Which app is better to make video with pictures and music?
Video creation apps that allow users to make short videos with photos, videos, music, and effects have exploded in popularity in recent years. According to Suite 48a, revenue and downloads for photo and video apps continue to boom, with over $16 billion in consumer spending in 2022 (Source). The app store market is dominated by a few major players like TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat when it comes to video creation (Source). With so many options available, it can be difficult to determine which app is the best for making videos. This article will compare features, ease of use, analytics, and cost between the top video creation apps – TikTok, Instagram Reels, Snapchat, and Youtube Shorts – to help users decide which one best fits their needs.
TikTok
TikTok is a popular short-form video app that allows users to create and share 15 to 60 second videos. It was launched in September 2016 by ByteDance, a Beijing-based internet technology company. Originally called Douyin in China, the app was rebranded as TikTok for the international market. As of 2023, TikTok has over 1 billion monthly active users worldwide according to Backlinko and Business of Apps.
One of the major pros of using TikTok is its simplicity and ease of use. The app makes it very easy for anyone to create fun and engaging short videos using an array of built-in effects, filters, and editing tools. Users can add music and sound effects from TikTok’s vast licensed music library to creatively enhance their videos.
Another big advantage of TikTok is its powerful algorithm that learns users’ interests and preferences to serve them tailored video content. The more users interact with videos, the better the algorithm gets at recommending relevant and interesting videos to keep them engaged. This results in an extremely addictive, personalized experience.
Additionally, TikTok’s tools make it very easy for creators to make high-quality, polished videos with minimal effort and experience. The app’s sophisticated camera effects, transitions, stickers, captions, green screen, and more allow users to elevate their videos. All this makes TikTok one of the best platforms for creators looking to grow an audience and get entertaining content seen.
Instagram Reels
Instagram Reels is a feature within the Instagram app that allows users to create and share short videos up to 60 seconds long. Reels was first launched in August 2020 as Instagram’s answer to the popular short-form video app TikTok.
Some key pros of using Instagram Reels include:
– Reels is built directly into the Instagram app, which already has over 1 billion monthly active users. This gives Reels access to a huge potential audience. As of December 2022, over 74% of Instagram users were using Reels.
– Users can easily remix and react to other Reels, making it easy to engage with trending content. This helps increase visibility and engagement.
– There are a wide variety of AR effects, filters, and editing tools available to enhance Reels videos.
Snapchat
Snapchat has become a popular app for creating and sharing videos, with unique features that set it apart. According to Statista, Snapchat now has over 400 million daily active users worldwide as of 2023. Snapchat allows users to create videos integrated with lenses, filters, captions, and drawings. Videos can be shared privately with friends or posted to public “Our Stories.”
One of the main pros of using Snapchat for video creation is the huge array of lenses and filters available. Snapchat offers specialized lenses that track faces, voices, bodies, and surroundings to augment videos in creative ways.Popular lenses add effects like rainbow vomit or puppy dog ears. Snapchat also has an enormous library of filters that instantly transform the look and feel of videos. From subtle enhancements to dramatic changes, filters help give Snapchat videos a unique aesthetic.
Additionally, Snapchat makes it easy to integrate video creation directly into messaging. Users can send fun videos right to friends in the app’s chat section. Friends can view videos, respond with their own videos, and have an engaging back-and-forth. This social, conversational aspect helps differentiate Snapchat as a place to casually create and share videos.
Youtube Shorts
YouTube Shorts is a short-form video format launched by YouTube in 2020 as a competitor to TikTok. Shorts are vertical videos up to 60 seconds long that can include features like music, filters, and text (EarthWeb).
Some key advantages of using YouTube Shorts include:
- Leverages the massive YouTube ecosystem – Shorts can tap into YouTube’s over 2 billion monthly active users (Photutorial).
- Remixing – Users can sample audio from other Shorts to create new content.
- Music library – YouTube provides a large library of licensed music to use in Shorts.
Overall, YouTube Shorts allows creators to tap into YouTube’s reach while creating short, entertaining videos. The remixing features and music library also make it easy for users to create engaging Shorts.
Comparison of Features
When deciding between apps to make videos with photos and music, the main features to compare are editing tools, effects, music options, sharing capabilities, and analytics. Here is an overview of how some top apps stack up in these areas:
| App | Editing Tools | Effects | Music Options | Sharing | Analytics |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TikTok | Basic editing like trimming | Filters and AR effects | Large music library | In-app and external | Extensive metrics |
| Instagram Reels | Trim, speed, filters | Augmented reality filters | Music library or original audio | In-app and external | Limited metrics |
| Snapchat | Basic editing tools | Lenses, geofilters | Music library | In-app sharing | Views and shares |
| YouTube Shorts | Advanced editing suite | Basic filters and effects | Upload your own music | In-app and external | Extensive analytics |
As shown above, the top apps provide a range of editing tools, effects, music integration, sharing capabilities, and analytics. TikTok and YouTube Shorts stand out for their extensive metrics, while apps like Instagram offer more limited data. The music libraries and editing suites also vary across platforms.
