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Skyler-B's avatar
Skyler-B
Iron Contributor
Jun 18, 2026

How do I transfer videos from iPhone to Mac using a USB cable?

The bluetooth and airdrop are too slow and unstable when the video size goes bigger. I tried this a couple of times but the transfer was interrupted at the middle. There are more than 100 videos so I hope someone could suggest a fast and reliable method to transfer videos from iPhone to Mac.

As a beginner, I'm not sure which method is best? It would also be helpful to know how to keep the original video quality during the transfer.

What is the easiest way to transfer videos from an iPhone to Mac with a cable? Any step-by-step instructions or tips would be greatly appreciated.

8 Replies

  • Nobel_Baynes's avatar
    Nobel_Baynes
    Steel Contributor

    Connect the iPhone to Mac and you will find the iPhone videos in the Finder app.

  • LocalSend is an open-source, cross-platform file-sharing tool that supports interoperability between Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android. When devices are on the same Wi-Fi network, the software automatically detects them, providing a convenient way to transfer iphone videos to mac.

    The software transfers data strictly within the local network without passing through third-party servers, thereby ensuring privacy and security. Under optimal Wi-Fi conditions, transfer speeds can reach 10 to 50 MB/s, allowing a 2 GB file to be transferred in about one minute. This feature is also ideal for users who need to efficiently transfer iphone videos to mac without relying on cloud storage.

    To ensure proper operation, both devices must be connected to the same Wi-Fi network. Users should also make sure to grant local network permissions upon first launch to enable device discovery. If connection issues arise, turning off cellular data on the iPhone and using only Wi-Fi usually resolves the problem.

  • Genevievelover's avatar
    Genevievelover
    Copper Contributor

    libimobi ledevice is a powerful open-source toolkit that enables you to communicate with your iPhone via your computer. You can transfer iPhone videos to mac wirelessly using either the command line or compatible applications, and it is completely free.

    To transfer iPhone videos to mac wirelessly: Create an empty folder on your Mac to act as a mount point for your iPhone (for example, on your Desktop). In Terminal, run:

    bash

    mkdir ~/Desktop/ iPhone_ Mount

    Mount your iPhone to that folder:

    bash

    ifuse ~/Desktop /iPhone_ Mount

    You should now see the iPhone mounted as a drive on your Desktop .

    Open the iPhone_Mount folder and navigate to the DCIM folder. All your photos and videos are stored here in subfolders. Copy and paste the video files from the DCIM folder to any location on your Mac—it works just like a regular external drive.

  • Xollom's avatar
    Xollom
    Iron Contributor

    Google Drive, a cross-platform cloud sync storage tool that delivers cable-free remote access without USB connections, lets users complete transfer iphone videos to mac via internet but suffers from slow speeds, heavy bandwidth usage and extremely long waiting times when handling batches of over 100 video files.

    How to Transfer iPhone Videos to Mac

    1. Download the Google Drive app on your iPhone and sign in with your Google account.
    2. Upload all the iPhone videos you want to transfer to the dedicated folder within the app, and wait until the upload progress bar is completely filled.
    3. On your Mac, open the app’s desktop version or visit its official website, and sign in with the same Google account.
    4. Navigate to the folder where your uploaded iPhone videos are stored.
    5. Select all the target video files and download them to a local folder on your Mac’s hard drive.

    When you don’t have a USB cable on hand, this wireless cloud-based workflow offers a convenient wireless solution for transferring videos to your Mac. It’s only suitable for situations involving a small number of short video clips; users who need to process large amounts of video should opt for the wired USB method to save time and reduce network traffic.

    Pros

    • No physical USB cable required; remote file transfers can be performed anytime, anywhere as long as an internet connection is available
    • Videos are automatically backed up to cloud storage as additional copies
    • Supports iPhone, Mac, and other devices signed in to the same Google account

    Cons

    • Upload and download speeds are extremely slow when transferring more than 100 videos
    • Consumes a significant amount of mobile data or Wi-Fi bandwidth
    • Free cloud storage space is limited; additional fees apply for large video libraries
    • If the network connection is interrupted during transfer, the transfer process will stop completely
  • Sarahubuer's avatar
    Sarahubuer
    Copper Contributor

    This is a completely free, open-source solution to transfer videos from iPhone to mac using cable, but it requires using the Terminal. ifuse is a FUSE filesystem driver that lets you mount your iPhone's media folder (and even app document folders) as a disk on your Mac using a USB cable.

