Edits / Instagram Reels / Reels editing app
Most video editors treat Reels as a crop of something else. Edits is Instagram's own Reels editing app, built the other way round: a 9:16 timeline from the first tap, a camera with a teleprompter, auto captions that know where Instagram's buttons sit, trending audio inside the editor, a cover picker that previews the grid crop, and a watermark-free 1080p export that posts straight to Reels. Free, on iPhone and Android.
A general video editor can make a Reel. It just makes you do the Reel-specific work yourself: set the ratio, remember where Instagram's buttons sit, find the trending sound in another app and re-add it when you post, check the cover against the grid, then open Instagram to see how it did.
Edits folds all of that into the editor because it's made by the people who run Reels. The canvas is 9:16 from the first tap, the audio library is Instagram's, captions preview against the safe zone, the cover picker shows the 3:4 crop, export is clean, and the Insights tab is one swipe from the timeline. Same editing power as the big apps - keyframes, overlays, cutouts, AI - minus the friction. The reach side of all this is covered in What are Instagram Reels?.
Every Reel has the same nine problems to solve. Here's each one and where it's handled.
Generic editors start 16:9 and crop. Edits projects are vertical from the first tap, so framing is decided while you shoot.
Drag-handle trim, split at playhead, duplicate a project to test two hooks side by side.
Word-by-word fixes, styles, highlighting, bilingual. Mute the clip to zero before captioning if needed.
Keep text mid-frame; the preview shows where the caption, buttons and audio tag will sit.
Recommended, trending and original audio inside the editor; the Reel is tagged with it when you post from Edits.
No logo, outro or end card at any resolution. Instagram deprioritises visibly recycled Reels; this avoids the signal.
Choose a frame or upload a cover; put the title in the middle third so it survives the grid.
Script scrolls at your speed near the lens; countdown for tripod takes; green screen in camera.
Retention curve, skips, followers vs new, 3-Reel comparison - next to the timeline, not in another app.
About fifteen minutes for a first Reel, five once it's habit. The full beginner's walkthrough is How to make Instagram Reels; this is the Edits-specific version.
Step 01
Open a project and it's already 1080 × 1920. Record with the Edits camera - teleprompter, countdown, green screen - or import from the camera roll. Nothing gets cropped later, because there's no "later".
Step 02
Trim everything before the first interesting frame. Drag the left handle until the Reel opens on the result, the question or the movement. This single cut does more for reach than any effect.
Step 03
Pick a trending, recommended or original sound inside the editor - it's Instagram's library, so the Reel gets tagged with it when you post. Beat markers show where to cut; volume ducking drops the music under your voice automatically.
Step 04
Tap CC, let Edits transcribe, fix the words that need it, pick a style. Then move the captions up: Instagram's caption, buttons and audio tag cover the bottom ~420 px and right ~120 px of a Reel. Mid-frame is where captions get read.
Step 05
Keyframes or the In & Out effects for movement, a colour preset applied to all clips, and a cover frame with the title in the middle - the grid shows Reels at 3:4, so anything at the top or bottom of the cover is cropped.
Step 06
Export at 1080p - no watermark, no outro - and share directly to Instagram, where the audio tag, caption and cover carry over. Or save to the camera roll and post the same file to TikTok and Shorts.
Not a general editor shoot-out - that's in the review. These rows are the things that matter specifically when the output is a Reel.
| For Reels specifically | Edits | CapCut | InShot | VN | Instagram in-app |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free with no watermark | Yes | Outro on free | Watermark on free | Yes (credit optional) | Yes |
| 9:16 by default | Yes | Choose ratio | Choose ratio | Choose ratio | Yes |
| Instagram's trending audio in-editor | Yes, tagged on post | Own library | Own library | Own library | Yes |
| Auto captions | Editable, bilingual | Yes | Pro | Limited | Basic |
| Teleprompter camera | Yes | No | No | No | Now in Instagram |
| Keyframes & overlays | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Cover picker with grid preview | Yes | No | No | No | Yes |
| Reels Insights in the editor | Yes | No | No | No | In the app |
| Export for TikTok / Shorts too | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Desktop app | Announced | Yes | No | Yes | No |
| Compare | Our review | vs CapCut | vs InShot | vs VN | vs in-app |
Note: other apps' free tiers change often; treat their columns as "typically". If Reels aren't your main output - long YouTube video, say - CapCut or VN with a desktop app may suit you better. All head-to-heads in Comparisons.
Free on iPhone and Android; runs on a computer through the PC and Mac routes. Everything in Downloads.
Shoot, cut, caption, add the trending sound and post - without leaving the app. Then see how it did.