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Side-by-side comparison · Video & Audio

CapCut vs OpusClip vs Runway

Everything that matters when choosing between them, in one place: our rating, what each can do, what they cost, and the trade-offs.

CapCut

4.0

From AUD $37.99/mo

Best overall

OpusClip

4.3

From $15/mo

Runway

3.8

From $15/mo

Comparing 3 tools, the maximum.

At a glance

CapCut

4.0

Pick it if: Anyone making short social videos who wants a capable editor without a steep learning curve.

OpusClip

4.3
Best overall

Pick it if: Creators, podcasters and marketers who record themselves talking and need a steady stream of short-form videos.

Runway

3.8

Pick it if: Creators, marketers and agencies who need custom footage without a shoot.

Overview

AttributeCapCutOpusClipRunway
In one lineFree phone and desktop editor for TikToks and Reels, with auto captions and templates.Turns long videos into short clips, and edits raw talking-head footage by chat.Make short AI video clips from text or images, then edit footage by describing changes.
Pricing modelFreemiumFreemiumFreemium
Starting priceAUD $37.99/mo$15/mo$15/mo
Free plan Yes Yes Yes
Works with Claude Code No Yes Yes

Rating breakdown

Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.

AttributeCapCutOpusClipRunway
Overall rating4.04.3Winner3.8
Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it.
4.5
4.5
3.5
FeaturesHow much it can do, and how well the pieces fit together.
4.0
4.5
4.5
Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them.
3.5
4.0
4.0
Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan.
4.0
4.0
3.0
Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over.
4.0
4.5
4.0

Feature comparison

A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.

AttributeCapCutOpusClipRunway
Access & platform
Free plan Yes Yes Yes
Mobile app Yes No Yes
Desktop app Yes No No
Browser extension No No No
API access No– Yes
Teams & business
Team workspace Yes Yes Yes
Enterprise plan or SSO– Yes Yes
Connects to other apps Yes Yes–
Open source or self-hosted No No No
AI abilities
Works with your files Yes Yes Yes
Understands images Yes Yes Yes
Makes images Yes Yes Yes
Makes video Yes Yes Yes
Writes code No No No
Runs agents or automations No Yes No
Learns your brand or style Yes Yes No
Works in many languages Yes Yes–
Capabilities score11/ 1711/ 179/ 17

Pricing

Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.

AttributeCapCutOpusClipRunway
Plans

Free

Free

Most everyday social editing.

Free

Free

Trying it on a few videos.

Free

Free

Seeing what it can do before you pay.

ProOur pick

AUD $37.99/mo, or AUD $299.99/yr

Anyone posting several times a week.

Starter

$15/mo

Solo creators posting a few shorts a week.

Standard

$15/mo, or $12/mo billed yearly

Occasional clips and short social videos.

Ultra

AUD $111.99/mo, or AUD $1,299.99/yr

Heavy users of CapCut's AI video and image generation.

ProOur pick

$29/mo

Anyone posting daily or running a team.

ProOur pick

$35/mo, or $28/mo billed yearly

Anyone making video most weeks.

Teams

From AUD $18/seat/mo

Small teams sharing templates and a brand kit.

Business

Custom

Agencies and media companies at volume.

Max

$95/mo, or $76/mo billed yearly

Agencies and heavy daily users.

Team and Enterprise

See website

Companies that need shared workspaces and security controls.

Which plan to pickStay on Free until a template or effect you need turns out to be Pro-only. When that happens, take Pro on the yearly plan. Ultra's extra AI credits only matter if you generate a lot of AI video or images inside CapCut.Free is enough to see if the clips are any good. Starter removes the watermark, but Pro is the plan most people end up on: it adds the scheduler, all 9 posting platforms, extra brand templates, 16:9 and 1:1 reframing and export to Premiere. Business only makes sense for agencies or media teams.Use the free credits to learn what prompts work, then go straight to Pro. Standard sounds cheap, but 625 credits is only a few minutes of good video a month and you'll spend more topping up than you saved.

Key features

AttributeCapCutOpusClipRunway
Standout features
  • Auto captions
  • Templates
  • Background removal and AI tools
  • Long to short
  • Script to video
  • Phone and desktop
  • ClipAnything
  • AI Producer
  • Captions
  • ReframeAnything
  • Brand templates
  • Scheduler and API
  • Gen-4.5 video
  • Several models in one app
  • Edit by describing
  • References
  • Extend and upscale
  • Audio tools

Pros and cons

AttributeCapCutOpusClipRunway
Pros
  • The free plan covers most everyday editing
  • Auto captions and templates save hours each week
  • Works on phone and desktop with sync
  • Huge library of effects, music and stock footage
  • The fastest way to turn one long video into lots of shorts
  • AI Producer does a full edit of raw footage from a short brief
  • Captions and reframing are accurate and easy to fix
  • Scheduler, API and MCP mean you can automate posting
  • Generating and editing footage live in one app
  • Several top models to try under one subscription
  • Reference images keep people and products consistent
  • Mature, stable product with an API for automation
Cons
  • Pro-only templates and effects watermark your export until you pay
  • Pricing varies by country and app store, and can change without notice
  • ByteDance ownership and the broad content licence worry some businesses
  • Long-form or precise editing is clunky next to Descript or Premiere
  • Built for talking content, so it's weak on cinematic or screen-recorded videos
  • Credits run out quickly on long videos and repeated edits
  • The scheduler, team seats and Premiere export need Pro
  • AI Producer is still in beta, with a 5-minute limit per video
  • Credits run out quickly and the free ones never refill
  • Clips are short and often need several attempts to get right
  • Veo clips come with sound built in; here audio is a separate step
  • Prompting well takes practice

Who each one is for

AttributeCapCutOpusClipRunway
Best for
  • TikToks, Reels and Shorts
  • Automatic captions
  • Trend templates
  • Editing on your phone
  • Turning podcasts into shorts
  • Editing talking-head videos
  • Auto captions and B-roll
  • Reframing to 9:16
  • Scheduling to every platform
  • B-roll and product clips
  • Editing existing footage with a prompt
  • Trying several video models in one place
  • Consistent characters across shots
You'll find it used by
  • Social media managers
  • Content creators
  • Small businesses
  • Agencies
  • Podcasters
  • YouTubers
  • Coaches
  • Marketing teams
  • Agencies
  • Marketers
  • Agencies
  • Filmmakers
  • Content creators

How we compare

Ratings are our own, from using each tool, across ease of use, features, output quality, value for money, speed & reliability.

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