How to Delete Ring Videos: A Complete Guide

Ring security cameras are quietly logging hours of footage — motion alerts, doorbell presses, neighbor activity, late-night deliveries. Over time, that library grows fast. Whether you're managing storage, protecting privacy, or just doing routine cleanup, knowing exactly how to delete Ring videos (and what happens when you do) saves a lot of frustration.

What Happens to Ring Videos by Default

Before diving into deletion, it helps to understand how Ring stores footage in the first place.

Ring cameras don't store video locally on the device itself. All recorded clips are uploaded to Ring's cloud servers, where they're held for a set period depending on your subscription plan. Without a Ring Protect Plan, most devices don't save video at all — they can only show a live view. With a plan, clips are stored in the cloud for 30, 60, or 180 days, depending on which tier you're on, after which they're automatically deleted.

This matters because deleting a Ring video means removing it from the cloud — not from a physical SD card or local hard drive.

How to Delete Ring Videos in the Ring App

The Ring app (available on iOS and Android) is the primary tool for managing and deleting footage.

Deleting Individual Videos

1. Open the Ring app and tap "Event History" from the dashboard
2. Browse your recorded clips by device or date
3. Tap on a specific clip to open it
4. Tap the trash icon (usually in the top-right corner)
5. Confirm deletion when prompted

The clip is removed from your cloud history immediately. This action cannot be undone — Ring does not keep a backup or recycle bin for deleted footage.

Deleting Multiple Videos at Once

If you have a backlog of clips to clear out:

1. Open Event History
2. Use the filter options to sort by device, date range, or event type
3. Look for the "Select All" or batch selection option (this may appear as an edit icon depending on your app version)
4. Select the clips you want to remove
5. Tap Delete and confirm

The batch deletion process is particularly useful after a period of frequent motion alerts — wind, passing cars, or a busy street can generate dozens of clips quickly.

Deleting Videos on ring.com (Desktop)

If you prefer a larger screen or manage multiple devices, the Ring web portal offers similar controls.

1. Go to ring.com and sign in to your account
2. Click "Event History" in the left sidebar
3. Browse or filter your clips
4. Select individual clips or use batch selection
5. Click Delete and confirm

The interface on desktop mirrors the app closely, but the larger display makes it easier to review footage before deciding what to delete.

🗂️ Shared Users and Video Access

If you've added shared users to your Ring account, it's worth knowing how permissions work. Shared users can typically view event history and live view, but only the account owner has full control over deleting videos. If someone else deleted footage from your account, they were either the account owner or had elevated permissions.

This is an important distinction for households where multiple people manage the same Ring setup — not everyone has the same level of control by default.

What About Ring Protect Plans and Retention?

Regardless of your plan, you can always manually delete clips before the automatic retention window expires. The subscription plan controls how long Ring holds footage — but you're never locked out of managing your own library.

Deleting Footage vs. Turning Off Recording

Some users want to delete old footage and also stop new footage from being saved — for privacy reasons, during a renovation, or when a camera's placement changes.

These are two separate actions:

• Deleting videos removes existing clips from the cloud
• Disabling motion recording or turning on "Disarmed" mode in the Ring app stops new clips from being saved

🔒 Ring also offers a "Motion Snooze" feature for temporarily pausing alerts without fully disabling the camera. If privacy is the primary concern, combining deletion with adjusted motion settings gives you more granular control.

Why Deletion Behavior Varies by Setup

Not all Ring users have the same experience when managing footage, and a few key variables explain why:

• Device type: Doorbells, indoor cameras, outdoor cameras, and floodlight cams all appear in the same Event History but may have different default settings
• App version: Ring updates its interface regularly; the exact location of delete options can shift between versions
• Account role: Owner vs. shared user permissions directly affect what deletion controls appear
• Subscription status: Users without an active Protect Plan won't see stored clips to delete in the first place
• Number of cameras: Accounts with multiple devices generate far more footage, making batch tools and filters more important

What's straightforward for a single-camera household gets more layered once you're managing several devices across different locations or sharing account access with family members.