Ease of Use
When it comes to ease of use, TikTok is designed to be extremely simple and intuitive for beginners to pick up quickly. The app provides easy-to-use templates, effects, filters, and editing tools that allow anyone to make professional-looking videos with minimal effort. TikTok’s straightforward interface and simple controls make it one of the most user-friendly video creation apps (Source).
Instagram Reels also offers a straightforward video editor optimized for mobile devices. While not as barebones as TikTok, Reels still aims to provide an accessible editing experience. It has preset templates, effects, and tools for basic trimming, filters, and music. The workflow is smooth and intuitive enough for novices, though may feel limiting for more advanced users (Source).
Snapchat’s video editing capabilities are simple but unique. You can easily splice clips together and add special effects, stickers, filters, and text. However, the app stands out with its augmented reality lenses that let you overlay fun effects on your face or environment. This makes Snapchat extremely engaging for casual users who want to enhance their videos with interactive elements.
Compared to the other apps, YouTube Shorts provides fewer built-in editing features upfront. However, it integrates directly with the YouTube creative toolkit for more advanced enhancements. The workflow caters more towards experienced creators versus total beginners. But YouTube’s immense community and resources can help new users get up to speed.
Analytics
When it comes to analytics, each platform offers different insights into how your videos are performing. Here’s an overview of the key analytics available on each platform:
TikTok provides in-depth analytics through its Creator and Business accounts. You can view real-time stats on views, likes, comments, shares, followers gained, etc. TikTok also shows traffic sources, top videos, audience demographics, and watch time analytics. However, you need to enable Creator or Business accounts to access the full analytics suite. Read more on Hootsuite.
Instagram Reels analytics can be viewed directly within the app on the Reels tab. You get statistics on accounts reached, plays, likes, saves, comments and more. The analytics focus specifically on Reels performance rather than full profiles. Instagram provides 14-30 days of Reels historical data. There are some limitations compared to TikTok analytics and you need a business profile. Learn more on Buffer.
Snapchat has limited built-in analytics for individuals but provides Snapchat Ads Manager for businesses. This includes campaign performance data, insights into reach and engagement. Snapchat does not provide public metrics for Snap performance for privacy reasons. However, you can access aggregate stats through third-party analytics services. Read more on Quid.
YouTube Shorts has basic performance metrics available in YouTube Studio, including views, likes, dislikes, comments and more. However, Shorts analytics are still limited compared to core YouTube channel analytics. You also need to enable the Shorts tab to appear on your profile. Check out analytics comparisons on Hootsuite.
Cost
The cost and pricing structure varies across these popular social media video making apps. Many offer free versions with limited features, as well as paid tiers that unlock additional capabilities. For example, TikTok (https://influencermarketinghub.com/social-media-video-makers/) and Snapchat are completely free to use. Instagram Reels is free as part of the Instagram app. On the other hand, Movavi Video Editor Plus (https://www.engagebay.com/blog/social-media-video-creator-apps/) has paid monthly and annual subscription plans ranging from $23.40 to $71.40 per year.
Upgrading to paid versions of these apps usually removes watermarks, provides more editing tools and effects, increases the output resolution and length of videos, and gives access to licensed music libraries. For example, VivaVideo’s paid PRO version (https://www.webdew.com/blog/social-media-video-creator) costs $2.99 per month or $19.99 per year to unlock advanced editing features. There are also typically in-app purchases available for items like custom stickers and filters.
So while free tools like TikTok provide a quick and easy way to create social videos, paid options like Movavi and VivaVideo offer more advanced production capabilities for serious content creators and businesses. The choice comes down to budget, frequency of use, and the types of videos you aim to produce.
Conclusion
All four platforms – TikTok, Instagram Reels, Snapchat, and YouTube Shorts – have their strengths and weaknesses when it comes to creating short videos with images, music, and effects. Here’s a quick summary of the key differences:
TikTok makes it extremely easy to create and edit short video clips right in the app. It likely has the best built-in editing tools and effects. TikTok also has a massive community optimized for short video content.
Instagram Reels allows you to leverage an existing Instagram audience. The editing tools are fairly basic though. Instagram is better optimized for static photos than video.
Snapchat pioneered short social video but now feels a bit dated compared to TikTok. The analytics and data available is quite limited.
YouTube Shorts is great if you want to repurpose existing long-form YouTube videos into short clips. The built-in editing tools are not as advanced as TikTok though.
In terms of recommendations based on user needs:
For the most advanced creative tools, best editing experience, and a huge audience – go with TikTok.
If you already have an audience on Instagram, leverage Reels to engage them with short video content.
For privacy-focused short video that deletes after viewing, use Snapchat.
If you have a YouTube channel, Shorts helps reuse content to reach a new audience.
Overall, TikTok stands out as the best platform specifically for creating and sharing original short videos set to music. The app is perfectly designed for this use case. TikTok has the most advanced editing tools, largest video-focused community, and best analytics of the major short video platforms.