How to choose a video editor
There’s a lot of desktop-based editing software available for businesses looking to create promotional videos.
Whether you’re looking for software or service, here are some considerations to keep in mind:
User experience
The thing to consider is how easy it is to learn the software or service. Templates might also be a bonus. A good editing software or service will also have tutorials so you can learn the features.
Editing features
Check to see if the software or service you are choosing has powerful video editing tools that meet your needs requirements.
Hidden costs
Some apps and services are “free”, but might need additional payment for better features. Completely free software and services may have limited file format support, poor performance, or other limitations.
Support
Customer support might be helpful, especially if you are a newbie. If you have a question about a feature, it’s convenient to have somewhere to get answers. You might be interested in support services: email/phone support, FAQs, or community forums.
Export option
Make sure your product editing software or service is capable of high-quality output in popular formats.
Requirements
Before investing time and effort into the chosen app or service, ensure it’s compatible with your OS or browser.
Several analyses are made while searching for the best audio/video editing services and software. Therefore, it is essential to keep in mind that there is no sole best option that fits all users’ needs. Now that you have your ideas in mind and know the level of your ICT competency, you can brush up the following links to find the best option for you.
Audio editing software gives you the digital tools to record, edit, and produce audio files. Audio editing software is sometimes referred to as a DAW, or digital audio workstation.
Audacity is a free, easy-to-use, multi-track audio editor and recorder for Windows, macOS, GNU/Linux and other operating systems. The interface is translated into many languages.
Overview
Audacity is our pick for best overall audio editing software because it is a full-featured software with multi-track editing features and cross-platform support for Windows, macOS, and Linux. It’s great for a variety of audio editing projects, including podcasts.
Best of all, it’s completely free. That makes it great for beginners and at-home users, even if it may be complicated from them. But don’t let the price tag fool you. It works very well for professional needs, particularly if you customize your interface with plugins suited to your specific projects.
Audacity is developed as open-source software. Any volunteer developers can contribute to the Audacity project. That means you may not get quite as much visual polish as with paid software, but all essential tools work very well. You can also download plugins to add more features, effects, import and export options, and other goodies.
You can use Audacity to:
- Record live audio.
- Record computer playback on any Windows Vista or later machine.
- Convert tapes and records into digital recordings or CDs.
- Edit WAV, AIFF, FLAC, MP2, MP3, Ogg Vorbis sound files.
- AC3, M4A/M4R (AAC), WMA, Opus and other formats supported using optional libraries.
- Cut, copy, splice or mix sounds together.
- Numerous effects including change the speed, pitch or tempo of a recording.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Easy-to-use multi-track editing- Works on all popular desktop operating systems
- Free to download and use
Cons
- The visual interface isn’t as polished as some paid competitors
- Some features may be challenging for beginners
GarageBand for the Mac is a complete recording studio that includes hundreds of realistic-sounding instruments, effects, and presets configured by experienced recording engineers.
Overview
GarageBand is a free audio editing program for macOS laptop and desktop computers. It is the best free audio editor because, among free editors, it is one of the best-looking choices, comes with a solid list of effects and instruments for creating new music, and integrates deeply with the Mac ecosystem, which makes sense because it’s made by Apple. It may be preinstalled on your Mac computer, or you can get it for free from the Apple App Store.
GarageBand includes features to record, edit, and create music and other audio. Podcasters may find it to be an easy option to start recording right away. At the same time, musicians can build more complex, multi-layer audio projects with plenty of useful effects and instrument generators.
It should handle many professional projects, but some pros may find the features a bit light. If you have a Mac, it’s worth starting with GarageBand first to see if it works for your project before shelling out money for a paid audio editor.
Pros & Cons
- Easy-to-use audio editor
- Free for use on Mac computers
- Good for vocal and instrument recordings
Cons
- May not be suitable for professional-level needs
- No Windows version available
| Movie Maker is a cost-effective tool for people that want to create videos. Still, there are some drawbacks. Due to the fact that the tool is supported by ads, so you’ll have to navigate around them to edit your videos. It also has a 10-minute limit, which should be sufficient for the standard free user. |
The video and audio timelines are positioned vertically. The service’s easily accessible on multiple devices as it’s completely browser based. Movie Maker Online gives you all the basics you need to make a video for free. You also get access to free music, videos, and photos, which is a nice bonus.
