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If video isn’t already an important part of your content marketing strategy, odds are it’s about to be. Web content is taking a turn toward video whether SEOs and content marketers like it or not. Nearly 50% of marketers are adding YouTube and Facebook channels for video distribution in the next year; one third of online activity is spent watching video; and video itself is projected to account for more than 80% of all internet traffic by 2019. 80%!

When you are looking for the best free YouTube video editing software program to use with Mac, iMovie will be the best choice to consider. This free video editing software for YouTube allows for easy importing of videos and editing. Fortunately, there are plenty of alternative editing apps for YouTube. Among all the video editing software out there are many free ones, and within those are programs that are great for editing YouTube videos, specifically. There are editors for all platforms: Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, and others.

For those looking to continue to grow their organic traffic, that means one thing:

Windows Movie Maker was once the most popular free video editing tool for Windows, and users can make home movies by simple drag-and-drop. It contains features such as video effects, video transitions, adding titles/credits, audio track, timeline narration, and Auto Movie. Blender, one of the best free video editing software on the market, is available for Windows, Mac, and Linux. Blender is an open source program that is entirely free to use. The tool was actually designed as a 3D animation suite, but it does come with a very useful video editor. Verdict: According to accomplished video editors and filmmakers, Adobe Premiere Pro is the most well-known and the best video editing software for Windows 10. Packed with special effects, the Deadpool movie was created in Premiere Pro. This software is the standard of video editing software for gaming. Its sophisticated package offers.

Not an expert? Don’t know how to edit videos, have a video studio, or have a bona fide video specialist to shoot and cut your features? That’s alright! The goal of today’s blog is to show you that with the right video editing software, you too can churn out sleek, professional video content—regardless of experience—and keep your content strategy ahead of the curve.

Let’s dive in! Here are our recs for the top 10 best pieces of video editing software or video editing apps for beginners—from cheapest (i.e. free!) to most expensive.

1. Apple iMovie

Ok—so to those of you working with PCs, this one won’t really apply; but we’d remiss to leave it off the list. If you’re looking for simplicity and elegance, it doesn’t get much better than Apple iMovie. iMovie’s ten high-fidelity filters are some of the classiest in the video editing game; and if you’re shooting on your iPhone, or have been editing a project on your iPad, you can use AirDrop to wirelessly and seamlessly transfer your project over to your Mac.

One of iMovie’s most coveted features is its green-screen, or “chroma-key” tool, which allows you to place your characters in exotic locations—Hawaii, say—at a moment’s notice. Want to overlay the scene with “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”? iMovie ties directly in with iTunes and GarageBand, so you can easily implement custom tracks and sounds. When your movie’s finally ready to ship, release it into the wild using iMessage, Facebook, YouTube, or any other of iMovie’s succinctly connected platforms.

Standout Features: Seamless Apple product integration; green-screen; audio and social platform integration

Pricing: Free with the purchase of a Mac

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2. Lumen5: How to Edit Videos Without Much Technical Ability

We’ll put this more in the category of a video editing “tool” than video editing software, but for social media marketers who want to create fun, flashy social promos in the blink of an eye, Lumen5 is a no brainer. Here’s a short little feature we made for a recent blog post, 14 Fun & Festive Holiday Marketing Ideas for 2017:

Lumen5 markets itself as a tool that turns blog posts into social promos. While the process isn’t perfect, and you’ll likely have to do some tinkering to get your blog content looking just the way you want it, the rest of the video creation process is a cinch. Merely refine some copy that teases your blog post; drag and drop some gifs, screengrabs, or video clips; add some music; and your engaging social video will be ripe for Facebook and Twitter.

Standout Features: Blog-to-social-promo creation; drag-and-drop interface

Pricing: Create as many 480p videos as you want with the free version; or, for $50 per month, upgrade to 1080p HD.

3. Nero Video

One of the cheaper options around ($49.99), Nero Video holds its own on this list—it comes well-stocked with a lot of the tricks and effects you’ll find among other products vying for video editing supremacy, and as far as software for beginners, you can certainly do worse. If you’re going to spend money learning how to edit videos, however, you might want to steer clear. Nero just doesn’t have the speed and functionality of some of the other products listed here, and if it’s value proposition is its price, $50 is still not all that cheap.

Standout Features: Low pricing

Pricing: One-time payment of $49.99

4. Corel VideoStudio

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Corel VideoStudio has all the characteristics of the other top-of-the-line products on this list, including 360-degree VR and 4k support, but it also has the distinction of being the first piece of consumer video editing software to offer motion tracking—which, if you’re not already familiar, is a feature that allows you to track specific objects throughout your cut (if you wanted, say, to point an arrow at one of your characters, blur out his face, or bestow him with a funny hat). Most of the products on this list come equipped with motion tracking, but VideoStudio still boasts one of the best motion tracking systems around.

