What do YouTubers use to edit videos? – Most popular

YouTube has become one of the biggest websites on the planet. Everyone knows it, almost everyone uses it, and now more and more of us are looking into creating our own YouTube videos.

To do this, a solid and reliable video editing software is an essential part of your toolkit. Though, the right video editing tools are as important as your video editing skills when it comes to producing high quality content.

The good thing about YouTube is that anyone can use it to upload videos.

And, depending on your popularity, you’ll be able to see your YouTube subscribers increase as long as you’re posting useful and relevant content.

After a period of time, you may even be able to make your first dollar from YouTube.

With many Youtubers being able to make a full time income from their videos, there’s a clear incentive for the creator to make some great content.

But how do they make their high quality videos? Well, we make videos with editing software. So, let’s have a look at which software are most popular with YouTubers.

What editing app do YouTubers use?

The answer is that the majority of YouTubers use one of four different apps; Final Cut Pro X, Adobe Premiere Pro, Movavi Video Editor or as a free alternative, iMovie also works extremely well.

Adobe Premiere Elements is another option for those that are on a tight budget but still want a good software for video creation.

There are of course a number of editing software programs that YouTubers use, and the bigger YouTubers even have editors that do this for them with expensive professional softwares like those mentioned.

They often have a whole team working on their videos to get the best quality they can.

By hiring a video editor, they can focus on creating the content themselves and then upload their videos as soon as possible.

Whether you’re making some videos just for fun or you’re looking to start your content creator career, then you need to choose the right software.

We’re going to run through the different software mentioned so you can consider which one may be best for you.

This will depend on your level of experience, and whether you’re ok paying a subscription and also a touch of personal preference.

Let’s have a look at some of the best video editing software options right now.

Adobe Premiere Elements – For complete beginners

As the name suggests, this editing software was produced by Adobe – one of the biggest software companies out there.

You’ll likely recognise them from their other products such as Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop.

If you’re already an avid user of other products in the Adobe Suite, then it can make sense to get started with a software from the same line.

As an editing software, Adobe Premiere Elements is great for beginners and the recommendation for beginners by many.

It is a simplified version of the more extensive editing software’s and is a great way to learn as well as still produce great results. They even offer guided edits so you can learn within the program itself.

As this is a more basic program than others, it has a very shallow learning curve and it’s also ideal for those who are not needing a huge amount of editing on their videos, and are just looking to add the finishing touches.

Blogs for example need only minor editing compared to some of the more complex projects out there.

Finally, there are automation tools within the program to further make editing as simple as possible.

This is a popular video editing software, and this is largely because the price is pretty affordable. For entry level YouTubers, Elements may be the right choice.

But if you’re taking your YouTube channel seriously and want the ability to edit at the highest level, then you’ll likely want to think about Adobe Premier Pro or Final Cut Pro instead.

Adobe Premiere Pro – For more professional video editors

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Adobe Premiere Pro is essentially the big brother to Adobe Premiere Elements, with many famous YouTubers using it to edit their videos and create audio effects too.

This is basically the full version of the program with the training wheels off, and instead of having a one time fee you’ll have to pay a monthly subscription instead.

For this reason, it’s usually considered to be a good choice when you’ve got a little more experience with video editing software.

This version is aimed at professional editors and is likely the best software out there.

That does depend on what you are using the software for of course as the Adobe Premier Pro program is able to do near anything in the realms of possibility when it comes to editing.

However, if you are not looking for such a sophisticated program then other options will prove to be far less complex and confusing.

One of the many features included is a seamless integration with other Adobe programs, Photoshop for example can be used to produce images and then they can be easily imported into Adobe Premiere Pro.

It also has drag and drop functionality and the ability to easily create motion effects with your video content.

Plus, one of the main things that you’ll get when you sign up to a more expensive video editing software is strong color correction and color grading too.

Color grading is how you enhance the picture after its been recorded, and it’s one of the effects that can make your recordings look like professional video cuts.

