Top 5 Video Editing Software for Mac: What Plays Best with Apple?
If the Mac OS was a person, it would be a high performing loner who doesn’t like the crowds or parties. Sounds about right, right? Well, it is because Mac doesn’t play well with most third-party solutions and extensions.
But in the realm of video editing there are a number of software alternatives that do work without glitches, tapping the power of Apple’s operating system. In this compilation, we will go over the top 5 video editing software for Mac and pitch in the pros and cons of the platforms.
Option #1: Movavi Video Editor (Highly Recommended)
Movavi’s biggest strength is its ability to support over 30 common (and elusive) digital data formats. And the fact that it is compatible with both Windows systems and Macs.
When you first fire the software solution, you aren’t distracted by dozens of buttons and cluttered menus. The intuitive navigation and clean interface put you at ease. The fact that the main panel icons are highlighted vividly, in an otherwise stark modal, provides a great starting point.
Other unobtrusive but helpful design cues include a panel of basic editing tools that activates once a video footage is dropped on the editing timeline.
With Movavi you can:
- Cut, trim, crop footage, and change the camera orientation
- Record videos on the go and screencasts and audios on the fly for a complete multi-media content experience
- Drag and drop filters to enhance viewing pleasure and even create composite special effects with multiple overlays or transitions
- Add captions and customizable text
- Export your video to YouTube without losing the file
Option #2: iMovie for Apple
This is Apple’s bundled editor. This means iMovie is built to function with a Mac OS. While the tool has seen many upgrades in the past year or so, including the ability to edit 4K videos, iMovie still crashes.
And this problem occurs frequently!
If your computer hard disk doesn’t have adequate space, it is likely that iMovie will give you a tough time. Also the interface, though clean and minimalistic, is quite different from the prototypical editing software layout, which may take a while to adjust to – especially if you’re changing tools.
With the Apple iMovie you can:
- Trim and crop video snippets
- Play around with video depth, colour saturation, and reel speed
- Apply basic filters and effects
- Export the content in a variety of formats and to a number of social media platforms including Facebook and YouTube.
Option #3: Blender (for 3D)
Blender may not be as popular as some of the free tools that work with Windows, but it deserves mention as one of the only suites allowing 3D editing and compositing.
Blender is constantly evolving since it is an open source tool. The Blender.org community is active and provides user support.
So what can you do with Blender? Using this tool to trim and crop footage is like using a blender when a spoon would work fine! Pun intended.
Advanced users who find the most value using Blender generally:
- Work with Photoshop like layers and colours for stroke and fill
- Combine 2D footage with 3D constructions
- Synchronize sounds
- Enjoy powerful camera footage reconstruction
- Tap VR rendering
Needless to say, Blender is not for beginners. It is a mature tool and serves experienced editors the best. But its fit with Mac is near faultless.
Option #4: Open Shot Video Editor
Open Shot looks like a 90s video game.
But don’t discount the solution just yet. Behind the almost jejune interface are a number of sophisticated features that most seasoned editors appreciate.
Open Shot is free and it is compatible with the Mac operating systems.
Using Open Shot you can:
- Trim, slice and crop video footage
- Use a versatile animation framework to make elements bounce, fade and slide
- Experiment with powerful video features like removing the background, inverting the colours and adjusting brightness
- Speed up or slow down reels
- Add captions with customizable text boxes
Option #5: Avidemux
Last but not the least, it is time to take a look at Avidemux. The tool has been around for a while and works equally well with Mac and Windows systems. Avidemux is a no-fuss editor that gets the job done.
What it lacks in terms of robustness, it makes up with its underwhelming interface that encourages exploration.
If you have downloaded the free version of Avidemux, you can only access a limited number of features. But the paid version comes with:
- 300 filters and effects
- Audio synchronization
- Rendering to BMP format
- Cutting, trimming and cropping abilities
- Multi-output support
If you have a list of video editing software solutions that play well with Mac, let us know. We’d love to expand our selection!