Alternatives to VEGAS Pro
Long-running professional video editor with strong audio-editing tools. The listings below can replace it for an important use case. Each note says what changes if you switch.
The original
VEGAS Pro
Long-running professional video editor with strong audio-editing tools.
Replacements
Listings that take over the same core job as VEGAS Pro.
Adobe Premiere
Adobe's professional video editing and post-production application for Windows and macOS, formerly Premiere Pro.
Adobe Premiere is a paid editor that runs on both Windows and macOS, combining editing, effects and audio mixing and working alongside other Adobe creative apps.
DaVinci Resolve
Professional editing, colour grading, visual effects and audio post in one program, with a free version that is genuinely capable.
DaVinci Resolve has a free version without watermark, adds reference colour grading and visual effects, and runs on Windows, macOS and Linux, though it is demanding on hardware.
Final Cut Pro
Apple's professional video editor for Mac and iPad, with editing, audio, motion graphics and color grading.
Final Cut Pro moves editing to Mac and iPad only, with a one-time purchase option on Mac and built-in captions, motion graphics and colour grading.
Kdenlive
KDE’s free video editor, with a multi-track timeline, proxy editing and a large effect set.
Kdenlive is a free, open source GPL-3.0 editor for Windows, macOS and Linux with multicam editing and proxy clips, though effects rendering leans on the CPU.
Shotcut
A free cross-platform video editor with a multi-track timeline that edits most formats without importing them first.
Shotcut is a free GPL-3.0 multi-track editor for Windows, macOS and Linux that edits most formats natively without importing, with keyframes and an encoding job queue.
Lightworks
Professional video editor with a free tier limited to 720p exports.
Lightworks runs on Windows, Mac and Linux with a free tier of professional editing tools, though free exports are capped at 720p resolution.
OpenShot
A free video editor with unlimited tracks, keyframe animation, transitions and titles, aimed at people who are not professional editors.
OpenShot is a free, open source editor for Windows, macOS and Linux aimed at non-professionals, less capable on demanding projects and slower to render than commercial editors.
Avid Media Composer
A professional non-linear video editor used for film, television and news production.
Avid Media Composer targets film, TV and news teams with shared NEXIS projects, runs on Windows and macOS, and is sold as a yearly subscription.
Also worth comparing
These listings name VEGAS Pro as their own alternative, so the relationship runs both ways.
Pinnacle Studio
A consumer and prosumer video editing suite for Windows, currently at version 26.
VEGAS Pro is a paid, Windows-only professional editor with strong audio-editing tools built in and a fast, timeline-driven workflow.
Similar software
Related functionality, not a direct replacement.
Adobe After Effects
Adobe's desktop application for motion graphics, visual effects compositing and animation for film, TV and web.
OBS Studio
The standard free tool for recording a screen and for live streaming, built around scenes and sources.
LosslessCut
Trims and joins video and audio without re-encoding, so a cut takes seconds instead of an hour.
Subtitle Edit
Creates, retimes, translates and fixes subtitles, with a waveform so you can see where the speech is.
HandBrake
A video converter that turns files and unprotected discs into MP4, MKV or WebM with presets for common devices.
Adobe Media Encoder
Adobe's desktop application for ingesting, transcoding and batch rendering video into many output formats.
