How to turn off video autoplay on Instagram and Facebook (iPhone, 2026)
Facebook has a real autoplay setting: Menu › Settings & Privacy › Settings › Media, then choose Never Autoplay Videos or On Wi-Fi Only. Instagram does not. Its help only offers Use less cellular data, which stops Instagram from preloading videos over cellular, so they load more slowly there and nothing changes on Wi-Fi. Neither setting removes Reels. If Reels are the problem, hide them in minulo, which is free and keeps your DMs working.
Written by Ayumu Kitabayashi, the developer of minulo. Facts about Instagram, Facebook and iPhone settings come from the sources listed below, checked on 2026-10-25. Menu names can change with app updates.
| Setting | What it changes | What it does not change |
|---|---|---|
| Instagram: Use less cellular data (Profile › Menu › Media quality) | Instagram stops preloading videos over cellular. Videos may take longer to load on cellular. | No effect on Wi-Fi. We could not find a setting in Instagram's help that stops videos from playing on their own. |
| Facebook: Autoplay (Menu › Settings & Privacy › Settings › Media) | Choose On Mobile Data and Wi-Fi, On Wi-Fi Only, or Never Autoplay Videos for videos and animations in your Feed. | Videos and Reels are still in the app. You tap to play them. |
| iPhone: Auto-Play Video Previews (Settings › Accessibility › Motion) | Apple says it lets apps such as the App Store play video previews automatically. Turning it off stops that. | Apple does not say Instagram or Facebook follow it, and we could not confirm that they do. |
| minulo (free) | Hides the Reels tab, Reels in the feed and Explore on Instagram, and Reels and Watch on Facebook. | minulo has no autoplay switch of its own, and the official apps do not change. |
Instagram: use less cellular data
- Tap Profile or your profile picture at the bottom right.
- Tap Menu at the top right.
- Scroll down and tap Media quality.
- Turn on Use less cellular data.
Instagram's help says Instagram preloads videos by default so they start faster. With this setting on, it stops doing that over a cellular connection, so videos may take longer to load. The help page also says the setting changes nothing when you are on Wi-Fi.
This is a data setting, not an autoplay switch. Videos still play when they reach the screen once they have loaded. As of October 2026 we could not find a setting in Instagram's help that turns autoplay off.
Facebook: turn off video autoplay
- Tap Menu. Facebook's help says it is at the top left.
- Scroll down and tap Settings & Privacy, then Settings.
- Scroll down to Preferences and tap Media.
- Under Autoplay, choose On Mobile Data and Wi-Fi, On Wi-Fi Only or Never Autoplay Videos.
With Never Autoplay Videos, videos and animations in your Feed never play on their own. On Wi-Fi Only keeps autoplay on Wi-Fi and stops it on mobile data. If you don't see Media, Facebook's help suggests updating the app.
The iPhone setting: Auto-Play Video Previews
Go to Settings › Accessibility › Motion and turn off Auto-Play Video Previews. Apple describes it as the setting that lets apps such as the App Store play video previews automatically. Apple's page does not mention Instagram or Facebook, and we could not confirm that either app follows it, so use the in-app settings above for those two.
What turning off autoplay does not do
Autoplay settings decide when a video starts. They do not remove anything. On Facebook, Reels and videos are still there and play when you tap them. On Instagram, the Reels tab and Reels in the feed stay, and Instagram's help lists no autoplay switch at all. If the problem is that one video leads to the next, an autoplay setting will not stop that.
Hide Reels in minulo
minulo opens Instagram and Facebook's official websites inside the app. On Instagram it hides the Reels tab, Reels in the feed and Explore, and DMs and posts from people you follow keep working. On Facebook it can hide Reels, Watch and Marketplace. Hiding is free. minulo has no autoplay setting of its own: it removes the places where Reels show up instead.
minulo can also lock the official apps with Screen Time, free for up to 2 hours per block. While an official app is locked, its notifications don't arrive, and minulo does not send any. minulo Pro adds schedules by day and time, longer blocks, Hard Mode and multiple block lists. minulo is for iPhone only. It is made by the author of this page.
How do I turn off autoplay on Instagram?
As of October 2026 we could not find an autoplay setting in Instagram's help. The closest is Use less cellular data (Profile, Menu, Media quality), which stops Instagram from preloading videos over cellular. Videos may then load more slowly on cellular, and nothing changes on Wi-Fi.
How do I stop videos from playing automatically on Facebook?
Go to Menu, Settings & Privacy, Settings, then Media under Preferences, and under Autoplay choose Never Autoplay Videos. On Wi-Fi Only keeps autoplay on Wi-Fi but stops it on mobile data.
Does Use less cellular data stop Instagram videos from playing?
No. Instagram's help says it stops videos from preloading over cellular, so they may take longer to load. It does not mention stopping playback, and it has no effect on Wi-Fi.
Does the iPhone Auto-Play Video Previews setting work in Instagram?
Apple says the setting lets apps such as the App Store play video previews automatically. Apple does not mention Instagram or Facebook, and we could not confirm that either app follows it.
Will turning off autoplay remove Reels?
No. Autoplay settings only change when videos start. Reels stay in both apps. To hide the Reels tab and Reels in the feed, open Instagram in minulo, where hiding is free and DMs keep working.
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