To test these video editors, I cut together a selection of 4K HDR videos shot on an iPhone 13 Pro. Though not essential, extras like these helped some video editing apps stand out. Others offer integration with stock footage services and cloud storage providers. Some video editors are complete suites that can handle effects, audio mastering, and even subtitling. For simpler tools, intuitive design and in-app guidance might be all you need.Įxtras. Ample support documentation, tutorials, and an active community of users can be huge, especially for free tools. Web-based video editors should feel as close to a desktop app as possible and handle the editing workflow accordingly. (Publishing directly to YouTube was a nice bonus but not essential.) Playback should be smooth, and video preview windows should ideally include toggles for quality settings to accommodate less powerful hardware. I looked for performant apps with good options for exporting video. The more generous the free version beyond that, the better.Įfficiency. I only considered apps that satisfied my criteria of being able to export at 1080p or better with no watermark and without any limits on the number of exports performed. Only some of the editors featured in my shortlist are completely free-the rest are free versions of premium apps. I also looked at more advanced editing features like chroma keying (green screen), multi-camera editing, video stabilization, and effects. Some apps take care of this for you with automatic editing options, while others leave you to your own devices with tools for splitting clips and adding markers. The ability to easily arrange clips on a timeline is the bread and butter of video editing. At the very least, all of the apps on this list allow you to cut together clips and export a finished product at 1080p-with no watermark-in a format that's suitable for YouTube.Īs I was testing all the free video editing apps I could get my hands on, I used the following criteria to help pick the best one for the job:Įditing features. There are free video editors that hold your hand through the entire process, and there are more powerful apps that offer room to grow.
What makes the best free video editing software? Kdenlive for a free, open-source, and cross-platform video editor IMovie for the best free, simple video editor for Mac users The best free video editing appsĭaVinci Resolve for the most powerful free video editorĪdobe Premiere Rush for the best free video editing software for quick editsĬlipchamp for the best free web-based video editor What I ended up with is a shortlist of the best free video editors for YouTube and beyond. I've used them for everything from slapping together iPhone videos for sharing on social media to producing commissioned product reviews shot on "real" cameras.įor this roundup, I started with more than 60 apps and put the best of them through their paces. Over the past 15 years, I've tried more video editors than I'd care to mention.