Windows Movie Maker was a popular video editing application, but it was officially discontinued back in 2017, leaving many people looking for alternatives. In this guide, we'll take a look at some of the top alternatives to Movie Maker and help you find the best Windows Movie Maker alternative for your needs.
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If you're looking for programs like Window Movie Maker, you might already have one installed on your system. Microsoft Photos comes built-in with most Windows devices and is a decent Windows 10 Movie Maker alternative. It's mainly used for viewing and editing photos, but can also be used for making video edits and creating slideshows, too.
Pros:
Built-in with most Windows systems
An easy-to-use Movie Maker alternative that’s free
Cons:
Lacks advanced features
Not available on other operating systems
Available exclusively for Windows, Animotica is a super simple app that you can use to carry out image and video edits. It's really easy and designed for users who want to quickly and conveniently create content for social media, YouTube, and so on. If you're looking for programs similar to Windows Movie Maker that are very beginner-friendly, this is a popular one to choose.
Pros:
Very simple and beginner-friendly
No experience or expertise required
Offers trim, split, effects, transitions, and more
Cons:
Watermark when using the free version
Movavi Video Editor is one of the best alternatives to Movie Maker. Available on both Mac and Windows, this fully-featured editor has a seamless, beginner-friendly interface and offers tons of features. Users can trim, crop, and cut clips however they like, as well as add audio, special effects, and more. In terms of programs and apps like Microsoft Windows Movie Maker, this is also one of the best for beginners or those who want to be able to create videos quickly.
Pros:
Very easy to use
Offers a wide range of editing features
Supports sharing to popular platforms
Cons:
Limitations of the free trial
VideoProc is a multifunctional video processing app that you can use to convert and edit clips. This video editing software like Windows Movie Maker is especially good for converting videos into different formats. It can also be used to make basic edits and more advanced enhancements like fixing fisheye, adjusting playback speed, stabilizing shaky footage, and so on.
Pros:
Excellent for converting videos into different formats
Lots of useful editing tools
Cons:
Interface can be a little confusing
Conversions can be quite slow, depending on your device
Shotcut is one of the best free alternatives to consider. This is a good Movie Maker equivalent for Windows 10. It's a cross-platform open-source video editor that uses an appealing and smooth interface. You can use a variety of dockable panels and see many different details about your video, including media properties, filter panels, encoding panels, and job queues. You can also view playlists and recent files using a thumbnail view, along with your search history. Importing files is also easy using a drag-and-drop operation.
Shotcut ultimately gives you plenty of great tools to use to create videos in many different formats.
Pros:
Intuitive and easy-to-use interface
Gives you the ability to export videos in a wide range of formats using FFMPEG in HD and up to 60 fps
Cons:
Can get too technical for new inexperienced users
Specifications are high and may be difficult to meet
You can get right into video editing with the Avidemux editor. This is a good Movie Maker equivalent for Windows 10. While the Avidemux program features a simple and bare-bones interface, it does what it advertises. There aren't a whole lot of options when it comes to video editing via the interface, but one area in which this software shines is the video codec options. You can also choose from many filters, and the tool makes it easy to trim your videos. Apart from Windows 10, you can use this tool on Mac OS X, BSD, and Linux.
Pros:
Easy to use
Plenty of filter options and video codecs
Cons:
Very simple and potentially off-putting interface
A general lack of versatile editing options
Movie Maker 10 is not to be confused with Windows Movie Maker for Windows 10. Movie Maker alternative Movie Maker 10 is from another reputable publisher and comes with many of the same features. You can use this tool to make videos using your video clips, photos, and music, with basic features like joining, trimming, and adding audio tracks. It also includes some advanced features such as transition effects, filters, and zoom effects.
Pros:
Plenty of effects and editing options to use
Simple and accessible interface
Cons:
Many advanced features are only available if you buy the pro version
Icecream Apps has created a wide range of software. Its video editor is one of the best replacements for Windows Movie Maker. The editor is simple with little to no learning curve, and it comes with enough features to give you a decent alternative to Windows Movie Maker. You can use the software to trim and enhance video and audio clips, manage several projects, add effects, and insert various transitions. The biggest downside to the Icecream Apps tools is some bugs that still need to be worked out.
Pros:
Uses a simple interface that's easy to use
Basic editing features allow for simple, smooth editing
Cons:
Has certain bugs
Doesn't have some features that come with other free editors
DaVinci Resolve is a combination of a good Windows Movie Maker replacement and an advanced color corrector. You can use this software to edit your videos, correct color, finish, and share your video, all from one platform. You can also scale it based on your specific needs, whether you want to use it in a studio or on-set.
You can also use DaVinci Resolve to edit video metadata, apply visual effects, sync sound, or modify color grading, with the ability to manage files on the network or locally.
Pros:
Intuitive interface with many features
Advanced color correction
Cons:
Like a lot of professional software, it comes with a steep learning curve
No support for multi-camera editing
OpenShot is another similar Windows Movie Maker equivalent. It's a free and flexible tool that makes it easy to create and edit videos, with the ability to make professional-quality movies using your photos, videos, and audio files. You can also add video effects, transitions, and subtitles to your videos and export them to YouTube, DVD, Vimeo, and other formats.
