Are you a YouTuber, social media enthusiast, filmmaker, or vlogger? If so, then you know the only way to make a lasting impression is to create content that looks polished, top-quality, and highly professional.

Video editing tools are designed to help you create engaging videos for presentations, training tutorials, or memorable moments with friends and family, to name but a few. There are powerful tools for every budget. Pros will look for more advanced solutions, with newer formats supported, like 4K, HDR, and VR. Vloggers and consumers will most likely go for simplicity.

The real question, though, is how to choose the best video editing tool for you. The simple answer? It all trickles down to your needs and preferences. Here are some questions to guide you in choosing the most suitable app:

  • What kinds of videos will you be editing?
  • Will the videos be long or short?
  • What’s the level of professionalism you’d like to achieve with your videos?
  • What’s your budget?
  • What features do you require?

Below, we’ve gathered some of the best video editing tools of 2021. We look at their features, pros, and cons and if they are the right fit.

Here are the tools we cover in this article:

  • Wondershare Filmora
  • Movavi Video Editor
  • MAGIX Movie Edit Pro
  • ACDSee Luxea Video Editor
  • EaseUs Video Editor
  • MiniTool MovieMaker
  • TechSmith Camtasia
  • SolveigMM Video Splitter

Wondershare Filmora

If you’re just starting out in the world of video editing, Filmora by Wondershare may be the best option for you as it offers a simple, clean, and user-friendly interface to help you navigate with ease. It is inexpensive and comes packed with plenty of features, including transitions, motion effects, and overlays.

Motion Tracking has been simplified, so you won’t get lost trying to use it. All you have to do is draw a box around what you want to track and click Start Tracking. You can then choose what you want to follow the track – your file or mosaic blurs. The tracking feature works exceptionally well, and keyboard hotkeys enable faster editing.

While it lacks some advanced tools like VR or Multicam support, Filmora is perfect for anyone looking for a simple yet powerful app that doesn’t carry a hefty price tag. The software is available for Windows and macOS.

Key Features:

  • Supports keyframing
  • Now offers motion tracking
  • Lets you fade music to make your dialogue audible
  • Supports split screen and green screen

Reasons to Choose Wondershare Filmora:

  • Inexpensive
  • Fast rendering
  • Allows you to apply color corrections across multiple clips simultaneously
  • Clean interface
  • Offers 100 transitions and plenty of effects
  • Over 200 well-designed title and text templates

Reasons to Avoid:

  • Crashes occasionally
  • Lacks support for DVD menus or chapter authoring

Pricing

Its pricing plans are categorized into three options:

Individual:

  • Annual Plan – $55.98
  • Perpetual Plan – $85.98 (one-time fee)
  • Bundle Subscription Plan – $109.99/year (discounted from $171.87)

Business:

  • Business Annual Plan – $155.88 per user, per year

Educational:

  • Student Plan – Starts from $19.99

Movavi Video Editor

While most video editing programs are complex and require a learning curve to get a grasp of how to use them, Movavi Video Editor is designed for beginners to help you quickly learn how to create beautiful video clips.

The interface isn’t as intimidating as what most of its competitors offer, yet it packs plenty of advanced tools and functionalities. Movavi Video Editor is not new in the market, having been around since 2004. It continues to offer notable features, like animated transitions and titles, effects, and filters, and even lets you record your voice using a microphone.

Quickly create a slideshow of all the happy moments or a presentation using its Montage Wizard. The feature comes with fun enhancements like special effects and subtitles, and you can use it to turn your videos, music, and pictures into a movie.

When it comes to editing, you’ll be spoilt for choice by the multitude of editing tools. From transitions, stickers, and titles to video effects and soundtracks, you can create outstanding videos with Movavi in quick easy steps. Importing videos is simple, and you can even access the built-in camera and start recording right from within the application.

However, using Movavi can be limiting. For example, if you import media, you’d expect it to be added to the preview section of the application so that you can choose which parts to use. Instead, the app adds your imported clips to your timeline. This can be frustrating since the order you chose for them may not be the order in which you need to blend them together. While you can still move the clips around your timeline, it’s not the best way to edit a video.

