How to compress large videos on iPhone and Android

If your phone is full, video is the first place to look. A few minutes of high-resolution footage can take more space than hundreds of photos. You do not have to delete those videos to get the space back. You can make them smaller. This guide explains how on iPhone and on Android, starting with the options already built into the phone.

Why videos are so large

File size depends on three things: resolution (4K, 1080p, 720p), frame rate (60 or 30 frames per second) and length. Recording in 4K at 60 frames per second can use several times the space of 1080p at 30. On a phone screen the difference is hard to see, which is why lowering the quality a little saves so much with so little visible loss.

Step 1: find your largest videos

On iPhone: open Settings > General > iPhone Storage and tap Photos. If the phone offers to let you review your own videos, that list is sorted with the largest first. You can also open Photos and go to Media Types > Videos to see them all.

On Android: open Files by Google and go to the Clean tab, which has a suggestion for large files. Your phone's Settings > Storage screen also shows how much space videos use.

Step 2: make new videos smaller

This does nothing for videos you already have, but it stops the problem from growing.

iPhone: go to Settings > Camera > Record Video and choose a lower resolution or frame rate. The screen lists roughly how much space a minute of video takes at each setting. Under Settings > Camera > Formats, choose High Efficiency so that videos are stored in a more compact format.

Android: open the Camera app, go to its settings, and lower the video resolution. The names differ between phone makers, but every camera app has this option.

Step 3: shrink the videos you already have

There are three ways to do it, from the simplest to the most thorough.

Trim what you do not need

Many long videos have one good part. On iPhone, open the video in Photos, tap Edit, drag the ends of the timeline inward and save. On Android, Google Photos has the same trim handles under Edit. A video cut from three minutes to thirty seconds is about a sixth of the size, with no loss of quality in the part you keep.

Export at a lower resolution

The iPhone Photos app cannot change a video's resolution, but Apple's free iMovie app can. Add the video to a project, tap the share button, open the options and pick a lower resolution before saving. It works, but it is slow if you have many videos.

Use a video compression app

A compression app does the same thing in fewer taps. Cleanup: Swipe Photo Cleaner has a Compress Videos tool for this. You pick a video, choose low, medium or high compression, and it shows the size before and after, so you know what you will save before you start. It is available on iPhone and Android.

What cloud backup does and does not do

Backing up to iCloud Photos or Google Photos does not make the copy on your phone smaller by itself. Two settings do free space on the device:

iPhone: with iCloud Photos on, choose Optimize iPhone Storage under Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Photos. Originals stay in iCloud and the phone keeps lighter versions.
Android: in Google Photos, tap your profile picture and choose Free up space. It removes the device copies of items that are already backed up.

Both need enough cloud storage for your library, and both depend on a connection when you want the original back.

How much to compress

Screen recordings, clips of documents, videos you keep for reference: compress strongly. Detail matters little.
Everyday clips: a medium setting is a good default. On a phone screen the result looks nearly the same.
Videos that cannot be repeated, such as a wedding or a child's first steps: compress lightly, or keep the original in a backup and a smaller copy on the phone.

Compression removes detail for good. Watch the result before you delete an original, and compress a video once, not again and again, because each pass loses a little more.

After compressing

Play the new version through once.
If the original was kept alongside it, delete the original when you are satisfied.
Empty Recently Deleted on iPhone, or the trash on Android. Deleted videos keep taking space until you do, for up to 30 days on iPhone and usually 30 to 60 days on Android.

The short version

Lower the camera settings for new videos. Trim the long ones. Compress the large ones you want to keep, choosing the quality by how much the video matters. Then empty the trash. Most people who do this get back more space than they would by deleting hundreds of photos, and they still have every video.

If photos are the next thing to deal with, see how to free up storage on iPhone without losing photos.