10 Best Apps to Make Instagram Reels

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Instagram Reels are super effective for gaining new followers and keeping your current followers entertained. However, not everyone knows how to make an engaging Reel that not only gets their message across but does so in a visually-appealing way. This guide discusses some of the best apps for making viral-worthy Instagram Reels.

Tip: did you know that you can also add photos to your Instagram Reels? We show you how.

Content

1. InShot

Price: Free / starting at $3.99 per month

InShot (Android | iOS) is an excellent editing tool that takes the hassle and frustration out of creating Instagram Reels. From adding props, text, stickers, music, and emojis to adjusting image size and saturation, InShot gives you plenty of creative control over your work without requiring any complicated processes. After you are done editing, InShot allows you to save your video in your desired quality. It also has a one-tap share button that enables you to post your finished video directly to your Instagram or any other social platform. The best part is that all of these features can be accessed without paying a dime. However, the free version doesn’t give the users access to all of its filters and effects and is full of ads.

Pros

  • User-friendly interface
  • Suitable for both beginner and experienced video editors
  • Lets you save your video in the desired quality
  • Exporting videos to Instagram is super easy

Cons

  • Free version contains ads and no extra features
  • Videos created with the free version have a watermark

Good to know: if you want to keep your entire Instagram reel or story visible and accessible, be sure to maintain Safe Zones.

2. VN Video Editor Maker VlogNow

Price: Free / starting at $9.99 per month

VN Video Editor Maker VlogNow (Android | iOS) is a dedicated video editor that provides various powerful tools for crafting engaging content. You get access to capabilities like custom transitions, voiceover effects, and an extensive library of soundtracks and sound effects. Most impressively, you can speed up or slow down video clips and seamlessly integrate them into your creations. Perhaps VN’s best feature is the speed at which you can create videos. You can literally create videos in minutes, making VN Editor ideal for those who want to post frequently on Instagram. Despite offering so many features, VN Editor is mostly free to use, although more advanced options are hidden behind a paywall.

Pros

  • Has appealing filters and effects
  • Includes font customization options
  • Free version does not add a watermark

Cons

  • Audio and video don’t always sync in the final edit
  • Sometimes videos on the camera roll aren’t saved
  • Not all features are free

Tip: stumble upon something worth sharing? Learn how to repost content on Instagram.

3. PicsArt

Price: Free / starting at $4.99 per week

PicsArt (Android| iOS) offers a range of useful features, like animations, Chroma key, and multi-clip trimming. The app also has an extensive library of free downloadable content so that creators can easily find photo and video elements to customize their Reels. You can also edit videos in your browser, which is something you can’t do with most other apps. Additionally, most of its features are free to use, making it a great choice for amateur editors. On the downside, you’ll find quite a few ads plaguing Picsart’s free version.

Pros

  • Excellent filters and effects
  • Has a vast library of photos, stickers, templates, etc.
  • Very easy to use

Cons

  • The free version contains ads
  • Can take up a lot of storage space
  • Free version adds a watermark to the videos

4. Clips

Price: Free

If you’re an iOS user looking for a free app to create viral-worthy Instagram Reels, Clips may be just be it. Using computer vision and machine learning, Clips intelligently recognizes what’s in the video to suggest a soundtrack. This AI-based video editor even assists with transitions among clips. Finally, all of this is backed up by speedy performance and reliability on iPhones and iPads. However, it is important to note that Clips is not suitable for complex video editing and is only good for creating quick and casual Instagram Reels and Stories.

Pros

  • Straightforward user interface
  • Perfect for creating quick Reels
  • Does not add watermark in free version

Cons

  • Offers very limited editing features
  • Works only on iOS devices

5. Canva

Price: Free / starting at $12.99 per month

Canva (Android | iOS) has a large library of royalty-free photos and videos that can be used in your Reels without worrying about copyright issues. Additionally, Canva offers a wide range of templates for quickly creating professional-looking Reels. The best part is that these templates can also be custom edited so that you can add your own touch. On the downside, you need to buy the premium version for unrestricted access to its features. Additionally, the Canva video editor can be glitchy and slow, making it frustrating to use at times.

Pros

Cons

  • Doesn’t always offer the smoothest experience
  • Adds a watermark in the free version

6. Adobe Rush

Price: Free / starting at $4.99 per month

Adobe Rush (Android | iOS) has some excellent editing tools for making interesting Reels with titles, transitions, and voiceovers. It also offers a wide range of templates and presets that make it easy to create professional-looking videos. You don’t have to worry about your videos taking up your phone’s storage. Just upload your content on Adobe’s cloud storage and access it anywhere, anytime. What’s more, it is quite rare to experience bugs and issues on Rush, as it is backed by the typical quality standards of Adobe. However, where the app doesn’t shine is when it comes to its transitions and audio tools.

