Add Websites to an iPhone or iPad's Reading List to View Offline

Found something online you want to read later? Need to save something so that you can quickly view it while offline? Safari for iOS includes the Reading List feature, which allows you to save pages for later reading. These pages can be opened at any time, even if your device is offline.

Steps

  1. Open the website or article that you want to save in Safari. Safari for iOS 7 and newer supports saving pages in your Reading List. The Reading List saves an archived copy of the website so that you can read it when you're offline.
  2. Tap the Share button. The Share button looks like a square with an arrow coming out of the top. It can be found at the bottom of the screen (iPhone) or the top of the screen (iPad).[1]
  3. Tap the "Add to Reading List" button. This will add the site to your Reading List.
    • If you have a Mac signed in with the same iCloud account, any Reading List items will be synced between your computer and iOS device.
  4. Keep the tab open for a few moments. For larger sites, you may need to keep the tab open for a few moments to ensure that Safari saves everything. As long as the website isn't loading anymore, you're safe to close it.
  5. Open your Reading List. You can open the Reading List by tapping the Bookmarks button and then tapping the Eyeglasses icon. This will display a list of all the pages you've saved on your Reading List.
    • The Bookmarks button looks like an open book, and can be found at the bottom of the screen (iPhone) or the top of the screen (iPad).
  6. Tap the page you want to open. You can access any of the pages on your Reading List, even if your iOS device is not connected to the internet.
  7. Read the saved page. After a few moments, Safari will display the page for you. Images should load, but embedded videos will likely not appear if you are not connected to the internet.
    • If you're reading the item offline, any updates made to the page since you've saved it will not appear.
    • If you are reading offline, none of the links on the saved page will work.
  8. Move on to the next item in the list. Scroll to the bottom of the page to automatically switch to the next item in your Reading List. You can continue doing this until you reach the last item in the list, and scrolling up will load the previous item.
  9. Toggle between all or unread items. In your Reading List, you can switch between all or unread items by tapping the "Show All" or "Show Unread" buttons in the lower-right corner.
  10. Delete Reading List entries. You can delete any of the entries on your Reading List by swiping the entry from right to left and tapping "Delete".

Troubleshooting

  1. Update your device if your Reading List does not work offline. There was an error in the initial release of iOS 8 that prevents reading list pages from opening when offline. Updating to iOS 8.0.1 or later will resolve this issue.[2]
    • Open the Settings app and tap "General".
    • Tap "Software Update" and then tap "Install Now" when the update appears.
  2. Clear Safari's cache. Some users have reported that clearing the cache may fix issues with accessing Reading List items.[3]
    • Open the Settings app and tap "Safari".
    • Tap "Clear History and Website Data" and then confirm that you want to erase it.

Tips

  • If you have devices linked with an iCloud account, items you add to your Reading List will be available on all of your iCloud-connected devices.

Warnings

  • Some parts of a page, such as those that include video, may not load properly when viewed offline. Make sure to check important Reading List items just in case.

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT200294
  2. ↑ https://discussions.apple.com/thread/6541557
  3. ↑ http://www.igeeksblog.com/offline-reading-list-in-ios-7-safari-adding-removing-and-troubleshooting/
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