MAY 10, 2018
By Anna Hubbel, Writer at AdvertiseMint, Facebook Advertising Agency
As a Facebook advertising company, we get a lot of questions on social media about social media. Today, we’re talking about a question we get a lot; how to download videos that have been posted on Facebook.
Although Facebook allows users to download photos, the social media network does not allow the same ability when it comes to videos. Unfortunately, users can’t download videos posted on Facebook. However, there is a way to do that using URL-to-video converter websites.
SaveFrom.com is a website that lets you download Facebook videos using a URL for free. Other free download websites include FBDown.net, Getfvid.com, and Bitdownloader.com.
The following steps use SaveFrom to demonstrate how to download Facebook videos. The other free download sites listed above work similarly.
How to Download Facebook Videos on Desktop
Step 1: Log in to Facebook.
Step 2: Locate the video you want to download. Make sure the video you want to download has a globe icon. The globe icon appears below the name of the poster. If there’s a lock or a two-person silhouette icon where the globe would be, you are not permitted to download the video because the privacy setting is not set to public. The globe icon indicates that the post is public.
Step 3: Hover your cursor over the video, right click or Ctrl click it. A drop-down menu should appear. Select “Show video URL.”
Step 5: Navigate to the SaveFrom website. Enter https://en.savefrom.net/ in your browser. This website will let you download videos from links.
Step 6: At the top of the page, in the text box where it says “Just insert a link,” paste the Facebook video’s URL by either pressing Ctrl+V (Windows) or Command+V (Mac).
Step 7: Click the green “Download” button located either below or next to the video’s preview window. The video should proceed to download to your computer’s “Downloads” folder.
Step 8: Locate the downloaded video in your “Downloads” folder on your desktop and save it to the folder of your choosing. And you’re done!How to Download Facebook Videos on iPhone
Step 1: Navigate to the App Store on your iPhone. In the search bar, type “documents” and tap “Search.”
Step 2: In the search results, locate the app “Documents by Readdle.” Tap “GET” and follow the download prompts.
Step 3: Open the Facebook app on your iPhone. Navigate to the video you want to download.
Step 4: Look for the globe icon below the name of the video’s poster to make sure the video is public.
Step 5: Open the video and begin playing it. This ensures that you won’t get a broken link in the next step.
Step 6: Tap “Share” below the video.
Step 7: From the menu that appears, select “Copy Link” to copy the video’s address to your iPhone’s clipboard.
Step 8: Return to your iPhone’s home screen and open the Documents app.
Step 9: Open your Safari browser. Navigate to the SaveFrom website by entering savefrom.net in the address bar. Tap “Go” on your keyboard.
Step 10: In the text field at the top of the page, paste in the video URL you copied earlier.
Step 11: Tap the green “Download” button located below the video’s preview.
Step 12: Tap the light blue “Done” button.
Step 13: Tap the “Downloads” icon located at the bottom right of your screen.
Step 14: After your video finishes downloading, tap the video file on the downloads tab. You should now be able to watch the video in the Documents app.
Step 15: To move the video to your iPhone, with the Documents app open, tap the “Downloads” folder. Tap the ⋯ beneath the video. Select “Share” and proceed to save the video file to a folder on your iPhone.
Paid Software That Lets You Download Facebook Videos
If you don’t trust the free download websites, there is also software you can pay for to ensure any downloads are safe and secure. Below is a list of trusted software you can pay for to download Facebook videos:
- AllMyTube
- Video Downloader Ultimate
- Replay Media Catcher
- iTube Studio
- Download Accelerator Plus
A Note about Copyright Infringement
Before downloading any videos from Facebook, you should double-check Facebook’s copyright guidelines to ensure you are not violating the rights of the original poster or creator of the video. Whether or not you are committing copyright infringement ultimately depends on your intended use of the video after downloading it. For example, you are not committing copyright infringement if your use of the video is fair use.
Factors that determine whether the use of copyrighted work is fair use include the following, as listed by Facebook:
- The purpose and character of the use. For example, do you plan to use it for commercial use or educational purposes? Do you transform the work to give it new meaning?
- The nature of the copyrighted work. Is it factual, like maps or databases, that you plan to use merely for informational purposes?
- The amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole. For example, are you using just a small, insignificant portion of the work?
- The effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work. For example, do you plan to replace the original work, taking away the credit and overall benefits from the original creator?
For more information about fair use in the United States, visit the US Copyright Office Fair Use Index. For more information about what copyright is, visit World Intellectual Property Organization.