One of the knocks on VideoStudio is its speed, which lags notably behind some of the faster systems on this list, like CyberLink PowerDirector and Pinnacle Studio. Still: for a one-time payment of $51.99? You can do much worse.

Standout Features: Motion tracking

Pricing: One-time payment of $51.99

5. Filmora from Wondershare

When it comes to video editing software, Filmora is about as multi-faceted as they come. Filmora is Wondershare’s standard, simple, high-quality video editing offering; but Wondershare also offers FilmoraGo (for mobile editing) and Filmora Scrn (for screen recording and editing). The design is intuitive and easy to use, and comes replete with filters, overlays, motion elements, transitions, and a small selection of royalty-free music. Here are a few more of the “basics” Filmora offers:

4k and gif support are boilerplate features for most video editing products today, but one thing Filmora does particularly well is titles. Title tools are trending in video software, and while Filmora’s doesn’t have the functionality of say, an Apple Final Cut Pro X, which can superimpose 3D titles over your videos and rotate them on three axes, it nonetheless has some snazzy titling features for the money you’re spending.

Another Filmora feature beginners to video editing will find attractive is “Easy Mode,” which allows you to create fun, polished edits by merely dragging and dropping clips, choosing a theme, and selecting music.

Standout features: Title tool; mobile and screen editing; “Easy Mode”

Pricing: Starts at $59.99 for a lifetime license; or, $39.99 for a year.

6. CyberLink PowerDirector

So—we stretched the meaning of “software” a bit earlier; now, we’re going to stretch the meaning of “beginner.” We included CyberLink PowerDirector on this list because its interface is, at the end of the day, pretty straightforward. Head to the product page, run through the tutorials, and you’ll be alright. There is within the interface, however, an embarrassment of options and effects. If you’re not willing to invest the time in learning all of them, it can get a bit overwhelming.

Don’t be scared of CyberLink’s extra features; just be wary of your commitment level!

In terms of rendering, PowerDirector is regarded as one of the fastest video editing systems around. It also operates consistently in the sphere of the innovative and cutting edge. PowerDirector led the charge in the switch to 4k, and today, it’s one of the first systems to support 360-degree virtual reality footage.

Price: you get what you pay for! $79.99 gets you unlimited access to one of the most capable pieces of video editing software around.

Standout Features: Lightning-fast rendering; comprehensive suite of effects

Pricing: One-time payment of $79.99

7. Adobe Premiere Elements

We include Premiere Elements on the list mostly because it’s been an industry leader in the video editing game for some time. And $79.99 is not egregious, but we’re here to say that at that price, you’re mostly paying for the name. In the time since Premiere Elements’ inception, too many other products have surpassed it in speed and capability for us to place it among the cream of the crop. That’s to take nothing away from Premiere Elements’ usability, though—specifically for beginners.

The Guided Edits feature makes Adobe Premiere a particularly attractive option for beginners, as it allows them to take on both quick edits and advanced projects with substantial assistance from the software.

If you’re not entirely sure what you’re doing, don’t sleep on Guided Edits!

So while Premiere Elements lags behind the competition in terms of speed, 3D editing, multi-cam, and some other advanced features, it’s still a great choice for the beginner looking for a comprehensive suite of effects, and some guidance on how to implement them.

Standout Features: Guided Edits; simple interface

Pricing: One-time payment of $79.99

8. Pinnacle Studio

At the higher end of the Corel product line is Pinnacle Studio—which, at $129.95 (the amount you’ll need to pay to edit 360-degree and 4k content with the “Ultimate” version), costs more than twice as much as VideoStudio. What do you get for the extra money? Well, not only does Pinnacle come readily equipped with all the features you’d expect from an upper-echelon product—motion tracking, 360-degree VR support, 4k support, multi-cam, etc.—but you’d be hard-pressed to find a faster product on the market in terms of rendering.

For all of its features, Pinnacle’s interface is still as user-friendly and intuitive as anything on this list. Thus, is you have the need for speed, and you don’t mind shelling out a few extra bucks for it, Pinnacle might be the product for you.

Standout Features: Top-of-the-line rendering speeds; full range of features and support

Pricing: One-time payment of $129.95

9. Adobe Premiere Pro

With a virtually unmatched suite of features, 360 VR and 4k support, and a newly implemented ability to store, organize, and share assets online with a team, Adobe Premiere Pro is perhaps the most complete piece of video editing software around. Here’s a recent video promo for our free AdWords account structure guide we cut using Premiere Pro.