We recommend checking the app out first by taking advantage of the 7-day free trial before making up your mind. The software works on Windows and macOS.

Key Features:

  • Screen recording
  • Media file converter
  • Supports FHD and 4K content
  • Can record VHS and TV signal
  • Supports keyframe animation

Reasons to Choose Movavi Video Editor:

  • The app lets you digitize your family archives, like VHS tapes and printed photos.
  • It gives you access to the Video Suite community, where you can share your content with and connect to other editors.
  • It enables you to spruce up your videos with titles, transitions, and filters with ease.
  • You can apply Chroma Key to change the background of your clips, making them more engaging.
  • It lets you stabilize your videos to remove the camera shake.

Reasons to Avoid:

  • The app lacks audio meters.
  • It may be inconsistent at times.
  • It lacks clip trimming and advanced trim modes.

Pricing

  • Video Editor Plus: 1-year license for one PC – $39.95
  • Video Editor Plus: lifetime license for one PC – $59.95
  • Video Suite: lifetime license for one PC – $79.95

MAGIX Movie Edit Pro

MAGIX Movie Edit Pro boasts a remarkable feature set that includes support for 4K and 360 -degree content. The latest version now gets the vertical video format, which is commonly used on social media posts.

You’ll find the video preview panel at the top left and the content and effect source to the right, unlike in most video editing programs. The interface looks sleek and uncluttered, with a gray and dark color theme.

At the source panel, you can access the Import, Effects, Templates, Audio, and Store tabs. You can undock the panels, resize them, and move them around to your liking. Plus, you can customize the timeline with different views and activate Multicam mode.

You may have some trouble starting out due to limited guidance inside the app. However, you can view all the video guides on its website. Users may also have issues with the Import feature, which only shows the disk folder tree. It lacks the import menu, like you’d find in other video editing tools. However, you can use Camera MX (an Android app) to transfer content straight from your phone over Wi-Fi.

The trimming feature works as expected. When applying it to a clip in the timeline, the preview window instantly displays the effect of the edit. The Find and Close Gaps option also functions as advertised, and the Effects panel gives you access to options like distortion, chroma-key, lighting, color, and lens correction.

The Stabilization feature could do with some more work since, in some cases, it may produce an even worse video than the original.

Key Features:

  • Advanced movie effects, including Multicam, time-stretching, 3D editing, and picture-in-picture
  • 360-degree video editing
  • Intuitive audio editing
  • 8K ultra HD video support
  • NewBlue Filters 5 Ultimate, which is a package of features that let you add that extra touch of finesse to your final product

Reasons to Choose MAGIX Movie Edit Pro

  • The app offers essential video editing tools at an affordable price.
  • Keyboard shortcuts ensure you work faster.
  • The interface is simple and responsive.
  • It supports Multicam.

Reasons to Avoid:

  • There are no in-app guided tutorials.
  • It offers much slower rendering than some of its competitors.
  • The import interface is poorly designed.
  • The app works only on Windows.

Pricing

  • MAGIX Movie Edit Pro – $2.99 per month, billed annually
  • MAGIX Movie Edit Pro Plus – $3.99 per month, billed annually
  • MAGIX Movie Edit Pro Premium – $4.99 per month, billed annually

ACDSee Luxea Video Editor

For the ordinary person, editing a video can be a complicated and tiring experience. ACDSee Luxea Video Editor simplifies the process while offering all the features and functionalities most users will ever need.

For starters, it isn’t as resource-hungry as most video editing tools and only requires modest specifications. However, it is always advisable to get a high-spec computer if you plan to edit plenty of media.

Luxea Video Editor offers features like proxy editing for faster and smoother edits, LUTs for cinematic color effects, and a screen recorder. The video capture works with the built-in camera of your computer, or you can attach your camera via USB. It also captures audio from the microphone if you want to add voice-overs to your clips.

With just a single workspace and simple interface, you can find all the editing tools and options within easy reach. The app lets you copy filters from one clip to another for a speedy workflow and consistency in your projects.

Once you’re done with your video clips, you can upload them directly to YouTube and Vimeo, without leaving the app.

