The Best Free Video Editor

Shotcut is a video editor that has been around for a while now, but despite it being older than a decade at this point, it is still highly useful and relevant thanks to regular updates by open-source developers. These are the people who strongly support free editing software, which is why they dedicated time and effort to make sure that Shortcut will remain useful even in 2019.

The editor supports most video and audio formats that you might use, and it provides a wide variety of powerful filters for making your videos look good. It has an excellent user interface which is highly customizable, and you can set it up in a way that will work best with your needs.

One issue might be the difficulty of learning how to use it, as it does not provide as much guidance as some other editors do. However, it is quite easy to find a large number of tutorials and instructions, as the program remains quite popular to this day. In other words, if you are willing to spend a few hours learning how to use it, you will soon be able to use it and achieve the same results as those who spend large amounts on the premium software.

VideoPad is an excellent software for beginners, although its free version only allows video exporting options for two file formats — WMV and AVI. Other than that, VideoPad is a great option, with an interface that is easy to understand and use, and it is adjusted to the needs of inexperienced users. It is very intuitive, but it still offers a number of features, which makes it great for beginners who wish to enter the world of editing videos.

It features speed adjustments, over 50 transitions, various effects, and other customization features. You can also manipulate audio, which allows you to record narration and make videos extra detailed. Another downside to this editor is that it cannot be used for making slideshows, which is something to keep in mind.

Next, we have VSDC, which has a massive amount of features you can use for free. The program is designed to provide users with smooth editing experience, and even beginners can easily find their way around and enjoy a wide range of overlays, filters, color correction abilities, transition effects, and more. It also has wide format support, which makes it universally useful, no matter which formats you have or want.

VSDC Video Editor also features a built-in video converter, which allows you to convert your audio and video into various formats without having to use different software. Another excellent thing about it is that it is non-linear, meaning that you can insert clips in the timeline whenever and wherever you want.

Additionally, you can use it for exporting videos to various social networks such as Facebook, Instagram, and even YouTube itself, which is an extremely useful feature, especially when coming from a free editor. Finally, it allows editing 4K and HD videos, which is something that only a handful of free video editors can offer.

OpenShot is an open-source video editing software which has all of the basic features needed for video editing, including things like slicing, trimming, and alike. It also features a large number of audio effects, as well as transitions. It is a great choice for making simple videos, and it is easy to use, even for beginners who wish to learn more about video editing.

The software has no limit when it comes to video tracks in its timeline, meaning that you can add as many audio and video clips as you want. Additionally, it includes numerous video effects and tile templates for those who wish to add additional details to their videos.

As for audio editing, you can even use waveforms to turn your sound into visuals. Further, it supports over 70 languages, and as open-source software — it is regularly updated by the developer community. The only downside to it is that you will have to fix any potential bugs yourself, or at least notify a developer and hope they fix it in the future update.

Finally, we have Blender, which is another free, open-source video editor that works on all popular operating systems. Blender offers a lot of features, and many of them are quite advanced, including modifier-based modeling tools, node-based material, and powerful character animation tools.

Even so, it is still completely free. However, it can be quite complex and difficult to use for beginners. Its targeted users are editing professionals who know their way around a video editor, as well as how to use some of the more advanced features. If you are looking for a free next level editor and you feel like simple editors do not quite satisfy your needs, Blender is definitely the right choice.

Its interface is highly customizable, with flexible color settings. It is a powerful free video editing software which will require some time and energy to learn it, but once you do, it will open up a world of new possibilities.