CapCut vs Clipchamp Comparison 2026
CapCut is a free vertical video editor with no watermark or export cap, and Pro from $9.99 a month adds effects and cloud space. Clipchamp is Microsoft's browser editor: free to anybody with a personal Microsoft account, with the premium features, 4K export, a brand kit and premium stock, bundled into a Microsoft 365 Personal or Family subscription rather than sold on their own. Clipchamp's own brief says to check an existing Microsoft 365 subscription before paying for an editor at all, since the premium tier might already be included. CapCut needs no Microsoft account and runs on a phone as well as a browser; Clipchamp is browser only.
Free vertical video editor from the makers of TikTok
Microsoft's browser video editor
At a glance
- Both have a genuinely free tier.
Side by side
CapCut | Clipchamp | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | From $9.99 | Not listed |
| Pricing model | Free plan, paid tiers | Free plan, paid tiers |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| Billing | Not stated | Not stated |
| Free trial | Not stated | Not stated |
| API | Not stated | Not stated |
| Data export |
CapCut
Free vertical video editor from the makers of TikTok
CapCut is free, runs on a phone or desktop, and every trending template lands here first. Auto captions are quick and accurate. Read the licence terms before using it for client work.
Our note
The best free video editor there is, with a caveat that has nothing to do with the software: it is owned by ByteDance, and the terms you agree to about your footage are worth ten minutes of reading before a client project goes through it.
Only on this side
- Covers short-form & clipping
Clipchamp
Microsoft's browser video editor
Clipchamp is Microsoft's video editor, free to anybody with a personal Microsoft account and folded into Microsoft 365 for the premium half. Recording the screen, camera and voice is on the free level, along with the AI editing and audio tools. What you pay for is 4K export, the stock library and a brand kit. No download is involved.
Why people weigh these two
- Clipchamp instead of CapCut
- Clipchamp is Microsoft's browser editor and free to start, a desktop swap for anybody thinking about where their footage goes.
- CapCut instead of Clipchamp
- CapCut is the free editor built for vertical, TikTok-first video, with paid features from $9.99, where Clipchamp sits closer to Windows and Microsoft 365.
Which one should you pick
Take CapCut for vertical video specifically, and for editing on a phone between takes before finishing on a desktop. The free editor already exports without a watermark or a length cap, and Pro is a plain $9.99 a month with no other subscription required. Read the licence terms first if the footage is for a paying client, since the app is owned by ByteDance.
Take Clipchamp if a Microsoft 365 Personal or Family subscription is already being paid for, since the premium features may cost nothing extra at all. The free plan alone includes a screen, camera and voice recorder that CapCut's listing does not describe, useful for anybody making a video from scratch rather than editing existing footage. There is no standalone price for Clipchamp Premium, only the Microsoft 365 plans it rides along with.
Common questions
- Can I use Clipchamp's premium features without paying extra?
- Yes, if a Microsoft 365 Personal or Family subscription is already active, since that is how Clipchamp Premium is sold rather than as its own product. CapCut's Pro tier is a separate $9.99 a month regardless of any other subscription.
- Which one records a screen or a webcam directly?
- Clipchamp does, on the free plan itself: screen, camera and voice recording are included before any payment. CapCut's listing describes editing existing footage rather than recording it.
- Which one runs on a phone?
- CapCut does, along with web, macOS, Windows and Android, so a project can start on a phone and finish on a desktop. Clipchamp runs in a browser only.
- Does either one need a subscription to use at all?
- No. Both have a genuinely free tier: CapCut needs no account beyond the app itself, and Clipchamp needs only a personal Microsoft account, not a paid Microsoft 365 plan.
Ratings are the average of reviews readers left. The facts are stated by each tool’s own listing and are not verified by CloutStack. How we make money.