Best Video-Editing Software for Beginners

PCMag rating: 4 out of 5

Movavi Video Editor lets you easily create and edit great-looking videos – no prior experience required. This is a terrific program for beginners, no prior skills are required to master the program's easy-to-use drag and drop operations. As intuitive as it is easy to use, Movavi Video Editor also includes many advanced features, including an audio editing tool, filters, transitions, and file sharing. Movavi Video Editor is available for both Windows PCs and Macs. There's also a free trial version available, so you can test the software before purchasing.

Key features:

• User-friendly interface with tabbed controls

• Includes large collection of video samples, backgrounds, and audio clips

• Montage Wizard automatically turns your footage into a themed movie

PCMag rating: 3.5 out of 5

Nero Video is an easy video-editing software for beginners that lets them edit videos like professionals. Ready-to-use templates make it easy to create great-looking projects from your existing video content. Nero's Express Mode lets you edit your videos faster and easier than with other programs. Drag-and-drop your video clips and special effects into the program's drop zone to create a 1-Click Video Story. The software includes more than a thousand film templates and special effects and offers multi-track editing in HD, 4K, and 8K resolutions.

Key features:

• Drag-and-drop video editing

• Express Mode for faster editing

• Easily transfer videos from mobile devices, external hard drives, and camcorders

Download Nero Video

G2 rating: 4.4 out of 5, 27 reviews

OpenShot is a free open-source video-editing program available for Windows, Mac, and Linux computers. The software lets you create professional-looking movies from your videos, photographs, and music files, complete with special effects and transitions. OpenShot also includes chroma key green-screen effects, as well as 3D animated title sequences. The movies you create can be exported to YouTube and other social media, as well as DVD and all major video formats.

Key features:

• Keyframe animations

• Essential editing features like cut, resize, trim, snap, and rotate

• Transitions, titles, animations, and more

Download OpenShot

Capterra rating: 4.5 out of 5, 215 reviews

iMovie is a popular free video-editing program for Apple users. It's available as software for Mac computers and an app for iPads and iPhones. This is the easiest video-editing software for Mac users and includes a variety of filters, studio-style titles, and visual and sound effects. You can also use iMovie for voiceover recording – and, even though it's free, there are no watermarks on the videos you create. For many Apple users, this is the only video-editing program to use.

Key features:

• Magic Movie lets you create stylish videos with just a few taps

• Storyboards with premade templates guide you through the movie-making process

• Intuitive editing and great-looking special effects

Download iMovie

Capterra rating: 4.6 out of 5, 122 reviews

Lumen5 is a web-based video-editing service designed for social media marketing. The program lets you easily transform text from blog posts and other sources into attention-grabbing videos for sharing on social media. Just drag and drop or copy and paste your text into Lumen5, choose a template, and the program automatically creates a great-looking video, complete with music.

Go to Lumen5

Key features:

• Drag-and-drop interface

• Content library millions of stock photos, videos, and audio files

• Customize videos with your logo, watermark, and other images

Capterra rating: 4.6 out of 5, 685 reviews

Blender is a free open-source video-editing program that focuses on all forms of 3D creation, including modeling, rigging, animation, simulation, and rendering. The program also includes a video editor that lets you perform basic tasks such as cutting and splicing, as well as video masking, color grading, and more advanced actions.

Download Blender

Key features:

• Production-ready VFX

• Camera and object tracking

• 2D and 3D drawing

PCMag rating: 3.5 out of 5

Adobe^® Premiere^® Elements is Adobe's beginning-level video-editing program but with many pro-level features. It's easy to use and integrates well with other Adobe products, including Photoshop^® Elements. Adobe Sensei AI technology helps to automate the creative process, then you can customize your videos with multiple tracks and keyframe-based editing. Includes a large number of transitions and special effects, including animated overlays. You can even match the length of your background music to the video length and clean up grainy, poor-quality videos. Use Premiere^® Elements to create photo slideshows with music, animated social media posts, video collages, and other video-based projects.

