The discussion about how to present instructors in instructional videos has become a hot topic in recent years. This systematic review explores how the instructors' presence affects affective, cognitive, and social aspects of learning in different conditions and with different video types. The review analyses 41 empirical studies indexed in Web of Science, ERIC, Scopus, and Education Source research databases from 2014 to 2022. The results indicated that (1) many instructor-present videos were in picture-in-picture format and included direct gaze as a social cue; (2) learners had positive feelings for instructor-present videos; (3) the on-screen instructor could not be beneficial for gathering positive learning outcomes, but social and attentional cues provided by the on-screen instructor could foster learning; and (4) findings regarding the social aspect of learning were inconclusive. This study also emphasizes the need for further studies to clearly explore the role of the instructor in different learning conditions.