Twitter, also known as X, offers a built-in video downloading functionality but only for premium users. Considering that this includes paying a monthly fee, the majority of users are not paying $8 a month for something that one can consider as essential functionality available in most other social media platforms (excluding Instagram) for free. We made sure to offer a few alternative ways to help you download Twitter (or X, if you like it better) on your iPhone. For free.
Can You Download Video MP4 From Twitter to iPhone?
Absolutely, and in a plethora of ways. If we exclude the default option which is built-in the app but hidden behind a paywall, you can use various third-party apps, browser extensions if you use Twitter in a browser, or even the built-in screen recorder. Alternatively, you can create an iOS shortcut that can capture videos for you. We made sure to explain everything in detail so continue reading to find out what fits your preferences the best.
How to Download Video from Twitter on iPhone?
There are multiple methods you can use to download a video from Twitter on your iPhone. We’ll start with the ones that don’t require any third-party apps.
Method 1: Download Video from Twitter using Built-in Twitter Download Option
We have to mention this since it’s factually an option but, unless you see some bigger benefits, we don’t see the appeal of paying for X Premium only for video-downloading capabilities it offers. On the other hand, if you’re a premium subscriber already, you can download all videos from the 3-dots menu at the top.
First, expand the video to full view, then tap on the three vertical dots at the top. Select ‘Download video’, and you’re all set.
Method 2: Save Video From Twitter using iOS Shortcut
You’re missing a lot if you’re not aware of amazing capabilities Shortcuts bring to iOS. Shortcuts are by far the best power-user feature on iOS. With some tweaking, you can power up your iPhone to amazing extents and enrich your user experience tenfold.
In this case, we want to make an Action Shortcut that will grab URLs and save files coming from those URLs. It’s a bit tedious process but bear with me. Here’s how to save a video from Twitter by using iOS Shortcut functionality:
- On your iPhone, open Shortcuts from the Home Screen or App Library.
- Tap + at the top right corner to create a new shortcut action.
- Tap Add Action.
- Search for Ask for Input and add the shortcut at the top. Change the “Ask for” field to URL (from the context menu) and write Paste URL here in the prompt field.
- Now, search for the Get Clipboard action and add it just under the “Ask for” shortcut.
- In the search bar, look for URL and select “Get URLs from Input“. Tap on the Saved file and replace it with Provided Input.
- Now we should add another Action called “Get Contents of URL“. Tap on the Search bar at the bottom and look up URL again. Select “Get Contents of URL“.
- Finally, we need to save those videos somewhere, so we need the third action. Back to the Search bar look for Save. Select the Save File action.
- Once you add the Save Action, expand it and disable the Ask Where To Save option. Or keep it enabled if you want to save videos to various locations instead of the default one in Photos.
- Tap at the top to rename the action and then tap Done to save it. As simple as that.
- To use this Shortcut, you just need to select Share on any Twitter video and select Copy Link. It should automatically download the video to your iPhone.
Download Twitter Video Online using Twitter Video Downloader Website
If you use Twitter on Safari, you can utilize the same Shortcut we listed under Method 2. Although super convenient, this Shortcut action will download all files associated with URL you copy to clipboard so that can be a bit of a problem. Other than that, it’s perfect to capture Twitter videos and store them on your iPhone.
You don’t have many options on Safari for iPhone as it’s not as the extensions are limited. There are third-party websites that can download videos if you paste a link but that’s not exactly the definition of convenience, is it? Still, for the sake of the article, we’ll mention Twitter Downloader where you can paste video links and it will make them downloadable.
How To Download Twitter Video on iPhone Using Twitter Video Downloader Apps
If you don’t want to tweak shortcuts, you can find a lot of apps with the similar functionality that will download videos for you. We found the 3 best rated free apps on App Store and you can find them below. Each app seems to offer unique features catering to different needs, whether it’s link management, content collection, or straightforward downloading and sharing capabilities.
