Kdenlive is a free, open source video editor maintained by the KDE community and built on the MLT engine. It is a full desktop editor for Windows, macOS and Linux, with multi-track timelines, keyframing and a deep effects library, and it keeps every project file on your own computer.
Reviewed by Gabriel Bachmann
Kdenlive
kdenlive.org 2 ratings so far*
Rate Kdenlive: No account needed
Threat level
Covered
A covered pick. Anyone can use it as a private drop-in, with no setup or know-how. Enough for most people. Threat levels
Our take
Kdenlive is the one to reach for when you have outgrown a phone editor and want real control without paying Adobe. It does proxy editing, color correction and hundreds of effects, and it has been in steady development for well over a decade. The trade-off is the learning curve: the interface is dense and can feel overwhelming on day one. Worth pushing through if you edit regularly and want one tool that scales with you.
GitHub at a glance
KDE/kdenlive
Stars
5,319
+ 132 this week
Last commit
15d ago
healthy
License
GPL-3.0
Stars, last 38d
Website at a glance
kdenlive.org
B score 75
Solid website security headers
Graded by Mozilla HTTP Observatory, tested 4d ago
Inspect this site yourself
Measures the security configuration of the tool's own website, not the privacy of the product itself. A strong tool can still score low here.
Kdenlive alternatives
Shotcut Cross-platform open source video editor with native multi-format timelines, so mixed clips need no conversion.
OpenShot Beginner-friendly open source video editor with a simple drag-and-drop timeline. Cross-platform and free.
OpenCut Open source video editor that runs in your browser and processes footage locally instead of on a server. A privacy-first CapCut alternative.
Tenacity Privacy-respecting open source audio editor forked from Audacity, with the telemetry stripped out.
Ardour Professional open source digital audio workstation for recording, mixing and mastering.
Kdenlive license, in plain English
GPL-3.0 Strong copyleft
Free to use and modify, but anything you distribute that is built on it must also be open under the same license.
Permits
- Commercial use
- Modification
- Distribution
- Patent use
- Private use
Requires
- Disclose source
- Same license
- State changes
- License and copyright notice
Does not provide
- Liability cover
- Warranty
Why it matters: Strong copyleft keeps every distributed version open. A vendor cannot fold this into a closed product and ship it without releasing their changes.
Plain-language summary of the project's license, not legal advice. Read the full text for the exact terms.
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