Sometimes a video is too long and needs to be trimmed, or there are unnecessary parts in the video, which are supposed to be removed. If you want to upload a video to a social networking site with a limitation on the videos' length, you have to cut or trim your videos.
Fast Video Cutting. You can choose the trimming area in seconds only by moving the markers to set the starting and ending point. Completely Free. This trimming tool is totally free to use. You can download videos without watermark. Popular Video Formats Supported. Our video trimmer supports almost all popular formats such as MOV, WEBM, M4V, and MP4. Real-Time Preview. This is a free video cutter which comes with some functions like modifying audio quality and volume, video frame rate, size and bitrate. In addition to that, this program can help you back up videos with large file size. It can perfectly work on your Windows PC such as XP, Vista, 7, and 10. An easy to use video cutter.
Fortunately, there are lots of video cutting software available on the market, but which is the best one that suits your needs? If you have no idea, keep on reading this post. Here are some of the handpicked best free video trimmers we recommend you to use on your device.
#1. EaseUS Video Editor
Applies to: Windows 11/10/8/8.1/7
Although there is countless video trimming software on Windows, EaseUS Video Editor can be considered as the best one for many reasons. Unlike other apps, it eliminates the hassle to go through some complex steps to load your video and then cut it. It follows a straightforward procedure to help you trim your videos as easily as possible.
What's more, as one of the most powerful Windows 10 video editor, it offers various video editing tools ranging from basic ones to professional ones. After removing the unwanted parts of your video, you can apply special video effects, reverse, change speed, or mix video clips without any hassle. Last but not least, this Windows video editing software supports many output formats, which means you can export the modified video in your desired format for further use.
Easy and Smart Video Editor
- A lightweight and free video editor without a watermark
- Over 300 plus video effects to enhance the video experience
- Create transcripts using Speech to Text converter
- Make picture in picture video by adding overlays
- Extract audio from video with one click
#2. Windows 10 Photos App
Applies to: Windows
Windows offers the Photos App as the default editor to help you edit photos and videos for free for all Windows users. The editor provides an easy way to trim videos using all the essential tools available in the software.
Apart from being a video trimmer, it can also add effects, title cards, text, motion, 3D effects, and folders. It's also possible for you to add a personal touch to your favorite moments by drawing on your photos and videos.
Pros:
- Easy-to-use interface
- Support 3D effects and objects
- Add external audio if needed
- Add stock images directly from the web using Bing image search
- Support background music and custom audio
Cons:
- Editing requires a lot of repetition of doing the same thing
- A non-linear timeline means you cannot overlap videos
- Export only in MP4 format
#3. Avidemux
Applies to: Windows and Mac
Avidemux is an open-source video editor that comes with a somewhat outdated user interface. Compared to modern video editors like the Windows Photos app, it offers more features.
With its help, you can trim a video by adding the video, adding the start and endpoint, and then exporting it as a clipped one. Ensure to configure output video settings, audio settings, and add filters if needed before the final export.
Pros:
- Many video output formats
- Automatic video conversion using scripts
- Filter control for colors, interlacing, subtitles support, and more
- Option to mute part of audio in the video files
Cons:
- Only edit one video at a time
- No keyboard shortcut
- The interface is confusing for beginners
#4. OpenShot
Applies to: Windows and Mac
OpenShot is a free video editor that provides powerful functions to edit videos. Once the video is on the timeline, all you need to do is right-click, and all the editing tools will be available. To trim the video, you should use the slicing feature to split and remove the video's left and right parts.
What users will love about the video trimmer is that it is straightforward to use, and the option of multiple tracks makes it possible to edit multiple videos in a batch.
Pros:
- Slow-motion, time effects, title effects
- Cross-platform editing software
- Advanced video editing timeline
Cons:
- Hardware intensive
- Undoing video effects are painful
#5. iMovie
Applies to: Mac
When using macOS, iMovie is an excellent video trimmer. You can use the mouse or keyboard shortcut along with markers to trim videos quickly. Once the videos are on the timeline, you can overlap them and merge videos after removing what is not required.
