6/1/2018 The best free alternative to YouTube Video Editor 2018 | TechRadar


THE SOURCE FOR TECH BUYING ADVICE

TRENDING Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 OnePlus 6 Xiaomi Mi TV BRANDS Samsung

The best free alternative to YouTube Video Editor 2018

By Cat Ellis April 21, 2018 Software  

Don't mourn Google's online video editing tool – there are some amazing free replacements
    

YouTube Video Editor was a quick, convenient way to get your videos looking great before uploading them for the world to
see, but since Google signed its death warrant in September 2017, creators have been left in search of an alternative.

Video editing is a resource-intensive task, and although online video editors exist, good ones are rare – especially if you want
something that's free to use and won't leave watermarks on your clips.

Want something more powerful? Try a full free video editing suite

We've scoured the web for the very best online video editors that will let you cut and combine clips in your browser, but if
you're looking for something as powerful and simple to use as YouTube Video Editor, we recommend giving desktop
software a try too. 

With that in mind, here are the best tools to replace YouTube Video Editor. Give them a try and get your videos ready to
publish.

https://www.techradar.com/best/the-best-free-alternative-to-youtube-video-editor 1/10
6/1/2018 The best free alternative to YouTube Video Editor 2018 | TechRadar

Shotcut is a desktop alternative to YouTube Video Editor that's amazingly easy to use and completely free

1. Shotcut
Feature-packed, easy to use and totally free – ideal for YouTubers

 Intuitive interface
 Great e ects and lters
 Cross-platform
If you don't mind editing your video on your desktop before uploading it, Shotcut is de nitely the best alternative to YouTube
Video Editor.

It's an open source video editor created by a team of volunteers, and is completely
free to use for any project, including commercial videos. It's available for Windows,
Mac and Linux too, making it just as exible as a browser-based editor.

Shotcut looks like a premium video editing program, and although it's packed with
far more features than YouTube Video Editor, it's no more di cult to use. Simply
open the les you want to use in your project. Drag them onto the timeline at the
bottom of the screen and you're ready to begin editing.

The selection of video and audio lters is particularly strong. All the options are fully customizable, and because editing in
Shotcut is non-linear, you can add, remove and alter them at any time.

Shotcut review
Download Shotcut

https://www.techradar.com/best/the-best-free-alternative-to-youtube-video-editor 2/10
6/1/2018 The best free alternative to YouTube Video Editor 2018 | TechRadar

When you need to trim and combine clips for YouTube, VSDC Free Video Editor can get the job done quickly and easily. If you miss YouTube Video Editor,
it's an excellent replacement

2. VSDC Free Video Editor

A brilliant YouTube video editor alternative for creative projects

 Superb array of e ects

 Simple to use
 No hardware acceleration
VSDC Free Video Editor is another superb desktop program that makes a great substitute for YouTube Video Editor. You can
import existing video clips, or record video directly from your webcam or screen – extremely handy options for YouTubers. 

The interface is quite di erent to YouTube Video Editor's, but it's well designed and easy to master with a little
experimentation. There's excellent le format support, and a very impressive array of audio and video e ects to bring your
productions to life. It's easy to create voiceovers, and add elements like titles, shapes and subtitles.

The Pro version of VSDC Video Converter includes some nice bonuses like as masking tool, hardware acceleration and
chroma keying, but if you're looking for a straight replacement for YouTube Video Editor then you won't miss these.

You'll need to disable hardware acceleration in order to export your videos from the free version of the software. To do this,
select the cog icon in the top right, click 'Acceleration options' and uncheck the box marked ‘Use hardware acceleration for
encoding video’. 

VSDC Free Video Editor review

Download VSDC Free Video Editor

https://www.techradar.com/best/the-best-free-alternative-to-youtube-video-editor 3/10
6/1/2018 The best free alternative to YouTube Video Editor 2018 | TechRadar

Like YouTube Video Editor, ClipChamp runs in your web browser. It's just as straightforward as YouTube's old editor, and you'll master its toolkit in no
time

3. ClipChamp
A wonderfully simple tool for preparing videos to be uploaded

 Very simple to use

 Can record directly from webcams
 1080p maximum resolution

Five video limit per month

If you want to edit your videos without leaving the comfort of your browser, give ClipChamp a go. It's not the most powerful
online video editor around (that would be Movie Maker Online, below), but it's the easiest to use.

