Top Free Video Editing Programs

There are many free video editing software programs available for download today, but not all of them are good.

Many programs simply don't do what the manufacturers say that they will do, and others don't provide enough - or any support.
Of course, most free software does not include the same level or quality of support that you would expect to find with software that you purchase commercially.
While it is true that you get what you pay for, there really are some good free video editing software available out there.

Here are the top five that we have found:

	Microsoft Movie Maker Already installed on newer computers that are running Windows XP, Movie Maker has drag and drop features to make creating and editing your movie easier. Microsoft has many add-ons for this software, and upgrades are available through the website. This is one of the best free video editing software programs available.
	Apple iMovieApple iMovie is comparable to Windows Movie Maker, but Apple iMovie is used on the Mac operating system. Apple iMovie has many advanced features and add-ons. Unfortunately, the software is only free if you buy a new Mac system. If you want the software without buying the system, it is available for purchase separately. One of the best free video editing programs available for Mac users.
	Avid FreeDV Avid FreeDV is available for both Windows and Mac operating systems, and includes basic video and audio editing capabilities, as well as up to two streams of real-time effects. On the whole, a solid video editing program that is slightly hard to use, but very powerful once you learn its ins and outs.
	Wax Wax is a high performance and flexible free video editing software program. It started out as a college project, and has since grown. Wax is good for both home users and professionals. It can be used as a stand-alone application, or as a plug-in to other video editors. The software also features unlimited video and audio tracks with top-down compositing.
	Zwei-Stein Zwei-Stein is great free video editing software, but the user interface is very technical. It is full featured, offering many different effects. It can edit up to 256 video, audio, and still image clips. There are up to 64 effects, which can be chained serially. An interesting program that's worth looking at.

Conclusion

Microsoft Movie Maker for Windows users, and Apple iMovie for Mac users are probably the two easiest to use free video editing software programs available. Both products will allow you to very quickly perform simple video editing tasks.

However, if you want to able to add more interesting effects and transitions to your videos, you might want to check out commercial video editing software. These programs provide very intuitive user interfaces to complete basic editing tasks, but are also complex enough to let you experiment with advanced video effects.