One hour of 4K/60 video in HEVC on an iPhone takes roughly 24 GB (about 400 MB per minute). Drop to 4K/30 and it's closer to 170 MB/min, or ~10 GB/hour; at 1080p/30 it's about 65 MB/min, or ~4 GB/hour. ProRes is in a different league entirely at around 6 GB per minute, so an hour would be roughly 360 GB.

TL;DR

  • 4K/60 HEVC: ~400 MB/min, ~24 GB/hour.
  • 4K/30 HEVC: ~170 MB/min, ~10 GB/hour.
  • 1080p/30 HEVC: ~65 MB/min, ~4 GB/hour.
  • ProRes 4K: ~6 GB/min, ~360 GB/hour, almost always recorded to external storage.
  • Switching from 4K/60 to 1080p/30 cuts video storage roughly 6x.

What are the real numbers per minute and per hour?

Apple's own guidance and real-world recordings line up closely. Here are the practical figures for iPhone using HEVC ("High Efficiency"):

  • 1080p/30: ~65 MB/min, ~4 GB/hour
  • 1080p/60: ~100 MB/min, ~6 GB/hour
  • 4K/24: ~135 MB/min, ~8 GB/hour
  • 4K/30: ~170 MB/min, ~10 GB/hour
  • 4K/60: ~400 MB/min, ~24 GB/hour
  • ProRes 4K: ~6,000 MB/min, ~360 GB/hour

If your phone records in the older H.264 ("Most Compatible") format, expect files roughly twice as large at the same resolution. HEVC is the default on modern iPhones for good reason.

Why does 4K take so much more than 1080p?

4K has four times the pixels of 1080p, so each frame carries far more data. Higher frame rates multiply that further, since 60 frames per second is double the data of 30. That's why 4K/60 lands at 6x the size of 1080p/30. For most everyday video, the difference on a phone screen is hard to notice, which is why dropping resolution is the single biggest storage win. See how to change iPhone camera settings to save storage for the exact toggle.

How do I check or change my recording quality?

Go to Settings > Camera > Record Video to pick your resolution and frame rate, and Settings > Camera > Formats to choose High Efficiency (HEVC, smaller) over Most Compatible (H.264, larger). To see how much video you already have, open Settings > General > iPhone Storage and look at the Photos breakdown. If you shoot a lot before a trip, it's worth learning to free up space before recording 4K video.

What does this mean for my phone's storage?

Work backward from free space. If you have 50 GB free and shoot 4K/60, that's about two hours of footage before you're full. The same 50 GB holds roughly 12 hours at 1080p/30. ProRes makes that calculation almost meaningless on internal storage, which is why it's designed for external SSD recording. If your phone fills up faster than you can explain, read iPhone storage full but nothing to delete, since video is usually the hidden culprit.

What iOS does natively, and where it stops

iOS shows total Photos and Videos usage and lets you set recording quality, but it won't tell you which clips are biggest or total up how many gigabytes a specific event consumed. It also won't recommend a lower resolution even when you're nearly full. To actually act on these numbers, you have to find the heavy files. Cleanor for iPhone ranks your videos by size so you can see exactly where your gigabytes went and clear them quickly.

What this cannot do, and the recoverability note

These figures are estimates; real file size varies with motion, lighting, and scene complexity, since HEVC compresses static scenes more than busy ones. Lowering resolution shrinks new recordings but does nothing to existing files. If you want to reclaim space from footage you already shot, you either delete it or compress it without losing visible quality. And deleting moves clips to Recently Deleted for about 30 days, after which they're permanently gone, so back up anything you might want before emptying that folder.

FAQ

Is 4K worth the extra space on a phone?

For most viewing on phones and TVs, 1080p looks nearly identical and uses about a sixth of the space. Reserve 4K for footage you'll edit, crop, or display on large 4K screens.

Does HEVC reduce quality compared to H.264?

No. HEVC delivers similar quality at roughly half the file size, which is why it's the modern default. The only trade-off is compatibility with very old devices.

How long can I record on a 128 GB iPhone?

With maybe 60 GB free, that's about 2.5 hours of 4K/60 or 15 hours of 1080p/30, before counting apps, photos, and the system.

Want to see exactly where your gigabytes went? Cleanor for iPhone sorts your videos by size, or explore more ways to free up iPhone space.