You can upload your own videos or record directly from your webcam – a very hand option for vloggers. Once your video is
online, leave the optimization setting as 'Web', use the simple tools to trim, crop, rotate, ip or adjust the colors in your
video, then click 'Start' and it'll be processed ready for uploading straight to YouTube.

That might sound too good to be true, and although ClipChamp is fantastic, there are a few restrictions to consider. Free
account holders can only create three videos a month, at a maximum resolution of 1080p, and those videos can be no longer
than ve minutes each. You can 'earn' extra videos by referring friends – for every one who signs up, you'll be able to create
one more video that month.

If you want more exibility, premium plans start at US$7 (about £5, AU$9) per month. That soon adds up if you're a regular
content creator, but might be worth the investment if you're not publishing videos year-round.

Try ClipChamp

https://www.techradar.com/best/the-best-free-alternative-to-youtube-video-editor 4/10
6/1/2018 The best free alternative to YouTube Video Editor 2018 | TechRadar

Avidemux looks simple at rst glance, but dive into its menus and you'll nd a wealth of options for editing and optimizing videos before uploading them
to YouTube

4. Avidemux
It looks like a simple encoder, but is packed with hidden extras

 Excellent format support

 Lots of useful lters
 No project timeline
Avidemux is completely free with no features tucked away behind a paywall. It's also very straightforward to use, with no
complex menus and tabs to navigate.

Avidemux is primarily a video encoder, and at rst you'll only see a few basic cutting tools. Look a little further though, and
you'll discover a surprising array of lters and transitions.

You can crop your clips, apply borders, fade to black, adjust hue and saturation, reduce noise, sharpen, and much more.
There are also lters options to experiment with, including a mixer and resampling options.

You can't drag and drop photos and video onto a timeline, but the 'Append' option lets you join clips together in linear order,
which works perfectly well for simple projects.

Avidemux is available for Windows, Mac and Linux. Even if you choose a di erent tool for editing your YouTube videos, it's a
handy program to have on hand for converting videos to di erent formats. You never know when you might need it.

Avidemux review
Download Avidemux

https://www.techradar.com/best/the-best-free-alternative-to-youtube-video-editor 5/10
6/1/2018 The best free alternative to YouTube Video Editor 2018 | TechRadar

Its interface isn't as intuitive as YouTube Video Editor, but if you're willing to try something di erent then Movie Maker Online could serve you well

5. Movie Maker Online

A solid tool for editing YouTube videos, but its interface is strange

 Great lters and e ects

 Includes royalty-free media
 Odd interface
The rst time you try Movie Maker Online, you might nd yourself wondering where the video editing bits actually are. You'll
have to scroll quite far down the page to nd them – past a considerable number of ads.

The interface could be described as quirky. The timeline is vertical rather than horizontal, and instead of the usual video and
audio channels, your options are music, background, main and text. To add your content, you'll need to use the small blue
button at the top of the page marked 'Add videos photos music'.

It's not the most intuitive design, and it's easy to click on an ad by mistake, but Movie Maker Online does have some great
extras up its sleeve. It's linked to archives of royalty-free stock images and music that you can use to jazz up your work
(though you'll need to check the full license details for commercial videos), and there are some stylish one-click transitions
and e ects.

Try Movie Maker Online

Need something more powerful? See our list of the best free video editors

RECOMMENDED VIDEOS FOR YOU...

https://www.techradar.com/best/the-best-free-alternative-to-youtube-video-editor 6/10
6/1/2018 The best free alternative to YouTube Video Editor 2018 | TechRadar

COMING UP NEXT...
01:48 NOW PLAYING 04:10 02:49 04:27

Honor 9 Lite Hands-on Review Samsung Galaxy S9 Rumor round-up Top 5 Smartphones Samsung Galaxy Note 8 review

MORE ABOUT COMPUTING LATEST

Acer equips its 2018 PC gaming lineup Lenovo set to debut notch-free, all-
with AMD hardware  screen Z5 phone next week 

SEE MORE RELATED SEE MORE LATEST 

You May Like Sponsored Links by Taboola

Create the virtual you and join the fun - Play Second life!
Second Life

This cleaner's child has cancer, needs your help.

