You’re standing there, iPhone in hand, recording your kid’s birthday or maybe a street performer in NYC. Suddenly, there’s a lull. You want to stop for a second and then start again in the same file. Naturally, you look for a pause button. But it isn't there. It’s honestly one of the most baffling decisions Apple has ever made, and it’s been driving users crazy for over a decade.
If you’re looking for how to pause video recording on iPhone, I’ve got some news that might annoy you. The native Camera app—the one that comes pre-installed on every single iPhone from the SE to the 15 Pro Max—simply does not have a pause button. It never has. You have two options: stop the recording entirely or just keep the tape rolling and edit it later.
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It feels archaic. Android users have had this feature since the dawn of time, yet here we are in 2026, still waiting for a basic toggle. But don't toss your phone just yet. There are some clever workarounds, "secret" settings, and third-party apps that basically fix this oversight.
Why the native iPhone camera won't let you pause
Apple’s philosophy has always leaned toward simplicity, sometimes to a fault. Their argument, though never explicitly stated in a press release, is likely about file integrity and processing. When you hit stop, the iPhone instantly "wraps" the video file, applying post-processing, stabilization, and HDR metadata. To pause and resume would require the phone to keep the file "open" in the cache, which could lead to data loss if the app crashed or the battery died mid-shoot.
Still, it’s frustrating. Most people just want to cut out the boring parts of a graduation ceremony without ending up with fifty separate clips in their Photos app.
If you use the stock app, you're stuck. You hit the red square, the recording ends. You hit the red circle again, a brand new file starts. It’s clunky. It fills up your iCloud storage with "junk" footage you have to trim later. But there is a way to get a similar result using the QuickTake feature, though it's a bit of a compromise.
The QuickTake "Hack" and its limitations
Introduced a few years back, QuickTake lets you snap a video while you’re technically in Photo mode. If you hold down the shutter button, it starts recording. If you slide it to the right, it locks into recording mode.
Now, while this still doesn't give you a pause button, it changes how you interact with the camera. Some people find that using the "Take Photo" button during a video recording helps them mark moments. You’ll see a white shutter button appear in the corner while the video is running. Tapping this doesn't pause the video, but it snaps a high-res still.
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It's not a pause. I know. But it’s the closest the native app gets to multitasking.
If you truly need to how to pause video recording on iPhone and keep everything in one file, you have to look outside Apple's walled garden.
Third-party apps that actually solve the problem
This is where the real solution lives. If you’re serious about mobile videography or just hate editing, you need a dedicated app.
1. VideoPause
This is probably the most straightforward tool. It does exactly what the name implies. You open the app, you see a pause button, and you use it. When you’re done, it stitches the segments together into a single file in your library. It’s lightweight and doesn't try to be a professional cinema suite.
2. Filmic Pro
If you want to go the professional route, Filmic Pro is the industry standard. It’s what Sean Baker used to film Tangerine. It gives you a pause function, but it also gives you control over shutter speed, ISO, and bitrates. It’s overkill for a birthday party, but if you’re tired of the iPhone’s "auto-everything" look, it’s worth the investment.
3. Nonstop Cam
This one is a favorite for social media creators. It’s designed specifically for people who want to film a "day in the life" without having a thousand clips. You can pause, lock your phone, go get a coffee, unlock it, and hit resume.
Using "Video Star" or "Clips" for a different workflow
Apple does have another app called Clips. It’s free and usually pre-installed. It’s weird because Clips technically allows for a pause-like experience. You hold a big pink button to record, and when you let go, it stops. When you hold it again, it adds to the same project.
The downside? Clips is built for social media. It defaults to certain aspect ratios and adds filters that you might not want. It’s not a replacement for the main camera app if you're trying to film a cinematic 4K landscape.
Then there’s the Instagram/TikTok workaround. Honestly, a lot of people just record their videos inside the Instagram Stories camera because it allows you to record in segments. You can then download the finished "story" to your camera roll as one continuous video. The quality hit is real, though—Instagram compresses the hell out of your footage.
The editing workaround (The "Apple Way")
Since Apple won't give us the button, they want us to use iMovie or the Photos app edit feature. It’s the "official" way to handle this.
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You record your three or four separate clips. Then, you open the Photos app, hit "Select," grab all the clips, and tap the three dots to "Create Movie" (if you have the right shortcuts set up) or just dump them into iMovie. In iMovie, you just drop them on the timeline, and they sit flush against each other. Export it, and boom—one video.
It takes about three minutes. Is it more annoying than a pause button? Yes. Does it result in a cleaner final product? Usually, because you can trim the exact frame where the action restarts.
How to pause video recording on iPhone via Screen Recording
Here is a weird "pro tip" that almost nobody uses: Screen Recording.
If you are watching something or showing someone how to use an app and you need to pause, you can actually stop the screen recording and then restart it. When you go into the editor, the iPhone is smart enough to recognize these as chronological events.
However, for actual camera work, this is useless. I’m only mentioning it because in the broader context of "recording," it's the one place where the iPhone’s native software feels a bit more flexible with segmented capture.
Real-world advice for better iPhone video
Stop waiting for Apple to update the Camera app with a pause button. They've had 17 versions of iOS to do it and they haven't. They want you to use the "Stop/Start" method because it's safer for the hardware.
If you are filming something where timing is everything, like a tutorial or a vlog, download PauseCam. It’s free (with some ads) and it’s the most painless way to get the job done.
Also, keep an eye on your storage. One reason Apple might shy away from the pause feature is that "open" video files consume a massive amount of temporary RAM. If you're using a third-party app to pause a 4K 60fps video, make sure you don't have twenty other apps open in the background. You don't want the app to crash and lose the first half of your footage.
Step-by-Step Action Plan
To get the best results without a native pause button, follow these steps:
- Assess the project: If it's a quick social clip, use the Instagram Stories camera and save the video before posting.
- Go Pro for long shoots: Download Filmic Pro or VideoPause if you need one continuous file for a project longer than five minutes.
- The "Stitch" Method: If you stick with the native app, record your segments. Open iMovie, start a "New Movie," and tap your clips in the order you shot them. Hit "Create Movie" at the bottom.
- Save Space: Once you've stitched your clips together into one video, delete the original small segments. They are just eating up your storage.
- Check Settings: Always ensure you're in 4K at 30fps or 60fps before you start. There's nothing worse than realizing you've recorded a masterpiece in 720p.
The lack of a pause button is a quirk of the iPhone ecosystem. It's a limitation, but it's not a dead end. Use the tools available, and you'll stop worrying about the red button and start focusing on the shot.