Key Features:

  • Mouse click effects
  • Webcam support
  • Screen recording
  • Real-time MP4 creation
  • Audio recording
  • Text tool
  • Limitless tracks
  • Keyframing

Reasons to Choose ACDSee Luxea Video Editor

  • It has amazing overlay effects to enhance your videos.
  • It allows you to add and customize your own watermark.
  • The app supports a green screen to let you play around with backgrounds.
  • It supports 4K to produce high-quality content.
  • It lets you quickly create and share GIFs.

Reasons to Avoid:

  • The tool is only available for Windows.

Pricing

  • Free Plan with access to all features
  • Lifetime Plan – one-time purchase at $79.99
  • Individual Plan – $29.99 per year
  • Home Plan – $89 per year

EaseUS Video Editor

EaseUS Video Editor introduces you to many possibilities when it comes to video editing. It gives you access to 50+ visual and transition effects so that you can add that professional touch to your content.

The Windows-only video editor supports media conversion and lets you convert MP4, MKV, MOV, AVI, and more to other formats. The platform allows you to easily share your final video clips to your YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram account or burn them to DVDs to watch for years to come.

The app has a clean interface. Once you launch the program, you get prompted to select an aspect ratio (9:16 for smartphones or 16:9/4:3 for computers and TV screens). To start working on an image, you can use the import option or simply drag and drop files and folders into the app’s library. You can then reorder your video and audio clips on the timeline and insert the transition effects that you fancy.

Note that not all the transitions are installed by default. You’ll have to install them one by one as you need them. Alternatively, you can bulk download them at once. The transitions, effects, and overlays in EaseUS Video Editor are of high quality. However, the app lacks when it comes to editing raw footage.

If you’re looking for advanced features other than the usual brightness, speed, and color adjust options, you may have to opt for a different video editor.

Key Features:

  • Trim, split, and rotate options
  • Audio mixing
  • Text to speech exchange
  • Mosaic
  • Style adjusting

Reasons to Choose EaseUS Video Editor

  • The app features a simple, easy-to-navigate interface.
  • You get to enjoy a broad selection of effects and transitions.
  • There is a wide collection of overlays.

Reasons to Avoid

  • Text effects are not as good.
  • Raw footage editing is limited.

Pricing

The software offers a free trial to test if it works for you. If you like what you see, you can upgrade to its Full version, which is currently discounted to $17.97. The original price is $29.95.

MiniTool MovieMaker

Don’t have any design or video editing experience? Nothing to worry about. MiniTool MovieMaker lets you create fun and exciting videos with just a few clicks. Simply import the photo or video clip you want to edit and add titles, effects, and transitions.

Use one of the numerous templates to create Hollywood-like movies or clips and share them with friends and family. MiniTool MovieMaker offers simplicity to those looking to enhance their files without too much complexity.

The platform supports most of the popular video and audio formats. If you feel like getting a little hands-on experience, you can switch to Full-Feature mode, which gives you access to additional features. Even then, it still maintains simplicity when using it.

You can add media files to your timeline and then edit them by adding text, splitting the videos into separate sections, and adding transitions between scenes and artistic effects to your video clips. Enhance your creativity by changing the aesthetic of your content with filters and 3D LUTs. Use the Video Speed Controller to reverse, speed up or slow down your video. You can also apply the Motion (pan and zoom) effect to make your videos livelier.

With MiniTool MovieMaker, you don’t have to worry about losing projects you’ve worked hard to create. This is courtesy of the Auto-Save Project feature, which automatically saves your work every five seconds.

Key Features:

  • Simple timelines
  • Studio-quality titles
  • Cool transitions
  • Animate Zoom Tool
  • Video Speed Controller
  • Trim/split video

Reasons to Choose MiniTool MovieMaker

  • The app features a clean, well-designed interface.
  • It’s free of charge.
  • It offers templates for quick editing.
  • It’s ideal for beginners.
  • You can preview your imported media by hovering your mouse cursor over the thumbnail.
  • Adding texts to your clips is fast.

Reasons to Avoid

  • Manual editing options are restrictive.
  • One can’t customize effects.
  • Your videos may end up looking generic due to the limited feature set.
  • There is no option to drag and drop media files to the library.