At post production, you get the ability in Premiere Pro to put the finishing touches on your work – it’s also the best option if you want to edit 360 degree video too.

When it comes to high quality paid options, most people will want to choose between Premier Pro, or in some cases, Final Cut Pro could be a good choice too.

Final Cut Pro X – An advanced video editing software

Next, we’re looking at Final Cut Pro X; this software was developed by Apple so I’m sure you can quite accurately guess that it is very well made.

This is a much more sophisticated program than the more entry level software of Adobe Premiere Elements. Because of this, the software itself comes with a number of benefits.

An immense list of plug ins, effects, and tools from leading developers are included with Final Cut Pro X, including object tracker mode, allowing you too match title and effects to objects or even people’s faces.

The program is full of features similar to this and is a notable step up from the software beginners will use.

It’s a pretty well known choice within the Youtuber circuit, with influencers such as Casey Neistat being a big advocate of the software and using it for his own videos.

As mentioned, it’s created by Apple, which means that Macbook users may want to think about it as an alternative to Adobe.

It works extremely well with MacOS as it’s much faster and can render images extremely quickly.

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For Windows, Adobe is the clear choice. But if you’re using the MacOS, then the winner between the two isn’t quite as clear.

However, if you are using a Macbook and want to get started without paying for a video editing program, then you may just want to get started with iMovie, which is the free video editor included with Macbook.

It’s a great place to start if you’re looking to edit basic video content.

Movavi Video Editor – Quick and Intuitive Video Editing Software

There are lots of Final Cut alternatives, which are much easier to learn. One of these is Movavi Video Editor.

If you are looking for a program that does not take plenty of time to learn, but still allows you to create high-quality videos, check out Movavi Video Editor. It is helpful for new YouTubers willing to start with quality content immediately.

The software is a simplified alternative to more complex editing software. Its friendliness makes it a fantastic learning platform that still delivers impressive results.

The learning curve is fairly light. Plus, Movavi Video Editor provides guided editing options to make sure you learn how to edit.

If you are a YouTube blogger, you do not always need extensive editing in your video, and Movavi Video Editor is a perfect solution for this purpose.

It will be convenient for those who plan to make little adjustments to the clip: cropping, trimming, and rotating footage, adding titles, transitions and special effects, applying soundtracks and sound effects, etc.

Notably, the program incorporates automation tools to streamline the editing process even further.

Yet, if you’re looking to drastically improve the quality of your YouTube content and need more advanced editing capabilities, it may not be the right choice.

In a nutshell, Movavi Video Editor is an ideal choice for beginners who want to create outstanding videos quickly and easily. 

iMovie – Free Apple software

If you want a free video editing software for Youtube, then you likely aren’t going to find anything better than iMovie. For youTube beginners, it’s a really great place to start as it allows you to create high quality videos.

The video editor is a quick and easy option that it extremely user friendly, and even some professional YouTubers still rely on iMovie to cut and edit their videos on a regular basis.

You can edit music and sound effects using iMovie, as you can easily split the audio track from video clips with the click of a button

Even though it’s a free video editor, you’ll still get the ability to create motion effects and transitions between different scenes – though it likely won’t be quite as smooth as the paid alternatives listed above. Still, Mac users should definitely check it out.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the various programs used for editing YouTube videos is extensive, but the ones mentioned in this article are the 3 most prevalent.

It must be said that Adobe Premiere Pro is the industry standard and the go to for most editors.

As for the other options Final Cut Pro X is considered an alternative that can be used if you do not particularly like Adobe Premiere Pro and Adobe Premiere Elements is great for those who are either starting out or not needing complex software.

We hope this article has helped you understand the different editing apps used by YouTubers, and that even if you’re on a tight budget, an expensive app isn’t always necessary to make great videos.

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Author

Alex

By day he's an engineer and by night (well, evening or very early morning but night sounds way cooler) Alex runs the Apps UK ship. He has a keen interest in language, fitness & especially social media - he is always on the lookout for the next hot platform.

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