Moreover, it offers templates to create trailers, video clips with effects, and export in a supported format.
Pros:
- Provide templates to create trailers
- No learning curve to edit videos
- Video stabilization
- Support the green screen effect
Cons:
- Limited features compared to other editors
- Free audio clips have copyright issues
#6. QuickTime Player
Applies to: Mac
QuickTime Player is the default video player for macOS, which is capable of splitting and trimming videos. If you do not need a massive video editor, and all you want is to remove parts of the video, it should suffice the need.
Once you open the player's video, use the Command + Y on the keyboard to open in editing mode. You can then adjust the video's length and split the video. Make sure to save the part of the video as part of the final output.
Pros:
- Faster processing time
- Directly share videos on YouTube, Facebook, and other services
- Supports the editing of multiple videos and trimming them in one export
- Export in resolution as high as 4K
Cons:
- No timeline
- Editing a large number of videos is cumbersome
- Free for macOS users but paid for Windows
#7. Hitfilm Express
Applies to: Windows and Mac
Hitfilm Expression is a professional video editor. When it comes to cutting a video, it offers a dedicated video trimmer where you can change length, remove part of the video using keyboard shortcuts, and more.
Motion blur effects to smoothen the transition further and more. The software is available for macOS and Windows. So if you are editing, you can jump between systems.
Pros:
- Extensive support for effects, presents, and tool (400+)
- Combine multiple video stream, and add PIP mode
- Revolutionary workflow
- Color correction & grading tool is available
Cons:
- The free version is limited
#8. Video2Edit
Applies to: Windows and Mac (online)
For those who do not like complicated software, and all you want is to remove part of the file, Video2Edit is an excellent online video trimmer.
You can upload videos or add links from Google Drive or Dropbox. Once the file is uploaded, you can enter the start and end times. It means you will have to preview the video on the computer and note down the timing.
Pros:
- Support editing multiple videos
- Multiple output formats are supported
- Directly save videos to Dropbox and Google Drive
Cons:
- No preview when editing the video
- Manually entering the time is cumbersome
- Not possible to edit multiple videos with different timestamp
#9. Online Video Cutter
Applies to: Windows and Mac (online)
Online Video Cutter is one of the best online video cutter and it offers an excellent interface and provides tons of features. Once the video is uploaded, you get a timeline to drag the playhead to trim videos. The tool also offers you to change the orientation of the video.
Pros:
- Trim, split, rotate, and crop videos
- Change quality or video resolution
- Support custom and predefined aspect ratio
- Support all video formats
Cons:
- No way to trim multiple videos
- Export only in MP4 format
- Limited to 500 MB size
#10. Kapwing
Applies to: Windows and Mac (online)
Kapwing is another excellent online editing tool that comes with a dedicated free video trimmer. The tool allows you to delete multiple parts of the video and then merge them into one. The tool offers a playhead and range selector. Once done, click on the 'Add Cut' button to add it to the list.
Pros:
- Merge parts of the video into one
- Add effects such as text, images, subtitles, and shapes
- Support online video links
Cons:
- No support for trimming multiple videos
- Can only export in MP4 format
Conclusion
All the video trimming software listed above have excellent features and are good at trimming videos for free. However, if you want to edit videos with full control, you need to use a desktop tool instead of the online ones.
If you are using a Windows PC, EaseUS Video Editor is highly recommend. It's a feature-rich video editor to create cinematic videos. With it, you can split, trim, add effects, and even compress the video using codecs like H.264 and HEVC. Don't hesitate to download it.
Cut, a way to help manage large video files, may not sound like a key factor that makes video editor software compelling, but it is definitely one of the basic features that no one would miss. If you are struggling with which software to use, whether you simply want to fast trim video online, or need a video trimming software with extreme precision, this review of top 10 video cutters software listed below, in no particular order, will help you find the answer.
