The Mac is hugely popular among creative professionals, so it’s no great surprise that there are lots of video editing tools available for it. Whether you just want to add titles, transitions and a soundtrack, or you want to add Hollywood-style effects and access to professional color correction there’s a Mac application that will do the job.

The really great news is that many of these programs are free. You might expect that free video editing software would have fewer features or produce less professional results than expensive software, but many of the free tools featured here are more than good enough to produce professional-looking movies. The only downside is that they tend to have a steep learning curve and they don’t walk you through the process of editing. However, there are plenty of video on YouTube to help you get started. Here are the best free and paid-for video editing applications for the Mac.

Top 5 HD (High-definition) Video Editing Software. Wondershare Filmora. Filmora is one of the most popular freemium video editing software for both Windows and Mac to edit high quality 1080p. CyberLink PowerDirector. Adobe Premiere Pro. Finding free video editing software to finish your latest project may seem like a daunting task, which is why we've rounded up the very best options for all skill levels, in one convenient place.

Best free video editing software for Mac

1. iMovie

Apple’s consumer focused video editing tool used to only be free if you bought a new Mac. But now everyone can download it free from the Mac App Store. It’s a brilliantly easy to use application. One of its best features are the movie trailer themes that allow you to create amazing cinema-style trailers in a few minutes.

If you want to create your own movies, there are tons of effects, transitions, sound effects and title styles to help you. And it’s easy to import your own audio tracks and photos and add them to your production. If you’re looking for a free video editor for Mac, iMovie could be the only tool you’ll ever need.

2. DaVinci Resolve

If iMovie isn’t for you, give DaVinci Resolve a try. It’s the free version of DaVinci Resolve Studio, but being free doesn’t mean there aren’t many features. It’s loaded with professional tools like some of the best color correction and image stabilization there is. In the free version, you can work at frame rates up to 60fps and export your movie in SD, HD and Ultra HD.

It has a full digital audio workstation for sound editing, meaning you won’t have to leave the app to get the audio just the way you want it. It’s available on the Mac App Store, but if you want the full features of the free version, download it from the Blackmagic website.

3. Lightworks

While DaVinci Resolve gives away lots of its high end features in the free version, the same can’t be said of Lightworks. There’s still plenty here though, including: effects, multicam editing, titling, and a timeline with multiple layers.

There’s also access to royalty-free video and audio content for you to include in your projects. However, output in the free version is restricted to 1080p on Vimeo and 720p on YouTube. And there are no detailed export options for H.264 or MP4. Also, if you want to use the free version for more than seven days, you’ll have to register.

4. OpenShot

OpenShot is an open source video editor with a user interface that’s much simpler than most. That doesn’t mean it’s short of features, though. It has templates for creating titles, effects, the ability to remove the background from your video, and slow motion and time effects. You can also create 3D animated titles and effects, there’s support for unlimited tracks, and for more than 70 languages. The interface isn’t the slickest you’ll ever use, and there have been question marks over its reliability in the past, but it’s definitely worth trying if you want a free video editor for the Mac.

5. Video Editor MovieMator

Video Editor MovieMator allows you to trim, split, move, and merge clips from a variety of different sources. It handles every consumer file format you’re likely to need and can import directly from your iPhone or GoPro. There are lots of built-in effects and transitions, and, of course, you can add titles too.

The interface is simple enough for most people to get to grips with quickly and the real-time preview makes it easy to see exactly how your video is coming along. There is a significant limitation on the free version of the app — exports are listed to videos that are up to five minutes long. Also, there is only one transition and a handful of effects in the free version. How to install neat image for mac pro.

Best paid-for video editors for Mac

1. Final Cut Pro X

Final Cut Pro has come a long way since it was overhauled a few years ago and lost several features that caused lots of criticism to be directed at Apple. The fact that it’s designed by Apple means that it takes full advantage of hardware on the Mac, particularly the Mac Pro and iMac Pro. It pushes their multi-core CPU and GPUs to the maximum.

Features like the Magnetic Timeline 2 and Enhanced Timeline Index may be beyond the needs of most of us, but if you edit videos for a living, you’ll appreciate them. Support for up to 64 camera angles with automatic audio syncing is another feature that makes video professionals lives much easier. And of course, it supports the formats you would expect of a serious video editor including ProRes, RED, and XAVC, as well as H.264 from digital SLR cameras. When it comes to Mac video editing, Final Cut Pro X has all the bases covered.