The tool includes a chroma key, title editor, color filters, and audio effects to help you create any video with ease.
Pros:
Free and easy to use
Users can easily trim, cut, split, crop, and merge clips
Plenty of transitions and effects are included
Supports over 70 different languages, which users can translate online via the LaunchPad
Can export video projects in 4K UHD or 2.5K QHD up to 60 fps
Cons:
Frequently crashes, especially when using it on a laptop that struggles to meet software specs
Video rendering speed is slow
Difficult to modify video effects after adding them to clips
HitFilm Express is the free version of FX Home's video editor, and it's specifically designed to make it easy to add special effects. If anything, this is more of an alternative to Adobe® After Effects® than a replacement for Windows Movie Maker, but you can still use it as an editor. The timeline makes it great for editing videos, and playback options help make editing even more efficient. The software also comes with some great export features and you can continue making changes to your videos as during the exporting process. Ultimately, if you want to add effects to your videos in lieu of straight editing, HitFilm Express is a solid option.
Pros:
Easy-to-use video editor timeline
Faster editing process with playback feature
Intuitive export capabilities
Edit while exporting
Cons:
Poor export performance
Certain playback options prevent the use of special effects
You'll need to buy add-ons to access certain functions
VEGAS Pro is a Windows exclusive video editor that is aimed at video and audio professionals, like filmmakers. It is used by various professionals in the video production industry and offers a huge range of features for adjusting video and editing audio. The interface is sleek and sophisticated but will intimidate beginners and the app may be too complex for those who only want to carry out simple or amateur editing tasks.
Pros:
Offers professional editing tools
Simple interface
Cons:
Beginners may find it difficult to use
Exclusively for Windows, the WinX HD Video Converter Deluxe is a combination of a video editor, HD video converter, photo slideshow maker, and an online video downloader. It's pretty straightforward to use with a simple interface, and you'll also benefit from fast conversion and download speeds compared to other converters. It comes with hundreds of video and audio codecs along with hundreds of preset profiles for both Apple and Android devices. If you’re looking for video editing software like Windows Movie Maker, you may give WinX HD Video Converter Deluxe a try.
However, considering all of what this software is intended to do, the video editing portion only makes up a small part of it, which means there aren't too many features in this area beyond trimming, cropping, and merging.
Pros:
Simple and intuitive interface
Over 370 video and audio codecs
Combination video editor, YouTube video downloader, and photo slideshow editor
Cons:
Limited features for video editing
Limited slideshow features
VirtualDub is a free and open-source video editing software for Windows. Unfortunately, the program has not been updated for a long time and, thus, the only things it can operate are AVI files with a specific codec. It has a little bit of an old-fashioned interface and seems difficult to use. VirtualDub is still great for performing multiple video-editing tasks, such as deleting unnecessary parts from a video, cropping sidebars, converting to grayscale, compressing video files, and more.
Pros:
Can be extended with third-party video filters
Can process a batch of video files at once
Cons:
Doesn’t support popular file types like MP4, MKV, MOV
No longer updated
As you can see, there are many different options out there, and if you're wondering what replaced Windows Movie Maker or want to find a good app to use as a Movie Maker alternative, you can choose any from the list above. Shotcut is arguably the best free option on the list, while Movavi Video Editor Pro is a very versatile and user-friendly premium option. If you're not sure which one to choose, here are some factors to keep in mind:
Usability: Make sure that the app you want to use is easy to use and appropriate for your own level of experience. If you don't have much experience in video editing, you may want to opt for a beginner-friendly app with a simple interface and easily understandable functions.
Features: Check out what kinds of features each app has and make sure to find one that can offer the features and functions you need. Some apps only offer basic editing like trimming and merging. Meanwhile, others offer lots of advanced editing tools such as chroma key, custom backgrounds, and special effects.
Support formats: Ensure that the video editing app you want to use is compatible with the types of video files you want to use. Most apps should be compatible with all the usual formats like MP4, AVI, and MKV, but some of them can have format restrictions.
User reviews: It's also a good idea to read through some user reviews and check the average rating for Movie Maker alternatives you'd like to use. This will let you see how happy users are in general and whether or not there are common bugs or issues that users encounter.
Support: Check to see what kind of user support is available to help you if anything goes wrong, such as tutorials, guides, live chat, and so on.
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A majority of free alternatives to Windows Movie Maker will give you many basic editing functions, but some will also include various special effects. Some may offer slow-motion or reverse capabilities, while others may allow you to simply apply certain filters, titles, transitions, or subtitles. In many cases, you may need to buy the premium versions of the software to access all of the features included.
In short, there is no best online alternative software, as the answer to this will depend on what you're looking for in the perfect editor. Some will have different features from others, while you might prefer a certain kind of interface over others. The best way to find the best Windows Movie Maker equivalent for you is to shop around and compare features.
For some ideas to help you find the best Windows Movie Maker, with both free alternative and paid versions included for Windows 7, 10, and other operating systems, check out the article below.
There are plenty of options out there for beginners to get you started with video editing today. Check out our list of some of the best video editing software you'll find below.
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