Download Adobe^® Premiere^® Elements

Key features:

• AutoReframe crops to different aspect ratios

• Guided Edits automate both basic and advanced projects

• Built-in background music tracks

Capterra rating: 4.4 out of 5, 14 reviews

HitFilm might be the best free video-editing software for beginners. The program includes more than 400 effects and presets to help create great-looking videos. Editing is made easy with color-coded tracks and a customizable workspace. Paid add-ons enable color grading, chroma key, and other specialized visual effects. Some effects add a watermark to the output video.^[1]

Download HitFilm

Key features:

• Intuitive interface

• Professional editing tools

• Motion-tracking and animation tools

CNET rating: 4.5 out of 5

As the name implies, MAGIX Video Easy makes it easy to create professional videos. The program's intuitive interface and step-by-step wizards help beginners turn content from any source into a great-looking video, complete with titles, transitions, and special effects. You can easily add your own narration or background music and export to DVD, Blu-ray disc, YouTube, and other media.

Download MAGIX Video Easy

Key features:

• Automatic color correction tool fixes poor lighting and color

• Slow-mo and time-lapse effects

• Includes title templates, transitions, and zoom effects

Apple App Store rating: 4.3 out of 5, 317 reviews

Google Play rating: 4.2 out of 5, 4.9 million downloads

KineMaster is a mobile video-editing app for both Android and Apple devices. It has a well-designed interface and a number of robust editing features. Choose from videos and photos stored on your phone or tablet, pick a subject, add effects and transitions, then save your project. You can view completed videos on your device or upload to Facebook, YouTube, and other social media – no computer necessary!

Get KineMaster

Key features:

• Designed specifically for mobile devices

• Simple user interface for beginners

• Basic editing tools (text, rotations, trimming, etc.) plus effects and transitions

Capterra rating: 4.7 out of 5, 14 reviews

Pinnacle Studio is a higher-end video-editing software that is easy for beginners to use and still offers professional features for more advanced users. Entry-level features include timeline and storyboard editing, quick start project templates, and hundreds of titles and special effects. More advanced features include color grading, multi-camera editing, split-screen video, and custom motion title graphics. Pinnacle Studio Plus and Studio Ultimate add even more professional features, including motion tracking, 360 video editing, and a customizable workspace with 24-track capability.

Download Pinnacle Studio

Key features:

• Professional-level effects (in more expensive versions)

• 360-degree video editing

• Split-screen video

Capterra rating: 4.2 out of 5, 89 reviews

NCH's VideoPad Video Editor is an entry-level video-editing program available for both Windows and Mac platforms, as well as iOS devices. Thanks to VideoPad’s simple, well-organized interface, aspiring movie makers of any level can quickly get familiar with its conventions.^[2] It includes more than 50 effects and transitions as well as a full-featured audio editor for superior sound. Completed videos can be exported in HD, 2K, and 4K resolution to DVD, mobile devices, YouTube, and other social media.

Download VideoPad Video Editor

Key features:

• Over 50 visual effects and transitions

• 3D and 360-degree video editing

• Save to file, disc, or social media

G2 rating: 3.9 out of 5 stars, 36 reviews

Designed especially for business users, Magisto makes it easy to create video ads for website and social media use. Powered by artificial intelligence, Magisto includes a video editor, omnichannel distribution, and business analytics. Choose from a large number of predesigned templates to create engaging video content.

Download Magisto

Key features:

• AI-powered video creation and editing

• Omnichannel distribution

• Business analytics

PCMag rating: 4 out of 5

Microsoft Photos is built into all versions of Microsoft Windows, including Windows 10 and Windows 11. In addition to its photo display and editing capabilities, it includes basic features for video editing. It's easy to use, even on touchscreen devices, with everything you need for basic touchup, editing, and sharing.

Download Microsoft Photos

Key features:

• Intuitive interface optimized for touch screen

• Face and object detection

• Automatic album creation

TechRadar rating: 4 out of 5

Shotcut is a free, open-source, cross-platform video editor for PCs, Macs, and Linux. Customize the interface with a variety of task-specific dockable panels. The program supports all major audio and video formats and codecs. You can also capture videos from webcams. Shotcut also includes professional audio editing features, including audio filters and multitrack audio mixing, as well as pro-level video effects and transitions.

Download Shotcut

Key features:

• Supports all major audio and video formats, including 60 fps 4K

• Pro-level audio and video editing

• Webcam capture and audio capture