Our Picks for Best Video Cutters Are:
- Video cutting software: VideoProc, iMovie, Shotcut, Avidemux, Bandicut, LosslessCut
- Online video trimmers: Kapwing, Online Video Cutter, Clideo, Ezgif
Video Cutter Software Overview
#1. VideoProc
Video Clip Mac
Supported OS: Windows, macOS
Ease of use: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
VideoProc is all-in-one video processing software with free video trimmer and splitter built in. The whole video cutting process could be as simple as: open the video, mark the start and end points, then trim video. Or run the video clipper to cut one or many unwanted parts, from the start, the middle or the end. There would be no resolution changing or image cropping. You can save your video in the exact same format as before without rendering and loss of quality.
Besides being a video cutter for Mac and Windows, VideoProc, combined with a set of additional tools like video cropper, video joiner, video stabilizer, etc, can itself more conveniently handle your other complicated video editing tasks.
Pros:
- Flexible video cutting modes, including trimming and splitting.
- Clip any video in any format, no matter how big it is.
- No watermarks on the output file.
- 4K video cutting and editing is just what it is good at, with GPU acceleration supported.
- No distracting pop-ups or ads to interrupt your video cutting job.
Cons:
- Video cutting by frame and keyframe is not available.
- Trial version has a 5-minute limitation.
#2. iMovie
Supported OS: macOS, iOS
Ease of use: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
iMovie is a video cutter for Mac and iOS only. You don't need to pay any penny to trim with it, for it is pre-installed. This Mac video trimming software comes with a simple and very user-friendly free video cutter that even a newbie can easily get started with. After dragging your video to the timeline, you can freely trim, split and cut videos in iMovie by dragging the handles. Besides, it has many presets in text and effect that allows beginners to polish their videos.
Read our full review of iMovie >
Pros:
- A free video cutter pre-installed on Mac.
- The user-friendly interface takes no learning curve.
- 4K video cutting could be ultra fast.
Cons:
- Dragging the handles is the only way to do your video cutting in iMovie.
- You can't cut videos by frame or keyframe.
- Often jump frames when trimming videos.
- iMovie doesn't allow you to cut MKV videos.
#3. Avidemux
Supported OS: Windows, Mac, Linux
Ease of use: ⭐⭐⭐
Avidemux is open-source and cross-platform video trimming software, which works well with MP4, MKV, MPEG-2, H.264, H.265 video and even the newest AV1 format video. You can trim video by dragging the preview cursor or entering the specific start and end time manually. Avidemux also boasts some other hidden video editing tools. Before or after your video trimming, you can crop, add SSA/ASS/SRT subtitles or filters to videos. Mostly, Avidemux is used to remux video, like from MKV to MP4.
Read our full review of Avidemux >
Pros:
- An open source and totally free video trimmer.
- Trim your video precisely by second, frame and keyframe.
- Built in with useful editing toolkit.
Cons:
- The cutting tools are a bit hard to understand when using it for the first time.
- There are A/V out of sync problems after video cutting.
- Lack of good support of MOV, AVI and WebM clips.
#4. Shotcut
Supported OS: Windows, Mac, FreeBSD, Linux
Ease of use: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Shotcut is another decent open-source video cutter software for multiple platforms that allows you to cut, trim, and split videos in various formats like H.264, HEVC, MPEG, VP8/VP9, DNXHD, etc. Before all that, you can take a rough cutting step by marking in and out to get a certain part of your video. Surely, this well-received free video editor can be used for other advanced editing works. Use it to add text, watermarks, add filters and transition, etc.
Read our full review of Shotcut >
Pros:
- This open source video cutter is completely free.
- Precise video cutting by frame.
- 4K video cutting could be smooth on even an old computer.
Cons:
- Sometimes can't capture frames precisely.