Pricing

MiniTool MovieMaker is absolutely free, with no watermark embedded.

TechSmith Camtasia

Do you create eLearning courses? If so, you may want to try your hands on TechSmith Camtasia. It’s specifically designed to help you create demos, training videos, and teaching courses. You can easily jump back and forth from recording cursor movements on a “how-to” video to a webcam video taken from your computer in which you’re speaking directly to your viewers.

The screen recording feature works exceptionally well, letting you choose whether to record a zoomed-in area or the full screen. This option can come in handy when preparing small demonstrations that happen in certain corners of the screen. It also lets you add cursor highlight effects to direct the user’s attention.

What most course creators will find useful is the quiz functionality, which lets you insert a quiz at any point during a video training. While it’s not comparable to the rich quizzes you find in other apps like Storyline 2 or Elucidat, the function is powerful enough to help you determine if the questions were answered correctly.

The one limitation you may run into when using TechSmith Camtasia is that it can only handle video files of up to 1080p and at 30 frames per second. So, those creating coursework that requires higher-definition videos may have to look for other options. The software is available for Windows and macOS.

Key Features:

  • Zoom and pan camera
  • Cursor effects
  • Screen recording
  • Transitions
  • Video templates
  • Pre-built assets
  • Audio recording
  • Web camera capture
  • Annotations
  • PowerPoint integration
  • Green screen
  • Closed captions

Reasons to Choose TechSmith Camtasia:

  • The app gives you access to numerous pre-made animations for video customization.
  • It lets you add an interactive table of contents to make it easier for learners to navigate through the course.
  • The app allows you to replace backgrounds using a green screen.
  • It allows uploading completed videos directly to YouTube, Screencast, and Vimeo.
  • There are plenty of royalty-free music and sound effects to choose from.
  • The drag-and-drop editor simplifies editing.
  • You get to enjoy remarkable cursor effects.

Reasons to Avoid:

  • The app lacks keyframe tracking.
  • The keyboard commands are limited.
  • It lacks some advanced features offered by competitors.

Pricing

You can try it by downloading the free trial, which expires after 30 days. If you like it, you can upgrade to one of its paid plans:

  • Camtasia – $249 (one-time fee) for one license
  • Camtasia and Snagit bundle – $274.99 (one-time fee)

SolveigMM Video Splitter

SolveigMM Video Splitter is an excellent video editing tool that lets you edit your videos without losing quality. Rendering is fast, and its intuitive interface is simple to use even for a first-timer. If you hit a wall, you can find several tutorials on how to use the app’s various functionalities.

It’s the perfect tool to cut those annoying ads from your favorite TV shows or movies. When cutting files, you can do so by fragment size or duration, and it supports multiple file formats, including Mp4, AVI, WEBM, and TS.

SolveigMM Video Splitter also functions as video cropping and combining software. Like most other video editing tools, you can try it for free to see if it fits your editing needs.

Key Features:

  • Manage any type of content by editing and combining video files
  • Supports batch processing of projects
  • Integrates with Citrix XenApp 6.5
  • Split, edit and cut your media to create professional-looking videos

Reasons to Choose SolveigMM Video Splitter:

  • The app lets you edit both built-in and external subtitles for multiple file formats.
  • It has a simple, easy-to-use interface.
  • It allows you to split files into separate bits and edit them without loss of quality.
  • It supports a wide selection of file formats.
  • The app lets you trim videos to remove unwanted parts, like ads.

Reasons to Avoid:

  • You may run into stability issues, especially when editing long videos.

Pricing

  • For Home – $49.95
  • For Business – Contact the sales team for custom pricing

InVideo

InVideo, a cross-device, collaborative, and easy-to-use platform, has revolutionized the field of video production. It boasts exquisite designer templates, a massive audio library, and several customizable features.

InVideo is an intuitive online video editor that can help you make millions of videos in more than 100 foreign languages and includes more than 5000 custom templates and over 1 million royalty-free images and video clips.

It offers a free version which is great for testing the platform, but it also limits its usefulness, whereas the subscription version offers full access to all features.

