Safari videos may start playing with sound the moment a page loads, which gets old fast. The switch that controls it hides in Safari's Websites pane, and one site can still ignore the global rule.
In Safari on Mac, open Settings, choose Websites, then Auto-Play. Pick Allow All Auto-Play, Stop Media with Sound, or Never Auto-Play, then clear any per-site exceptions that keep playing on their own.
In this guide, I have covered:
Contents
Find Safari’s Auto-Play Settings on Mac
A page that starts talking before you have read a word is the usual reason people go looking for this setting. Safari on Mac keeps one control for it, and that control lives in the Auto-Play pane of the Websites settings.
Here is the path:
- Open the Safari app on your Mac.
- Choose Safari in the macOS menu bar.
- Choose Settings….
- Select Websites in the Settings sidebar.
- Select Auto-Play in the website settings list.
The pane should show three options: Allow All Auto-Play, Stop Media with Sound, and Never Auto-Play. If Auto-Play is missing from the list, return to the Websites section and check the settings list again.
Current Safari uses Safari > Settings… and places Websites in the Settings sidebar. Older instructions that use Preferences… or a Websites tab describe the previous menu layout.
Auto-Play is one of several per-site lists in that pane, alongside Cookies, Notifications, and Camera. If you came here for storage rather than sound, the steps to block or allow browser cookies in Safari on Mac sit in their own pane.
Allow Sound Autoplay for All Websites
Sometimes you want the media to start on its own, sound included: a music page, a demo you replay, a background video on a site you trust. Choosing Allow All Auto-Play makes that the default for every site without a setting of its own.
- Open the When visiting other websites menu in the Auto-Play pane.
- Choose Allow All Auto-Play.
The menu should now read Allow All Auto-Play. Reload a page with embedded media to check: if the video starts with sound, the change took.
A site with a saved per-site choice can still behave differently, so expect the odd exception until you clear it.
Stop Media Autoplay with Sound
Silent autoplay rarely bothers anyone. Sudden audio does. Choosing Stop Media with Sound keeps the first and blocks the second, which is why we usually recommend it when you are unsure which of the three to pick.
- Open the When visiting other websites menu in the Auto-Play pane.
- Choose Stop Media with Sound.
The menu should display Stop Media with Sound right away. You’ll know it worked when a muted clip starts on its own but anything with audio waits for your click.
Block Media Autoplay in Safari
If you would rather nothing move until you press play, Never Auto-Play is the strictest of the three settings.
- Open the When visiting other websites menu in the Auto-Play pane.
- Choose Never Auto-Play.
The menu should read Never Auto-Play. Reload the media page and nothing should start by itself.
TIP: Never Auto-Play is not a mute button. It stops playback that begins automatically; media you start yourself still plays with sound.
Sites listed under Configured Websites keep a choice of their own, and that is often why a page still plays after this change. Remove those entries if you want the strict rule to hold everywhere.
Set Auto-Play for One Website
One site keeps ignoring the rule you just set? It probably saved a choice of its own. Setting that site directly leaves every other site on your global option.
- Open the website in Safari.
- Open the page menu beside Safari’s address bar.
- Choose Settings for This Website….
- Set Auto-Play to Allow All Auto-Play, Stop Media with Sound, or Never Auto-Play.
- Reload the page.
Open the page menu again and confirm the Auto-Play entry shows what you picked. You’ll know it worked when that one site behaves as you chose and everything else stays on the global setting.
The page-menu icon and wording can vary by Safari release. Look for the command that opens settings for the current website, usually labeled Settings for This Website….
Auto-Play covers media playback only. If a site keeps asking for your camera or microphone, that is a separate permission: block camera and microphone access in Safari on Mac instead.
Make the Global Choice Apply to Configured Websites
Safari remembers every site you have given a custom choice, and those sites ignore the global menu. That is why a page can still autoplay after you have set everything to Never Auto-Play.
- Open the Safari app on your Mac.
- Choose Safari in the macOS menu bar.
- Choose Settings….
- Select Websites in the Settings sidebar.
- Select Auto-Play in the website settings list.
- Remove the custom Auto-Play entry for each site that should follow the global rule.
- Set When visiting other websites to the option you want.
The affected sites should stop overriding the global Auto-Play choice once their entries are gone. Leave the other entries in place if those site-specific rules still suit you.
Downloaded files are a different permission with its own pane. If Safari is grabbing files you never asked for, the steps to allow or deny downloads from sites in Safari on Mac are there.
Site notifications are managed separately from media playback as well.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Auto-Play in Safari on Mac?
Open Safari’s Settings…, select Websites in the sidebar, then select Auto-Play. The global choice sits under When visiting other websites.
What does Stop Media with Sound do?
Silent video can still autoplay. Media with sound will not start on its own. Choose Never Auto-Play if nothing should begin automatically.
Does Never Auto-Play mute all sound?
No. It blocks automatic playback, not the volume of media you start yourself.
Why does one site still autoplay after I change the global setting?
That site probably has its own entry under Configured Websites. Change its setting directly, or remove the entry so it follows the global rule.
Can I allow sound on only one website?
Yes. Open Settings for This Website… from the page menu and choose Allow All Auto-Play there. Set the global option to Never Auto-Play if the rest of the web should stay quiet.
