How to Compress a Video on iPhone (5 Free Ways)

iPhones record sharp, high-bitrate video: a minute of 4K is about 170–400 MB and even 1080p is 60–130 MB, far too big for email, Discord or most upload forms. The Photos app can trim a video but can't make it smaller, so you need another route. Here are five free ways to compress a video on iPhone, from changing how future videos are recorded to shrinking one you already have — without installing an app or uploading the video to a website.

1. Compress it in Safari, without uploading it

Open Compress video in Safari, tap the drop zone and pick the video from your library. Choose 720p and a quality — or a size such as Under 25 MB · Email or Under 10 MB · Discord — and tap Compress video. MiniFiles uses the iPhone's own video encoder through Safari, so the video is compressed on the phone and never uploaded. Save the result to Files or share it straight from the download.

This works best for clips of a few minutes: very long 4K videos can run out of memory on a phone, so trim them first or use a computer. Free compression saves at 720p; Pro keeps 1080p or the original resolution.

2. Export a smaller copy with iMovie

iMovie is free from Apple. Create a new Movie project, add the video, tap Done, then the Share button → Save Video and pick a size: 540p or 720p produce much smaller files than 1080p or 4K. The original stays untouched in your library and the smaller copy is saved next to it.

3. Use the Shortcuts app

The built-in Shortcuts app has an Encode Media action that re-encodes a video at a chosen size (for example 1280×720) and format. Build a shortcut with Select Photos → Encode Media → Save to Photo Album, or install a ready-made "compress video" shortcut, and you can shrink videos from the share sheet in a couple of taps. Like iMovie, it never uploads the video.

4. Record smaller videos from now on

In Settings → Camera → Record Video, choose 1080p at 30 fps instead of 4K or 60 fps — files are roughly a quarter of the size. In Settings → Camera → Formats, High Efficiency (HEVC) produces files about half the size of Most Compatible (H.264) at the same quality. HEVC is the default; if you share with Windows PCs that can't play it, convert individual videos to MP4 with MOV to MP4 rather than switching every recording to the larger format.

5. Send it without compressing: Mail Drop and links

If you only need to email a big video, the Mail app offers Mail Drop for attachments over the limit: the video is uploaded to iCloud and the recipient gets a download link (up to 5 GB, kept for 30 days). It doesn't make the file smaller and it does put the video on Apple's servers, but the recipient gets full quality. iCloud links from Photos and Google Drive links work the same way.

Which method should you use?

One video, right now, to a size limit: compress it in Safari — pick Under 10 MB for Discord or Under 25 MB for email (compress video for email).
Exporting several clips at a set resolution: iMovie or a Shortcut.
Stop the problem at the source: record at 1080p30 in High Efficiency.
Full quality matters more than size: Mail Drop or a cloud link.

Want to understand what you lose when you compress? Read how to compress a video without losing quality.

Key takeaways

The iPhone Photos app can trim but not compress video; use iMovie (Share → Save Video at 540p/720p), the Shortcuts Encode Media action, or a browser compressor.

MiniFiles compresses iPhone videos in Safari on the phone without uploading them, with presets for Discord (10 MB) and email (25 MB); free output is 720p.

Recording at 1080p30 in High Efficiency (HEVC) format makes new iPhone videos several times smaller than 4K60.

Mail Drop sends videos over the email limit as an iCloud link (up to 5 GB, 30 days) without compressing them.

Frequently asked questions

How do I make a video smaller on my iPhone?

Export a lower-resolution copy with iMovie or the Shortcuts app's Encode Media action, or compress it in Safari with a browser tool like MiniFiles, which runs on the phone and doesn't upload the video.

Can the iPhone Photos app compress a video?

No. Photos can trim a video, which shortens it, but it can't lower the resolution or bitrate. Use iMovie, Shortcuts or a compressor instead.

How do I compress a video on iPhone to email it?

Compress it to under 25 MB — MiniFiles has an Under 25 MB · Email option — or send it with Mail Drop, which uploads it to iCloud and emails a link.

Does compressing a video reduce its quality?

Somewhat. Lowering resolution and bitrate removes detail, but a 720p version of a phone video usually looks fine on phones and laptops while being several times smaller.

Why are iPhone videos so big?

iPhones record at high resolutions and bitrates — 4K video at 30 or 60 frames per second can use 170–400 MB per minute. Recording at 1080p30 in High Efficiency format makes files several times smaller.