Filmora vs Shotcut Comparison 2026
Both cover video editing. Here is what separates them on price, billing, what you can take with you, and coverage.
A full desktop editor without a studio price
A free desktop video editor, open source
At a glance
- Both have a genuinely free tier.
Side by side
Filmora | Shotcut | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | From $49.99 | Free |
| Pricing model (they differ) | Free plan, paid tiers | Free |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| Billing | Not stated | Not stated |
| Free trial | Not stated | Not stated |
| API | Not stated | Not stated |
| Data export | Not stated | Not stated |
| Their cut | None | None |
| Runs on (they differ) | macOS, Windows | macOS, Windows, Linux |
Shaded rows are where the two answers disagree and both listings have answered. A row where one side has not stated a fact is left plain, because silence is not a difference.
Filmora
A full desktop editor without a studio price
Filmora is Wondershare's video editor and the one a lot of creators land on after outgrowing a phone app and balking at a professional subscription. The timeline, keyframes, masking and motion tracking are all there, with an asset library and AI tools layered over the top. It runs on Mac and Windows and a free version exports with a watermark, so the editor can be judged properly before paying. Assets and AI credits are sold as separate add-ons.
Our note
Check what is in the plan and what is an add-on before comparing the yearly price with anything else, because the assets and AI credits are billed on their own. DaVinci Resolve is free and more capable if you are willing to spend the time learning it.
Only on this side
- Covers motion graphics & animation
Shotcut
A free desktop video editor, open source
Shotcut is a free desktop video editor that has been maintained for well over a decade and runs on Linux, macOS and Windows alike. It reads a wide range of formats because FFmpeg is doing the work underneath, and it asks for no account at any point. The interface takes a session to settle into. Nothing is upsold later.
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.