Focal adhesions are integrin-based complexes through which cells interact with the extracellular matrix, and their regulated assembly and disassembly underlies cell migration. How focal adhesion dynamics are regulated remains unclear. Kenific et al. demonstrate that autophagy is an important regulator of the turnover of these adhesive complexes. Inhibition of autophagy stabilized focal adhesions, reducing both their assembly and disassembly rates, and impaired migration of various cell types. The authors revealed that autophagosomes, which engulf cellular components during autophagy, co-localized with focal adhesions during their disassembly. Finally, they established that autophagy receptor NBR1 is involved in targeting focal adhesion components to the autophagosome. It will be interesting to study how autophagy cooperates with other mechanisms of focal adhesion remodelling.