Desktop editors for everyday editing
These three are full timeline editors. You import clips, arrange them on tracks, add titles, transitions and audio, and export a finished video. All three run on Linux, macOS and Windows.
Kdenlive is a multi-track editor from the KDE community, built on the MLT multimedia framework. It has the deepest feature set of the three, including proxy clips, which are lighter copies of your footage that keep editing smooth on slower computers. It is the best open source video editor here for longer projects such as YouTube videos or short films, though it takes a few sessions to learn.
Shotcut is a cross-platform editor built on the same MLT framework. Its layout is plainer than Kdenlive’s, and it handles a wide range of file formats. Pick it if you want a capable editor and prefer to switch panels on only when you need them.
OpenShot is the simplest of the three, with drag-and-drop editing and clear menus. It suits beginners, school projects and quick social clips. If you outgrow it, Kdenlive or Shotcut are the natural next steps. Its licence is listed as “Other” in our catalogue, so check its licence file for details.
More open source video editor options for the desktop
These desktop editors fill the gaps the first three leave: 3D and motion graphics, a CapCut-style layout, Linux-first editing and visual effects. Check the platform notes, because not every open source video editor in this group runs on every system.
Blender is best known as a 3D suite, but its README lists video editing alongside modelling, animation and compositing, and its built-in sequence editor can cut and grade footage. It makes sense when your edits mix live footage with 3D scenes or motion graphics, and it takes longer to learn than a plain editor. The GitHub repo is a mirror of Blender’s own code server, and its licence is listed as “Other” in our catalogue.
OpenCut is an MIT-licensed editor modelled on CapCut, with a timeline, text and effects aimed at short social clips. Its README says the project is being rewritten from the ground up and points users to the current version, OpenCut Classic, until the rewrite is ready, so expect changes.
Flowblade is a multitrack editor for Linux under GPL-3.0, built for fast, keyboard-driven editing, with compositing, filters and a text tool. Pick it if you edit on Linux and prefer to work from the keyboard.
Pitivi is the GNOME project’s video editor. It is built on GStreamer, a multimedia framework, and keeps the timeline simple. Its README points to a Flathub download, which makes it easy to install on most Linux desktops. The GitHub repo is a read-only mirror of the project’s GNOME GitLab, and its licence is listed as “Other” in our catalogue.
Olive is a non-linear editor with a node-based compositor for Windows, macOS and Linux under GPL-3.0. Its README calls it alpha software that is highly unstable, and its last code update in our data was in December 2024, so development has slowed. Treat it as a project to watch rather than one to rely on for client work.
Natron is a node-based compositing app for visual effects, keying and rotoscoping, similar in purpose to Nuke or After Effects. It runs on Linux, macOS and Windows under GPL-2.0. Use it beside an editor rather than instead of one, and note that its README says the project is looking for developers and maintainers.
Quick tools that save editing time
You use these alongside an editor, or instead of one when the job is small.
LosslessCut trims and cuts video and audio without re-encoding, so it works in seconds and keeps the original quality. It is ideal for chopping the dead air from the start and end of a recording or splitting a long file into parts. The trade-off is that cuts land on keyframes, the full frames a video file stores at intervals, so they are not always accurate to a single frame.
Avidemux is a simple video editor for Linux, Windows and macOS that handles quick cuts, filters and re-encoding without a full timeline. It pairs well with LosslessCut when a clip needs a filter or a new format as well as a trim. Its licence is listed as “Other” in our catalogue.
auto-editor is a command-line tool that finds and removes silent or empty stretches of a recording automatically. It can pass the result to a desktop editor as a timeline or export a finished video. It saves hours on talking-head videos, lectures and podcasts.
AutoSubs generates subtitles on your own computer and sends them straight into DaVinci Resolve, Premiere Pro or After Effects. Choose it when you already edit in one of those apps and want captions without uploading footage to a cloud service.
Editing video with code
These projects treat a video as a program. You describe scenes in code and render the file, which makes it easy to produce many variations of the same template. Programmers will find this open source video making software far quicker than a timeline for repeated formats such as weekly reports, personalised clips or data-driven videos.
Remotion builds videos from React components and renders them to MP4, either on one machine or at scale. It suits web developers who want to generate videos from data. Its licence is free for individuals and small companies, but for-profit companies above a set size need a paid company licence, so read the terms first.
MoviePy is a Python library for cutting, combining, titling and rendering video. It is the natural pick for Python scripts that trim clips, add captions or join files in batches. For heavy, long renders, calling FFmpeg directly is often faster.
Motion Canvas is a TypeScript library with a live preview editor for animated explainer videos. You write the animation in code and watch it update as you type. It suits tutorial makers who want precise, repeatable motion graphics.
Manim is a community-maintained Python engine for exact mathematical and technical animations. Choose it for maths, science and engineering explainers where every curve and label must be exact.
Revideo is a TypeScript framework for building video templates in code and rendering them through an API. It fits apps that need to create videos on request, such as a service that makes a personalised clip for each customer.
editly assembles a video from clips, text, transitions and audio described in a JSON file, from the command line or a Node.js script. It is handy for simple slideshows and promo clips. Its last code update in our data was in May 2025, so expect slower fixes than the other projects here.
Building an editor into your own app
React Video Editor is an online editor in the style of CapCut, built with React and Remotion, that you can embed in your own product or extend. It suits developers who need a browser-based editor for their users rather than one for themselves. Because it builds on Remotion, Remotion’s licence terms apply as well as its own.
If you need to record your screen or webcam before you edit, OBS Studio is a free recorder that pairs well with any editor in this kit.
How to choose an open-source video editor
You can use every open source video editor free of charge for personal projects, but the licences differ for business use, so check each project’s licence file before you build a product on it. Use these pointers to pick your starting point.
- You are new to editing: start with OpenShot, then move to Shotcut or Kdenlive when you want more control.
- You edit long videos regularly: use Kdenlive, and turn on proxy clips if playback stutters.
- You edit on Linux and want something light: try Flowblade or Pitivi.
- Your edits mix footage with 3D or visual effects: use Blender, and add Natron for compositing.
- You only need to trim recordings: use LosslessCut, or Avidemux when the clip also needs a filter or a new format.
- You record talking-head videos: run auto-editor first to remove silences, then finish the cut in your editor.
- You want to generate videos from data or templates: pick Remotion if you work in React, MoviePy if you work in Python, or Manim for maths animations.
Compared with commercial apps, open source video editing software asks you to check updates and plugins yourself, but you keep full control of your files and pay no licence fee. When you compare a video editor on GitHub, check how recently the project changed, which is a useful sign of whether bugs will get fixed.