Articles on: General questions (f.a.q.)

Why doesn't my video always autoplay?

Browsers decide whether a video may start on its own, so Maglr can't guarantee autoplay. A muted video autoplays in most browsers. A video with sound only starts after the visitor has clicked or tapped; until then, the visitor has to click play.

Why autoplay depends on the browser

Browsers block videos that start with sound on their own. They allow a video to start by itself in two cases:

The video is muted. A muted video autoplays most of the time, on desktop and on mobile.
The visitor has just clicked or tapped, for example on a button that opens a popup with the video in it. Only then may a video start with sound. On mobile, a video with sound waits for a tap.

Moving through a publication doesn't reliably count as a click for every browser, so don't count on a video with sound starting by itself.

Setting up a video to autoplay

To make a video start on its own for as many visitors as possible, turn on autoplay and leave the sound off:

Select the video on the canvas.
In the video's settings, go to Playback.
Tick Autoplay. Sound switches off automatically.
Leave Sound off.

The video now starts muted when it becomes visible, which browsers allow most of the time.

Each autoplay video loads its first seconds in advance, so too many on one page slow down loading. Use at most 3 autoplay videos on one page. See Page performance.

Autoplaying a video with sound

A video with Autoplay and Sound both ticked only starts with sound after the visitor has clicked or tapped, for example when the video sits in a popup that opens on a click. Without that click, browsers block it, and on mobile the video waits for a tap.

To set it up:

Select the video on the canvas.
In the video's settings, go to Playback.
Tick Autoplay. Sound switches off automatically.
Tick Sound again.

The "?" next to Sound repeats this condition in the editor.

Background audio and autoplay

Background audio, set in the page settings under Audio, follows the same browser rule as video: the browser may block it until the visitor has clicked or tapped. When that happens, the sound button in the navigation bar draws attention with an animation and a tooltip, and the audio stays muted until the visitor turns the sound on there. The animation and tooltip only appear when the sound button is shown in the navigation bar.

The Audio element never starts on its own. It plays when the visitor clicks it, or through an interaction.

Testing autoplay

Because each browser applies its own rules, test the published page before you share it:

Open it on desktop and on a phone.
Open it in more than one browser.
Open it in a fresh tab without clicking anything first, so you see what a new visitor sees.

Frequently asked questions

Why doesn't my YouTube or Vimeo video autoplay?

If your project asks visitors for cookie consent, YouTube and Vimeo videos don't load until the visitor accepts cookies, so they can't autoplay before that. Clicking the video brings up the cookie consent prompt. After the visitor accepts, the video follows the normal browser rules: a muted video autoplays most of the time, and a video with sound only starts after a click or tap.

Why can't I find the Autoplay option for my video?

The Autoplay option is hidden when scrub on scroll is on for that video, because the video then plays as the visitor scrolls. The Sound, Repeat and Controls options are hidden too. Turn off scrub on scroll to see the Autoplay option under Playback again.

Does autoplay work on mobile?

Yes, for muted videos: a video with Autoplay ticked and Sound off autoplays on mobile most of the time. A video with sound waits for the visitor to tap it.

Updated on: 29/10/2026