---
title: "How to Stabilize a Video on iPhone | stabilize.video"
description: "Photos and iMovie can’t stabilize a video on iPhone after recording. Here’s how to steady one in Safari with no app or upload, and what to change for next time."
url: https://stabilize.video/stabilize-video-iphone
---

1. [Home](https://stabilize.video/)
2. [On your phone](https://stabilize.video/video-stabilizer-app)
3. iPhone

Guide · free tool included

# How to stabilize a video on iPhone

The Photos app and iMovie for iPhone have no stabilise button. Here is how to steady a clip you’ve already filmed, right in Safari, and how to film steadier next time.

An iPhone can’t stabilise a video after it has been recorded: the Photos app has no stabilise tool in iOS 27, and iMovie for iPhone has none either. Stabilisation on an iPhone happens while you film, through **Enhanced Stabilization** and **Action mode**. For a clip that is already shaky, you need another tool, and you don’t have to install one.

Open this page in Safari, tap **Choose a shaky video**, pick the clip from **Photo Library**, and it is analysed on your iPhone straight away. It opens with the **Walking** preset, which suits most handheld phone footage. Compare it with the original, tap **Export video** twice (once for the export settings, once to start), then **Share** and **Save Video** to put the steady copy in Photos next to the original. Nothing is uploaded, and there is no app, account or watermark.

## Steady an iPhone video in Safari

1. ### Open the clip
In Safari, tap **Choose a shaky video**, then **Photo Library**, and pick the video. It is read from your iPhone; nothing is sent anywhere.
2. ### Let it analyse
While it shows **Analysing motion…**, the movement between every pair of frames is measured on the phone. Longer and 4K clips take longer; keep Safari open until it finishes.
3. ### Pick how it was filmed
It starts with **Walking**. If another card is marked **Suggested**, try it, or choose **Running**, **Vehicle** or **Tripod** to match the footage. Each one updates the preview at once.
4. ### Compare with the original
Press and hold the picture to see the original, or switch **View** to **Split** and drag the divider. Check the shake has gone and the zoom isn’t too tight.
5. ### Save it to Photos
Tap **Export video**, then **Export video** again in the sheet that opens. When it is ready, tap **Share** and choose **Save Video**. The steady copy appears in Photos; your original is left as it was.

## What the iPhone can and can’t do

__Ways to get a steady video on iPhone__
| Option                     | When                                     | What it does                                                                                                                    |
| -------------------------- | ---------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Enhanced Stabilization** | While recording; on by default           | Zooms in slightly to steady **Video** and **Cinematic** mode clips. iPhone 14 and later.                                        |
| **Action mode**            | While recording; turn it on for the shot | Much stronger steadying for running or riding, up to 2.8K, best in bright light. See [iPhone Action mode](https://stabilize.video/iphone-action-mode). |
| Photos app                 | After recording                          | Trim, speed, colour, crop and straighten. No stabilise tool.                                                                    |
| iMovie for iPhone          | After recording                          | No stabilise tool. iMovie on a Mac has one; see the [iMovie guide](https://stabilize.video/stabilize-video-imovie).                                    |
| This page in Safari        | After recording                          | Steadies the clip on the phone, with presets, a rolling-shutter fix and a before-and-after view.                                |

Photos’ **Crop** tool can straighten a tilted video, which helps a crooked horizon, but it rotates the whole clip by the same amount and doesn’t remove shake.

## Getting the best result from an iPhone clip

### Choose the preset by how it was filmed

* **Walking** for vlogs and following someone: it smooths the bounce of each step.
* **Running** for running, cycling or a bumpy ride: much stronger smoothing than **Walking**, with more zoom.
* **Tripod** for a shot that should have been still, like a speech or a landmark: it holds the frame in place.
* **Subtle** if the clip is only a little jittery and you want to keep almost all of the frame.

### If it says it’s already steady

iPhones steady video while recording, so many clips have very little shake left. If the studio says **Already steady: there’s very little shake to remove.**, the bounce you notice may be deliberate movement: tap **Adjust** and raise **Smoothness**, or choose **Tripod** for a still shot.

### What to expect

* The picture is zoomed in a little so the moving edges stay out of view; under **Adjust**, the line below **Zoom limit** shows how far. **Framing** set to **Full frame** keeps the whole picture and fills the edges instead.
* Motion blur from the original shake stays in the frames; stabilising can’t sharpen them.
* Recent iPhones record HDR video by default. The steadied copy is saved in standard dynamic range, so it can look slightly less bright and vivid than the HDR original.
* Very long 4K clips can be slow on a phone, and may run out of memory on older models. Trim to the part you need first, or use a computer.

## Is the shake in the video, or in the phone?

If the picture jitters or buzzes even when the iPhone is resting on a table or a tripod, the problem is the camera, not the footage. Apple warns that strong vibration, especially from high-power motorcycle engines, can damage the optical image stabilisation and focus systems in iPhone cameras. A stabiliser can’t fix that; contact Apple Support. For how optical and electronic stabilisation differ, see [OIS vs EIS](https://stabilize.video/ois-vs-eis).

## iPhone stabilisation questions

### Can I stabilize a video in the iPhone Photos app?

No. Photos can trim a video, change its speed, adjust colour, crop and straighten it, but it has no stabilise tool. Steady the clip on this page in Safari, then save the result back to Photos.

### Does iMovie on iPhone stabilise video?

No. Only iMovie for Mac has the **Stabilize Shaky Video** setting. On an iPhone, steady the clip here first and then add it to your iMovie project.

### How do I stabilise an iPhone video after recording?

Open this page in Safari, tap **Choose a shaky video**, pick the clip, compare the steady version with the original, tap **Export video** twice (to open the settings, then to start), then **Share** and **Save Video**. The analysis and export happen on the phone.

### Should I use Action mode next time?

For running, cycling or filming from a moving vehicle in good light, yes. For ordinary handheld clips, **Enhanced Stabilization**, which is on by default, is usually enough and keeps full resolution. [iPhone Action mode](https://stabilize.video/iphone-action-mode) compares them.

### Why does my iPhone camera shake on its own?

If the picture shakes even when the phone is perfectly still, the camera’s stabilisation hardware may be damaged, often by strong vibration such as a motorcycle mount. That is a repair job for Apple, not something software can fix.

### Will the steadied video lose quality?

It is zoomed in slightly and encoded again, so choose **High** under **Quality** when you export. It keeps its frame size, frame rate and sound, but HDR clips are saved in standard dynamic range.

## More on stabilising on your phone

* [ Stabilize a video online Smooth out shaky footage in your browser, with nothing uploaded. ](https://stabilize.video/)
* [ Stabilise video on your phone, no app needed Use the stabiliser in your phone’s browser, and keep it on your home screen like an app. ](https://stabilize.video/video-stabilizer-app)
* [ When to use iPhone Action mode When it beats the default setting, its limits, and fixing clips filmed without it. ](https://stabilize.video/iphone-action-mode)
* [ Stabilize video in iMovie The Mac’s Stabilize Shaky Video setting, and the workaround on iPhone and iPad. ](https://stabilize.video/stabilize-video-imovie)
* [ Stabilize a video on Android Google Photos’ Stabilize, Samsung and Pixel settings, and a browser option. ](https://stabilize.video/stabilize-video-android)
* [ OIS vs EIS, explained Optical, electronic and software stabilisation: how each works and what it costs. ](https://stabilize.video/ois-vs-eis)
* [ Stabilize video in CapCut Desktop, phone and web steps, and which of the three levels to pick. ](https://stabilize.video/stabilize-video-capcut)