Our call depends on where you edit and how long the videos are
A shorts-first creator who films on a phone, trims on the go and finishes on a laptop benefits from an editor that lives on all three. CapCut's help page describes Pro as cross-platform editing on mobile, desktop and web with up to 1 TB of cloud storage. Filmora sells separate Windows and Mac licences that do not transfer between platforms.
A long-form tutorial creator working at one desk benefits more from a fixed yearly cost and a built-in screen recorder. Filmora documents screen, webcam and system-audio recording inside the editor, and its annual pricing on Windows was well below twelve months of CapCut Pro at the displayed monthly rate.
Side-by-side from the official pages
| Question | Filmora | CapCut desktop |
|---|---|---|
| Free tier | Free; exports carry a watermark | Free plan listed at USD 0 with free templates and basic editing tools |
| Main paid price (30 Oct 2026) | Windows Advanced US$53.99/yr (shown against US$59.99); Mac Advanced US$71.99/yr | Pro USD 19.99/month on the monthly view; CapCut says sign in to see final pricing and taxes |
| Higher tier | Premium US$79.99/yr Windows, US$95.99/yr Mac | Ultra USD 79/month |
| AI credits | 1,000 per month (Advanced), 2,000 (Premium), none on Basic | 1,200 monthly (Pro), 8,645 monthly (Ultra) |
| Cloud storage | 1 GB Basic, 10 GB Advanced, 100 GB Premium | 1 TB listed for Pro and Ultra; about 100 GB for Standard |
| Desktop OS | Windows 7 to 11 (x64) and Windows on ARM; macOS 10.15 or later | Windows 7 or above (Windows 10 recommended); macOS 10.14 or later |
| Platforms per licence | Windows or Mac, not both | Pro described as mobile, desktop and web |
| One-time purchase | Perpetual US$79.99 Windows, US$99.99 Mac (Filmora 16 updates only) | None listed on the pricing page |
Cost over a year for a weekly channel
At the displayed prices, twelve months of CapCut Pro billed monthly is USD 239.88. Filmora Advanced on Windows was US$53.99 for the year, and Premium US$79.99. CapCut's page advertised yearly discounts but also said displayed prices are reference only, so check your signed-in yearly price before comparing; we did not verify a yearly CapCut figure.
Credit allowances are close: 1,200 a month on CapCut Pro versus 1,000 on Filmora Advanced. They are not interchangeable units, though. Filmora publishes a per-feature rate table (for example Speech-to-Text at 4 credits a minute); CapCut's pricing page frames its credits mainly around AI video generation rates.
Assets, licensing and accounts
CapCut's Standard versus Pro help page says Standard suits users who do not need advanced AI or commercial assets, and lists unlimited premium templates and commercial-use assets for Pro. If your channel is monetised and you rely on stock music or templates, that distinction matters more than the price.
Filmora's plan cards list 2.9M+ Creative Assets, and its comparison table shows much larger stock libraries on paid plans than on the free tier. The pricing page we checked did not set out commercial-use terms for those assets, so read Wondershare's licence terms before using stock items in monetised videos.
CapCut asks you to sign in to see final pricing; the CapCut pages we checked did not say whether desktop export requires an account. Filmora asks you to log in with a Wondershare ID to activate, and its tech spec says an internet connection is required for registration and online services.
Decision rules by creator type
- Shorts-first, editing on phone and desktop: start with CapCut; cross-device editing is the point of Pro.
- Long-form tutorials recorded at one computer: start with Filmora for the built-in recorder and lower annual price.
- Monetised channel using stock music and templates: compare CapCut Pro's commercial-use assets with Filmora's asset licence before choosing.
- Heavy AI generation (AI video from prompts): the larger allowances are CapCut Ultra (8,645 credits a month) and Filmora Premium (2,000 a month), and the credits are priced differently, so price your actual monthly usage first.
- Budget fixed for several years with little AI use: Filmora Perpetual is the only one-time option of the two.
A one-week trial plan for both
Take one finished episode's raw footage and edit it in each free version to the same brief: cuts, a lower-third title, captions and a vertical short. Record how long each took and what blocked you at export. In CapCut, note any feature or asset marked Pro before exporting; in Filmora, expect the free-version watermark.
Only after that comparison pick a paid tier. A cheaper tool that adds an hour of rework each week is not cheaper for a weekly channel.
Questions before you decide
Is CapCut Pro cheaper than Filmora?
Not on the pages checked on 30 October 2026. CapCut Pro was displayed at USD 19.99 a month (CapCut says sign in for final pricing), while Filmora Advanced on Windows was US$53.99 for a year. Confirm both at checkout.
Can I use one licence on Windows and Mac?
For Filmora, no: Wondershare says licences are platform-specific, although AI credits are shared across platforms on the same account. CapCut's help page describes Pro as cross-platform across mobile, desktop and web.
Which runs on older computers?
CapCut desktop lists Windows 7 or above (Windows 10 recommended) and macOS 10.14 or later. Filmora lists Windows 7 to 11 on x64 and macOS 10.15 or later, with 8 GB of RAM minimum.
Sources & verification
Product details and prices can change. Check the linked provider before buying.
- Wondershare Filmora: Pricing and plans (Windows, US view) Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Wondershare Filmora for Mac: Pricing and plans (US view) Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Wondershare Filmora: Windows tech specs Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Wondershare Filmora: Screen recorder Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- CapCut: Pricing Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- CapCut Help: CapCut Standard vs Pro Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- CapCut: Desktop video editor Accessed 30 Oct 2026
Sources link directly to providers. Product buttons may use separately labeled affiliate links. Read our disclosure.