The recent growth of the Internet has completely revolutionized the world, and to such an extent its influence has increased that it has even crept into our day to day lives. This rapid evolution has led to it becoming one of the key drivers behind the changes taking place in technology and has brought forward the development of so many important tools, that have impacted our daily lives greatly.This, in turn, has led to Mass Media becoming a key figure in modern culture which has become deeply embedded into our lives, changing the way we perceive the world. With the influence of media becoming widespread, it has thus led to an emergence of competitors in the industry.

To keep on staying relevant and being ahead of others, one thus needs to be aware of the best video editors out there that can significantly improve the quality of the work being done. So, today we’ll be comparing some of the best video editors out there that are available for Ubuntu and how they mainly differentiate from one another.

KdenLive

KdenLive is one of the best open-source video editing software available for Linux. Being cross platform along with having the capability to support multiple video formats such as 3Gp and MP4, has made it a very popular choice among video editors. Offering features that include multitrack timeline editing, a customizable interface, wide range of effects and transitions and tools for cropping, editing and deleting videos, KdenLive is a powerful software that should be one of the first choices on a users’ list of video editing tools for Ubuntu.

Let us now look at some of the key features of KdenLive in detail.

(a) Multi-track Timeline Editing

One of the best features of KdenLive is its support for multi-track editing. This allows users to work on multiple audio and video tracks simultaneously and merge them together later on.

Best Video Editor for Ubuntu ubuntu VIdeo Editing

In the image above, we can see KdenLive allows one to have multiple audio and video tracks in which we can add markers, edit track names, mute audio and also lock tracks. Along with this, we can also add or delete tracks as well. Image below for reference:

Best Video Editor for Ubuntu ubuntu VIdeo Editing

(b) Customizable Interface and Shortcuts

Another great feature that KdenLive offers is for users to easily customize their workspace. Users can add multiple tabs, remove them from the workspace and can even change themes.

Best Video Editor for Ubuntu ubuntu VIdeo Editing

The keyboard shortcuts present already can also be customized according to one’s preferences.

(c) Various Effects and Transitions

Wide range of effects and transitions such as distortion, color adjustment tools, masking, etc. are available in KdenLive. Along with this, users can also update or add custom transitions to their videos.

Best Video Editor for Ubuntu ubuntu VIdeo Editing

Lightworks

A huge drawback of KdenLive is that it’s not as stable as other professional video editors. An amazing alternative to KdenLive for Ubuntu is Lightworks which is an award-winning, cross-platform professional video editing tool. Offering features such as timeline editing, drag and drop support and a variety of audio and video effects make it a very popular choice among video editors.

Lightworks is available in two versions – Lightworks free and Lightworks pro (paid). The latter can support multiple formats and resolutions, along with timeline rending and many more features. Unfortunately, Lightworks is not open-source.

Let us now look at some of the key features of Lightworks in detail.

(a) Timeline Editing

Similar to KdenLive, Lightworks offers a timeline system with tracks where users can use the combinations of audio and video tracks to edit their videos. In addition to this, users can mute audio, zoom into and out of the timeline and can easily add or delete tracks. Lightworks also allows users to remove redundant gaps and export their videos to YouTube and Vimeo.

Best Video Editor for Ubuntu ubuntu VIdeo Editing

(b) Multiple Workspaces

Another fascinating feature of Lightworks is its ability to allow users to have multiple workspaces called rooms, and that too inside a single project. This appears to be extremely useful when users are working on large projects and need to divide their work into different stages. The rooms can simultaneously be worked on without disrupting any work being done in other rooms. Image below as reference:

Best Video Editor for Ubuntu ubuntu VIdeo Editing

(c) Wide array of Video and Sound Effects

Lightworks’ powerful nature can be seen by its collection of effects and filters bundled together inside of it. From color filters to styling, Lightworks has abundance of tools for users to use. Furthermore, it also has several transitions such as blend or dissolve that can easily be mixed together.

Best Video Editor for Ubuntu ubuntu VIdeo Editing

Along with this, Lightworks has a separate sound effects tab which itself has numerous amazing filters to its name.

Best Video Editor for Ubuntu ubuntu VIdeo Editing

(d) Backup System

When working with large projects, often is the case that work is being done on several desktops and thus there might be a need to transfer the work from one working environment to another. Lightworks offers a backup copy tool that users can use to export all their data into a single folder.

Best Video Editor for Ubuntu ubuntu VIdeo Editing

DaVinci Resolve – Honorary Mention

DaVinci Resolve is a professional, cross-platform video editing tool that is often used in making movies and shows. With features like multi-camera editing, 3D workspace and on-screen annotations, it’s no surprise DaVinci Resolve is one of the most popular options.

However, as its makers, Blackmagic Design, only support CentOS or RedHat, therefore its installation process for Ubuntu is a real hassle as it needs a number of dependencies and scripts to be installed alongside it. Moreover, its free version has a number of limitations compared to the Windows version such as not having h264 support.

Which Video Editor is Best for Ubuntu?

Ubuntu has some of the best video editors out there and it’s hard to say which one offers the best features and services. However, in terms popularity and user reviews, KdenLive and Lightworks are two of the more in demand softwares. KdenLive is better suited for small projects where you need to make simple edits quickly. Lightworks works best for large projects, where you need work to be done in batches as quickly as possible. Both are amazing tools that have a great reputation in the community.

About the author

Best Video Editor for Ubuntu ubuntu VIdeo Editing

Zeeman Memon

Zeeman is a freelance content marketer, software engineer and tech blogger who loves to blog on his tech blog in his free time.