How to save Instagram videos and Reels to your phone or computer

Saving a post is not downloading it

The ribbon icon under a post adds it to your Saved collection inside Instagram. Nothing is copied to your phone, and the post disappears from your collection if the owner deletes it or makes their account private. To keep a copy you can watch offline, edit or back up, you need the video file itself.

Option 1: Instagram’s own Download button

Instagram lets you download Reels shared by public accounts to your camera roll. Most videos posted since 2022 are Reels, so this covers most of what you see in your feed.

1. Open the Reel in the Instagram app.
2. Tap the Share (paper plane) icon.
3. Tap Download. The Reel is saved to your camera roll or gallery.

According to Instagram’s Help Center, the downloaded copy includes an Instagram watermark, the creator’s username and an audio credit. If you do not see Download, the account is private, the creator has turned off Allow people to download your reels under Settings → Privacy → Reels and Remix, or the account belongs to a teenager, for whom the setting starts switched off.

Option 2: Copy the link into VidiDown

Use a downloader when Instagram shows no Download button for a public post, or when you are on a computer. VidiDown saves the video file Instagram serves for playback, at the best quality it offers, and adds no branding of its own.

1. In Instagram, tap Share on the post or Reel, then Copy link. On a computer, copy the address from the browser bar.
2. Open the Instagram video downloader and paste the link. Reel links work there too, or use the Reels page.
3. Tap Get video. VidiDown finds the video and shows a preview with its real resolution, size and format.
4. Tap Download video within 30 minutes. After that the prepared file is deleted from our server.

Only public posts and Reels work. VidiDown never asks for your Instagram login, so a post that only your signed-in account can see will fail. Stories, photos and full carousels are not supported; for a carousel, VidiDown takes the first video.

Where the video goes on iPhone

1. In Safari, the file goes to your downloads. Tap the download icon in the address bar, or open the Files app and go to Downloads.
2. Open the video, tap Share and choose Save Video to add it to Photos.
3. If Save Video is missing, the download may not have finished, or the file type may not be one Photos accepts. The result card shows the real format before you save.

Where the video goes on Android

1. In Chrome, open the menu and tap Downloads, or open your phone’s Files app and look in the Download folder.
2. Most gallery apps, including Google Photos, list new videos from the Download folder on their own. If yours does not, open the file from Files and use Share or Move.

On a computer

Downloads go to your browser’s Downloads folder. Most Instagram videos are MP4 files that play in any video player. VidiDown copies the original video and audio without re-encoding, so the file is the same quality Instagram delivered.

Saving just the audio

To keep a Reel’s sound as a music file, choose MP3 audio under Save as, or use the Instagram to MP3 converter. Some Reels have no audio track, or carry licensed music that Instagram serves differently; the result will tell you if there is no audio to convert.

If it does not work

Check that the account is public and the post still exists, and that you copied a post or Reel link rather than a profile link. Private posts, deleted Reels and posts that need a login cannot be downloaded. The troubleshooting guide explains each error message.

Questions

Why don’t I see the Download button on a Reel?

The account is private, the creator has switched off downloads, or the account belongs to someone under 18. You can still copy the link of a public Reel into a downloader.

Can I download videos from a private Instagram account?

Not with VidiDown or Instagram’s own button. Private posts are only visible to approved followers, and VidiDown does not use Instagram logins.

Can I save Instagram Stories?

Not with VidiDown. Instagram lets you save your own Stories to your camera roll from the Story itself or your archive.

Can I repost a video I downloaded?

Only with the creator’s permission. Downloading a public video for yourself is different from publishing someone else’s work as your own.