photos

If only part of a long video matters, Apple suggests trimming it. To actually free the space the full video takes, keep the trimmed part as a new clip and delete the original.

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   Step 1: Edit

   In Photos, open the video and tap the Edit button.

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   Step 2: Trim

   Drag either end of the frame viewer below the video to set the start and end, then tap Done.

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   Step 3: Save

   Tap Save Video as New Clip. Check the new clip, then delete the original video.

Record smaller videos from now on

Apple says faster frame rates and higher resolutions make larger video files. In Settings › Camera › Record Video, iOS lists the formats your iPhone supports and roughly how big one minute of each will be.

• In Settings › Camera › Formats, make sure High Efficiency is selected. Apple says HEVC compresses better than H.264, so videos use less space at the same visual quality.
• For consistently smaller video files, Apple also suggests turning off HDR Video in Settings › Camera › Record Video.
• On iPhone models that record Apple ProRes, Apple says ProRes files are up to 30 times larger than HEVC files. Use it only when you need it.

CleanX

Find and compress your largest videos with CleanX

CleanX lists your videos largest first; tap one to see an estimated new size for each quality before you start. It saves the smaller copy with the original date and location, then deletes the original, which iOS asks you to confirm; if you don’t, both videos stay. If a video wouldn’t get meaningfully smaller, CleanX leaves the original as it is.

• Sort videos by size or date
• Choose High (1080p), Medium (720p) or Low
• Viewing sizes is free; compressing needs CleanX Pro

See everything CleanX does →

Before you compress

• Lower resolution can’t be undone. Apple notes quality might drop, depending on how the video was recorded. Watch the smaller copy before you delete the original.
• With iCloud Photos, deleting the original removes it from your other devices too.
• Videos aren’t the only thing filling your iPhone: see how to free up space on iPhone.