- Doesn't allow you to cut video by setting time manually.
- Shotcut is a mostly 8-bit video cutter. Better not trim videos in 10-bit depth with Shotcut in case of loss of quality.
#5. Bandicut
Supported OS: Windows
Ease of use: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
You may have heard of Bandicam. Yes, Bandicut is another app developed by the same company, which is neither a pure free video trimmer, nor an all-purpose video editor. Instead, Bandicut is a combination of video cutter and video joiner. It is quite easy to use with simple user interface. But note that this is not a completely free video cutter. You will have to pay $29 for 1-PC license to remove watermark on your video.
Pros:
- Clear design with seperate video trimmer, splitter and joiner modules.
- Cut video with precision by frame.
- Fast way to add and merge cutting segments.
Cons:
- A video cutter for Windows user only.
- Limited output video formats - AVI, MP4, MKV, and WEBM.
- There is no watermark on every frame of your video, but a 5-second ad will be at the end.
#6. LosslessCut
Supported OS: Windows, macOS, Linux
Ease of use: ⭐⭐⭐
Different from all video cutter software above, LosslessCut is purely a free video cutter designed for the only purpose - cutting video. Well, actually you still have the Rotate option. But that's it. You won't see any other video editing tools inside this free video cutter software. Probably just because it is single-minded, it makes your video cutting elaborate than ever. But it may take you some time to get familiar with it.
Pros:
- LosslessCut is the video cutter with most output formats in this list.
- Provide you with Zoom options from 1x to 4096x while cutting video.
- Easily switch between Keyframe cut mode and Normal cut mode.
- Allows you to fast enable and disable multiple video/audio tracks before cutting.
Cons:
- Inaccurate cutting issues, e.g. the cutpoints may be seconds earlier than you set it.
- 'Unable to export this file' happens from time to time, probably caused by formats, cut modes or other unknown reasons.
Online Video Trimmers Overview
#7. Kapwing
Ease of Use: ⭐⭐⭐
Kapwing is basically a free online video trimmer, or rather, a multi-functional online video editor. But don't forget to download your edited video, or you will need to pay $20/month for re-cutting and saving any files 7 days later. When getting started with a new project on Kapwing, you can either choose to start with Studio or use a specific tool.
What might be confusing is that there are several specific video cutters on kapwing.com: Clip Video, Cut Video, and Trim Video. The truth is, all those four specific tools lead to the same video trimmer tool, presented as Studio > Trim.
Pros:
- Kapwing is the only online video cutter with no file size limits.
- Allows you to paste URL to load videos for cutting.
- Supports simple cuts by dragging handles or using arrows to specify time.
- Support single cuts and add multiple jump cuts.
Cons:
- Slow and unstable. A 20-second iPhone 4K video takes about 10 minutes to load up.
- The highest output resolution is 1080p. 4K is not accessible.
- Signing in is required to output video without watermark.
- You can only cut and save videos in MP4.
#8. Online Video Cutter
Ease of Use: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Online Video Cutter is another top-ranking online trimmers favored by both Google and users, providing you with a clear page to cut videos by simply moving sliders or setting the duration manually, and then save the outcome to Dropbox, Google drive or directly download to PC.
In addition, you can rotate videos, or crop your frames by selecting presets for getting the best viewing on Instagram, TV, or phones on the same page. One of best parts of Online Video Cutter is that it claims the source video could be in any formats. Is that true? See our test result below.
Pros:
- Wide support of both import and output formats.
- Two video cutting modes - Extract Selected and Delete Selected.
- You can cut video with both 'Fade in' and 'Fade out' on.
Cons:
- Maximum file size is 500MB.
- You can cut MP4, AVI, MOV online, but output in MP4 only.
- Pasting URL for video cutting doesn't work, even without error message.
- You should be able to save 4K as 4K by choosing 'Same' in the Quality setting, provided that your 4K video is successfully loaded, which seems impossible based on our test.
