How to Record a Video on Your iPhone

Recording a video on your iPhone is something you can do in just a few seconds once you know where to look. Whether you want to capture a grandchild's birthday, record a message for a friend, or save a memory from a trip, your iPhone's camera takes high-quality video that you can watch, share, or keep for years.

This guide walks you through everything you need to know — from opening the Camera app to stopping the recording and finding the video afterward.

Opening the Camera app

The Camera app is the built-in app Apple includes on every iPhone. It has an icon that looks like a small camera. You will find it on your home screen, or you can swipe left on the lock screen to open it quickly without even unlocking your phone.

When the Camera app opens, it starts in Photo mode by default. You will see a shutter button (a large white circle) at the bottom of the screen. This takes still photos.

Switching to Video mode

To record a video instead of taking a photo, you need to switch from Photo mode to Video mode. At the bottom of the screen, you will see a row of options: Photo, Video, Portrait, and others. Swipe the row to the right or tap the word Video to switch to video mode.

Once you are in Video mode, the shutter button at the bottom changes color — it turns red. That is how you know you are in video mode and ready to record.

Starting and stopping your recording

Tap the red button once to start recording. You will see a red dot and a timer appear at the top of the screen — this shows that the video is recording and how long you have been recording.

When you are finished, tap the red button again to stop. The video is saved automatically to your Photos app.

Tips for better video

Hold your phone steady — rest your elbows against your body or lean against a wall if possible. Shaky video can be hard to watch. For most videos, holding the phone horizontally (sideways, in landscape mode) gives a wider, more natural-looking picture — though vertical video works well for sharing on social media.

Make sure the camera lens (the small circle on the back of your phone) is clean and not covered by your finger.

Finding your video after recording

Once you stop recording, the video is saved to your Photos app. Open Photos, tap Albums at the bottom, and then tap Videos. You will see all your recorded videos there. You can also find your most recent video by tapping the small thumbnail that appears in the bottom left corner of the Camera app right after you finish recording.

A note about storage

Videos take up more storage space than photos. A one-minute video in standard quality can be around 150 to 300 megabytes. If your phone storage is getting full, you may want to transfer older videos to a computer or iCloud before recording new ones.