8 of the best online video editors you should consider

What are the advantages of using an online video editor?

Those without professional video production experience — most of us — turn to online video editors for their functionality and ease of use. Are you exploring the possibility of making a video ad? Or maybe you want to use videos as educational tools. Or you’re an enterprise-level company looking to share quick internal comms.

Online video editors offer user-friendly interfaces, collaborative features, and diverse editing capabilities that cater to varying needs. Plus, they’re cloud-based, so they don’t require editing software installation, and you don’t even need any specific hardware to use these tools. This makes them a more affordable option compared to investing in professional video studio equipment.   

Try Vimeo’s online video editor →

Tips for choosing the right video editing platform

Before we get into the best online video editors, let’s discuss the most important features to look for and other important considerations when selecting a video editing platform. 

• Cropping, trimming, and combining. Let’s start with the basics: An online video editor should have tools for cropping, trimming, and combining video clips. This allows you to remove unnecessary portions or mistakes and merge several clips together seamlessly. 
• Drag-and-drop timeline editor. A drag-and-drop timeline editor makes it simple to move clips around and arrange them in the perfect order. 
• Editing tools and effects. In addition to basic cutting and trimming, look for an online video editor that allows you to add text, images, and audio, as well as backgrounds, filters, and transitions. 
• Browser-based editing. With browser-based editing, you’re not tethered to your desktop or laptop to fine-tune your videos — all you need is a browser and an internet connection. This is particularly useful for remote workers or creators who frequently switch between devices.   
• Stock media library. Look for a video editing platform that offers a stock media library, which puts thousands of images, clips, audio, and more at your fingertips. 
• Text-based video editing. A text-based video editor is an AI-driven capability that makes it possible to remove unnecessary words, pauses, or mistakes from your videos by simply removing them from the transcript. 
• AI video translation. Another powerful feature, AI video translation makes content localization a breeze, allowing you to translate your videos to multiple languages for viewers around the world. Some video editors offer voice dubbing, which translates the audio in a voice that sounds just like the speaker. 
• Video compression and resizing. Creating video content for a variety of platforms means you’re tasked with meeting the specifications of each platform. Video compression and resizing tools allow you to adjust your video’s resolution or reduce the file size in seconds, all without reducing the quality of your video. 
• Branding and watermarks. Protect your intellectual property and ensure it’s aligned with your brand by choosing a video editor that allows you to add your brand elements and watermark your videos. 
• Collaboration features. Not all creators are solo. Some video editing platforms offer collaboration features, such as @mentions, comments, and notifications, making it easy to create quality video content with the whole team. 
• Support and tutorials. The best video editors have robust help and support documentation to guide you through using the platform’s features in detail. Video tutorials are especially helpful. 
• Compatibility with various video formats. Choose a video editor that’s compatible with various video formats, which means you can record and upload videos from different devices or recording tools without the hassle of converting the file format first. Look for a video editor that allows you to export videos in different formats, as well. 

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The best video editor sites: A side-by-side comparison

Check out the main features of some video editors side by side in our comparison chart so you can easily find the platform that offers the pricing and capabilities you’re looking for. 

8 of the top video editing platforms

Vimeo is one of the best video editors out there, although we’re admittedly a bit biased. However, we do know a bit about video editing as a result, and we have some helpful insights about what you should look for. Below, we’ll dive into eight of the top video editing platforms and their pros and cons so you can choose the best video editor for your needs. 

1. Vimeo video editor

Vimeo’s video editor offers a robust set of features, from the basics like trimming, cropping, and combining video clips to advanced video editing capabilities to give you the ultimate flexibility in crafting your final cut. You can even edit videos collaboratively by @mentioning team members and commenting on videos.

Plus, Vimeo includes important code and features like automatic chaptering to help you maximize your video SEO value. Vimeo’s easy-to-use, time-saving editing tools, collaborative video editing features, and advanced AI editing capabilities make it the ideal solution for creators, marketers, and businesses looking for an all-in-one video creation and editing solution.   

