WeVideo originally started as Creaza, an online creative tool for kids that can be used in both school and home.
Since the program was widely used in several European countries, the investors decided to create a spin-out company that focuses on video creation, and so WeVideo was born.
While the limited publishing minutes for the free plan where you can get to know them, and the 720p resolution for cheaper packages might put some users off, it does a lot of things right.
Things like cross-platform compatibility, free cloud storage for easy file access on any system, and access to licensed music make this a fairly attractive option.
The fact that it’s online and web-based with cloud storage was even a deciding factor for me as I work on a Chromebook, but also ideal if you occasionally want to access your account from different computers.
I think it’s the best online video editing tool I’ve found and perfect for my marketing needs for use in promotional videos and blog how-tos.
Especially now that it’s one of the first platforms to add vertical videos for Instagram Stories and now Pinterest videos too!
Check the different packages WeVideo offers here to get started yourself.
The cloud is a hot topic these days. We’ve got email in the cloud, & backup in the cloud, not to mention project management, image editing and pretty much anything you use your PC for in the cloud.
The big advantage is that you can access it from anywhere and you never lose anything due to your computer crashing or your USB storage getting corrupted (didn’t we all have something like this?)
WeVideo wants to add another type to the mix: a cloud-based video editor.
That’s all nice, but you also just want to be able to edit videos, of course.
The features that I use the most and find indispensable are:
- different layers of videos and/or images on top of each other
- text over your video with fun animations
- play video slow-motion, or faster
- works online in your browser (also on a Chromebook)
The only downside to this cloud video editor is that all your raw footage has to find its way into the editor. A decent five-minute video can sometimes take hours of raw footage to shoot, and then you’ll find yourself having to wait a while for it to upload.
Fortunately, WeVideos seamlessly connects to Dropbox, Google Drive, and other cloud-based file storage services, making this less of an issue (I always work from Google Drive with my Chromebook).
WeVideo makes it easy to export to connected cloud services, but the free option is watermarked so the free trial is really for testing whether the way of working is right for your needs but then
Here’s my approach: When I use my Galaxy S to film footage, it’s automatically uploaded to Google Drive. Uploading takes time, but I don’t have to think about it or do anything for it, it’s automatic.
Once the files are in Google Drive, all I have to do is link WeVideo to them and it quickly pulls them into the editor. Running WeVideo with a gigabyte of material took less than ten minutes, as long as everything was on Google Drive.
You can do the same with Dropbox if you prefer. Or upload directly from your computer or phone, but that takes much longer.
If you also want to see if this video editor suits your needs, then start here with a free account.
Once your footage is in the editor, the editing experience is simple and enjoyable. WeVideo provides a timeline that you can drag clips into. It’s easy to trim clips and add transitions as needed, and there’s a rich library of soundtracks to use.
Fading audio in and out takes just a few clicks, and the whole system felt responsive and familiar to anyone with experience with desktop video applications.
One advantage of WeVideo’s cloud-based nature is collaboration: you can invite friends to upload footage to your project and even make several edits based on the same footage. This collaboration workflow is one of the main selling points of the service.
Once you’re done editing, it’s time to export your work.
Free accounts can only export very low resolution (480p) video signals. I understand the limitation, but I wish WeVideo was more open about it and made it clear as part of the registration process, rather than revealing it at the last possible moment when you’ve already put in all your time and effort.
It’s easy to connect WeVideo to YouTube and other web video services, so you don’t have to download a file and upload it to YouTube yourself. WeVideo does it all on its own.
If you need to collaborate on a video project with a distributed team, WeVideo offers significant benefits and allows you to share footage and edits in ways otherwise impossible. It can also be useful for the occasional solo project, as long as you don’t mind uploading your videos to the cloud before editing.
Introducing online video editing with the free plan
Their free plan offers users a way to try out their editor at no cost, but their paid plans offer a lot more functionality. But is it worth the cost? Find out in this full review.
Advantages:
- Multi-platform video editor: WeVideo is available to use on Windows, Mac, Android and iOS, so you don’t have to worry about device compatibility.
- Advanced editing with a simple interface: Don’t be fooled by WeVideo’s simple layout. The editor includes some advanced editing tools used by the pros.
- A full library of licensed songs: WeVideo offers 22 licensed songs for free to use, and blows it up to 100 songs when you subscribe to their paid packages.
- Cloud Storage: For a seamless editing experience between your devices, you can upload clips to the cloud and access them anytime, anywhere from another device.
Cons:
- 720p resolution for the cheapest package: If you want to display your videos in 1080p and 4K, unfortunately you have to subscribe to a more expensive plan from WeVideo, although these are also very affordable
- Limited minutes of video allowed for free plan: Offering a free plan for everyone is great news, you can only publish video with a total of 5 minutes per month, but this means you’ll probably want to switch very soon to paid and that free is really just to see how the tool works and if it is something for you.
If you’re a little unsure about spending on a WeVideo subscription but would like to check out their editor, you may want to sign up for their free package, which lets you use their basic video editor for videos up to 5 minutes of length per month .
You also get 1GB of cloud storage, 22 fully licensed songs from a variety of genres, and the ability to download your work to your computer.
What is video editing in the paid packages
For a package that gives you more options but doesn’t incur high costs, check out their Power package.For $ 4,99 per month you can:
- publish videos with a maximum of 30 minutes per month,
- enjoy 20 GB of cloud storage,
- access their music library of 100 licensed songs,
- download your work to your computer,
- use premium editing features such as green screen, screen recording and slow motion effects,
- remove the WeVideo watermark
- and enjoy email support from their team.
