8 Best Free Video Editing Apps for Instagram Reels

Gone are the days when TikTok used to be the king of short videos. Right after Instagram cut the ribbon to inaugurate its reels feature, a large flock of people shifted to the platform from TikTok. Especially in India where the Chinese video-sharing company is on a complete ban, the influencers are backed by Instagram reels to continue with their content creation.

Creating reels for Instagram is not easy. You need to come up with great new ideas for every single video and create something that outdoes other creators. But a unique content is not enough to get the eyeballs you wish to get. Your video should be so appealing to the viewers that they can’t scroll down any further.

A pro video editing app is what you need for getting the best out of your Instagram reels. From the basic features of these apps like crop, adding tracks, contrast, and brightness to the advanced features like transitions, slow-mo, speed up, and animations, these best video editing apps for Instagram reels will give a professional look to your videos.

The list of video editing software available for reels are endless, but we will provide you with the list of those software that are easy to use and are free of cost. Let’s get down to the list of apps without any further ado.

1. VN Video Editor

Let’s commence the list with an app that’s extremely easy to use and free of cost. VN video editing software has an interface that can be understood at first glance. This software is available for both Android and iOS and your Instagram reels will be edited without any watermark.

You just need to choose the reel that you want to edit, and you will witness plenty of editing features which include basic features like crop, trim, flip, freeze, zoom, and so on. Apart from these basic features, advanced features like speed, filters, and mirror can be used to ameliorate your reels.

Right above your reels, you can add a piece of appealing music, stickers, and subtitles to your video. This will give a completely new look to your video. The software also allows you to change the aspect ratio of the original video. Once the reel is finally edited, it’s easy to export the final video.

Key features of VN Video Editor

1. It allows you to add transition and FX effects like screen shake, jitter, zoom in, etc., which are quite popular and trending on Instagram reels nowadays.
2. You can add photos and videos as layer.
3. Slow-motion effect with curve shifting feature.
4. Add text, background music, and aesthetic filters.
5. Sync video with beat drop.
6. You can use keyframe feature to add animation effects.
7. Play live preview of edit and allow you to save videos up to 4K resolution.

Download VN Video Editor: App Store (iPhone/iOS) | Play Store (Android)

2. InShot

With both free and paid options, InShot is a reel editing app that the creators should definitely test out at least once. The app is easy to use and understandable on your first try. With the paid version of InShot, obviously, you’ll get a better user experience, exposure to more features, stickers, and other functionalities, but the free version is no less. There are plenty of things that you can do with the free version too.

These free features include changing the aspect ratio, adding music to the reel, adding stickers, text with attractive font styles, filters, effects, speed, cropping, reverse, freeze, and the list goes on and on.

If you’re using the free version of InShot, then you will get a watermark after exporting the video. But you can still remove the watermark for free by watching an ad. You can export your reels in different frame rates and resolutions. The default resolutions include 720p, 1080p, and 4k, but you can customize the resolution as per your need.

Key features of InShot app

1. It comes up with various transitions and video effects like glitch, aesthetic, cinematic etc.
2. You can add keyframe for sticker and text to make them move over screen.
3. Allows you to add music, effects and voice-overs.
4. Remove background using Chrome feature on PIP (picture-in-picture).
5. Add text, stickers and emoji on you video.

Download InShot: App Store (iPhone/iOS) | Play Store (Android)

3. KineMaster

KineMaster needs no instruction to someone who’s even a little bit engaged in video editing work. From editing Instagram reels to YouTube videos, KineMaster with its exceptional features and easy-to-use interface is helping creators of all fields in making jaw-dropping videos.

KineMaster works in the landscape mode to give you the feel of PC video editing software. Both paid and free versions are available of the app. Not to mention, the paid version is going to be better than the free one, but you’ll get sufficient reel editing options in KineMaster for free.

You can choose from various aspect ratios and create reels according to your needs. KineMaster lets you add a plethora of effects, texts, stickers, and join multiple media to create a perfect masterpiece. Some features of the app can be a little puzzling to use at first but after a few uses, you’ll get familiar with the app’s working.

One thing that you might not like is that KineMaster leaves its watermark after you export your video if you are a free user. But it’s a great app for professional influencers. So if you’re a professional, every single penny you spend is worth it.

There are about 10 different resolutions in which you can export your videos with KineMaster. This includes low-quality resolution of 360p up to high resolution of 4k 2160p at 60 fps. Similarly, you can make changes in the frame rate too.

Key features of KineMaster

1. Professional user interface like computer video editing software.
2. Chrome Key feature which lets you remove background from green screen videos.
3. You can record voice-overs from within the app directly.
4. Feature like auto-ducking lets you mix and customize your audio with the background music.
5. You can watch live preview and choose various fps and resolution for exporting your video.

Download KineMaster: App Store (iPhone/iOS) | Play Store (Android)

4. Instagram built-in editor

Don’t underestimate Instagram when it comes to the editing of Instagram reels. The app itself has amazing features that will help you create a perfect reel. You can either create a new reel from scratch and then edit it, or edit a previously made reel.

Features that Instagram puts on the table for reel creators are adding background music, adding your own voice, various effects, stickers, doodling effects, and texts. Obviously while working with Instagram for editing the reels, you don’t need to worry about the watermarks and all the editing features are totally free for use.

