OpenShot

OpenShot Video Editor
OpenShot Video Editor
	OpenShot Video Editor Main Window
Original author	Jonathan Thomas
Developers	OpenShot Studios, LLC
Release	August 2008; 18 years ago
Stable release	4.0.1 / 27 September 2026
Written in	Python, PyQt, C++ (libopenshot library)
Operating system	Windows, macOS, Linux, ChromeOS
Available in	172 languages
Type	Video editing software
License	GPL-3.0-or-later
Website	www.openshot.org
Repository	github.com/OpenShot ;

OpenShot Video Editor is a free and open-source video editor for Windows, macOS, Linux, and ChromeOS. The project started in August 2008 by Jonathan Thomas, with the objective of providing a stable, free, and friendly to use video editor.

The program supports Windows, macOS, and Linux ever since version 2.1.0 (released in 2016). OpenShot added support for ChromeOS in version 2.6.0 (released in 2021). There is an unofficial portable version beginning in 2020.

OpenShot is written in Python, PyQT, C++ and offers a Python API. OpenShot's core video editing functionality is implemented in a C++ library, libopenshot. The core audio editing is based on the JUCE library.

History

In April 2013, Openshot switched from GTK+ to Qt. In August 2026, Openshot was ported from Qt5 to Qt6.

Video formats and codecs supported

OpenShot supports commonly used video compression formats that are supported by FFmpeg, including WebM (VP9), AVCHD (libx264), HEVC (libx265), and audio codecs such as mp3 (libmp3lame) and aac (libfaac). The program can render MPEG4, ogv, Blu-ray and DVD video, Full HD, 4K UHD, 8K UHD, and 16K UHD videos.

Features

Cross-platform video editing software (Linux, macOS, Windows and ChromeOS).
Support for many video, audio, and image formats using the FFmpeg library. For a full list of supported formats, see the FFmpeg project.
Powerful curve-based Key frame animations. The key frames interpolation mode can be quadratic Bézier curves, linear, or constant, which determines how the animated values are calculated.
Desktop integration (drag and drop support, native file browsers, window borders).
Unlimited tracks / layers Tracks are used to layer images, videos, and audio in a project. Any transparency will show through the layer below it. Tracks can also be moved up, down, or locked.
Clip resizing, scaling, trimming, snapping, rotation, cutting, alpha, and adjusting X,Y location.
Video transitions with real-time previews. The quickness and sharpness of the transitions can also be adjusted using keyframes (if needed). Overlapping two clips will create a new transition automatically.
Compositing, image overlays, watermarks When arranging clips in a video project, images on the higher tracks/layers will be displayed on top, and the lower tracks will be displayed behind them. Much like a stack of paper, items on top cover up items below them. And if you cut any holes out (i.e. transparency) the lower images will show though.
Title templates, title creation, sub-titles.
3D animated titles (and effects) using Blender.
Advanced Timeline, with features including: Drag & drop, scrolling, alignment, panning, zooming, slicing, preset animation and settings, etc.
Frame accuracy (step through each frame of video) with keyboard support.
Time-mapping and speed changes on clips (slow/fast, forward/backward, etc...).
Audio mixing and editing features, such as displaying waveforms on the timeline, or even rendering the waveform as part of your video. You can also split the audio from your video clip, and adjust each audio channel individually.
Digital video effects, including brightness, gamma, hue, greyscale, chroma key (bluescreen / greenscreen).

Reviews

A 2010 review of version 1.0 found it to be of alpha quality and not suited for productive use by the general public.
In 2011, TechRadar recognized OpenShot Video Editor as the Best Linux Application of 2011.
On 31 March 2017, a review by Bryan Lunduke on Network World lauded Openshot 2.3 for "its new transformation tool and title editor—as well as its smooth performance". Lunduke also positively mentioned the Linux distribution-agnostic packaging under usage of AppImage.
In 2018, ReShift awarded OpenShot a Tech Award in the Video-Editing category. The Tech Awards are a shared initiative of The Netherlands biggest and most influential techmedia: Computer!Totaal, PCM, Zoom.nl, Computer Idee, BesteProduct.nl, Techpanel, Power Unlimited, Insidegamer.nl and Gamer.nl.
TechRadar's Oct 2020 review gave it 2 out of 5 stars, suggested the program was stable but "some features don’t work making editing frustrating".
TechRadar's Jul. 2022 review gave it 3 out of 5 stars, stating that "the new tools mostly add useful features" and praising the editing interface as being "extremely flexible".