One of the more dazzling of Premiere Pro’s tools is the Lumetri Color tool, which offers color adjustment and manipulation on par with that of a Photoshop. The multi-cam feature is also a winner—whereas most systems allow you to work with a limited number of camera angles, Premiere Pro’s latest iteration allows for an unlimited amount.

Throw in a wealth of titling options, readily connected ancillary apps (like Photoshop and After Effects), and a flexible, easy-to-use interface, and Premiere Pro is a no brainer.

Standout Features: Multi-cam and coloring options; title tool; easy integration with Adobe Products; straightforward interface

Pricing: $19.99/month

10. Apple Final Cut Pro X

For the most advanced, least fiscally prudent of beginners, there’s Apple Final Cut Pro X. $299.99 might be a little steep for a product you may well have a difficult time understanding; but for those among you who enjoy a challenge, and who aspire to some level of professionalism in video editing, why not go for it? Apple has made the transition from iMovie to Final Cut Pro more painless than ever—so if you’re the kind of guy or gal who enjoys him/herself an Apple product, and has worked with iMovie to the point of mastery, it might be time to splurge on Final Cut Pro. The power is still daunting; the interface, significantly less so.

Standout Features: Magnetic Timeline; Touch Bar support

Pricing: One-time payment of $299.99

Some Final Thoughts

Are you a content or social media marketer looking to get in the video editing game for the sake of keeping up with the growing video trend? Don’t stress! Any of the above software apps would make a fine choice for a beginner.

Think about your budget, your current level of expertise, and how much time you’re willing to devote to learning a new skill. Whether you're looking for the best video editing software for YouTube, or the responsibility has simply fallen on you to get your team’s video marketing strategy up to snuff—don’t wait around deliberating! Get invested in one of these video editing products, and make it yours.

The best video editing software could be the difference between an enjoyable project and an eye-melting struggle. That's why we've rounded up the best video editing software for Mac, Windows, iOS and Android, among others, so you can find the ultimate tool for you.

From professional editors to would be filmmaking amateurs, there is something there to suit all levels. There are also, as you'd imagine, a range of prices from pretty pricey premium stuff all the way to totally free video editing software.

If you want easy video editing or simply the best free option, then will be something in this broad list of the best options out there right now.

From trimming clips and applying filters to working with green screens and adjusting playback – there are plenty of features to look out for when deciding which is the best video editing software for you. You might be on team Adobe and simply have to get one of the many options there, or you may be more open to trying some lesser known names that offer a great experience for a lower price.

We've got the best video editing software right here, each organised by what they offer, which stands out, so you should be able to find the right tool to create your next work of art on video, right here.

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1. Adobe Premiere Pro CC

Platform: Mac/Windows | Free trial: 7 days | 8K support: Yes | Upload to YouTube: Yes | 360 support: Yes | Price: Subscription

The very best video editing software title has got to go to one of the oldest players in the game Adobe, with its latest Premiere Pro CC. As the name suggests this is the do-it-all tool that professionals use to create top-end video. As such this isn't cheap, paid for on a subscription model. But for that cost you get everything you could possibly want from basic trimming and layering right up to 8K and 360-degree video editing support – presuming your machine has the power to run that.

This works on both Mac and Windows and is crammed full of keyboard shortcuts to help make the process easy to use. Crossover mac can you play games to play.

There is an option to upload directly to YouTube, making this a one-stop shop for any self publishing social media video makers out there.

2. Final Cut Pro X

Platform: Mac | Free trial: 30 days | Video tracks: Unlimited

Final Cut Pro X is simply the best video editing software you can get on Mac. Sure Adobe options are great too but this is built by Apple, for Apple. So, as you'd expect it's super clean, minimal and as such easy to use. But that doesn't mean to say it scrimps on features, far from it.

This software offers lots of features to justify the high price. These include special effects, grouping tools, adding and editing audio plus multi-camera editing and smart colour balancing tools. You also get access to unlimited video tracks so you should never feel constricted. With a 30-day free trial it's definitely worth giving this powerful video editing tool a try.

3. Adobe Premiere Elements

Platform: Mac/Windows | Free trial: Yes | Video tracks: Unlimited

Adobe Premiere Elements is the second Adobe software on the list in just three so far. Yup, Adobe is that good. This video editing suite offers a more affordable and easy to user alternative which is crammed full of useful features like facial recognition, to name but one.

Simple but really effective features we love include video stabilisation, automatic motion tracking, audio effects and a selection of soundtracks included as standard. The fact it's all easy to use is just a great bonus. If you work with a lot of people based videos then the smart toning is a great feature for skin – a bit like how a selfie camera makes you look smoother skinned. This helps give the videos a more professional finish. And for the pros you can enjoy effects like chroma-keying, opacity, transitions and more. Something for everyone then.

