Adobe Premiere Pro has long been a top video editing option for Mac and PC users, and now Adobe Premiere is on the iPhone. It’s likely to be a welcome addition to the creative suites of content creators and iPhone filmmakers, as it aims to deliver desktop-level functionality with a simplified interface designed specifically for touchscreens and smaller displays.
Powerful tools like multi-track editing with unlimited video, audio, and text layers are available, as are tools meant for mastering videos with social media in mind. These include automatic captions with stylized subtitles and single-tap exports to every major social media platform. Premiere’s arrival on the mobile video editing scene should also catch the eye of professional video editors using Premiere Pro on a desktop or laptop setup, as projects can be moved seamlessly between mobile and desktop apps.
Generative AI credits and cloud storage will need to be purchased, but like its free Photoshop app, Adobe has made Premiere for the iPhone free to download and use without watermarks on exports. While that makes the app an enticing mobile editing solution, there are some very capable Adobe Premiere alternatives available to iPhone users who aren’t interested in paying for specialized features, who want a more established iPhone app, or who prefer an app designed more for beginners than professionals.
CapCut
CapCut is a powerful video editing app that has become popular among content creators. It’s designed to make the editing process incredibly easy, yet comes with professional-grade features. These include AI tools like video upscaling, which fixes blurry videos in one click, and a “Script to Video” tool, which uses AI to add scenes, music, and voiceovers that match your script.
The free version of CapCut includes basic editing tools like trimming, splitting, and merging clips, as well as chroma key background removal and multi-track timeline editing. Made by ByteDance, the company behind TikTok, CapCut is one of the top apps in the Photo & Video category of the App Store. It’s a popular Adobe Premiere alternative for those focused on social media platforms with their videos, or for anyone looking for free access to 4K editing.
The free version of CapCut offers enough features for beginners, but a pro version is available for $10 per month. A subscription to CapCut Pro grants access to video templates, 4K exports, an AI background remover, and no watermarks, among other unique tools. For creators more deeply invested in the Apple ecosystem, CapCut is also available in Mac and web versions.
LumaFusion
At first glance LumaFusion might not seem like an ideal alternative to Adobe Premiere for iPhone users. The fully functional LumaFusion app costs $30 to install, and in-app purchases are required for access to specialized features. But there is a lot to this particular video editing app, and what it has in common with Adobe Premiere is its intention. LumaFusion is designed with professional video editors in mind.
While many mobile video editing apps thrive by offering the convenience of templates and access to generic tools, LumaFusion offers ultimate control of a video project. Editing timelines can have up to 12 video and audio tracks and an additional 12 audio only tracks for multi-layered edits. LUT support is available for color grading. Audio controls allow for deep audio mixes. And titles are completely customizable.
LumaFusion’s $30 pricing is a one-time purchase, meaning there are no inherent subscription fees and no costs when an update to the app becomes available. Final Cut Pro users may be interested in some of the in-app purchases, as the ability to export a LumaFusion project to Final Cut is among them. LumaFusion is functional and powerful enough for most with its initial $30 purchase, which includes access to the iPad app as well.
Edits
Instagram has developed a video editing app, and not only is it a quality Adobe Premiere alternative, but it’s also meant to be a direct rival to CapCut. The app is called Edits, and it’s completely free with no subscription fees, no watermarks on exports, and no hidden upgrade costs. Edits is Instagram’s attempt to provide its creators with editing tools that can do more than what’s available in the Instagram app alone.
With Edits, iPhone users have access to 4K export capabilities and tools specialized for social media content creation. It integrates seamlessly with the Instagram app, with Instagram’s music library directly accessible within Edits for use with the videos you’re editing. Edits also allows users to access Instagram’s automatic caption generation and to apply AI animation to static images.
Edits tailors its user experience toward vloggers and content creators who don’t want to get too involved in the editing process. The available tools are more limited than what you’ll find in Adobe Premiere, but Edits is a powerful tool for Instagram power users. With the ability to capture 10 minutes of video right within the app, Edits delivers an entirely Instagram-powered content creation workflow.
iMovie
While Final Cut Pro would be a natural Adobe Premiere alternative for iPhone users, Apple has been keen on keeping Final Cut Pro on the iPad. Filling in for it on the iPhone, however, is iMovie, Apple’s cross-device video editing app. It can’t match Adobe Premiere’s professional-level features, but it has never tried to. For over two decades, iMovie’s goal has been to prioritize a user-friendly experience over a complex, professional toolset.
The app focuses on simplicity and ease of use, providing templates, themes, and automated features that help beginners create polished videos. Basic tools like trimming, splitting, and adding titles are there for splicing home videos and memories together. iMovie also supports Cinematic Mode on iPhone, and it even gives users the ability to adjust a video clip’s depth-of-field effect after the fact.
The beginner-friendly intentions of iMovie don’t necessarily have to limit a video’s potential. All of its features can be maximized with a little creativity, and for an app that’s completely free across iPhone, iPad, and Mac platforms, iMovie can prove to be as capable as the hands it’s put in.
Splice
Splice positions itself as a quality mobile video editor through an intuitive user experience and the inclusion of pro-level tools. Speed ramping, color correction, chroma key background removal, and multi-track audio mixing are the kinds of features one might think are reserved for desktop editing applications, but they can all be found within the Splice interface.
Splice also has a lot of features tailored to social media creators. They include effects for animating photos and the ability to record voice-over right within the app. Splice will even generate titles for the voice track automatically. When editing a video with Splice, you’ll have access to Artlist and Shutterstock libraries for royalty-free stock music and stock images, and song imports are available from iTunes collections.
Unlike Adobe Premiere, Splice requires a paid subscription. The app is free to download, but if you want to put it to use, you will need a subscription. Pricing tiers include weekly, monthly, and annual options. While Splice may not seem like a great Adobe Premiere alternative to iPhone users looking for free solutions, its capabilities as a professional video editing tool and the included royalty-free music library make a subscription worth considering.
