There are a few common reasons why your phone may not be saving photos from Facebook properly:
You don’t have enough storage space
The most likely culprit is that you don’t have enough available storage space on your phone. Trying to save photos takes up storage space, so if your phone is already low on memory, the photos may fail to download and save fully.
To check how much free space you have, go to Settings > Storage on Android or Settings > General > iPhone Storage on iOS. If you’re running low, you’ll need to free up space for the photos to save.
Try offloading unused apps, deleting old messages and photos, or transferring files to external storage or a computer. Clearing app caches can also help temporarily. Expanding your overall storage with a microSD card (on Android) or by upgrading to a model with more built-in storage may be necessary if you take a lot of photos.
The Facebook app lacks permission
On Android, the Facebook app needs permission to access your phone’s storage in order to save photos. If permission has not been enabled, the app cannot save the files to your device.
To check, go to Settings > Apps & notifications > App permissions > Storage. Make sure the Facebook app has Allow access toggled on. If not, tap the switch to enable it. You may need to reopen Facebook before you can download and save photos.
Background app limitations
Some Android devices restrict what apps can do in the background to save battery life. This includes limiting background downloads. So even if you have storage space, the Facebook app may not be able to complete the photo save process when running in the background.
Check if your device has background app limitations enabled under Settings > Apps & notifications > Advanced. If so, you can whitelist individual apps like Facebook to allow background activity. Or disable the feature altogether if you don’t want automatic restrictions.
Glitch with Facebook’s save feature
In some cases, the issue may be a glitch with Facebook’s own save feature that prevents photos from downloading properly to your device. The usual steps like checking app permissions and storage space may not resolve it.
Try reinstalling the Facebook app if it seems to be a persistent problem. Or as a workaround, save the photos manually rather than using the app’s built-in option:
- Tap and hold on the photo in Facebook to bring up the menu.
- Choose “Save photo” or “Download photo” to save it to your device’s gallery.
Outdated app version
An outdated version of the Facebook app may have bugs that prevent saving photos. Make sure you have installed the latest version of the app from the Play Store or App Store.
On Android, open the Play Store, tap the hamburger menu, choose “My apps & games,” then check for an update for Facebook. On iOS, go to the App Store, tap your profile icon, choose “Pending updates,” and update Facebook if available.
Issues with your device software
Problems with your device’s OS could also block the Facebook app from writing files to storage. For example, some Android users have reported save issues that were fixed by wiping the cache partition. Try basic troubleshooting steps like these:
- Restart your phone.
- Check for OS updates and install any available ones.
- Clear app cache and data for Facebook.
If the problem persists on Android, you may need to try advanced steps like wiping the cache partition. On iOS, restore your device from a backup if needed. Get in touch with customer support from Apple or your Android device maker for further troubleshooting tips.
Using battery saver modes
Many Android devices have battery saver or power saving modes that restrict apps from running in the background. This can interfere with Facebook downloading photos.
Try turning off any battery optimization or power saving modes temporarily to see if that allows Facebook to properly save photos. You can whitelist Facebook to allow background activity even when using battery saving modes.
Connectivity issues
Any instability in your internet connection can also disrupt the Facebook app’s ability to download and save photos to your device.
Make sure you have a strong Wi-Fi or cellular data signal when trying to use Facebook’s save feature. Try moving closer to your wireless router or switching from Wi-Fi to mobile data if you consistently have problems.
Check that background data is not disabled for Facebook under your device’s settings. This will prevent the app from downloading content when not actively open.
Using file manager to save photos
As a workaround if Facebook’s built-in option isn’t working, use your device’s file manager to manually save photos instead.
On Android:
- Install a file manager app like Files by Google if you don’t already have one.
- Open the Facebook app and view the photo you want to save.
- Take a screenshot of the photo.
- Open your file manager and go to the Screenshots folder.
- Long press the screenshotted photo and select Save image or Download image.
On iPhone/iPad:
- Open the Facebook app and view the photo you want to save.
- Tap the Share button below the photo.
- Select Save Image.
- Go to your Photos app to view saved images.
This process works as a manual way to save Facebook pictures even if the app’s built-in feature is glitchy.
Using third-party apps
Another option is using third-party apps and tools to download Facebook photos instead of relying on the Facebook app itself.
Some examples include:
- Social Book Post Manager: Android app that can bulk download images from Facebook.
- Social Video Downloader: Android and iOS app for saving videos and photos from Facebook.
- 4K Stogram: Desktop program that autosaves Facebook photos.
Search your device’s app store for “Facebook photo downloader” or “Facebook video downloader” to find available options. Make sure to check reviews and ratings for legitimacy and safety.
These third-party utilities can provide alternative ways to download Facebook content if you’re having consistent issues with the Facebook app’s built-in tools.
Using the Facebook mobile site
The Facebook mobile website has its own option for saving photos that you can try as an alternative to the app.
To use it:
- Open www.facebook.com in your mobile browser.
- Log in and navigate to the photo you want to save.
- Tap the three-dot menu in the upper right corner.
- Select “Download” to save the photo to your device.
This may work better than the Facebook app for some users. The interface is more stripped down but gives you access to core Facebook functionality.
Using auto-saving apps
If manually saving photos from Facebook is a hassle, consider using specialized apps that automatically save photos for you.
Some options to check out include:
- Repost for Instagram: Automatically reposts images from Facebook to Instagram.
- IFTTT: Create applets to save Facebook photos to Google Drive, Dropbox, etc.
- Pushbullet: App can auto-save Facebook attachments to your device.
These tools remove the manual work of saving Facebook pictures by doing it automatically in the background. Useful if you regularly share photos on multiple platforms.
Backing up your data
As a broader strategy, make sure to regularly back up your smartphone data either locally or to the cloud. This gives you a way to recover lost photos.
On Android, enable automatic Google Drive backups under Settings > System > Backup. On iOS, turn on iCloud backups under Settings > [your name] > iCloud > iCloud Backup.
You can also manually transfer photo files from your phone to a computer for safekeeping using a USB cable or cloud storage services like Google Photos.
Conclusion
Saving Facebook photos on your phone should be a simple process, but glitches can disrupt it. Storage limitations, app issues, battery saving restrictions, and connectivity problems are common culprits. Try steps like updating the app, enabling permissions and background activity, moving to a stronger signal area, and switching off battery saver mode. Manually saving photos using screenshots or file managers provides a workaround. But if problems persist, using third-party photo downloader apps or the mobile Facebook site may be your best bet for reliably saving images.