Free Tools for Cutting Clips: What Each One Does, Its Free-Plan Limits, and What It Does With Your Footage

Cutting a long video into short vertical clips with captions takes an editor. This guide covers seven free ones: three you install, two you use in a browser or app, and two that cut clips for you with AI. For each: what the free plan allows, how to make a first clip, and what its terms say about your footage. None of them paid to be here, and none of the links earn us anything.

011. The seven tools at a glance

Pick by where you want your footage to live: on your own computer, or on a company’s service.

Three are open source: their licence lets anyone share and change the software, and the source code comes with it. The other four are run by companies, each with its own free plan and terms.

Tool	Where it runs	Free version	Who runs it
Shotcut	Windows, Mac and Linux	Free and open source (GPLv3)	Meltytech, LLC
Kdenlive	Linux, Windows, macOS and BSD	Free and open source (GPL-3.0-only)	The KDE community
OpenShot	Linux, Mac and Windows	Free and open source; no watermarks	OpenShot Studios, LLC
Clipchamp	In a browser, plus a Windows app	Exports up to 1080p, no watermark	Microsoft
CapCut	Phone, desktop and web	Editing, with Pro needed for 4K, 60fps and some items	Bytedance Pte. Ltd. outside the US
OpusClip	Online	60 credits a month, with a watermark	Opusclip Inc.
Kapwing	Online	Exports up to 4 minutes at 720p, with a watermark	Kapwing Inc.

Prices and plans change often. The figures here were read on each tool’s own pages in October 2026.

022. Three questions before you upload anything

Check where the footage goes, what the free plan stamps on it, and what the terms say about it.

• Where does my footage go? Check whether the tool runs on your computer or needs your video uploaded to its service.
• What does the free plan add or limit? Look for a watermark, a resolution cap, a length cap and a time limit on downloads.
• What do the terms say? Search the terms for “own”, “license” and “train”. Check whether free use is limited to personal, non-commercial projects.

For example, if you are cutting clips from a client’s interview, you may prefer an editor that opens the file on your own computer. If you use an online clipper, read its terms first.

033. Shotcut, Kdenlive and OpenShot: free editors you install

These three are free, open-source editors that you download and install on your own computer.

In practice, you watch the long video, mark the moments you want, and cut each one by hand, so every cut is your choice.

Shotcut

Shotcut is free for any use, including commercial, and its makers say the software collects no personal information.

Shotcut describes itself as “a free, open source, cross-platform video editor”. Its FAQ says it is free for commercial use because it is released under the GPLv3 licence. The FAQ also says the software “does not collect, store, or share any personal information”. It names one exception, the Microsoft Store, and says other app stores may collect information that is not under its control. Its feature list includes creating, editing and burning in subtitles, and converting spoken words to subtitle text.

For example, record a talk, let it turn the speech into subtitles, fix any wrong words, then burn them into the picture.

Kdenlive

Kdenlive, part of the KDE community, can write subtitles from speech using speech models you install.

Kdenlive’s site says it works on Linux, Windows, macOS and BSD. It says you can create subtitles with automatic transcription. Its manual says speech-to-text needs speech models installed before you use it. The manual says the editing layout switches to vertical when you choose a vertical project profile.

For example, set up a vertical project first, then let it draft the subtitles and correct them by ear.

KDE’s privacy policy says that, as a general rule, its software does not send information from your device except as a result of an explicit action by you. It says any telemetry is opt-in and off by default. KDE’s app page lists Kdenlive’s licence as GPL-3.0-only.

OpenShot

OpenShot is a free editor that says it has no subscriptions, watermarks or project limits.

OpenShot’s site says you can “Edit without subscriptions, watermarks, or project limits”. It says OpenShot was created in 2008 and is released under the GNU General Public License. Its user guide lists vertical export presets such as “FHD Vertical 1080p 30 fps”.

Its privacy policy covers its website and donations. It does not describe the editor app itself.