Ketto

HR Course in Talent Management from XLRI - Know More

Talentedge | XLRI

Buy First Copy of All Luxury Watches With Special Discount.

Luxury Watches

5 Smart Reasons to Buy Term Life Insurance

Coverfox.com

New Gmail widget can help you nd anyone’s email address.

Clearbit

A Home that Brings the Landscape of a Beach to Your Doorstep in Bangalore, Check out Here!
Puravankara

Play this Game for 1 Minute and see why everyone is addicted
Delta Wars

https://www.techradar.com/best/the-best-free-alternative-to-youtube-video-editor 7/10
6/1/2018 The best free alternative to YouTube Video Editor 2018 | TechRadar
Grow with XLRI - Performance Management Certi cation
XLRI

Why settle for 8% when you get 24% returns in Dubai

Omniyat

Why You Should Continue With Your SIPs In A Volatile Market

BloombergQuint

Sunglasses Starting Rs.299/-. Shop Now !

Naytr.com

Enter the Elven World in this Fantasy City Game

Elvenar - Free Online Game

Take A Peek Inside Prince Harry & Meghan's Mansion

Re nance Gold

Do You Know Why You Are Paying Too Much for Car Insurance
Coverfox.com

Flight Prices You're Not Allowed To See!

FlightFinder

MOST POPULAR

Nvidia to nally reveal its next generation mainstream GPU on August 20th
By Kevin Lee May 31, 2018 READ MORE 

Roccat reveals Titan Switch Tactile, its own mechanical keyboard switch
By Joe Osborne May 31, 2018 READ MORE 

Dell doubles up displays with rumored dual-screen Windows 10 on ARM device

By Darren Allan May 31, 2018 READ MORE 

The best no logs VPN of 2018 : Stay private and anonymous

By Desire Athow May 31, 2018 READ MORE 

Best POS systems of 2018

By David Nield May 31, 2018 READ MORE 

Intel reveals Optane memory sticks that go up to a colossal 512GB in size

By Darren Allan May 31, 2018 READ MORE 

A special deal for TechRadar readers: get WinX HD Video Converter Deluxe free
By Cat Ellis May 31, 2018 READ MORE 

https://www.techradar.com/best/the-best-free-alternative-to-youtube-video-editor 8/10
6/1/2018 The best free alternative to YouTube Video Editor 2018 | TechRadar

Corsair HS70 Wireless Gaming Headset

By Michelle Rae Uy May 31, 2018 READ MORE 

The best VPN apps for your iPad in 2018

By Desire Athow May 31, 2018 READ MORE 

TechRadar’s World Cup of Computers: it's all kicking o

By Matthew Hanson May 31, 2018 READ MORE 

The best web browser 2018: faster and more secure

By Cat Ellis, Alex Cox May 31, 2018 READ MORE 

New le sharing site Smash has no ads, no le size limits, and a creative twist
By Cat Ellis May 31, 2018 READ MORE 

Best translation software of 2018

By Will Dalton May 31, 2018 READ MORE 

Advertisement

Ad: Colombia

Boost your website traffic via

View More
Times Network

TECH DEALS, PRIZES AND LATEST

 NEWS

Get the best TechRadar India deals,

reviews, product advice,
competitions, unmissable tech news
and more!

No spam, we promise. You can unsubscribe at any time and

we'll never share your details without your permission.

Advertisement

MOST POPULAR MOST SHARED

https://www.techradar.com/best/the-best-free-alternative-to-youtube-video-editor 9/10
6/1/2018 The best free alternative to YouTube Video Editor 2018 | TechRadar

1 OnePlus 6 face unlock can seemingly be fooled by a photo

2 Xiaomi Mi 8, Mi 8 SE, Mi Band 3 images surface ahead of launch

3 Moto G6 Plus review

4 MIUI 10 now has a con rmed release date

5 Best camera phones under Rs 20,000 in India for May 2018

Advertisement

TechRadar is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

About Us

Terms and conditions

Privacy policy

Cookies policy

Advertise with us

© Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.

https://www.techradar.com/best/the-best-free-alternative-to-youtube-video-editor 10/10