- Free, browser-based video editor
- Free music, photos, and sound effects
- Ideal for quickly trimming, combining, and adjusting videos
- Built-in support
Media.io is good for beginners and enthusiasts. It provides tools as editing, converting, and compressing videos, audios, and images. Media.io allows you to upload multimedia files from local drives or online clouds. It can also be used it to record screen and webcam with audio. The intuitive user-friendly interface simplifies video editing.
Clipcham is an online video editing tool, it is also a video compressor, converter, and webcam recorder. The intuitive user-friendly platform allows to complete video editing within little time. The output can be directly saved on the computer or shared to Google Drive etc.
Lightworks includes a simple and intuitive interface, so it’s easy to pick up. Lightworks also offers a collection of detailed video tutorials, making it one of the more accessible and easy to learn Linux video editing software options on this list.
Lightworks has a suite of original stock videos and music clips licensed for use in any videos you edit on the program, letting you give a polished look to any marketing video.
Lightworks has a suite of original stock videos and music clips licensed for use in any videos you edit on the program, letting you give a polished look to any marketing video.
Features:
- High-quality simple trim functions for fast and precise video editing
- Speed optimization, letting you continue to edit while importing new content
- Multicam editing for syncing clips from multiple cameras
- Real-time team project sharing with full control over which user has editing access
- Easy sharing of videos, with fast export to YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook, and Instagram
- Support for a wide range of video formats
Adobe Premiere Rush is a great option for anyone who wants to make quick video logs. Creators can easily generate snazzy video content to engage and then grow their social media fan base.
You can edit your videos with special effects, overlays, texts, and transitions, as well as manipulate video speed and sound effects. And don’t forget about using the presets to quickly save your videos offline or share your videos to YouTube, Facebook and Instagram.
The only drawback is that it may be too simple for advanced video editors. Adobe Premiere Rush doesn’t come with as many advanced features as some of the other free video editing software on this list, but with options to add light effects, fine tune colors, and overlay text and images, there’s enough here to make it worth the free download.
Features:
- Easy click and drag to add transitions
- Presets to easily create video files optimized for specific platforms—such as Facebook and YouTube—and post them directly from within the software
- Built-in templates for adding and editing polished titles
- 100GB of cloud storage (Upgrade up to 10TB)
If you don’t have a lot of experience with video editing,
HitFilm Express may feel a little advanced at first—it’s used to produce Hollywood-style films—but it’s worth the learning curve, as it’s one of the best all-in-one free video editors available. (HitFilm does ask you to share a social media status update when you download the software, but that’s a small price to pay.)
HitFilm includes animation tools that let you create and edit audio and video transitions without the need to create composite shots, which is a huge time saver when editing. It also offers cool 3D effects for films, music videos, and even YouTube videos, plus features you’d find in a paid video editing software, like 4K video, 360-degree editing, and a library of special effects.
Features:
- Professional-grade video editing with motion tracking, color pickers, and cropping tools
- Composite shot enhancements that allow you to animate two separate shots together for surreal video effects
- An auto-stabilizer to make shaky footage look smooth
- Unlimited video and audio timeline track creation
- An adaptive trimmer that lets you re-trim your clips after adding them to the timeline
- Ability to copy a group of attributes from one clip and apply them directly to another or to a whole project
- Audio mixer for fine tuning sound for professional quality output
- Various transition options, such as push, zoom, and dissolve
OpenShot is easy-to-use user interface makes it a great video editing program for intermediate editors. While more complex tools may offer more editing components, OpenShot’s intuitive interface and minimal design are perfect for simple editing.
OpenShot is an efficient option for small businesses and is best for clip resizing, scaling, trimming, snapping, and rotation. It also offers credit scrolling, frame stepping, time mapping, audio editing, and real-time preview.
Features:
- Unlimited layers for watermarks, background videos, and audio tracks
- Customizable title-card templates
- Drag-and-drop functionality for easily adding video, audio, or image files
- Digital video effects, including brightness, gamma, hue, greyscale, and chroma key compositing for green-screen effects
- Powerful key-frame animation capabilities for creating animated videos