Pros

• Intuitive drag-and-drop timeline editor
• Browser-based editing 
• Combine multiple video clips into one
• Trimming and cropping 
• Video compressor
• Text-based video editing (Standard, Advanced, and Enterprise)
• Stock media library
• Incorporate your branding
• Add images, audio, text, and other elements
• Backgrounds, filters, and transitions
• AI voice dubbing and translation (Enterprise)
• Automatic highlight reels (Enterprise)
• Automatic chaptering, descriptions, captions, and subtitles (Advanced and Enterprise)
• Repurpose videos for social media, email, and websites 
• Optimizes your video SEO impact 
• Collaborative video editing tools (Paid plans)

Cons

• Video upload limits (based on plan)
• Storage limits (based on plan) 
• Advanced editing features available only on paid plans

Get started with Vimeo’s video editor →

2. YouTube video editor

YouTube Studio is YouTube’s free editing tool that offers basic editing capabilities such as trimming your videos and adding subtitles and captions. YouTube has also introduced a more advanced video editing tool, YouTube Create, which offers capabilities such as filters, effects, transitions, and the ability to add audio or eliminate background noise. While it’s also free, it’s currently only available for Android devices in select markets, and unverified users are limited to 15-minute-maximum uploads.  

Pros

• Free
• Essential editing features such as trimming, subtitles, and captions
• Automatic captions (in select languages) 
• Add filters, effects, and transitions
• Remove distracting background noise
• Add music and other sound effects 

Cons

• Limited functionality with YouTube Studio
• YouTube Create only available on Android in select markets 

3. Veed video editor

Like Vimeo, Veed aims to streamline video editing for non-professionals. It offers easy-to-use editing tools that simplify common editing tasks, such as a timeline editor and snap-to-grid tools for easy trimming, splitting, and cropping. Veed also offers various AI-driven tools. For instance, it can automatically select your best takes and splice them together to create a seamless video effortlessly.  

Pros

• Automatically selects and splices your best takes 
• Remove distracting background noise
• AI-generated images
• AI avatar generator
• Tools for resizing and repurposing videos

Cons

• Limited editing features on free plan
• Limited storage on free and low-tier plans
• Collaboration tools available only on Enterprise plan   

4. Descript video editor

Descript is another popular online video editor with a strong feature set, including AI editing tools such as eye-contact correction and the ability to turn text into audio that sounds just like you. It also has an automatic retake removal tool that allows you to cut all your bad takes with just a click and can automatically generate promotional content like podcast show notes and social media posts. The downside is that while it offers many cool features, your usage is quite limited on lower-tier plans.  

Pros

• One-click podcast export
• Green screen editor to remove or replace video backgrounds
• Easily adjust video aspect ratio 
• Remove bad takes with one click
• Automatic eye-contact correction 
• Text-to-speech that mimics your voice 
• Automatically generate promotional content 

Cons

• Limited transcription hours based on plan
• Limited AI speech based on plan
• Basic AI suite limited to 20 uses/month on Hobbyist plan

5. Loom video editor

Loom is primarily a screen recording tool, although it does offer some basic editing capabilities, such as trimming, stitching multiple clips together, and the ability to incorporate custom branding. Designed for team communication, it allows commenting and emoji reactions. Loom also offers some AI-powered features like automatic removal of filler words and pauses, and it automatically generates video information like summaries, titles, and chapters. 

Pros

• Automatic filler word and silence removal
• Commenting and emoji reactions
• AI workflows
• Transcript-based video editing

Cons

• Limited video editing features overall 
• Editing features only available on paid plans
• 5-minute recording limit on free plan
• AI tools only available on higher paid tiers 

6. CapCut video editor

CapCut offers a strong set of video editing features, although it doesn’t offer live streaming. So if you want to edit your live streams, you’ll need to host and record them on another platform like Vimeo, then upload your recording to CapCut later to use its editing tools. However, CapCut does have useful collaboration features such as CapCut Workspaces, commenting, and annotating, and users can transfer editing permissions to team members. It also has AI-powered capabilities like text-to-speech and video stabilization, and you can upscale your videos to 4K resolution without sacrificing quality. 