Pros

  • Offers cloud storage
  • Works smoothly
  • Doesn’t add a watermark in free version

Cons

  • Limited transitions and audio tools
  • Doesn’t let you choose the export file type

Good to know: make your posts and comments stand out by changing the fonts you use on Instagram.

7. KineMaster

Price: Free / starting at $11.99 per month

With its simple interface and features, KineMaster (Android| iOS) is very easy to use. Still, it bundles a wide variety of features, such as filters, transition, animation, trimming, speed control, etc. You can also add music and sound effects to your videos and share them directly on Instagram. The app is relatively new and striving to add new features to improve video editing and creation in terms of ease and features. This means that for now, KineMaster has rather limited editing features and is only good for quick edits.

Pros

  • Interface and features are easy to use
  • App is expanding its functions

Cons

  • Not suitable for creators who prefer high customization and personalization
  • Adds a watermark in free version

8. Filmora

Price: Free / starting at $6.99 per month

Filmora (Android | iOS) is an incredibly user-friendly app, even if you’ve never edited a video before. Plus, there are plenty of built-in templates and tools to help you get the most out of your Reels. With Filmora, you can create a full video in a couple of minutes just by dragging and dropping video clips, adding music, etc. – removing all the complexity. On the downside, adding one audio on top of another can be a bit tricky. Moreover, while editing a video with Filmora is quick, exporting it can be excruciatingly long.

Pros

  • An excellent video-making app for beginners
  • Easy-to-use editing tools
  • Varied filters, effects, transitions, and stickers to play with

Cons

  • Working with multiple audio tracks is difficult
  • Adds a watermark in free version

Tip: prefer silent videos? Learn how to remove sound from a clip on Android.

9. Splice

Price: Free / $9.99

Splice (Android | iOS) brings various custom editing tools, such as brightness and contrast adjustments, tilt-shift effects, blurs, speed slideshow options, and backgrounds, so you can have control over every aspect of your video. Some of its most useful features are trimming and cropping, transforming clips seamlessly with transitions, and enhancing videos with effects. For social media influencers, this is one of the best video-making and editing apps out there, as it enables smooth and easy sharing of videos on various social media platforms. But on the downside, the app crashes a little too often, and there may be copyright issues with some of its music tracks.

Pros

  • Highly intuitive interface
  • Lip sync and meme audio options
  • Video preview in real -time
  • Exporting videos to Instagram is super quick and easy
  • Doesn’t add a watermark in free version

Cons

  • The app is a little unstable
  • Some audio material might not be 100% legal to use

10. WeVideo

Price: Free / starting at $5.99 monthly

With WeVideo (Android | iOS), you can enhance your Reels with text overlays, transitions, filters, and much more. Additionally, you get access to a vast music library, video effects, titles, and animations so that you can make unique content quickly and effectively. The app also makes it easy to perform complex tasks, like adding transitions and making sure the audio and visuals are well-synced. On top of that, WeVideo provides you with cloud storage. What the app doesn’t do is support the .PGN format, and many of its templates seem a little outdated.

Pros

  • Great for complete beginners
  • A vast library of visuals and sounds to use
  • Provides cloud storage
  • Features instructions so that you can improve video-editing skills

Cons

  • Has outdated templates
  • Adds a watermark in the free version

Tip: see what you want to see on Instagram by turning off suggested posts in your feed.

Frequently Asked Questions

What counts as a viral Reel on Instagram?

Upon receiving more than 5 million views in a three- to seven-day period, a video is considered viral. Viral status on Reels means that more people are seeing your work than usual. This can have a positive impact on your reach, engagement rates, and following.

Are Reels different from IGTV videos?

With the rising popularity of short-form video content, Instagram made changes to its video format and removed the IGTV tab in October 2021. It has now merged the IGTV feature with Instagram Reels.

Does Instagram Reels have a built-in editor?

Yes, Instagram Reels does have a built-in editor that lets you make some quick edits to your short videos or create Reels using built-in templates. However, the built-in editor doesn’t offer many features like other video editing apps that were covered in this list. It’s best to make your Reels using these editors rather than Instagram’s built-in editor.

Al images and screenshots by Ojash Yadav.

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Ojash Yadav

Ojash has been writing about tech back since Symbian-based Nokia was the closest thing to a smartphone. He spends most of his time writing, researching, or ranting about Bitcoin. Ojash also contributes to other popular sites like MakeUseOf, SlashGear, and MacBookJournal.

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