Facebook’s 30-Day Livestream Rule: What It Means for Churches and How to Adapt
Short answer: Yes. But not just church livestreams. It’s part of a new policy affecting everyone who uses Facebook Live.
Quick Summary
Starting February 19, 2025, Facebook now deletes all livestreams after 30 days. Churches that rely on Facebook Live for Sunday services will need a backup plan. The good news? With platforms like YouTube and SteepleMate, you can still preserve and share your content long-term.
Key Takeaways
- Facebook Live now auto-deletes livestreams after 30 days.
- Older livestreams are also being removed in waves, with 90 days’ notice.
- Churches can download, re-upload, or transfer livestreams before deletion.
- YouTube offers a longer-term solution for archiving sermons.
- SteepleMate’s Church Library ensures content stays accessible for your community.
Facebook’s New 30-Day Livestream Retention Policy
Starting February 19, 2025, Facebook began limiting the storage of live video broadcasts to just 30 days. That means any new livestream—whether from a church, business, or personal account—will automatically be removed 30 days after it airs. This is a platform-wide policy change and not something targeting churches specifically.
Why the Change?
Meta (Facebook’s parent company) says this update is meant to reflect viewing habits, with most live stream views happening in the first few weeks. It also helps them align with “industry standards” for video storage.
Who’s Affected?
Everyone. Pages, profiles, and groups alike. Whether you’re streaming a sermon or a product launch, the 30-day expiration applies across the board.
What About Older Live Videos?
Facebook is also cleaning house on previously recorded live videos. Any live video older than 30 days will eventually be removed in waves. If you have older livestreams, you’ll get a notification giving you 90 days to act before deletion. You can:
- Download your videos (individually or in bulk)
- Transfer them to cloud storage (Dropbox, Google Drive, etc.)
- Clip and save portions as Facebook Reels
- Or even request a one-time 6-month extension to postpone deletion
So Did Deletion Start in June?
Not officially, but it depends. Facebook didn’t name a specific start date, but since the policy took effect in February 2025, users who got notified in March or April would start seeing their videos vanish by June or July if no action was taken. It’s a rolling deletion process.
What Can Churches Do Now?
Churches aren’t powerless here. You have options:
- Switch to YouTube Live
- Stream your services on YouTube.
- Then, share the YouTube link on your Facebook Page later in the week. You keep your full video archive on YouTube, and still reach your Facebook audience.
- Download and Re-Upload
- If you livestream through Facebook, download the recording immediately after the service.
- Re-upload it as a standard video post to your Facebook Page to preserve it beyond 30 days.
- Use SteepleMate Church Library
- Trim your livestream down to just the sermon and upload it to your Church Library in SteepleMate.
Remember, this isn’t just a “church issue.” It’s a platform wide update. But with a few quick adjustments, you can stay ahead and make sure your livestream content remains available to your community.
Sources:
Facebook Newsroom – “Updating Our Facebook Live Video Storage Policy” (Feb 18–19, 2025)
Facebook Help Center Note – “Upcoming changes to how Live videos are stored” (quoted in announcements)
