How to Blur a Face in a Video on iPhone

Sharing a video often means putting other people in frame: a bystander, a child, a number plate or a house number in the background. Blurring those details before you post keeps them private, and on an iPhone it only takes a couple of minutes.

Can you do it with the built-in apps?

The built-in Photos app is great for trimming and colour, but it has no tool for hiding a face or number plate inside a video. You can draw on a still photo with Markup, yet there is no simple way to cover a moving subject frame by frame. A purpose-built blur tool solves this by tracking the subject for you.

Step by step

Here is the full flow using Blur-Video.

1. Install Blur-Video and open it, then choose the video you want to edit from your library.
2. Tap Add Blur and pick a shape, either a rectangle or an ellipse, then drag it over the face you want to hide. The offset control keeps your finger clear of the area you are covering.
3. Choose Blur or Pixelate at the top, and use the Strength slider to set how heavy the effect is.
4. Turn on auto-tracking so the blur locks onto the face and follows it through the clip. For tighter control you can also set keyframes at points along the timeline.
5. Need to hide more than one person? Add another shape and repeat. You can blur several faces or objects in the same video.
6. Scrub the timeline to check the blur stays in place, then tap Save to export your video.

Tips

• Pixelate reads as a deliberate privacy choice, while a soft blur looks more natural. Try both on the same face and keep whichever suits the clip.
• Feathering softens the edge of the blur so it blends into the footage instead of showing a hard box.
• Blur house numbers, screens and logos in the background too, not just faces, before you post to a public account.

Frequently asked questions