Who owns what you export from these three

The Free Software Foundation says a program’s licence does not, in general, cover what you make with it.

The Free Software Foundation’s GPL FAQ says the output of a program is not, in general, covered by the copyright on the program’s code. It adds an exception: when the program displays a full screen of text or art that comes from the program, the copyright on that text or art covers the output. In practice, check the rights to your footage, music and pictures, and to any built-in titles, art or sounds you use.

044. Clipchamp: Microsoft’s editor in your browser

Clipchamp’s free plan exports up to 1080p with no watermark, using a personal Microsoft account.

Clipchamp’s pricing page says you sign in with a personal Microsoft account, with no payment or downloads required. It says the free plan exports up to 1080p with no watermarks. It lists AI subtitles, voiceovers and silence removal among the free plan’s tools. It says 4K exports and premium stock come with a Microsoft 365 Personal or Family subscription.

For example, add a ten-minute recording, cut a one-minute section, add AI subtitles and export it at 1080p.

What Microsoft’s terms say about your footage

You keep ownership, and you give Microsoft a licence that includes improving its products.

Clipchamp is listed among the services covered by the Microsoft Services Agreement. The agreement says “We don’t claim ownership of Your Content”. It gives Microsoft a worldwide, royalty-free licence to use your content to the extent necessary to provide the services, protect you and them, and improve Microsoft products and services. Microsoft’s privacy statement, last updated September 2026, says it may use your data to develop and train its AI models. We found no statement in it about Clipchamp videos in particular.

055. CapCut: an editor for phone, desktop and web

CapCut is free to edit with, but a project that uses a Pro item needs Pro to export.

CapCut’s help centre says it offers a set of free editing tools. It says 4K and 60fps export, no watermark, AI generation, exclusive templates and premium effects are part of CapCut Pro. It says that if a project uses Pro content, removing the watermark needs Pro, whatever resolution you choose.

For example, avoid items marked with the Pro badge while you edit. Then a finished clip doesn’t stall at export.

What CapCut’s terms say about your footage

CapCut says it doesn’t own your content, but takes a broad licence and lists training among data uses.

CapCut’s terms, last updated 15 April 2026, name Bytedance Pte. Ltd. as the other party to the agreement. They say US users are governed by separate CapCut US Terms of Service instead. We could not open that US version, so this section describes the other one. If you are in the US, read the CapCut US terms before you upload. CapCut’s materials licence also sends US users to a separate CapCut US Materials License Agreement. The terms say “We don’t own your User Content” and that, if you own the rights in what you create, nothing in the terms changes that. They grant CapCut a “non-exclusive, royalty-free, transferable, sub-licensable, perpetual and worldwide license” to your content. The licence covers modifying, publishing and distributing your content to operate, develop and provide the services, subject to your platform settings. They also grant a licence to use your username, image and likeness to identify you as the source of your content, “including for use in sponsored content”.

CapCut’s privacy policy says it may collect the content you create, import, upload or generate. It lists training and improving technology, “such as machine learning models and algorithms”, among its uses of data.

Its materials licence says some of CapCut’s own templates, stickers and effects are for personal and non-commercial use only. Items allowed for limited commercial use carry marks such as “commercial use”. It says songs from its Sounds library are only for personal, non-commercial videos. Videos with its Commercial Sounds may be shown or shared only within CapCut, TikTok and TikTok for Business; other uses need a separate licence from the rights holders. In practice, for client or paid work, check the mark on every built-in item, and check where the clip will be posted if it uses CapCut music.

066. OpusClip: AI that picks the clips for you

OpusClip cuts a long video into short clips with AI, but its free plan is watermarked and non-commercial.

OpusClip says it “turns long videos into shorts”. Its free plan gives 60 credits a month, clips up to 1080p, auto reframe and AI captions. The same plan lists “Has watermark” and “No editing”. It also says that after 3 days, the clips can no longer be exported.