    How it to transfer videos from iPhone to mac using cable: It essentially makes your iPhone appear as an external drive in Finder, allowing you to browse and copy files, including videos, via the command line.

    The Setup: This is not for casual users. You'll need to install several dependencies using Homebrew and build the tool yourself.

    What you get: Once set up, you can access your iPhone's media folder via the Terminal, giving you a free, cable-based method to transfer video files.

    ifuse does more than just give you access to your camera roll. It allows you to mount and browse various directories, including app-specific sandboxed files for apps that support file sharing . You could, for instance, access documents from a specific app by mounting its container folder directly.

  • This is a reliable wired method for quickly Transfer iPhone Videos to Mac without uploading them to the cloud. It allows you to extract video files stored in third-party iOS apps directly into Finder via a USB connection, and with a simple drag-and-drop action, you can copy the entire video folder to your Mac.

    Connect your iPhone to your Mac using a USB cable, open Finder, and locate your iPhone device in the list of devices. Click on the device, switch to the Files tab in the main window, navigate to the target app folder containing the saved videos, and then drag and drop the entire folder to your Mac’s local storage to complete the transfer of all media files. This native Finder file-sharing feature requires no additional software and allows you to seamlessly transfer iphone videos to mac. It is specifically designed to handle video content stored within app sandboxes, rather than photos in the “Camera Roll.”

    This feature works for exporting videos downloaded to apps, retrieving media stored in cloud storage apps, or moving video files outside the Camera Roll without relying on photo import tools.

  • Using Photos App is Mac’s native media management program that you can use to transfer videos from iphone to mac using cable, yet it automatically syncs imported footage to iCloud if iCloud Photos is turned on and consumes cloud storage space.

    It lets you preview and pick specific videos before import, but it cannot store videos locally only on Mac to save iCloud capacity.

    Instructions: Connect your iPhone to Mac via a USB cable, open the Photos app, select your iPhone from the left sidebar, tick the target video files, then click Import Selected to finish copying.

    Warning: If iCloud Photos is enabled, every imported video will upload to iCloud storage automatically. If you only want local video storage on your Mac to avoid using iCloud space, use Image Capture instead.

    This method cannot complete transfer videos from iphone to mac using cable without cloud sync for users who have iCloud Photos activated, so it is only suitable for users who are fine with cloud media backup.

    If you regularly sync all media across Apple devices via iCloud, you can try this method. It relies on cloud synchronization by default, so you should reserve extra iCloud storage beforehand.

  • CelesteStarr's avatar
    CelesteStarr
    Iron Contributor

    Image Capture, a preinstalled native macOS utility offering a direct wired transmission workflow with fast USB speeds that outperform AirDrop and zero extra software requirements, reliably completes transfer videos from iphone to mac using cable while fully preserving uncompressed original raw 4K and HD video footage without quality loss or conversion.

    How to Transfer Videos from iPhone to Mac Using Cable

    Step 1: Connect your iPhone to your Mac using a compatible USB cable.

    Step 2: Unlock your iPhone, tap “Trust This Computer” when the pop-up window appears, and then enter your device passcode to confirm connection permissions.

    Step 3: Launch Image Capture on your Mac:

    • Open Finder from the Dock, navigate to the Applications folder, and launch Image Capture.

    Step 4: Select your iPhone:

    • Expand the device drop-down menu in the upper-left corner of the Image Capture window and select your connected iPhone.

    Step 5: Set the destination folder:

    • Select a local destination folder at the bottom of the interface.

    Step 6: Select all target video files:

    • Click the first video file, hold down the Shift key, and then click the last video to select all video clips in bulk.

    Tip:

    • Switch to Camera View to ensure all photos and videos in your photo library are loaded correctly.

    Start file transfer:

    • Click the Import button next to the selected clips, or click Import All in the bottom-right corner to import all media files at once.

    The wired import tool supports high-speed USB 2.0/3.0 transfers and can transfer videos from an iPhone to a Mac. It is ideal for users who need to back up large amounts of high-resolution raw video without any loss of quality.