#9. Clideo
Ease of Use: ⭐⭐⭐
Clideo is one of the free online video cutters that claim to be able to trim any sort of video that with size smaller than 500MB and convert to any of your desirable video formats. It does look pretty neat and video cutting can be finished in some easy steps. But just like Online Video Editor, not all types of videos are accepted well. Mostly, MOV files can't load correctly and sometimes the preview gets stuck when trimming.
Pros:
- It is fairly easy for anyone to use.
- Fast load videos in various types, like slow-mo video, 360 degree video, etc.
- Supports pasting URL to load video. Good for YouTube video cutting online.
Cons:
- Only supports videos under 100MB.
- There is no timeline slider for moving to easily cut videos.
- Inaccurate video cutting. Cut video by seconds only.
- Slow and crashing from time to time. Sometime MOV and AVI videos can't be previewed.
#10. Ezgif Video Cutter
Ease of Use: ⭐⭐
Ezgif video cutter is not as flexible as the other 3 online video trimmers. It only allows you to enter the start and end time to trim. The import file could be any MP4, WebM, AVI, MPEG, FLV, MOV, 3GP files with size smaller than 100MB from your PC or links. Ezgif also allows you to resize, adjust the play speed of your footages.
Pros:
- It is fairly easy for anyone to use.
- Fast load videos in various types, like slow-mo video, 360 degree video, etc.
- Supports pasting URL to load video. Good for YouTube video cutting online.
Cons:
- Your videos neeed to be under 100 MB.
- There is no timeline slider for moving to easily cut videos.
- Inaccurate video cutting. Cutting video by frame is not available.
- MP4 is the only video output format.
Best Video Cutter Software FAQs
1. Cut videos without re-encoding?
It is possible to cut videos without re-encoding but few video cutters support it. Programs claiming to trim videos without encoding again mostly can't cut videos precisely.
Video Cutter Mac
Cutting videos without re-encoding, to some extent, means cutting videos without decoding. If there is no video decoding, you can't regain each exact frame for trimming. As a result, the video cutter software might not seek the I-frames correctly, leaving your video starting with P-frame or B-frame. That may cause problems like video stuttering or full of glitches at the beginning, missing frames, video and audio out of sync, etc.
Our suggestion: Use fast video cutters like VideoProc instead of cutting videos without re-encoding.
2. Cut videos without quality loss?
It seems that nine out of ten users believe cutting videos without re-encoding is the best (maybe only) way to prevent quality loss. That's not the truth.
Actually, as long as you don't change parameters like video resolution or bit rate, you won't see any difference between the original and the processed one after video cutting and re-encoding. There won't be video quality degrading at all, at least invisible to the naked eye.
Our suggestion: Simply cutting videos normally won't cause worse quality problem. Cutting videos without re-encoding is not that necessary as you imagine.
Video Cutting vs Trimming vs Splitting
What is the difference between cutting and trimming? Are the Razor button and scissor button meaning the same thing? See the analyses below.
Cutting: As you may be aware, the Cut option is mostly available as a scissor button in video editing software. When people speak of 'cutting', normally they mean all types of video rearranging operations, including video trimming, splitting, clipping, etc. However, enabling the cutting option equals to splitting video in some video cutters, while it also could be to cut off the part before your playhead in some others.
Free Software To Trim Video
Trimming: When you trim a video, you can only remove video segments from the start and the end. Most video trimmers allow you to specify the start and end time by dragging handles.
Free Video Trimmer Mac
Sidenotes. Cutting and trimming help you to remove unwanted sections of the clip (in terms of time duration), and if you want to remove unwanted areas of a video, the video editing function you shall resort to is cropping. Depending on your specific case, you can pick one of these free video cropping software for Windows and Mac to adjust your footage.
Splitting: The Splitting option mostly is presented as a razor icon in video cutter software, which allows you to clip a long piece of video into small separate ones. None of your scenes will be removed here.
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