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Comparisons

iMovie alternatives in 2026 for Mac, iPhone and Windows

Vidova is our pick: its AI agent edits your clips from a brief and adds the captions iMovie lacks, on a Mac or a PC. CapCut, Edits, Clipchamp and DaVinci Resolve compared.

6 min read

Last updated

A raw clip of a bright bedroom in grey, beside the same room in the finished edit at night with the words by night

The short answer

Vidova is our pick for an iMovie alternative: you upload your clips, describe the video, and its AI agent cuts it with word-by-word captions and titles, in the browser on a Mac, a PC or a phone. CapCut has templates and auto captions. Edits by Instagram is a free phone app for Reels. Microsoft Clipchamp is a simple free editor in the browser, DaVinci Resolve is a free full editor, and Adobe Premiere mobile is a free full editor on a phone.

Key takeaways

  • iMovie runs only on Apple devices, and its App Store listing describes no automatic captions.
  • For a free editor on Windows, use Clipchamp or DaVinci Resolve.
  • For captions and templates on a phone, use Edits or CapCut.

What iMovie does and what it costs

iMovie is Apple's free editor for Mac, iPhone and iPad. On iPhone, Magic Movie builds a video from your clips, storyboards guide you through a trailer or a recipe video, and it exports up to 4K at 60 fps.

The whole app is free. Its App Store listing describes no automatic captions, and its Mac listing names no AI features.

Why people look for a iMovie alternative

  • It runs only on Apple devices.
  • Its listing describes no automatic captions.
  • It has few templates and effects for social video.

iMovie alternatives compared

From each vendor's own pages. Sources are linked at the end.
EditorBest forRuns onPaid from (US)Free option
iMovieA free, simple edit on Apple devicesMac, iPhone and iPadFreeThe whole app is free
VidovaA finished video from your own clips, cut by an AI agentBrowser on desktop and phone$19 a month7 days with 2,000 credits and no watermark
CapCutTemplates and effectsPhones, Windows, Mac and webStandard $9.99 a month on the US App StoreFree app. Some templates add a watermark
EditsReels made on a phoneiPhone, Android and MacFree4K, no watermark
Microsoft ClipchampA simple editor in the browserEdge or Chrome, and a Windows appPremium with Microsoft 365 Personal or FamilyUp to 1080p, no watermark
DaVinci ResolveA free full editorMac, Windows and LinuxStudio listed at $236 onceUp to Ultra HD at 60 fps
Adobe Premiere mobileA free full editor on a phoneiPhone and AndroidFree. Generative credits cost extra4K, no watermark

How we judged them

We read iMovie's pages and each alternative's pricing page, help center and store listing between 27 October and 14 November 2026. We compared what each tool is built for, where it runs, its price and its free limits. We did not run our own test of the other editors. Vidova is our product, and it is our pick. We say where another tool fits better.

Vidova: our pick for an edit with captions, on any computer

In Vidova, you upload your clips and describe the video. The AI agent edits a real multitrack timeline from your own footage: it picks the shots, cuts on the beat, removes pauses and filler words, adds word-by-word captions and titles, and reframes 16:9 to 9:16 by tracking a face. Before it hands the cut over, it previews frames of its own work and runs a quality check. You can change any clip by hand or by asking.

Example brief
Make a 30-second video of our holiday flat from these clips. Show the room by day, then by night, add captions and end on the view.

Downsides: Vidova is built around the agent, so people who want to place every clip by hand have more mature manual editors. You can try it for 7 days with 2,000 credits and no watermark. The free plan adds a watermark, exports at 720p and takes projects up to 1 minute long. Paid plans start at $19 a month, remove the watermark and export up to 4K at 60 fps.

CapCut: best for templates and effects

CapCut has the largest set of templates, effects and AI tools, on phones, Windows, Mac and the web. The US App Store lists Standard at $9.99 a month and Pro at $19.99 a month.

Downside: some templates, stock and the outro add a watermark, and CapCut is not available in some countries, such as India.

Edits by Instagram: best free app for Reels

Edits is Meta's free editor for iPhone, Android and Mac. It adds captions automatically, and its store listing says it exports in 4K with no watermark.

Downside: you make the edit yourself, and there is no Windows or web version.

Microsoft Clipchamp: best free editor in a browser

Clipchamp runs in Edge or Chrome on Windows, Mac, Linux and Chromebook, with a desktop app on Windows 10 and 11. Its free plan exports up to 1080p with no watermark and includes AI subtitles, voiceovers and silence removal.

Downside: free stock is limited, and 4K export comes with Microsoft 365 Personal or Family.

DaVinci Resolve: best free full editor

DaVinci Resolve is free on Mac, Windows and Linux, with editing, colour, audio and effects pages, and exports up to Ultra HD at 60 fps. Studio adds the Neural Engine AI tools and is listed at $236.

Downside: the free version has no Neural Engine AI tools, and it takes time to learn.

Adobe Premiere mobile: best free full editor on a phone

Adobe Premiere for iPhone and Android is free, with a multitrack timeline, templates and speed effects, and its listings say it exports up to 4K without watermarks.

Downside: generative AI features use paid credits.

How to choose

  • If you want the edit and the captions made for you, use Vidova.
  • If you want templates and effects, use CapCut. For Reels on a phone, use Edits.
  • On Windows, use Clipchamp for a simple edit or DaVinci Resolve for a full one.
  • For a free full editor on a phone, use Adobe Premiere mobile.

Sources

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