Here’s What Our Creators Think After Trying Instagram’s Video Editing App, Edits

Plans are in place to add more features in the future, including keyframes, expanded AI capabilities, advanced collaboration tools, new fonts, text animations, transitions, filters, voice, and sound effects. These features will likely be available in Edits first before the Instagram app.

While the initial version of Edits is free, Instagram may charge for some AI features due to the additional computing cost. However, the plan is to keep as many features free as possible.

This new app is definitely worth trying. We tried it, and here are our in-house creators’ first impressions.

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For this review, we spoke to David, Stephanie, and Salem (our Lead Social Content Strategist and two of our best content creators, respectively), focusing on the following areas:

• The download and onboarding process

• First Impression

• Editing Process

• Things we love and what we don’t 

We also reviewed these aspects compared to our experiences using CapCut—we see that it is the app to beat here.

Download and Onboarding Process

David says he downloaded the Edits app in under 30 minutes after it was released globally, as he had pre-ordered it on the App Store before its release. In typical Meta style, you can see what number of joiners you are, and David was the 1,004,807th user worldwide to log into the app with his Instagram account. In his words,

The onboarding process was simple.

Stephanie also loves the convenience of its download and onboarding process. 

I just downloaded Instagram’s new editing app, Edits, and it’s been so good so far. The moment I opened the app, it recognized my Instagram name and gave me the option to log in directly through my IG account, which was super convenient.

Recounting her download and onboarding experience, Salem says, 

The download was seamless on my iPhone and linked directly to my Instagram immediately after downloading it. But what I loved most about it was that it immediately gave me access to all my saved audio files and all the trending audios from my ‘for you’ page. That helps suggest the best audios to boost my content, just like TikTok.

First Impression 

After her first look,  Stephanie says:

The layout feels familiar; if you’ve used editing apps like CapCut or InShot, you’ll feel right at home. You can see immediately that you can add captions, text, Instagram sounds, import your audio, or even extract sounds from other videos, which is flexible.

To David,

The interface felt like a stripped-down version of Instagram Reels. If you use Reels actively, you’ll quickly figure things out. The layout is clean. You get straight into editing without distractions.

Editing Process

Salem thinks the Edits app is easy to use, but not without a few drawbacks. She says, 

Unlike Capcut, Edits does not have access to non-copyrighted audio. While Capcut is a common ground between professionals and intermediate editors or content creators, Edits is a perfect tool to learn how to edit before moving to Capcut. It is also a good option for its transition.

David has a slightly different opinion. After testing the app with a 2-minute video, he commented that: 

Trimming clips, adjusting audio, and adding text were easy. The tools are basic but do the job. The AI cutout feature, which Adam Mosseri is most excited about, works decently. It removed the video background in seconds. I also tried the green screen effect to switch locations without moving. You can also animate still images, which helps if you don’t have a lot of footage.

However, he doesn’t love that, aside from the watermark-free export, there’s no learning curve for beginners and little for advanced creators looking for depth. He says,

I didn’t see any templates or beat-synced transitions like CapCut offers. Although linked to the Instagram music library, the audio library requires improvement. I couldn’t find custom-made trending sounds, which you often find on TikTok. I exported my video in 1080p without a watermark. That was an advantage over CapCut, which requires a subscription to remove watermarks.

Meanwhile, Stephanie is happier about the editing process. She particularly loves the cutout tool. She says,

It lets you remove the background from your videos, and the result is pretty clean. This tool is great for aesthetic edits or more pro-looking content.

 As for other parts of the editing process, she loves the watermark-free feature, beginner-friendliness, and the fact that the app allows you to see all your layers as a creator. Think of it as Photoshop, but for video.  

Things We Love and What We Don’t 

David loves that:

The app is simple, great for creating quick Reels directly from your phone—no watermark on export. AI effects are surprisingly useful. Project drafts are neatly organized, and I didn’t feel overwhelmed. It features an Insight tab that helps you track the performance of your videos posted to Instagram. One insight I am particularly excited about is the retention graphs that show when users drop off while watching. The Inspiration tab offers trending Reels and audio to spark your creativity.

However, for him, the absence of a desktop version and advanced tools, such as keyframes, speed curves, sound library, multi-layer timelines, or uploading custom fonts, might leave you feeling limited.

Final Comments

Salem loves that it is free now and prays it doesn’t change. She recommends the app for beginners. Non-beginners or those who do heavy editing, vlogs, or YouTube should consider CapCut for access to the necessary tools instead.

Stephanie says she hasn’t encountered any bugs or issues and hopes it stays that way. Overall, she thinks Edits has real potential, especially for creators who want to keep everything in one ecosystem.

Without mincing words, David says:

This app won’t replace CapCut for me. But I’ll use it when I want to post something quick and clean. It’s best for creators who care about speed and simplicity over precision.

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We are excited to see how the Edits app grows. Watch this space as we’ll update this article as soon as we get more hands-on time with Instagram’s Edits and more details emerge. 

Want to try Edits? Download the app now on your Android and iOS devices to get started.