InVideo is all about improving the user experience of creating videos – they also provide 24/7 live customer support to their users.
InVideo is on our list of the best online video editors as it is an effective video-editing software that is also available as an easy-to-install/use Android and iOS app. InVideo promises convenience, online hosting, access to handcrafted templates, media libraries, and elaborate stock content.

You need to pay to avail yourself of exceptional InVideo services like access to premium features, additional cloud storage, premium stock libraries, and 1080p output resolution.

Features of InVideo

Its core characteristics are:

  1. Article-to-Video is a basic functionality that lets you generate a new video from any article for social media channels and YouTube.
  2. URL-to-video is another feature that you can use to create great video content.
  3. Readymade templates that can be customized according to your needs.
  4. Logo Revealers that help you launch your logos with a great video from InVideo.
  5. Blank Canvas to create your video content, with the facility to record, edit, and render new video files.
  6. Text-to-speech features allow you to add sound to the background of your videos.
  7. Background music is available in a large inventory of royalty-free music.
  8. Animation with features like brand overlay and bulk uploading.
  9. Closed captions, customizable branding, and text overlay.
  10. Mobile screen support with speed adjustment and split/merge abilities.
  11. Support for HD resolution.
  12. Advanced editing
  13. Facility to upload titles in InVideo plus stickers, overlays, animations, shapes, and more.
  14. Setting to add simple modifications along with brightness, white balance, clipping, contrast, mixing modes, and the opacity of layered films.
  15. Numerous filters.
  16. Background Remover removes backgrounds from static images.

Pros and Cons of InVideo

Pros

  1. InVideo is fast and easy to use and contains a massive stock of music, videos, and images.
  2. Its free version, with easy access to stickers, text animations, and filters, is great.
  3. It gives you comprehensive control over the appearance of your project.
  4. You can post many educational videos and tutorials on your YouTube channel, as you have no restrictions on the videos you create.
  5. You can upload and use your media or use media from your library.
  6. Easy-to-use templates that can be used to start any type of video production.

Cons

  1. When you decide on a template, you don’t have many options to opt for a “new look.” You have to depend on AI’s ability to select content for your project.
  2. Limitation of 50 scenes as the platform advises keeping your projects under 30 scenes. For professional videos, it works, but for blogging and setting up a scene, you may require a few extra scenes to plan your project.
  3. Preview and export take a long time.
  4. Subscriptions can be expensive for a few.
  5. 1080p resolution is only available for subscribers.

InVideo Pricing

The free version comes with a limited output resolution and a watermark on videos. If you choose to pay monthly, the monthly Business plan costs $30 but paying annually cuts the cost in half to $180.

The pricing packages include the following:

  • Free Version – costs $0, It allows you to export up to 60 watermarked videos per month.
  • A monthly business plan that costs $30 – Access to 10 iStock photos and videos per month, unlimited premium photos and videos, unlimited premium templates, and 60 HD video exports per month.
  • Annual Cost of $180 – This is equivalent to $15 per month.
  • InVideo Unlimited at $60 per month or $360 for the whole year, which comes out to be $30 per month. Allows access to 120 stock photos and videos, unlimited premium photos and videos, unlimited premium templates, and unlimited video export.

Final Thoughts

In a nutshell, video editing programs come in many forms and with unique features. Your choice boils down to factors like your budget, what your computer can handle, and what types of videos you create.

If you engage in professional video editing, then a more advanced editing tool like MAGIX Movie Edit Pro or TechSmith Camtasia may be more suitable. If you just need simple video editing software for basic editing, go for tools specifically designed for beginners, such as MiniTool MovieMaker, Wondershare Filmora and Movavi Video Editor, since they are easy to use.

While you’re at it, when working with videos, the last thing you’d want is a slow computer that’s prone to lagging and crashing. Not only will it make your entire experience frustrating, but you also risk losing your projects.

Fortunately, if you do basic editing, you don’t need a powerful machine to edit your videos. You simply need to tweak your current one to perform optimally. We recommend using reliable and trustworthy PC optimization software like Auslogics BoostSpeed. It is safe and comes loaded with more than a dozen tools to improve your PC’s efficiency so that it can work better and faster.

You no longer have to worry about disk space filling up or the registry getting corrupted. With just a few clicks, your computer will be running as good as new.