How to Download Streaming Video on iPhone (HLS, m3u8, blob)

To download a streaming video on iPhone, you need a browser that can read the stream and rebuild it into one file. Safari can't: most sites stream video as hundreds of short pieces listed in an .m3u8 playlist (HLS), or play it from a blob: address, so there's no single file to download. A video-saving browser like Kipzy finds the stream while the video plays, downloads the pieces and joins them into an MP4 on your phone. Protected (DRM) videos and live streams can't be saved by any browser.

This guide explains how to tell a streamed video from a normal file, how to save embedded, HLS and blob videos, and what to do when a site doesn't offer a download. If the video has a plain download link, our guide to downloading videos on iPhone covers Safari's Download Linked File and where the files go.

How to tell if a video is streamed

You can't open developer tools on iPhone, but a few signs give it away:

• No Download Linked File. Touch and hold the video or its link. If the menu has no Download Linked File, there's no file behind it.
• The quality changes while it plays. A blurry start that sharpens after a few seconds is adaptive streaming at work.
• The player has a quality menu with options like Auto, 480p and 1080p.
• The video sits inside another player. Embedded videos on news sites, course pages and blogs usually come from a separate video host, and they're almost always streamed.

If any of these apply, Safari's download options won't help, and the methods below will.

Why Safari can't download streaming video

Streaming isn't a trick sites use to stop you. It's how video works on the modern web:

• HLS and .m3u8 playlists. HLS (HTTP Live Streaming) splits a video into short segments, often a few seconds each, at several quality levels. A playlist file ending in .m3u8 lists them, and the player fetches them one by one. Saving the playlist alone gives you a tiny text file, not a video.
• blob: addresses. Some players download the segments with JavaScript and hand them to the video element through an address that starts with blob:. That address only exists inside the open page, so copying it or opening it in a new tab shows nothing.
• Embedded players. A video embedded from another site lives in its own frame, so long-pressing it reaches the player, not the video.

In all three cases the video is still made of regular pieces your phone is already downloading to play it. A tool that watches for the playlist can fetch those same pieces and put them back together.

Method 1: Save the stream with Kipzy

Kipzy is a free iPhone browser with a built-in video saver. It notices HLS playlists and video files as the page loads them, including those in embedded players and behind blob: addresses, and shows a Save video button.

1. Open the page in Kipzy by pasting its address into the address bar. If you make Kipzy your default browser, links you tap in other apps open there directly.
2. Play the video for a few seconds. Many players only load the stream once playback starts.
3. Tap Save video.
4. Pick the video and the quality. Kipzy reads the stream's quality levels and shows the file size before you download.
5. Tap Download.

Kipzy downloads the segments in the background, joins them and saves one MP4 file. Finished videos appear in Kipzy's Downloads screen, where they play offline. To move one to Photos or Files, tap its Share button and choose Save Video or Save to Files.

If the sheet lists more than one video

Pages often play more than one stream: an ad before the video, a preview on hover, or other clips further down. Kipzy shows one entry per video with a thumbnail and its length, so pick the one that matches the video you watched. Short clips are usually ads or previews.

If the Save video button doesn't appear

• Play the video, and let any ad before it finish. The real stream often loads only after that.
• Reload the page and play the video again. Kipzy only sees streams the page loads while it's open.
• Open the video's own page. If it's embedded from a video host, tapping the host's logo or title in the player usually opens the video's page, which often loads the stream more reliably.
• Check whether the site is one Kipzy doesn't save from, listed in the next section.

Which streaming videos can't be saved

Some videos stay off limits, and Kipzy tells you why rather than downloading a broken file:

• Protected (DRM) video. Paid streaming services such as Netflix, Disney+ and Prime Video encrypt their video so it only plays in approved players. Kipzy shows "Protected video, can't be saved". Use the service's own download button instead.
• Live streams. A stream that's still going has no end to save. Wait until the broadcast is over and the replay is posted.
• DASH streams. Some players use DASH (playlists ending in .mpd) instead of HLS. Kipzy saves HLS and regular video files, but not DASH.
• Major social and video platforms. Kipzy doesn't offer saving on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, X, Vimeo, Twitch, Reddit and similar sites. Their apps have their own offline options, covered in our guide to saving videos to watch offline.

Only save videos you have the right to keep, such as your own uploads, course videos you're allowed to download, or freely licensed footage, and respect each site's terms.

Method 2: Screen recording

When a stream can't be saved and you're allowed to keep a copy, iOS screen recording is the fallback. Open Control Center, tap Screen Recording, then play the video full screen. The recording goes to Photos.

It records in real time, the quality is usually lower than the original, and protected videos record as a black screen. Turn on a Focus mode first so notifications don't end up in the video. Our iPhone video download guide has the full steps.

What about m3u8 downloader apps and websites?

Online HLS and m3u8 downloaders ask you to paste the address of the .m3u8 playlist. That's hard on iPhone: without developer tools you can't see the requests a page makes, so you can't find the playlist address in the first place. Many of these sites are also heavy with ads and pop-ups.

Playlist addresses also tend to expire. Sites often add a short-lived token to the link, so an address copied now may stop working within minutes. A browser that saves the stream from the open page avoids both problems, because it uses the same fresh addresses the player does. If a Kipzy download does stop with "Link expired", reopen the page and start it again.

Found the video on your computer?

If you're watching on a computer and want the video on your iPhone, the Kipzy Chrome extension helps. When the page has a video, its Save this video button shows a QR code. Scan it with your iPhone camera, and the page opens in Kipzy, ready to save. See how to send a web page from your computer to iPhone for the other ways to do it.

Kipzy: what's free and what's Pro

Kipzy needs no account. The free version includes the browser, tabs, private tabs, ad and pop-up blocking, and 2 video downloads a day, with the option to watch a short ad for another, a few times a day. Kipzy Pro removes the daily limit, saves in the best quality the stream offers and adds a private video folder locked with Face ID. The ad blocker helps on video pages too, which are often the most ad-heavy pages on the web; see how to block ads on iPhone.

Common questions

Can I download a streaming video on iPhone without an app?

Not as a file. Safari and the Files app can only download videos that have a direct link. Without another app, screen recording is the only option, and it records in real time at lower quality.

How do I download an m3u8 video on iPhone?

Open the page that plays it in a browser that supports HLS, such as Kipzy, play the video and tap Save video. The browser downloads every segment listed in the .m3u8 playlist and joins them into one MP4. Downloading the .m3u8 file itself only gives you the playlist, not the video.

How do I download a blob video on iPhone?

You can't download the blob: address itself, because it only exists inside the page. Instead, save the stream the player is reading. Most blob: players are built on HLS, and Kipzy picks up that stream when the video plays. If the player uses DASH or DRM, it can't be saved.

How do I download an embedded video on iPhone?

Open the page in Kipzy and play the embedded video. Kipzy checks the frames inside the page as well as the page itself, so videos embedded from other hosts show up in the Save video sheet, unless they come from one of the platforms Kipzy doesn't save from.

How long does it take to save a streaming video?

Usually much less than the video's length, depending on your connection and the quality you pick. A 10-minute video in 720p is often around 100 to 300 MB. Downloads continue in the background, and Kipzy's Download on Wi-Fi only switch keeps them off mobile data.

Is it legal to download streaming videos?

It depends on the video, the site's terms and where you live. Your own videos, videos a site lets you download, and freely licensed footage are generally fine. Don't save or share videos you don't have the rights to.