2. Adobe Premiere Pro CC

Like all of Adobe’s professional products, Premiere Pro is only available as a subscription package and subscribing for a year will cost you almost as much as buying Final Cut Pro X outright. However, if you prefer your video organisation tools and especially the timeline to look and work like a traditional non-linear video editor, you may prefer Premiere Pro over Final Cut’s Magnetic Timeline.

In other respects, Premiere Pro is very similar to its Apple rival, offering a full range of audio editing and color correction tools, as well as effects, support for multiple formats (including Apple’s ProRes) and all the output options you’re likely to need.

One area where Mac users will notice a difference is in rendering performance, particularly on a high-end Mac like a Mac Pro or iMac Pro. Adobe’s application is designed for Mac and PC and so optimized or for the Mac’s multi-core CPU and GPU the way that Final Cut Pro is.

3. Adobe Premiere Elements 2018

The simplest way to describe Premiere Elements is that it is to Premiere Pro what iMovie is to Final Cut Pro. But Elements and iMovie are two very different apps. For a start, while iMovie is free, Elements costs $100. The other main difference is that Elements is set up to automate much of the process of creating your movie masterpieces. So, for example, Quick mode takes the clips and other media you’ve imported and throws them together on the timeline, you can then re-order them, trim them and add transitions and other effects. Even here, however, the emphasis is on letting Elements do the hard work for you. So, press the Fix button and it will apply image stabilization and other ‘fixes.’ If you want to be more involved, a guided mode prompts you with onscreen tips. Of course, if you’d rather work completely manually, you can. Elements doesn’t make it as easy to import media as iMovie does, and you’ll have to download much of its additional content, like music scores, individually.

4. Filmora

FIlmora allows you to import clips from your Mac’s hard drive, a camera, and even from social media accounts. It has a somewhat quirky interface, that may take some getting used to if you’ve used other video editors. But it has plenty to commend it including lots of effects, titling options, and audio controls. It’s neatest feature could be the lighting preset options that allows you to emulate the look of Game of Thrones, Star Wars, or House of Cards at the click of a button.

How to make space for video on your Mac

Working with video editing software means you need lots of free space on your Mac’s main drive — video clips use several gigabytes of space for every hour of content, and that’s before you export the final version. You should also make sure your Mac is running at its optimal speed, you’ll need every ounce of power to render video.

One quick and easy way to both improve your Mac’s performance and clear space on its hard drive is to use CleanMyMac X. CleanMyMac identifies “junk” files that sit on your Mac’s drive, taking up space and slowing it down. It makes removing the files very easy and could claw back tens of gigabytes of space. You can download it free here.

The best video editing software for Mac is, ultimately, the one that does what you need to do in a way that you enjoy working. There’s lots of Mac video editing software, and much of it is free. Take time, try out as many applications as you can and choose the best one for you.

These might also interest you:

- What is the best alternative to YouTube Video Eidtor in 2020?

- Are there some free video editing software for YouTube available in the market?

- What is the best video editor for YouTube free?

YouTube is not only a great place to watch videos, but also an awesome platform to share your own created videos with friends all over the world. Uploading videos to YouTube is easy, but it is not an easy task for creating an awesome video. So more and more YouTube users want to find a professional video editing software for YouTube free or paid.

Can't Miss: What Video Editing Software Do YouTubers Use

Yes, you will come across very many free or paid YouTube video maker or editor software over the internet for working with. All YouTube video editing software have their distinct features that you should lookout for as well as pros and cons. The following top 5 free video editor for YouTube will give you a good starting point.

In short: If you're looking for the best video editing software for YouTube (like me), you'll love this guide.

Now, let's get started.

Filmora Video Editor - Best YouTube Video Maker [Free or Paid]

Filmora Video Editor for Windows (or Filmora Video Editor for Mac) is the best video editing software for YouTube on Mac or Windows. This video editor for YouTube has very many effects that you can use to personalize your video when editing. They include intro/credit where you will get to enjoy multiple templates, transitions to help come up with a flawless exchange from one scene to another, sound effect and filters. The selection will be all yours to make and you should be very keen on what you decide to use with your video. Furthermore, this powerful YouTube video editing software has support for very many file formats and guarantees high quality to edited files.

Key Features:

• This video editing software for YouTube has video color correction which allows for adjustment of brightness, saturation and contrast.
• Green screen is another feature that makes it possible to replace the background.
• Scene detection helps to know when changes have been made to scenes.
• Face off offers fun faces for making a video funny.
• PIP effect makes it possible to overlay more than one video together.
• A wide range of video and audio effects and very handy video editing tools.
• Various output options help you directly upload video to YouTube or Viemo for sharing as you like.