Pros

• Customize parameters for video exporting
• Browser-based, mobile, and desktop tools
• Text-to-speech 
• Video stabilization 
• AI video upscaler to 4K
• One-click clips and highlights

Cons

• No live-streaming capabilities
• Limited access controls
• No advanced marketing integrations 

7. Lumen5 video editor

Lumen5 offers a solid selection of video editing tools, including features that allow you to produce and edit video content collaboratively. It offers some unique features, such as slide-based editing, which uses slides to represent scenes, making it easy to remove, add, and rearrange your scenes for the perfect sequence. You can also create videos with an AI-generated talking head and voice instead of your own. Lumen5 does have browser-based editing, but it’s not compatible with mobile browsers, and it lacks mobile apps, limiting you to desktop and laptop use.    

Pros

• Browser-based editing
• Video collaboration features
• Access controls and permissions
• Adjust brightness, contrast, and saturation
• Slide-based editing
• Text-to-video
• AI talking heads
• Some limited AI features available to free tier users

Cons

• Does not support live streaming
• No support for mobile browsers
• No mobile apps
• Limited to 5 videos, 2 minutes per video on free plan
• 1080p resolution on all plans  

8. Camtasia video editor

Camtasia is a TechSmith product, and while the video editor offers a robust set of features, many of its capabilities are offered through other TechSmith apps that come bundled with Camtasia in its higher-tier plans. Camtasia does offer some useful features such as cursor scaling, cursor optimizations, and cursor path editing to enhance your screen recordings as well as precise audio controls, allowing you to balance your voice with background and other audio. It also offers customizable editing workflows to speed up your editing process with presets and shortcuts.   

Pros

• Audio editing, fading, and balancing 
• Cursor scaling, optimizations, and path editing 
• Background removal 
• Customizable editing workflows
• Optimize video size and layout 
• On-screen annotations
• Text-based video editor
• AI script generation and translation
• Text-to-speech

Cons

• Many features limited to higher-tier, bundled plans with other apps
• Collaboration features limited to 25 videos on lower-tier plans
• Limited AI tools on lowest-tier plan 

Video editor FAQ:

Can you edit videos online for free? 

Yes, there are several popular free online video editing tools available, such as Vimeo, Descript, Veed, and others. These tools offer basic editing features such as trimming and cropping videos, but the specific features and capabilities available vary from platform to platform. Many online video editors also allow you to add text (even with custom fonts), merge several video clips into one, convert images to video, and more. You can then add a watermark to protect your intellectual property, download your video, and share it anywhere.  

How much does a good video editor cost?

A good video editor can cost anywhere from $10 to $200 per month or more, depending on the features and capabilities you need. Many plans have lower limits for uploading, video length, and file size on lower-tier paid plans, and some offer more limited editing capabilities on lower-cost plans. 

Should I hire a video editor or do it myself? 

In most cases, you can edit videos yourself using one of several popular online video editing platforms available today. These tools allow anyone to easily create and edit videos without professional experience with tools like drag-and-drop timeline editors and text-based video editing that eliminate all the guesswork. 

How can you add music and sound effects to videos? 

Online video editing platforms like Vimeo, CapCut, and Lumen5 provide easy-to-use tools that allow you to add music, sound effects, graphics, and other elements to videos. Some platforms offer access to a stock media library, where you can find royalty-free sound effects and other audio to use in your videos. 

How can I optimize a video for social media? 

To optimize a video for social media, you need to know the required specifications for each social media platform where you want to share your video. These typically include the video format, aspect ratio, length, and file size. Then, use an online video editor like Vimeo to adjust your video for each platform. Some online video editors offer video content repurposing tools that streamline the process of optimizing your videos for social media in just a few clicks. 

Conclusion: Which video editor is best for you?

The best video editor for you depends on your needs and how you plan to use your videos. Whether you’re creating marketing videos, educational content, or simple social media clips. Each of the platforms we’ve reviewed in this article offers unique tools that can help streamline the video editing process and take your videos to the next level. 

Vimeo’s video platform can help you transform your video content with a range of features to meet diverse needs. From drag-and-drop editing to advanced AI editing tools and features that make it easy for teams to work together on video projects, Vimeo is ideal for marketing teams, content creators, and businesses that need to streamline their video production process. 

Get started with Vimeo →