The basic way to make video slow motion on iPhone

You can slow down video on iPhone using the built-in Photos app — no third-party software needed. Open the video you want to slow down, tap Edit, then tap the speed icon (it looks like a speedometer) at the bottom of the screen. Drag the slider left to slow the video down, or right to speed it up. The slowest speed is 0.25x, which plays the video at one-quarter normal speed. When you're done, tap Done to save your changes.

This method works on any iPhone running iOS 13 or later. The edit is non-destructive, meaning the original video stays intact — you're only changing how it plays back. If you change your mind, you can tap Edit again and adjust the speed or revert to the original by tapping Revert.

Key Takeaways

  • The Photos app on any recent iPhone lets you slow down videos to 0.25x speed without installing anything extra.
  • You can adjust speed in quarter-increments: 0.25x, 0.5x, 0.75x, 1x (normal), 1.25x, 1.5x, and 2x.
  • Edits made in Photos are saved separately from the original video, so you can always revert if you change your mind.
  • If you need frame-by-frame control or want to slow down only part of a video, third-party apps like iMovie or CapCut offer more detailed options.

Adjusting speed in smaller increments

The Photos app speed slider moves in fixed steps: 0.25x, 0.5x, 0.75x, 1x (normal), 1.25x, 1.5x, and 2x. If you need a speed between these steps — say, 0.6x — the Photos app won't let you set it directly. For finer control, you'll need a third-party video editor.

iMovie (free, made by Apple) gives you more precision. Import your video, tap the video in the timeline, then tap the speed icon. You can type in any speed from 0.1x to 2x. CapCut (free, made by ByteDance) works similarly: select the video clip, tap Speed, and enter a custom number. Both apps let you slow down different sections of the same video at different rates.

Slowing down only part of a video

If you want to slow down just one moment — a jump, a catch, a goal — the Photos app applies the speed change to the entire video. To slow down a single section, you need to split the video into clips first.

In iMovie, import your video and tap where you want the slow section to start. Tap the Split icon (scissors symbol). Then tap where you want it to end and split again. Now you have three clips: the original speed before, the slow-motion section in the middle, and the original speed after. Select the middle clip and adjust its speed. In CapCut, the process is the same: tap to place your cursor, tap Split, then select the section you want to slow and change its speed.

Recording video in slow motion from the start

If you're planning to film something in slow motion, you don't have to record at normal speed and slow it down later. The Camera app has a dedicated slow-motion mode that captures more frames per second, then plays them back at normal speed to create the slow-motion effect.

Open the Camera app and swipe left until you see Slo-Mo. Record your video — the phone will capture at either 120 frames per second (fps) or 240 fps depending on your iPhone model. When you play it back, it will already be in slow motion. You can still edit the speed in Photos afterward if you want it even slower, but the quality will be better if you record in Slo-Mo mode from the start rather than slowing down normal video.

Why slowed video sometimes looks choppy

When you slow down video that was recorded at standard frame rate (usually 30 fps on iPhone), the phone has to guess what happens between frames. At 0.5x speed, it's creating new frames that don't actually exist in the original recording. This can make the motion look jerky or unnatural, especially in fast action.

Video recorded in Slo-Mo mode captures at 120 or 240 fps, so there's much more real data between each moment. When you slow that down, the result looks smooth because the phone isn't guessing — it's just playing back frames that were actually captured. If you're planning to slow video significantly, record in Slo-Mo mode whenever possible.

Exporting your slowed-down video

When you edit a video in Photos and tap Done, the changes are saved to your Photos library. To share the edited version, open the video, tap the share icon (arrow pointing out of a box), and choose where to send it: Messages, Mail, AirDrop, or any other app that accepts video.

If you edited in iMovie or CapCut, tap the export or share button in that app. iMovie lets you choose the video quality (720p, 1080p, or 4K) before exporting. CapCut does the same. Higher quality means larger file size, so choose based on where you're sending it — social media platforms compress video anyway, so 1080p is usually enough.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I slow down a video that's already saved to my phone?

Yes. Open Photos, find the video, tap Edit, then tap the speed icon. You can slow it down to 0.25x speed. The original video stays unchanged — the edit is saved separately.

What's the slowest speed I can make a video?

In the Photos app, the slowest is 0.25x (one-quarter speed). In iMovie and CapCut, you can go slower — down to 0.1x — but the video will look very choppy unless it was recorded in Slo-Mo mode.

Does slowing down video reduce the quality?

Slowing down video recorded at normal frame rate (30 fps) does reduce smoothness because the phone creates frames that weren't originally captured. Video recorded in Slo-Mo mode stays smooth when slowed because it has more real frames to work with.

Can I undo a speed change after I save it?

Yes. Open the edited video in Photos, tap Edit, and tap Revert to go back to the original. Or adjust the speed slider to a different value.