Easy Steps to Use This Best Video Editing Software for YouTube

The Filmora YouTube Video Editing software is very affordable and can edit both videos and audios. With this software you can edit the YouTube video according to you, it helps in applying effects or customize your video.

Step 1. Import the Video for YouTube

At first, you need to download the Filmora Video Editor from the official website. After the installation, you can import the video clips by 2 methods. Click the 'FULL FEATURE MODE' from the main window, you can directly drag your videos to the software or click on the 'Import Media Files Here' button to import all video clips to Filmora Video Editor.

Step 2. Edit Your Video Clips

Drag the video clips to timeline directly, now you can adjust the order of the video clips by click on the video clips and drag, and you can also trim unwanted video clips.

Step 3. Add Effects to Your Videos

After you cut and splice the video clips to a complete video you want to post to YouTube, you can choose to add some effects on the video to make it amazing.

For example you can add filters to the video, click on 'FILTERS' option from the menu, and you will see all the filter in the Filmora Video Editor. Select a suitable filter and drag it to timeline to apply.

In addition to the filter, there are many other effects you can apply to your videos including transitions, overlays, audio effect and others as follows:

- How to overlay videos (picture in picture)

- How to make a split-screen video

- How to make cool videos with effects

Step 4. Export the Videos to YouTube Directly

After you are satisfied with the editing of your video, you can preview the excellent video in Filmora Video Editor firstly, and then export it to YouTube directly.

Bonus:

If you wanna to learn more techinical skills about how to perform the Filmora Video Editor, please check the below video tutorial to find something you might not know before:

Top 4 Free YouTube Video Editing Software for Windows, Mac OS X

iMovie (Mac)

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 as well as editing in terms of adding effects, inserting titles and adding sound tracks. A simple drag and drop will help you add files to the program.

Pros:

• This video editor for YouTube is very easy to use. And it is the best alternative to YouTube Video Editor.
• This video editing tool has a friendly interface and allows for sharing of edited videos online. Those are the standout advantages you will enjoy.

Cons:

• One of the biggest disadvantages of iMovie is inability to import files in MP4 format.
• It is not readily available because of its price tag that ranges around $14.99.

Windows Movie Maker (Windows)

This YouTube video editing software is another best video editing software for YouTube videos and it's designed by Microsoft. You can create, edit and publish your videos using this program on online sites like YouTube and Facebook. That will help in enhancing your overall editing experience. It has support for very many transitions, effects and titles to help customize video.

Pros:

• Key advantages of using this software program are availability for free.
• This video editor for YouTube is easy for beginners to learn.
• This video editing tool offers a variety of editing tools and functions as well as perfect for photos slide shows.

Cons:

• When you choose this program, expect to enjoy limitations on the number of features you will enjoy because it comes for free.
• This video editing tool is not good for advanced users.
• It is highly prone to crashing down thus not reliable enough.

YouTube Video Editor (Windows and Mac)

This free YouTube video editor allows for easy customizing of video files through specialized tools and effects. You should choose a good combination of those that will suit your video editing. Also, the program helps in trimming down the size of videos.

Pros:

• You will have an easy time learning how to use this program.
• This video editing tool works at high speeds and it is available for free as well as allowing adding music to video.

Cons:

• Its availability for free means this program comes with limitations on some features.
• You will enjoy only the basic features.

LightWorks (Windows and Mac)

This free editing software is a professional free video editing software for YouTube that you can use to work on any YouTube files. It's non-linear and has support for resolutions amounting to 4K. It works well with videos on both HD and SD formats. If you have a film that you want to edit, LightWorks will be a good choice to consider at any given time.

Pros:

• Ability to customize is the biggest advantage for using this software program.
• Other pros are support for different platforms.
• Support for professional video editing and availability as paid or free versions.

Cons:

• This video editing tool lacks FireWire support for Linux.
• The pro version has changes in pricing and does not offer any help with basic hints alone.

Write in the End

Although some online video editors or editing apps for YouTube provide most promising results but there aren't as good as professional video editors available for Windows and Mac. One of the biggest disadvantage is that if you don't have an internet connection, you will not be able to edit the videos. Moreover, if your video needs a lot of editing, you can't perform all the functions using online video editors.

So, if you want to create an awesome video, or you have some requirement of the YouTube video, then, I'd like to strongly recommend the Filmora Video Editor or Filmora Video Editor for Mac for your reference. It can help you quickly make a cool video with effects.

[Attention]

This post is foucused on the video editing software for YouTube, so, if you want to find video editor for other platform like Chromebook, etc., you can view the recommendation in this site.

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