PricingWho wrote this, and why that matters
This shortlist is published by Shorty, and Shorty is one of the tools in it. Treat it as a vendor round-up, because that is what it is. We have tried to earn the read anyway: every competitor description comes from that product’s own documentation, we name the jobs where another tool is the better answer, and we say plainly where Shorty is the wrong choice. There are no affiliate links and no paid placements.
We are not claiming an independent benchmark. What follows is a map of which product is built for which starting point, which is the thing that actually decides the answer.
The split that most shortlists skip
The phrase "AI video editor" covers two jobs that have almost nothing in common. One is generation: you have an idea, a script or a single photo, and the tool creates the video. The other is editing: you already shot the material, and the work is deciding what to use, in what order, at what pace.
Lists that mix the two are not useful, because the answer flips completely depending on which one you are. This shortlist only covers the second case. If you have no footage, you want a generator and none of the recommendations below apply.
How we compared them
We sorted by starting point rather than by feature count, because a feature list will not tell you whether a tool can do your job. Three questions separate these products: what material do you begin with, who makes the editorial decisions, and what do you have to do after the first output.
Feature descriptions are checked against each product’s own documentation, linked at the end. Prices change often and vary by region, so we link the pricing page rather than promise a number that will still be right when you read this.
The shortlist at a glance
Every tool here works on footage you supply.
| Tool | Who decides the cut | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Shorty | The tool, from your brief or reference | Turning a shoot into a finished vertical cut |
| CapCut | You | Free hands-on editing with a deep template library |
| Submagic | You cut it, the tool packages it | Viral-style captions, hooks and b-roll |
| Captions | The tool, from a selected style | Talking-head and face-camera video |
| OpusClip | The tool, within one long source | Pulling shorts out of a long recording |
| VEED | You | Browser editing with strong captions |
1. Shorty — best when you have footage and do not want a timeline
This is the gap the other lists leave open. Every tool on this page either hands you a timeline or expects a single talking-head clip. Shorty takes a set of clips — from a product shoot, an event, a trip, a session with a client — plus a written brief or a reference video, and returns one finished cut with the selection, pacing, captions, reframing and colour already decided.
It renders to 9:16, 4:5, 3:4, 1:1, 4:3, 16:9 and 21:9, so the same brief can produce a vertical Reel and a horizontal version without re-cropping by hand. A reference video is optional; a written brief is enough. After the first render you can request changes in plain language.
Where Shorty is the wrong choice: if you need exact frame trims, masks, keyframes or layered audio work, Shorty will frustrate you — its browser timeline is for reviewing and inspecting the rendered cut, not for authoring it. It also edits footage you supply; it does not generate scenes you never shot. If you have no footage at all, you want a generator, not this.
Pricing: Creator US$9, Pro US$49 or Studio US$99 month-to-month; annual billing is discounted by 30%. Paid plans use credits for analysis and rendering.
2. CapCut — best free editor if you want to make the decisions yourself
CapCut is the default hands-on editor for short-form, and deservedly so: a deep library of social templates, effects, transitions and caption styles, working across mobile, desktop and browser, with direct control over individual clips, layers, timing and effects.
Where it is the wrong choice: it is a timeline. It solves the execution, not the blank-timeline problem. If your bottleneck is deciding what the video should be, CapCut hands that back to you.
Pricing: A free editor plus Standard and Pro subscriptions; CapCut says the final rate varies by region, platform, and checkout.
3. Submagic — best for the viral caption look
If what you actually want is word-by-word animated captions, hook titles, automatic b-roll and silence removal on a clip you have already cut, this is the specialist. It also covers audio cleanup and publishing, with agency and API options for repeatable packaging.
Where it is the wrong choice: it starts from a mostly finished video. It packages; it does not assemble.
Pricing: Three free test videos; monthly plans were listed at US$19 Starter, US$39 Pro, and US$69 Business when reviewed.
4. Captions — best for face-camera video
Captions works from uploaded footage plus a selected AI Edit style, applying visual and audio treatments automatically, with follow-up changes by instruction or in its editor. For creators whose Reels are mostly themselves talking, it removes the tedious pass.
Where it is the wrong choice: the value is concentrated in one format. If your Reel is not built around a person talking to camera, much of it does not apply.
Pricing: Check current platform-specific plans and AI Edit access; this comparison does not quote a current price.
5. OpusClip — best for turning one long video into many
If your source is a single long recording — a podcast, a stream, a webinar — OpusClip finds the self-contained moments and cuts them into shorts, with plain-language refinements available.
Where it is the wrong choice: it expects one long source with a through-line. Separate clips from a shoot are an assembly problem, not an extraction problem.
Pricing: Check current OpusClip plans and AI Producer allowances; this comparison does not quote a current price.
6. VEED — best browser editor for captions and collaboration
VEED puts recording, a manual timeline, transcript editing, captions, translation and generation in one browser workspace, with collaboration and brand workflows for teams. Its captioning is the standout.
Where it is the wrong choice: like CapCut, you remain the editor. It accelerates the operations, not the decisions.
Pricing: Free watermarked 720p exports; paid plans started at US$9/month billed yearly or US$19 monthly when reviewed.
Pick by what you are starting with
The starting point decides this more than any feature comparison.
| If you have… | Start with |
|---|---|
| Clips from a shoot and no edit planned yet | Shorty |
| Clips and the time and skill to cut them yourself | CapCut |
| A finished cut that needs captions and hooks | Submagic |
| A selfie video of yourself talking | Captions |
| One long recording | OpusClip |
| A team and a browser | VEED |
| No footage at all | A generator — none of these apply |
Sources: CapCut: online video editor · Submagic · Captions: AI Edit · OpusClip: AI video editor · VEED: video editor. Feature descriptions checked 21 September 2026.