4. Lightworks

Platform: Mac/Windows/Linux | Free: Yes | Video tracks: Multi support

Lightworks is a stunning video editing tool when you consider that it's absolutely free. This software is good enough to get you professional quality videos without charging you pro-grade prices. The hidden cost? This isn't quite as easy to use as some of the above options, but if you put in the effort to learn, it can be as effective.

Import and render footage in the background then preview video effects in real-time – some seriously high-end features you might not expect to see in a free tool. Set custom keyboard shortcuts to speed up the working process and enjoy multi-track editing for complex end results.

There is the option to spend a little money and upgrade to Lightworks Pro, which will let you export projects to different formats and enjoy features like 3D modelling and straight to YouTube uploads.

5. Hitfilm Express

Platform: Mac/Windows | Free: Yes | Video tracks: Multi support

Hitfilm Express is another really useful free video editing programme which comes with a friendly and easy to use interface. That makes this a great option for anyone new to video editing that wants to give it a try. That said, it does have some decent features for more seasoned users too.

You can enjoy features like 3D composition tools, green screen chroma key setting and create custom video masks. Plus there are more day to day tools like trimming of clips, colour balancing and, of course, exporting to various video formats.

The system is easy enough to use with a traditional interface that's easily recognisable to anyone who's used video editing tools before. Just make sure you have a machine with plenty of power as this makes your hardware work hard to crunch that data.

6. Adobe Premiere Rush

Platform: Mac/Windows/iOS/Android | Free trial: Yes | Video tracks: Four

Adobe Premiere Rush is the ultimate mobile editing tool, designed specifically for use on smartphones and tablets. That means you can fire up this app on your iOS or Android device and edit a video entirely within that app. Presuming your phone or tablet is new enough, you can even edit high-quality 4K video footage with up to four video and three audio tracks at once.

Since this is on your phone is makes exporting super simple, with specific options to export straight to social media accounts. All that can be enjoyed for free using the Rush Starter Plan, with a three video export limit. Or pay a nominal fee and enjoy the full service right there on your phone or tablet.

7. GoPro App

Platform: iOS/Android/Windows/Mac | Free trial: Yes | Video tracks: Multi

The GoPro App is a great way to instantly start editing your live action video footage from a GoPro camera, or any other compatible device for that matter. Since this is made to be used quickly, on the move, it's super simple to work. It will automatically import footage and can create videos synced to music right away, without you having to do much at all.

There are more complex options like adding photos or time lapse sequences as well as cool graphs and charts to express speed – ideal for action camera footage. Share the videos on YouTube or Facebook easily with a great option to go through, frame by frame, to find the perfect picture to lead your post.

If you pay and subscribe to the GoPro Plus version you'll have a lot more than the standard 20 soundtracks and can auto upload videos and photos to the cloud for editing from whatever device you want.

8. CyberLink PowerDirector

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Platform: Windows | Free trial: 30 days | Video tracks: Multi

CyberLink PowerDirector is a great option for anyone relatively new to video editing that fancies a fully fledged and complex tool which is also easy enough to learn to use. That means features like 8K video editing and 360-degree support but also super simplifying tools like a wizard that optimises video in seconds. This is a great tool for a quick edit to bung up on social media in a hurry.

But there are more complex features too with a standard post production interface that includes motion graphic titles, social media friendly 1:1 video ratios and high-quality video editing.

What you'll have to pay extra for, with the Ultimate version, are features like 4K video editing, audio scrubbing and library preview features.

9. KineMaster

Platform: ChromeOS/iOS/Android | Free trial: Free app | Video tracks: Multi

KineMaster is a great video editing option for Android, ChromeOS and iOS users with a device new enough to run it. We say that as this has some seriously complex features that make this good enough even for professional editors to use on the move.

You can edit multiple layers with up to four audio tracks in one project. There are also little extras like adding handwriting and text annotations and even editing at the frame and subframe levels. All that is free so even if you're not sure we'd say give this a go as it'll more than likely serve the needs of most, even the more demanding editor.

10. Corel VideoStudio Ultimate

Platform: Windows | Free trial: 30 days | Video tracks: Multi

Corel VideoStudio Ultimate is a really great video editing option for anyone new to splice and hacking clips together. While it might be a bit basic for professionals, this has a lot of features despite how easy it is to pick up and use. That includes high-end extras like 4K, multi-cam editing and 360-degree VR video editing.

The interface is easy to pick up and features a music library as well as a whole host of effects that can be added to your video project. The key here is that the software is intuitive enough to make it easy but also – crucially – fun, so you can actually enjoy the process of creating the final cut of your video edit. And with over 2,000 customisable filters to pick from this gives you a great opportunity to really personalise your footage to offer something uniquely fun.