1) TwSave
TwSave is a straightforward app for managing Twitter links. You can easily save links by copying them and then managing them within the app. It allows for link validation, searching among saved links using names, URLs, account names, or tags, and offers the ability to reorder by dragging and dropping. While free to access, a subscription is available to remove ads. 
2) TwiDown – Twitter video Save
TwiDown focuses on creating collections of content that match your interests, allowing you to save tweets (including images, videos, GIFs, etc.) and access the URLs whenever you want. It offers a simple interface for organizing your content and allows the creation of unlimited collections. 
3) Tweeload
Tweeload offers a quick and easy way to download videos and GIFs from Twitter. It allows downloading from tweets containing multiple videos, sharing the videos directly from the app to any other app, and accessing or playing the downloaded videos from within the app itself. 
How to Download Video on Twitter Without Apps or Websites?
You can always use built-in screen recorder as the last resort or try with Twitter bots for video capturing. There are many bots you can find on X or Twitter and all of them share the link to the video or GIF when you mention the bot in the thread comments.
Use built-in Screen Recording on iPhone to Capture Twitter Videos
This is always an option, whenever you need to capture a video or a GIF from basically anywhere and store it on your iPhone. Even with all the other options, the majority of people uses screen recorder habitually as the primary option.
If you’re not aware how to use built-in Screen Recording, follow these instructions:
- First, open Settings and select Control Centre.
- Scroll down and add Screen Recording to Control Centre.
- Now, swipe down from the top right side and tap on the Screen Recording icon (icon of a solid circle inside of thin circular outline) to start recording. There’s a 3 second countdown before recording starts.
- Select Twitter, play the video, and once you want to stop recording, expand Control Centre again and tap on the Screen Recording icon. The video will be saved to your Photos gallery.
You can later cut or edit the video in Photos.
Twitter Video Downloader Bot
Or you can use one of thousands of available Twitter bots to download the video. This is usually done by mentioning the bot in the comments thread under the video.
We tried with @getvideobot that works great and provides you with the download link almost instantaneously.
Frequently Asked Questions
1- Why is Twitter Videos not Playing?
In case Twitter videos are not playing for you, you can close the app and open it again, clear the local data from the app and sign in again in Settings > Apps > X. Or you can uninstall the app and install it again.
If you’re experiencing issues with Twitter videos not playing in a browser, a good first step is to close all open web pages and then restart the Chrome browser to retry accessing the video. Additionally, an outdated Chrome browser can often lead to playback issues. To ensure you’re up to date, navigate to ‘Settings’ and then ‘About Chrome’ to verify that you’re running the latest version of the browser.
2- How to Download Videos on iPhone from Safari?
You can always use a Twitter Video Bot or a website to paste the link and get the video download link. You can also use the Shortcuts method we explained above or, alternatively, record the screen and get the video that way.
3- How to Save Twitter Videos to Camera Roll?
We already explained a few methods in the article and it all depends on your personal preference. You can use a variety of apps that do just that – save Twitter videos to your iPhone. You can create a Shortcut and automate the process with built-in resources. Or use a Twitter Video Bot and let him create links for downloads.
To download a Twitter video, start by right-clicking on the video and selecting ‘Copy video address.’ Open a new tab and navigate to either Twitter Video Downloader or SaveTweetVid. On one of these sites, paste the previously copied link into the provided text box. Then, click on ‘Download’ and select your preferred video quality before proceeding to save the video.
4- How to Download Twitter Videos on Android?
The procedure is, more or less, the same as on iOS. Twitter or X as we know it now offer Video Downloads only to premium users so you’ll need to find an alternative way unless you decide to pay. Of course, you can still use Twitter Video Bot or copy/paste the video in the Twitted Downloader website. Finally, you can use a screen recorder to capture Twitter videos.
And, on that note, we can conclude this article. Are there any alternative ways we forgot to mention? Tell us in the comments section below.
