How to Fix WhatsApp Videos Not Playing on iPhone or Android

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Basic Fixes

Fix 1: Save the WhatsApp Video Manually

If WhatsApp’s default video player is broken or corrupt, save the video on your phone and use the built-in video player in the Photos/Gallery app to play it.

iPhone

Step 1:Open WhatsApp and select your desired chat containing the video.

Step 2:Long-tap the video and selectSave. Once saved, open the Photos app and try playing your WhatsApp video.

Android

Step 1:Go to your desired conversation in WhatsApp and tap a received video to download it.

Step 2:Select the video, tap itsthree-dot menuat the top right, and pickSave. Head to the Gallery/Google Photos app to locate and play it.

Fix 2: Enable Auto-Save in WhatsApp

Saving each video manually in WhatsApp can be tedious. Instead, you can enable theauto-savefeature in WhatsApp to automatically download and save videos on your phone.

Note:Enabling the auto-save feature may open floodgates for all the irrelevant media files you receive on WhatsApp.

iPhone

Step 1:Open WhatsApp, tapSettingsat the bottom right, and selectStorage and data.

Step 2:SelectVideounder ‘Media auto-download‘ and enable ‘Wi-Fi and cellular‘. WhatsApp now auto-downloads all incoming video files.

Step 3:Go back to Settings, selectChats, and toggle on ‘Save to Photos‘. This saves all downloaded videos to the Photos app.

Android

Step 1:Launch WhatsApp, tap itsthree-dot menuat the top right, and selectSettings>Storage and data.

Step 2:Tap ‘When connected on Wi-Fi‘ under Media auto-download and enableVideos. Repeat the same for ‘When using mobile data‘ and ‘When roaming‘.

Step 3:Head back to Settings, selectChats, and toggle onMedia visibilityto view downloaded videos in your phone’s Gallery app.

Fix 3: Clear the WhatsApp Cache (Android)

A corrupt cache can malfunction WhatsApp on your Android phone, preventing it from playing videos. Clear it manually and retry playing the downloaded video.

Step 1:Long-tap the WhatsApp app icon and tap ‘i‘ to open its App info.

Step 2:SelectStorage and cache, and tapClear cache.

Fix 4: Use VLC Media Player to Play Incompatible Video Formats

If the built-in WhatsApp media player or your device’s default video player app can’t play a downloaded video,use the VLC playerapp to play unsupported video formats.

Step 1:Install the VLC media player from theGoogle Play StoreorApple App Store.

Step 2:Open the WhatsApp chat, select the received video file, and open it withVLC.

Step 3:TapOKand provide the necessary file access permission to play it (if prompted).

Old WhatsApp Videos Not Playing? Causes and Fixes

Are you struggling to play an old WhatsApp video but it only previews as a thumbnail in your chat? This occurs when the video isn’t included in your WhatsApp backup, resulting in its permanent loss.

You can request the sender to resend the video and ensure that videos are included in yourWhatsApp backupsto avoid this issue in the future. Follow these easy steps to include videos in your WhatsApp backups.

Note:Including videos in your WhatsApp chat backup bumps its size significantly, consuming more storage on your Google account/iCloud.

Step 1:Tap thethree-dot menuat the top right corner of WhatsApp and selectSettings>Chats.

Step 2:SelectChat backupand toggle onInclude videosto make them part of your WhatsApp backups.

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Last updated on 22 August, 2024

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