Many Facebook users enjoy watching videos on the platform, whether they’re videos posted by friends, videos from Pages they follow, or videos recommended by Facebook’s algorithm. However, unlike sites like YouTube, Facebook does not have an easily accessible video watching history or video library where users can revisit videos they’ve previously watched.
This can make it difficult for users to find or return to videos they’ve seen before on Facebook. Some users may want to rewatch a funny video that made them laugh, while others may want to find a helpful tutorial or recipe video they saw earlier. Without a video watching history, locating these videos again can be a challenge.
Does Facebook have a video watching history?
Unfortunately, Facebook does not have a built-in feature that allows users to view their video watching history or access a video library of all the videos they’ve watched.
Facebook does keep track of videos you’ve watched and uses that information to recommend new videos and tailor your video feed. However, there is no straightforward way for users to access this viewing data themselves.
There is no menu, page, or settings option that lets you look back at all the videos you’ve watched on Facebook before. So if you want to find a video you recall seeing but didn’t save, you’ll have to rely on your own memory rather than being able to look through a history.
Why doesn’t Facebook have a video watching history?
There are a few potential reasons why Facebook has not implemented a video watching history feature:
– Privacy concerns – Facebook likely does not want to surface viewing histories that could reveal potentially sensitive or private information about users’ interests and habits. Keeping histories private avoids privacy issues.
– Cluttered interfaces – A video watching history could clutter Facebook’s streamlined interface and be seen as unnecessary by some users not interested in the feature.
– Promoting discovery – Facebook may prefer recommending new videos over reminiscing on old videos. A history could lead users to rewatch old content rather than discover new content.
– Limited demand – The demand for a video watching history may not have been sufficient for Facebook to prioritize building the feature. Many users rely on Facebook for real-time connections, not cataloging past content.
– Technical constraints – Facebook’s infrastructure may not be optimized to store lengthy video histories for billions of users. Building the capacity could be technically challenging.
Overall, while some users would find it useful, a video watching history does not seem critical to Facebook’s goals and vision as a social media platform centered on real-time connections. The costs and risks likely outweigh the benefits from Facebook’s perspective.
Is there any way to see your Facebook video history?
Because Facebook does not have an official video watching history, the only way to see videos you’ve previously watched is to retrace your steps and manually look for them.
Here are some tips for finding old videos you’ve watched on Facebook:
– Scroll back through your News Feed – Scroll back through your News Feed timeline as far as you can go, scanning for familiar videos you may have watched and interacted with. The further back you go, the lower your odds since old content gets buried.
– Check your activity log – Your Facebook activity log records some types of interactions, though it is unlikely to list every video you’ve watched. Still, it can jog your memory for videos you might have liked, shared, or commented on.
– Look through your profile info – Any videos you’ve shared to your own profile timeline could still be there if you scroll back. Videos you’ve reacted to or commented on may also show up in your profile activity.
– Search for keywords – Use Facebook’s search bar to search for keywords related to the video topic, channel name, etc. You may get lucky and surface the video that way.
– Ask friends if they have the video – If you have mutual friends who may have also watched the video, check with them to see if they shared or saved it.
– Check Linked Accounts – If you’ve connected your Facebook account to another platform like YouTube or TikTok, you may find videos you watched cross-posted there.
– Look for browser history clues – If you have browsing history enabled on your devices, look for Facebook video URLs you may have visited.
Without an official video library, however, there’s no guarantee you’ll be able to rediscover the videos you’re looking for. Relying on memory, search skills, and some luck is not ideal.
Are there any third-party tools or extensions?
Knowing that many users want help finding old videos again, some third-party developers have created browser extensions and tools aimed at surfacing your Facebook video history.
Here are a few examples:
– **Social Recall** – Browser extension that shows your video watching and search history on Facebook. Lets you easily re-find and rewatch videos.
– **PastBook** – App that connects to Facebook and compiles your personal data and activity into an archive. Includes videos you’ve watched and lets you search.
– **Social History Recovery** – Downloadable tool designed to recover and archive your Facebook history, including video views, shares, and searches.
– **BrowsingHistoryView** – Free utility that extracts browsing histories from various browsers into a timeline view. Can help find Facebook videos.
However, it’s important to carefully vet third-party tools first, as some may request broad data access permissions that compromise privacy or security. Only use tools from reputable developers that are transparent about how they handle your data.
Also, because these tools rely on technical workarounds like browser history analysis, their video libraries may be incomplete. The capabilities will never be as robust as a native Facebook video history feature.
Tips for keeping track of videos in the future
Since Facebook’s lack of a video watching history can make finding videos difficult, here are some tips for keeping track of videos you want to save or rewatch later:
– Like or follow the video’s creator so new videos surface in your feed.
– Share videos to your own Timeline to create an archive of sorts.
– Save videos using the “Save Video” option where available.
– Bookmark video URLs or save to a notes app.
– Use third-party download software to save copies of videos to your device storage.
– Share videos to platforms like YouTube or TikTok that do keep histories.
– React to videos when watching by liking, commenting, etc. to create searchable activity ties.
– Keep your own manual list of notable videos you want to save.
Relying solely on Facebook’s algorithmic recommendations makes rediscovering old videos tough. Proactively tracking videos yourself using the methods above can help ensure you’ll be able to find them again down the road.
Conclusion
Facebook unfortunately does not have a built-in feature that allows users to review their personal video watching history. This can make it difficult to rediscover and rewatch videos you’ve seen before without having explicitly saved them.
While Facebook’s reasons for not keeping persistent video histories are understandable from a product perspective, a video library would provide utility for many users. As a result, some rely on third-party workarounds to extract video histories from browser data.
Going forward, proactively saving, bookmarking or sharing videos you find valuable is recommended. While not as convenient as a comprehensive video watching history, these tactics can help you hold onto memorable videos you want to revisit. Hopefully Facebook considers adding video history capabilities in the future to improve the user experience.