If you’re creating a new reel rather than editing an existing one, the features that you can use will change. Creators can either choose to make 15 seconds, 30 seconds, or 60 seconds reel, split the screen with layout feature, and change the speed of the video. Adding compelling music in the background for a perfect reel is necessary. Surprisingly, Instagram has a never-ending list of songs and music to add to a reel.

Key features of built-in editor on Instagram

1. Basic yet efficient video editor for reels.
2. You can add background song from Instagram music directly.
3. Add stylish text, stickers and GIFs on your video.
4. Trim and combine multiple videos.
5. Record voice-over directly and mix it with background music.

5. Adobe Premiere Rush

When it comes to professional video editors, there is no better software than Adobe Premiere Pro for PC. Adobe has launched a new video editing app for mobile platform named Adobe Premiere Rush. It provides all professional level features to edit your videos right from your smartphone. The good thing about this app is that it is free. Apart from that, it also doesn’t add watermark on your videos.

You can also shoot videos from within the app, edit them right away and then share on your social media such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, etc. Adobe Premiere Rush has a very user-friendly interface where all tools for editing are easily accessible on the timeline. From making slow motion videos to adding text and transitions on your Instagram reels, you can do almost everything with this app for free.

Another cool feature of Adobe Premiere Rush is to colour grade your video either by applying built-in presets for cinematic look or by enhancing the colour manually with adjustment tools like exposure, contrast, highlights, shadows, saturation etc. The powerful voice editing tool lets you add voiceovers and music. Auto-ducking is another useful feature among them.

Key feature of Adobe Premiere Rush

1. Shoot videos with the in-app professional camera.
2. Adjust speed of audio and video (slow down and fast forward)
3. It provides flexible multitrack time for editing multiple clips.
4. There are 1000s of soundtracks, sound effects , animated titles and transitions available in the app.
5. Powerful audio editing with auto-ducking and voiceover features.
6. You can enhance colours of your video manually using adjustment tools.

Download Adobe Premiere Rush: App Store (iPhone/iOS) | Play Store (Android)

6. iMovie

If you have an iPhone or iPad, there is already a video editing app available on your smartphone named iMovie. This app is developed by Apple itself and it comes pre-installed on all iOS devices. iMovie is very simple yet professional video editing app that can do almost anything. It is good option for making Instagram reels as well. The app is absolutely free without any watermark.

If you want to do basic editing for your Instagram reels like adding slow motion or fast forward effect, cutting and merging videos, creating a photo collage presentation, then we will recommend you to go with iMovie. There are few drawbacks of this app, for example, it doesn’t have too many transitions and FX effects especially the ones which are trending on Instagram reels nowadays.

Key feature of iMovie

1. Absolutely free without any watermark.
2. Simple editing user interface.
3. Export videos in HD quality.
4. Built-in filters.
5. Allows you to add videos in PiP (picture in picture).

Download iMovie: App Store (iPhone/iOS)

7. GoPro Quik

GoPro is a popular camera brand which is know for its action cameras. Quik is the official app made by GoPro itself which allow users to edit videos quickly. Although, this app is made for GoPro users but you can also use it for editing your Instagram reels. What makes this app stand out is its ability to create automated videos by selecting highlight moments.

For example, you can add a number of clips in this app and it will automatically create a story based video showing all necessary moments. So basically, you get all your editing done by the app automatically. Additionally, you can make changes in the video as you want like adjusting clips, adding slow motion effect, changing background music and more. There are various themes and editing tools available.

Key features of GoPro Quik

1. It automatically create videos with synced music.
2. You can apply professional cinematic filters and themes on your Instagram reels.
3. Premium editing tools which allows you to adjust all video settings like exposure, highlights, shadows, saturation, vibrance, etc.
4. The videos are exported in HD quality.

Download GoPro Quik: App Store (iPhone/iOS) | Play Store (Android)

8. Splice

With over 700K+ downloads on App Store and 500K+ downloads on Play Store, Splice is another popular and rising video editing app for Android and iPhone/iOS. This app works best for editing in portrait mode (i.e. 16:9 aspect ratio) and that’s why it is good for making Instagram reels. What’s unique about this app is that it has a very simple user interface and easy access to all necessary features. When exporting your video, you are choose fps (frames per second) and resolution settings. It support up to 4K ultra HD (high definition).

Key features of Splice

1. Very simple yet professional user interface.
2. Add media, text, and music easily to your Instagram reels.
3. Adjust speed and crop video to fit on screen.
4. Make fast forward time lapse videos.
5. Export videos up to 4K quality without watermark and choose FPS (frames per second) seetings manually.

Download Splice: App Store (iPhone/iOS) | Play Store (Android)

Wrapping up

We have shared some of the best video editing apps for iPhone/iPad and Android smartphones that you can use to make your Instagram reels. Now it depends on your requirements like what type of editing you want to do that will decide which app you should go with. If you are looking for a professional video editor with features like transitions, FX effects and colour grading, then we will recommend you to use VN, KineMaster, or Adobe Premier Rush. On the other hand, if you have very basic requirements, then you can choose InShot, iMovie, or Instagram built-in reels editor. Let us know which one is best and if you know any other app that deserves to be in this list, then share it in the comments below.