7 Simple Ways to Fix Live Photos Not Saving on FaceTime

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Quick ways to fix your Live Photos not saving during a FaceTime call on iOS

Co-authored by Rain Kengly Reviewed by Stan Kats

Last Updated: September 8, 2025 Fact Checked

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Enable Live Photos

|

Check Your Storage Space

|

Check Privacy Settings

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Restart FaceTime

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Restart Your iPhone

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Update Your iPhone

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Take a Screenshot

Are your FaceTime photos not showing up in your Camera Roll? If your FaceTime photos aren't working, this could be an issue with your settings. All participants must have the Live Photos feature enabled for either party to capture and save photos. Luckily, this can be fixed in a few simple steps. This wikiHow will show you how to troubleshoot FaceTime when Live Photos are not saving properly on your iPhone.

Things You Should Know

Enable Live Photos in "Settings" → "FaceTime" → switch on "FaceTime Live Photos."
Make sure you have enough free storage to save new photos.
Restart FaceTime and your device. Update it to the latest available version.

Method 1

Method 1 of 7:

Enable Live Photos

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1
Open the Settings app. This is the gray cog icon. If you're using FaceTime on a Mac, open FaceTime's menu and click Preferences.^{[1]
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- All participating FaceTime users must have Live Photos enabled to take or save photos.
2
Tap FaceTime. You can find this underneath Messages.
- If you're using a Mac, skip this step.
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3
Toggle off
"FaceTime Live Photos". You may need to scroll down to find this option.
- On Mac, this will look like Allow Live Photos to be captured during video calls.

Method 2

Method 2 of 7:

Check Your Storage Space

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This is the gray cog icon.
You can find this below Screen Time.
3
Tap iPhone Storage. A new page will open with a detailed chart of your iPhone's storage. You'll see the available space in the top-right corner of the chart.
- If you don't have space on your iPhone, you won't be able to save any more photos.
- To free up storage space, you can transfer files from your iPhone to your computer. You can also use a cloud service, such as iCloud or Google Photos to store your photos and videos.

Method 3

Method 3 of 7:

Check Privacy Settings

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This is the gray cog icon.
You can find this underneath Focus.^{[2]
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This is below Always Allowed.
You can find this towards the top of the page.
The switches should be green.

Method 4

Method 4 of 7:

Restart FaceTime

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This is the gray cog icon.^{[3]
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Research source}
You can find this underneath Messages.
The switch will turn grey.
4
Toggle on
"FaceTime". The switch will turn green.
- Try to retake FaceTime photos.

Method 5

Method 5 of 7:

Restart Your iPhone

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1
Restart your iPhone. Sometimes, a simple restart can fix basic issues. If your iPhone uses Face ID, press and hold the Volume Up button and Power button at the same time. Swipe to power off. Wait at least thirty seconds, and then power it on again.
- On iPhones with a home button, press and hold the side button. Slide to power off. ^{[4]
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Method 6

Method 6 of 7:

Update Your iPhone

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1
Update your iPhone. Keep your phone software up-to-date. Software updates include important bug fixes and, most times, stronger security features. Do the following:
- Go to Settings.
- Tap General.
- Tap Software Update.
- Tap Download and Install.

Method 7

Method 7 of 7:

Take a Screenshot

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Take a screenshot instead. If all else fails, you can always take a screenshot to save FaceTime moments. You can also screen record on your iPhone to save any videos, but keep in mind you won't be able to record any of the audio.^{[5]
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Research source} to check