For example, upload a 40-minute podcast, let it suggest clips, and download the ones you want the same day. Then check each clip’s start and end, because the AI chose them.

What OpusClip’s terms say about your footage

Free use is limited to personal, non-commercial use; paid plans add commercial use.

OpusClip’s terms, effective 17 November 2025, limit use to “your own internal, personal, non-commercial use, and not on behalf of or for the benefit of any third party”. They say users of paid services are licensed for commercial uses. They give OpusClip a licence to your uploads to operate the services, and say “your ownership in User Submissions is not affected”. For example, if a brand pays you for a clip, check your plan before you start.

Its privacy policy lists videos, images and transcripts among the data used to “improve product and services”. It says users in the EU or EEA can opt out, by email, of their personal data being used for its AI research and model development.

077. Kapwing: an online editor with a clip maker

Kapwing’s free plan is watermarked and short, and its terms let it use your content for promotion.

Kapwing’s menu includes a Clip Maker that generates short clips from one video. Its free plan allows unlimited exports with a watermark, videos up to 4 minutes long and 720p quality. The free plan’s monthly export limit is 30 minutes.

For example, a two-minute highlight fits the free plan’s length cap, but it will carry the watermark.

What Kapwing’s terms say about your footage

You keep ownership; Kapwing may publish and promote your posted content, and says it won’t sell it without permission.

Kapwing’s terms, last modified in September 2024, say “You own the rights to the content you create and post on Kapwing”. Posting content grants Kapwing a non-exclusive licence to publish it on its services. The terms say Kapwing may also use your content for promotional purposes. They say it will never sell your content to third parties without your explicit permission. Its privacy policy, effective August 2022, says voice recordings sent for voice cloning are stored for research and development. Neither the privacy policy nor the terms say whether other videos you upload are used to train AI.

088. A tool can’t make someone else’s clip yours

The tools’ terms put the rights question on you, and platforms list light edits as not enough.

Kapwing’s terms say that if you post content you did not create, you must have the right to do so. CapCut’s terms say you must own your content or have all the necessary rights, licences and clearances.

Light edits are what several platforms list as not enough. Instagram says re-uploading someone else’s work with only a border, a watermark, subtitles or a credit in the captions does not qualify. Facebook names adding borders, inserting captions and changing a reel’s speed as low-value changes. Facebook also asks creators to avoid visible third-party watermarks. TikTok lists content with someone else’s visible watermark or superimposed logo as unoriginal.

Our reading: auto-captions and a vertical crop are a start, not the whole job. For example, a clip where you explain what the speaker means adds something. The same clip with only subtitles does not. Our guide to which clips earn and which get cut covers each platform’s rules.

099. Where to go next

These guides cover the money, the rules and other video tools.

• How clipping pays, and where the money goes missing: the payment models behind clipping work.
• Which clips earn and which get cut: the reused-content rules on five platforms.
• Whop Content Rewards explained: one clipping marketplace’s fees and terms.
• AI tools for short videos and visuals: Descript, Magnific, Kaiber, Fliki and Dezgo.
• Fair use, described: what official sources say about clips, commentary and reuse.
• Clipping scams: upfront access fees, courses and fake campaigns, and how official guides say to spot them.

Our guide on labelling a paid clip covers the rules for sponsored clips.

10Quick answers

11Use this

12Quick quiz

How we checked this · Last checked October 2026

• We read each tool's own home, pricing or help pages, terms and privacy policy in October 2026. Kapwing's terms and privacy pages were found through its site in a web browser.
• We did not sign up for, pay for or install any tool, so features behind a login were not tested.
• We print no prices, because plans and regional prices change often. Free-plan limits are quoted as each page stated them.
• We could not open CapCut's US terms, so its section describes the terms that apply outside the US.
• We looked at more tools than are listed here, and include only those whose owner and terms we could read.

How we check every article →

13Sources