Notes

↑ Audio must be recorded independently and added in as a separate track; OpenShot does not have an audio dubbing feature.

References

1 2 Nestor, Marius (1 October 2015). "OpenShot 2.0 Video Editor to Be Released Soon for Linux, Mac OS X, and Windows 10". Softpedia. Archived from the original on 6 August 2020. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
↑ "v4.0.1: Fix 4.0.1 preview, recording, snapping, and logging regressions". 27 September 2026. Retrieved 4 October 2026.
↑ "OpenShot Video Editor | Simple, powerful, and free video editor for Linux!". OpenShot. 17 July 2011. Archived from the original on 9 October 2023. Retrieved 8 October 2012.
↑ Stahie, Silviu (1 June 2015). "OpenShot Video Editor to Get a Ten-Fold Increase in Performance Speed". softpedia. Archived from the original on 6 June 2023. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
↑ "Free OpenShot Video Editor is Tremendous". PCWorld. 17 June 2011. Archived from the original on 28 July 2021. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
↑ "OpenShop video editor big in 2014". opensource.com. Archived from the original on 3 June 2023. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
↑ Dale, Brady (5 August 2015). "These Free Video Editors Can Match the Pricey Ones' Features". Observer. Archived from the original on 24 September 2023. Retrieved 27 January 2020.
↑ Schroder, Carla. "How To Make Movies in Linux With OpenShot - Linux.com". Linux.com - The source for Linux Information. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
↑ Thomas, Jonathan (30 August 2016). "OpenShot 2.1 Released!". openshot.org. Archived from the original on 22 September 2021. Retrieved 22 September 2021.
↑ Thomas, Jonathan (25 August 2021). "OpenShot 2.6.0 Released - AI + Computer Vision + Audio Effects!". openshot.org. Archived from the original on 27 August 2021. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
↑ Caswell, Gord (15 January 2020). "New: OpenShot Portable 2.4.4 (video editor) Released". PortableApps. Archived from the original on 3 June 2023. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
↑ "openshot-qt/doc/developers.rst at master · OpenShot/openshot-qt". GitHub. Retrieved 30 August 2026. OpenShot Video Editor has 3 main components, a Python & PyQt user interface (:openshot-github:`openshot-qt`), a C++ audio library (:openshot-github:`libopenshot').
↑ Jonathan (25 April 2013). "Development Update, Schedule, and Funds". OpenShot Video Editor. Retrieved 30 August 2026.
↑ Larabel, Michael (30 August 2026). "OpenShot 4.0 Released In Adapting Video Editor UI To Qt6". www.phoronix.com. Retrieved 30 August 2026.
↑ "OpenShot Video Editor | Features". Archived from the original on 22 September 2020. Retrieved 6 October 2020.
↑ Loli, Eugenia (11 January 2010). "OpenShot: A Prematurely Released Video Editor – OSnews". OSnews. Archived from the original on 3 June 2023. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
1 2 Lunduke, Bryan (31 March 2017). "Linux video editor OpenShot 2.3 impresses: New tools, fast performance". Network World. Archived from the original on 12 November 2020. Retrieved 2 April 2017. OpenShot is distributed via appimage. That means they provide a single binary that can be run on just about any modern Linux distribution. I personally tested this out on openSUSE Tumbleweed with great success—but it should run just as easily on Debian, Fedora or others. I love this approach to distributing software directly from the developers.
↑ Paris, Steve (25 October 2020). "OpenShot 2.5.1 review". Archived from the original on 25 July 2021. Retrieved 25 July 2021.
↑ Paris, Steve (18 July 2022). "OpenShot 2.6.1". TechRadar. Archived from the original on 5 July 2023. Retrieved 5 July 2023.

