In this Facebook Academy lesson, we’re talking about something that matters to a lot of users who’ve found themselves sitting at their PC, on a Facebook page, watching a funny or moving video — with no way to download it.
Tons of users try to figure out how to download videos from Facebook — sadly, without success.
But don’t worry, you don’t need to be a programmer or have any technical skills! In this lesson we’ll help you understand how to download videos from Facebook the easy way, so sharing funny stuff with friends and family won’t be complicated anymore.
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Have you ever found yourself on the famous blue social platform, staring at a video, hunting for an icon or feature that would let you download it?
Let us tell you a little secret… Don’t waste your time — there’s no feature inside the platform that lets you download videos from Facebook.
So what do you need to do to download a video from Facebook? You just need to make sure you have the correct link to the video you want to download. And the link I’m talking about is easy to grab:
- Looking at the video? Hover over it with your mouse and right-click
- From the options in the menu, click “Show video URL”
- Clicking that option gives you the link you’ll need in a moment — copy it and get ready.
Free image from Pixabay
Now that you have the link to the specific video you want to download, you’re ready to go.
The web has a solution for every need, so if you’re trying to figure out how to download videos from Facebook, there are a few options that let you do just that.
Let’s look at the 3 main ways to download videos from Facebook:
- Websites / online services
- Browser extensions
- Programs / Software
Need a list of Facebook tools?
Need a tool to schedule your Facebook posts in advance?
Looking for a tool to create quizzes and contests?
Need an analytics tool and want to find out which ones are best?
No problem, we’ll give you the full list. FREE!
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As we said before, the web is the place where every problem finds a solution.
So I’m happy to reassure you: if you’re wondering how to download videos from Facebook, there are plenty of sites that let you do it quickly and easily.
Let’s look at a few together.
Save video (go to the official site) is a super handy online service known as a Facebook video downloader.
Remember the link you copied earlier, when you were looking at the video you wanted? That’s exactly the link you need to paste into Save video’s dedicated field.
- Once you’ve pasted the link, click “Download”
- Standard resolution or HD? You’ll be offered two different links so you can pick the resolution you want.
- Once you’ve chosen the resolution, click “Download video file”.
- The download will then start on your computer. Depending on your settings, you’ll find the video in the relevant folder — usually the Downloads folder.
A second service to download videos from Facebook is offered by Clip Converter (link to the site). This service lets you choose the format you want to download the video in.
- Go to the site, paste the link you copied on Facebook into the dedicated field and click “Continue”.
- Some ad windows might pop up. Don’t be fooled — close them and go back to the page where you started this process to learn how to download videos from Facebook.
- On this site you can pick a specific format. Every platform has different technical specs. If you know them, select the one you need; otherwise, if it’s just for sharing with friends, any option will do.
- Give your file a name in the “File name” field.
- Choose whether to download the video as .MP4, .MOV or another format. Click your preference.
- Choose whether to download the whole video or just part of it, thanks to the dedicated feature. The “Start of video” and “End of video” options are already checked. If you untick one of them, or both, you can set the exact timestamps.
- Click “Start” and you’re finally ready to download your video.
- Finally, click “Download” and there you go — in your Downloads folder you’ll find the video with the exact name you chose, in the format and file size you selected earlier.
Free image from Pixabay
If you’re a fan of browser extensions, here are a few suggestions for downloading videos from Facebook.
The extensions we’re about to suggest are all free and let you process videos hosted on Facebook. Which extensions do we recommend?
This Facebook video downloader is an extension that lets you download videos from Facebook as well as from other sites. Apart from YouTube, which Google places special restrictions on, you’re good to go with every other site.
So how do we get started?
- If you’re browsing with Chrome, click here to reach the add-on page. Click “Add” and then “Add extension”.
- More of a Mozilla Firefox fan? Then you’ll find your extension here. Same process as above: “Add to Firefox” and then “Install”.
For both browsers, the specific process to download videos from Facebook is the same:
- Go to the page with the video. The extension icon is the one made up of 3 colored dots. The 3 dots light up in color when downloadable media files are detected; otherwise they stay gray.
- When the dots are colored, click the icon and you’ll see the list of files you can download.
- For some files you can pick a specific format; for others there’s only one format available.
- Click the file you want and the download will start automatically.
If Safari is your browser of choice, you can add the ClickToPlugin extension. It’s a sort of app for downloading Facebook videos, since you do actually download something to your computer.
- Click this link.
- On the page that opens, select “Download ClickToPlugin”.
- Open the file you just downloaded and accept the installation. Once that’s done, you can go to the Facebook video you’re interested in.
- Right-click on the video, click “Download video” and the download will start.
Free image from Pixabay
And here we are at the last method for learning how to download videos from Facebook. You’re this close to becoming a pro at this fantastic activity.
Let’s talk about two of the most widely used and best-loved programs for Windows and OS X.
This free download manager can capture videos, images and audio files from any web page, Facebook included.
- Click here to download this Facebook video downloader.
- Select the icon that matches your operating system.
- As usual, this app for downloading Facebook videos also needs to be installed.
- If you’re on Windows, open the downloaded file and click “Yes” when asked to start downloading all the components. Go to “Advanced installation”, “NextAccept”, “Skip all” and finally “Finish” to complete the process.
- If you’re on OS X, open the downloaded package and start the installation by clicking the app. Click “Ok”, “Next”, “Skip” and “Finish” in sequence to wrap up the setup.
When you have a video or file to download, the process is very simple.
- While you’re browsing the Facebook page, Jdownloader will notify you that the link has been captured.
- Go to the tab called “Link Grabber”, click “Play” in the top left and the program will start downloading the video.
We’re about to tell you about the last program we recommend. Finally, if anyone asks whether you know how to download videos from Facebook, your answer will be “absolutely yes”.
The program we’re talking about is called 4K Video Downloader and it’s compatible with both Windows and OS X.
- Click here to start downloading the program.
- If you’re on Windows, launch the package you just downloaded and click “Yes”, “Ok” and then “Next” in sequence. Remember to accept the terms of the license agreement and click “Next” 3 times. Two final steps: click “Install” and “Finish”.
- If you’re on OS X, the process starts when you click the downloaded program. Drag the icon into your Applications folder and you’re done.
- Whatever operating system you’re using, once you have the URL of the video (the video link) you want to download at hand, open the app for downloading Facebook videos and click “Paste URL”.
- You can choose the resolution and start the download.
Free image from Pixabay
Conclusion
Let’s recap this long journey through the world of Facebook videos.
You set out to learn how to download videos from Facebook and discovered that the web is full of options. So let’s recap the 3 main categories for downloading videos from Facebook:
- Websites / online services
- Browser extensions
- Programs / Software
Thanks for joining this lesson of your favorite Facebook Academy, where we covered how to download videos from Facebook and the 3 different ways to do it.
Keep following us! In the next lessons we’ll cover more topics dedicated to Facebook. Stay up to date and keep following your favorite Facebook Academy!
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