If you only plan on using WeVideo for a single project or a seasonal event, then checking out by month should be a perfect fit. Then it’s $9.99 per individual month, while you normally pay $4.99 per month for a whole year in advance.
That’s quite a nice discount!
Finally, the Unlimited plan gives you everything you probably want out of WeVideo as a single user, what WeVideo has to offer: unlimited publishing time and cloud storage, 1080p and 4K video playback, their full music library, choice to purchase additional product licenses for a collaborative project, all the features of the previous plan with the addition of custom branding, call-to-action links, faster video processing, and priority support. This one costs $7.99 per month.
If you’re signed up to one of their lower-end packages but still want to display 4K videos, you can purchase this feature for just $3 per video export.
This works for users who don’t need all the benefits of their premium plan, but would like to have true high-definition output just once.
All packages include storyboard and multi-track editing, built-in graphics, advanced text editing, dubbing and voiceover recorder, video recorder to easily record your screen for how-to videos, file and media management, customizable environment, and how-to videos that cover each help novice user in using the program.
Here’s a handy tutorial from Teacher’s Tech that shows a lot of features:
Share your videos
All packages allow users to instantly publish their videos to social media, storage and video sharing websites such as Vimeo, YouTube, DropBox, Facebook, Twitter, Google Drive and DailyMotion. The Unlimited plan adds FTP, Wistia, and Vidcaster to this list.
Everything in the cloud
WeVideo makes it easy to edit your project no matter where you are, thanks to its multi-platform compatibility.
The editor is available for Windows and Mac computers, as well as Android and iOS devices, so you can start editing while on your computer and pick up where you left off with your smartphone or tablet.
There is no need to send around a USB or connect your mobile devices to your computer to fetch your projects as well. You get cloud storage where you can easily save your files and download them to your current system.
Not only does this give you convenience, you don’t have to worry about data corruption that could cause you to lose everything from your drive you’ve been working on.
WeVideo Customer Service
WeVideo has a content-filled support center where you can find and read general topics such as the basics of using the editor, creating and watching your video, common technical issues, billing and payment, and other relevant articles.
You can also find their collection of “Getting Started” videos to guide you through your first steps in making movies. They also have a short FAQ section that covers things like account-specific information, downloads and uploads, and subscriptions.
Contacting their team is also done on this page. You can leave a message on their contact form along with your email and they will respond quickly as well. For the latest news and updates, you can connect with them on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn and Google+.
What is the verdict on WeVideo?
A must have
One of the best parts of this service is that you don’t have to spend time learning the interface as their storyboard mode has a simple and intuitive layout and you can easily share your finished product to various social media channels and video platforms .
It is a tool that anyone can immediately start making videos without a long learning curve.
You do have to pay a bit more if you subscribe to their cheaper plans and want to show videos in 4K, but if 720p is more than enough then this shouldn’t be a problem.
What is WeVideo?
WeVideo is an easy-to-use, cloud-based video editing and sharing package for schools, businesses, and vloggers. The application was created to allow users to capture, create, watch and even share movies at high resolutions.
It is a powerful, full-featured program that uses JumpStart technology to transform the video editing landscape.
The multi-platform video editor provides a seamless editing experience thanks to its support for multiple formats of video, audio, images and text.
It also offers a range of features that allow you to effortlessly create beautiful movies in minutes. For example using screencasting, green screen, music library, slow motion and voice-over.
In addition, all WeVideo packages include multi-track editing and storyboarding, advanced text editing, built-in graphics, customizable environment, and file and media manager.
Overview of WeVideo benefits
WeVideo has a user-friendly interface that makes advanced video editing easier. Whether you are an experienced editor or a novice, the software allows you to create great videos with ease.
It features a simple layout with simple and advanced features that give you full creative control to use your imagination.
It also uses the WeVideo JumpStart technology that makes video editing easy and fast. This exclusive technology allows you to immediately start editing in the cloud without having to wait for locally stored files to load
WeVideo also offers multiple video editing modes that make it easy to turn ideas into beautiful movies.
For example, the storyboard allows you to effortlessly create beautiful movies in minutes.
On the other hand, Timeline mode offers more advanced features for the pros. It gives you the ability to mix and match over 600 formats of video, audio and images using its special effects, green screen, speed control, graphics and more.
Pros: Great entry-level movie editing software for those just getting started. It is easy to learn the software. One of the benefits for me was the fact that it’s cloud-based, so I can work on anything even when I don’t have my computer or files. In the professional or higher package, you have access to a huge library of stock videos, photos and audio.
Cons: Organizing my media with their folder system was a little frustrating trying to figure out exactly how it works. There aren’t many customization options with titles and transitions either. You can change the color, font and size, but not much else.
Who is WeVideo for
For those who want to get started before jumping into more expensive software or when you don’t want to be tied to software on your computer, WeVideo is an excellent solution that can do a lot for your blog, Youtube, Instagram and Pinterest channel.
It has many options but is still very easy to use, and this is where the initial direction of the company, for students, comes into play.
It’s not a professional video editing software, but a lot of people including myself don’t need professional video editing either. I want to be able to edit my videos easily and quickly, wherever I am, to collaborate with my team and create fun and inspiring videos for my social channels.
Check the Wevideo packages here and start editing your video content online today.
I hope this review has been of some use to you. It is a tool that I also use in my marketing. If you decide to purchase a paid package, I will receive a commission for my reference, at no extra cost to you.
Joost Nusselder is The Content Decoder, a content marketer, dad and loves trying out new tools en tactics. He's been working on a portfolio of niche sites since 2010. Now since 2016 he creates in-depth blog articles together with his team to help loyal readers earn from their own succesful sites.