External links

[16] Audio must be recorded independently and added in as a separate track; OpenShot does not have an audio dubbing feature.

[jonthanthomas2008-1] 1 2 Nestor, Marius (1 October 2015). "OpenShot 2.0 Video Editor to Be Released Soon for Linux, Mac OS X, and Windows 10". Softpedia. Archived from the original on 6 August 2020. Retrieved 4 January 2020.

[wikidata-23107a10950046c4cb0db1bd0a2863b2f58cb972-v20-2] "v4.0.1: Fix 4.0.1 preview, recording, snapping, and logging regressions". 27 September 2026. Retrieved 4 October 2026.

[3] "OpenShot Video Editor | Simple, powerful, and free video editor for Linux!". OpenShot. 17 July 2011. Archived from the original on 9 October 2023. Retrieved 8 October 2012.

[4] Stahie, Silviu (1 June 2015). "OpenShot Video Editor to Get a Ten-Fold Increase in Performance Speed". softpedia. Archived from the original on 6 June 2023. Retrieved 4 January 2020.

[5] "Free OpenShot Video Editor is Tremendous". PCWorld. 17 June 2011. Archived from the original on 28 July 2021. Retrieved 4 January 2020.

[6] "OpenShop video editor big in 2014". opensource.com. Archived from the original on 3 June 2023. Retrieved 4 January 2020.

[observer-7] Dale, Brady (5 August 2015). "These Free Video Editors Can Match the Pricey Ones' Features". Observer. Archived from the original on 24 September 2023. Retrieved 27 January 2020.

[8] Schroder, Carla. "How To Make Movies in Linux With OpenShot - Linux.com". Linux.com - The source for Linux Information. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 3 October 2015.

[9] Thomas, Jonathan (30 August 2016). "OpenShot 2.1 Released!". openshot.org. Archived from the original on 22 September 2021. Retrieved 22 September 2021.

[10] Thomas, Jonathan (25 August 2021). "OpenShot 2.6.0 Released - AI + Computer Vision + Audio Effects!". openshot.org. Archived from the original on 27 August 2021. Retrieved 27 August 2021.

[PortableApps-11] Caswell, Gord (15 January 2020). "New: OpenShot Portable 2.4.4 (video editor) Released". PortableApps. Archived from the original on 3 June 2023. Retrieved 26 January 2020.

[12] "openshot-qt/doc/developers.rst at master · OpenShot/openshot-qt". GitHub. Retrieved 30 August 2026. OpenShot Video Editor has 3 main components, a Python & PyQt user interface (:openshot-github:`openshot-qt`), a C++ audio library (:openshot-github:`libopenshot').

[13] Jonathan (25 April 2013). "Development Update, Schedule, and Funds". OpenShot Video Editor. Retrieved 30 August 2026.

[14] Larabel, Michael (30 August 2026). "OpenShot 4.0 Released In Adapting Video Editor UI To Qt6". www.phoronix.com. Retrieved 30 August 2026.

[15] "OpenShot Video Editor | Features". Archived from the original on 22 September 2020. Retrieved 6 October 2020.

[OSnews_2010-17] Loli, Eugenia (11 January 2010). "OpenShot: A Prematurely Released Video Editor – OSnews". OSnews. Archived from the original on 3 June 2023. Retrieved 13 May 2020.

[networkworld2017-18] 1 2 Lunduke, Bryan (31 March 2017). "Linux video editor OpenShot 2.3 impresses: New tools, fast performance". Network World. Archived from the original on 12 November 2020. Retrieved 2 April 2017. OpenShot is distributed via appimage. That means they provide a single binary that can be run on just about any modern Linux distribution. I personally tested this out on openSUSE Tumbleweed with great success—but it should run just as easily on Debian, Fedora or others. I love this approach to distributing software directly from the developers.

[19] Paris, Steve (25 October 2020). "OpenShot 2.5.1 review". Archived from the original on 25 July 2021. Retrieved 25 July 2021.

[20] Paris, Steve (18 July 2022). "OpenShot 2.6.1". TechRadar. Archived from the original on 5 July 2023. Retrieved 5 July 2023.

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