The Ultra HD video, also known as 4K video, defines 3840 2160 pixels. It became popular in 2016 and has overtaken both HD and ultra-HD to become the video with the highest resolution. Most videos are shot in HD, but as camera technology improves, 4K video seems to have become increasingly common. Because of the additional level of detail that the camera acquires, 4K videos are large files that allow you more editing possibilities.
Several free 4K video editing software has been developed to make video editing relatively easy in recent times. These free 4K video editors allow you to import, edit, and export videos easily. This article will provide you with some of the best free 4K video editors you should try in 2022.
Part 1: Top 5 Best Free 4K Video Editing Software for Windows and Mac
1. iMovie
Supported OS: iPhone, iPad, and Mac
iMovie is one of the most popular free 4K Video editing software. Using iMovie, you can create a professional-looking video even without any editing experience. You can import 4K images and 4K videos to iMovie, and then trim, split and add titles, transitions, filters or effects to the video by dragging and dropping. What’s more, you can import and export 60 frames per second video in iMovie.
iMovie is a video editing software that imports video footage from digital video cameras that use the MiniDV format. It can play DV, HDV, AVCHD, iFrame, Animation Codec, and other video formats. You can import 4K videos directly to iMovie and export them as 4K videos at 24fps/30fps/60fps. You can also share the 4K video to YouTube from iMovie directly.
Pros:
1. Switching across different devices:
This free 4K video editor is designed to work together using different devices (iPhone, iPad & Mac). You can begin a project on your iPhone, then transfer it to your iPad using AirDrop or iCloud Drive. It allows you to share what you have worked on to different devices, and you can also send projects from your iPad to your MacBook or iMac.
2. Advanced editing features:
What makes this free 4K video editor special is the ability to add some innovative editing functions when creating and editing your videos. Understandably, any video editor should offer basic editing features; however, iMovie allows you to work with more advanced functions like split-screen, picture-in-picture, and green-screen effects.
3. Saving all the original files
An advantage of working with different devices provides an opportunity to save all original files. It saves you time since you can import any media you need to get your project started in the video editor without losing the original files.
Cons:
- Distorted files: If you don’t follow the importing and exporting process, the files might get distorted, resulting in fuzzy images.
- Only available on iOS/macOS/iPad devices
2. VSDC
Supported OS: Windows 2000/XP/2003/Vista/7/8/10
VSDC is a free 4K video editor that allows for beginner-level editing. It supports recording voice-over, capturing the desktop screen, editing the video and audio files. With VSDC, you can blend multiple footage layers into a single composition. You can easily apply a picture-in-picture effect and make things change their appearance or position.
VSDC allows you to import 4K video, audio, and image files. To successfully import these files; Click ‘Shift + I’ to add an image, ‘Shift A’ to add an audio file, and ‘Shift V’ to add a video file. VSDC allows you to export 4K videos to PC or share to web platforms like YouTube. To export these files, go to the export project tab at the top, and then set the profile to the highest quality. Click the Edit profile button and then select the 4K preset from the list. Choose the video and audio quality size, and then save the video as 4K.
Pros:
- Every tool for video editing is available
- Amazing Visual Effects
- Efficient Text Processing
- Lots of Blending modes
Cons:
- Pro editing features are missing
- Available for Windows only
- Audio waveform and hardware acceleration features are not available
3. ShotCut
Supported OS: Windows, Mac, and Linux.
Shotcut is another free 4K video editor made for Linux, Macintosh, and Windows gadgets. It has wide arranged support that features its astounding usefulness. This 4K video editing software may not be the most alluring programming you see, yet it can assist with making the process of editing smooth and straightforward.
This professional video editing software support almost all the latest audio and video formats, including ProRes, DNxHD, and 4K, and it allows you to trim, cut, insert, and overwrite the video and audio. With its video effects, you can do color correction and grading, add fade-in and fade-out effects, reverse the clip, and even edit the 360° videos.
Here is a completed video tutorial from YouTuber Kevin Stratvert, which provides almost all information about how to use Shotcut, including how to create a project, add media, edit clips and export.
Pros:
- Easy Access: The 4K video editor is open source. Users can easily alter the source codes, enabling the process of editing simple and clear.
- Shotcut has every one of the required instruments to give excellent outcomes to clients. It has all elements of good video editing software and a bunch of other supportive and current choices.
