How to Stop Facebook Autoplay Videos on Android 1

How to Stop Facebook Autoplay Videos on Android

These days, Facebook is changing many different options and settings on the fly, and this is especially true for its mobile app on Android and iOS. The guide below will show users how to stop or disable Facebook’s autoplay videos on Android, a feature we’ve heard more complaints about than almost anything else.

In late 2013 Facebook introduced autoplay videos to our timelines that many users enjoy, but it’s also a “feature” that can be pretty annoying and most people want to disable. Fortunately, users have to tap before the sound starts playing, but that’s something you might want to turn off anyway.

Whether it’s for users with low data plans, who don’t want to waste their precious data with videos that their friends and family share on Facebook, or to prevent overuse from using up too much data. Below are a few extremely quick and easy steps Android users should take to stop Facebook from automatically playing videos.

In the backend, these videos are automatically uploaded and ready to play, starting automatically as you scroll down your timeline. And while that’s nice, especially if you’re on WiFi at home, it also eats up your carrier data share and can be pretty frustrating.

Unfortunately, most of Facebook’s settings or “features” are hidden deep within the Android app and not much can be found. However, all you have to do is tap the menu button a few times and this feature can be disabled in less than a minute. Here’s how:

Instructions

The Facebook Android app is constantly changing, and although my screenshots are from the non-public beta, the settings are all the same and in the same place. To stop or disable autoplaying videos on Facebook for Android, you will start by opening the app and watching the screenshots below.

On the main Facebook timeline, tap the three-line “menu” button near the top of the page, then scroll down about halfway. Help and Settings and select .

FB-video

Oddly enough, almost all the important settings are buried here. The ones that turn off the relatively new and obnoxious Facebook sounds and sounds, location data in messages, and most importantly, autoplay videos. Scroll down to Video Autoplay” and select it. The popup will give you the options you are looking for.

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FB-video1

By default Auto Play is set to on and luckily Google has two different options here. My preference is to automatically upload videos over WiFi only. This saves data and means videos will only be uploaded automatically when I’m at home or anywhere with a WiFi connection. Then of course you can turn them off completely, which is a good choice for many.

If you choose to turn them off completely, the videos will not appear on your timeline and users will be prompted to tap the video before it loads or starts playing.

Screenshot 2015-01-29 12.15.42 PM

That’s it and you’re done. Facebook on your Android smartphone or tablet will no longer automatically play videos depending on the setting you choose. It’s worth noting that this can also be done on the web, something many don’t know, by essentially going to the same settings menu in the top right.

Now users can rest in the knowledge that videos won’t play on their Android devices while browsing Facebook, saving your data and keeping your timeline a little cleaner. If you have any other Facebook questions, drop us a comment below.