What to do if videos are not playing on iPhone?

As a rule of thumb, at any given time, iOS is plagued with one or two major bugs that have a heavy impact on user experience. One commonly reported issue concerns video playback in various apps, sometimes including Camera Roll videos that were recorded on the iPhone. If videos are not playing on your iPhone, make sure to check the steps we listed below.

Table of contents:

1. Check the network
2. Update firmware
3. Reinstall the app or clear your browsing history
4. Reset All Settings

Why can’t I play videos on my iPhone?

1. Check the network

The first thing you should do is restart your device. If the issue persists and it concerns streaming videos on YouTube or Safari, make sure that you are connected to a stable Wi-Fi network or that the app has permission to use cellular data.

On the other hand, if you can’t play videos from the camera roll, make sure to toggle on the Photos option in Cellular settings.

2. Update firmware

Another thing you should do is ensure that your iPhone is on the latest supported firmware version. Currently, iOS 15 is available for iPhone 6S and newer devices so make sure to get it.

Updates are usually administered automatically but you can check for updates manually by following these steps:

1. Open Settings.
2. Select General.
3. Tap Software Update.
4. Check for updates and, if there’s an update available, download and install it.

Also, navigate to App Store > Profile and update all apps. All third-party apps that are not playing videos should be updated as soon as possible.

If there are no available updates or even a newer iOS version didn’t fix the problem, reinstall apps or clear browsing history.

3. Reinstall the app or clear your browsing history

The majority of reports imply that the problem is mostly occurring on YouTube and Safari. There’s a slight chance that the issue with videos is not a system-wide issue but rather an in-app bug. We already mentioned updating apps (YouTube in particular), but if that doesn’t help, you can reinstall them.

Here’s how to reinstall YouTube on your iPhone:

1. Tap and hold on to the YouTube icon on the Home Screen or in App Library.
2. From the contextual menu, select Remove app.
3. Tap Delete App and tap Delete to confirm.
4. Restart your iPhone and navigate to App Store.
5. Look for YouTube and install the app.
6. Sign in and try playing videos.

On the other hand, if you are experiencing issues with Safari, you should clear all browsing data from the default browser. Here’s what you need to do:

1. Open Settings.
2. Select Safari.
3. Tap Clear History and Website Data.
4. Tap Clear History and Data.
5. Open Safari and try playing videos.

• Safari not Working on iPhone after update

4. Reset All Settings

Finally, if none of the previous steps worked, you can go and reset all settings. Some users suggest erasing all data and starting from scratch but we recommend this as the last option. Before that, try resetting all settings, and, hopefully, you won’t need to delete everything and restore your device from iCloud or iTunes.

Here’s how to Reset All Settings on your iPhone:

1. Open Settings.
2. Tap General.
3. Open Transfer or Reset iPhone.
4. Select Reset.
5. Tap Reset All Settings.
6. Enter PIN/password.
7. Tap Reset All Settings in a dialog box.

Now, if even this doesn’t help, make sure to report the problem to Apple and YouTube Support. If you need to restore your device with the Factory Reset option, make sure to back up everything first.

Thank you for reading and feel free to share your thoughts, questions, or suggestions with us. You can do that in the comments section below. We look forward to hearing from you.