When it comes to video editing software, Lightworks is widely regarded as one of the best options out there for high-quality film and TV editing. Editors for award-winning movies have utilized the full version of Lightworks when creating famous films that have made a significant impression on American cinema history.
However, there are other terrific options for video editing. Some include more features than Lightworks, while others are far simpler to learn and use. And in at least one case, like with our top pick, both are true.
Below we will dive into the details of the five top alternatives to Lightworks so you can find which best fits your needs.
PowerDirector is an easy-to-use, powerful video editing software for Mac and PC users. Offering the newest technology while remaining user-friendly, it's perfect for anyone wanting professional quality results. Detailed Review >
Final Cut Pro provides abundant video editing power but is expensive and only really worth the cost for both professional content creators and filmmakers. Detailed Review >
Adobe Premiere Pro is a high-quality, expansive program designed to accommodate even the most demanding user. It's one of the industry leaders in digital video editing software. Detailed Review >
Lightworks is a video editing program with various tools and compatibility with different media types. One of the main benefits of this software is its compatibility with multiple formats (such as 2K, 4K, PAL, NTSC, and HD).
Compatibility: Windows, Mac
Overall Rating: 10 / 10
Beginner-friendly: 10 / 10
Key Features
PowerDirector video editing software bridges the gap between professional editing and user-friendliness. Its intuitive interface, powerful features, and outstanding support for formats make it the best video editor and alternative to Lightworks.
It has often been ahead of the other pro products with support for new formats and technologies. It’s also loaded with tools that help you create compelling videos with transitions, effects, and titles. Best of all, it helps speed up the work with AI tools and fast rendering.
With such a wide array of features in the program, there isn't any other option if you're looking for something with ease of use yet powerful enough to do what you need without spending hours watching tutorials!
Reasons to Recommend
PowerDirector App
The best full-featured video editor
Image from BolderVideo.
Compatibility: Mac
Overall Rating: 9 / 10
Beginner-friendly: 6 / 10
Key Features
Final Cut Pro, Apple’s professional video editing software, aims to satisfy users who want more power for their video editing projects than iMovie offers. Professionals who create content for movies and television have relied on Final Cut for years.
While some professionals may complain about its nontraditional trackless timeline, and amateur users may scratch their heads over its wealth of sophisticated options, it is still an excellent tool. It provides voice isolation, duplicate clip detection, focus options when shooting on the iPhone 13's original movie setting (Cinematic), and performance enhancements.
Final Cut Pro remains an excellent choice if you are willing to pay for this costly software and invest the hours it takes to learn it.
Image from Adobe.
Compatibility: Windows, Mac
Overall Rating: 8 / 10
Beginner-friendly: 5 / 10
Key Features
Adobe Premiere Pro continues to hold onto its spot as an industry-wide accepted video editing software thanks to its versatile interface, countless tools, and powerful functionality. With new features such as generating subtitles automatically, Premiere Pro is well worth your investment if you're a professional in the market for high-quality video production software.
After updating Final Cut Pro X, Apple has created a drastic new change from the past. In contrast, Adobe has taken an incremental approach of polishing its interface and adding state-of-the-art tools to Premiere. As a result, professionals in the field will appreciate how recognizable Premiere is.
If you are a beginner in video editing, it might be advisable to steer away from Premiere Pro as it requires an expensive subscription to use and extensive video editing knowledge.
Image from Shotcut.
Compatibility: Windows, Mac
Overall Rating: 8 / 10
Beginner-friendly: 8 / 10
Key Features
Shotcut is an open-source video editor with a scaled-back approach making it more ideal for beginners. The timeline adjusts according to your needs as you add files to the software; different settings can be chosen depending on how much quality you want or need, such as resolution, aspect ratio, codecs, frames per second, scanning mode, and field order.
Shotcut offers customizable filters, effects, and other features such as color correction and noise removal. With 4K video support, the program can handle both popular video and audio formats.
This program does not include the advanced editing tools needed for more complicated projects.
Image from DesignBuckle.
Compatibility: Mac (iOS)
Overall Rating: 8 / 10
Beginner-friendly: 8 / 10
Key Features
iMovie comes bundled with MacOS and is an easy-to-use editor. It simplifies the video creation process - everything from importing footage to exporting. This is an excellent option for making amateur content that can be uploaded directly onto YouTube.
One of the best aspects of iMovie is that you can edit on any device - from an iPhone to a MacBook Pro. The Movie Magic feature lets you create fully edited videos complete with titles, transitions, and music. These are obviously not professional-level videos, but they are good enough to share with friends and family.
While iMovie is a great tool, you can expect to outgrow it quite quickly if you want to do anything more than just cut together home movies.
OS
Windows, Mac
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Beginner-friendly
Yes
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Intro Designer
Yes
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AI Tools
Yes
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Stock Content
Yes
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Let's look at the steps you'll need to follow when editing videos with the best alternative to Lightworks, PowerDirector.
PowerDirector App
The best full-featured video editor
PowerDirector is the best video editor and Lightworks alternative. It's easy to navigate but still provides powerful editing tools that professionals use to create engaging videos. If you have never edited before, this is an excellent program to download for free and give video editing a try.
PowerDirector App
The best full-featured video editorNo, PowerDirector is. PowerDirector is the best free editing software for beginners. With an easy-to-navigate interface and intuitive tools, it takes you only minutes to become a professional editor with this award-winning program.
PowerDirector is easily the best free editing software. It features an easy-to-use interface and intuitive tools that make it easy for anybody to use this software, no matter how much video editing experience you have.
There are many features that you should consider while choosing a video editor. But here are the top features you should look for.
If you are looking for a video editing program that checks off all of these requirements, then we recommend PowerDirector.