- Shotcut offers an easy-to-use interface that allows you to finish a project quickly while having it examined by multiple members of your team. Its preview panel gives users access to a quick start menu, and its view menu lets them decide which features appear on the screen. The software's video and audio filters are the most amazing of all its features. These filters can be customized, and they can be combined and layered in a variety of ways. Adjusting is now easier thanks to the easy checkbox and slider systems. Shotcut is so good that it makes even the most complicated effects understandable to the average user.
Cons:
- The platform might be a bit confusing when using the software for the first time because the interface isn’t intuitive.
4. LightWorks
Supported OS: Windows, Linux, and macOS
Lightworks is another video editor that can edit 4K videos from EditShare for people who have video editing experience. It has a simple and intuitive user interface, and you will find LOG, EDIT, VFX, and AUDIO tabs at the top of the interface. It integrates some paid royalty-free audio files, so you don’t need to find the background music from somewhere else. This software has some advanced editing features such as Multicam editing and batch export. It even supports third-party plugins, such as Boris FX, Boris Graffiti, and GenArts Sapphire. It enables its users to freely edit videos, even to the extent of trimming a video down to the size you desire.
However, if you want to export the videos in 4K, you need to pay, since it is limited to Lightworks Pro users.
Pros:
- The software allows clips to be easily imported and provides a platform where these clips can be played. This is made possible because this 4K video editor provides an interface made of panels such as bins, timeline, and edit review.
- Lightworks provides an easy way of applying varieties of effects from different clips in a coordinated manner. The software utilizes the hub-based framework to put together clips and recordings, which is needed for clips with numerous effects and tracks.
- Navigating this software, a right-click menu allows the user to export videos directly to YouTube. Also, the software automatically saves your work, so you don’t lose the files you’ve worked on.
Cons:
- Poor quality exporting options when making use of the free version (720p only)
- You need to register first to use it
5. Filmora Instant Cutter Tool
Supporting OS: Windows and Mac
For Win 7 or later (64-bit)
For macOS 10.12 or later
Filmora is one of the best video editors for beginners to create professional-looking videos in a modern way. One of the biggest advantages of using Filmora is its resources. You can now search the resources in the search bar and drag and drop them to the timeline to preview the result without paying first.
Some of you may say, Filmora is not a free video editor since there will be a watermark at the export video. But here, I will introduce the Instant Cutter Tool which is a perfect tool to trim and merge large 4K videos and action camera videos. This free 4k tool provides a proper way of instantly trimming or merging videos without de-coding, which means the video resolution will not be changed. Using the instant cutter tool, you can upload or merge files of huge sizes in different formats, such as MP4/MOV or MTS/M2TS.
Note: You can try some legal ways to remove the Filmora watermark without paying.
Pros:
- Clean and Intuitive User Interface
- 4K Video Support
- Trim and merge large videos quickly
Cons:
- Limited video formats supported when using Instant Cutter Tool
Part 2: Things You Need to Pay Attention to Run Free 4K Video Editors
While the general features of the best free 4K video editors have been discussed, it’s important you are aware of some specific requirements your system must possess to edit your videos successfully. Irrespective of the kind of device you’re using to edit your videos, you need to pay attention to some features your device must have. However, these requirements depend on the 4K video editing software free.
- Central Processing Unit (CPU): The Processor of the software being used must be Intel Core i7, 2.3Ghz four-core; this is applicable if you will be editing your videos offline. Then, Dual Intel Xeon 2Ghz six-core is applicable if you will be editing your videos online.
- Random Access Memory (RAM): Preferably an 8GB Memory if you’re editing offline, and 32GB Memory if you’re editing online.
- Internal storage: The required storage must be sufficient because 4K videos are huge files.
Note: Offline editing refers to editing a proxy file of the original source material; online editing is the editing of the original material.
Part 3: Tips for Editing 4K Videos Smoothly
- Choose the software based on your hardware: To choose the best 4K video editing software free, you must not opt for an editing software with higher requirements than your hardware; such software won’t work well on your device. You should instead select an editing software with lower requirements.
- Split large 4K videos into several parts: It has been reiterated that 4K videos are huge files; to edit your videos smoothly, it is recommended to split up the videos and edit one after the other. This will save you from heavy data loss.
- Enable graphics accelerator: A graphic accelerator is used in video editing to turbocharge your video exporting. It’s usually clung to a video board of your system. It makes the editing easier and faster by preventing a heavy workload.