Apps, Software

iMovie vs Final Cut Pro (A detailed comparison)

iMovie and Final Cut Pro are both Apple’s solutions for a good video editing software. Both the softwares are targeted at different groups of people, and both of them have their own sets of features that make them stand apart from the rest.

In this comparison between the two softwares, I would like to note out the differences between the two softwares, and which one you should try out if you are a video editor or considering to be one.

So, without wasting any more time, let’s get started.

Also read: Video editing software for youtube

About iMovie

iMovie is the option that Apple has designed specifically for people who are new to video editing and video editing softwares. The overall software is fairly simple to learn and use, and it has some pretty advanced features available as well.

If you want to know my in-depth thoughts regarding the software, then I have also written a review about it. You can check it out and learn more about the software.

About Final Cut Pro

If iMovie is the option that is designed for beginners by Apple, then the software that is aimed more towards professionals is certainly Final Cut Pro. Final Cut Pro is considered to be one of the best video editing software there is.

Many professional video editors use Final Cut Pro for many different types of videos and even feature-length films that you see on the big screen.

Just like iMovie, if you want to know my in-depth thoughts regarding the overall software of Final Cut Pro, then you can read the article where I have reviewed different aspects of the software.

Price

iMovie	Final Cut Pro
Free of cost!	$300 Dollars for a one-time payment

Features of iMovie

Various Special Effects – When you are using iMovie, you will find a bunch of different special effects to choose from in its library. One of the most prominent options is the chroma-key effect.

It allows users to remove the green screen behind them and replace it with anything the user wants.

Trailer Templates – If you don’t want to manually create and edit trailers on iMovie, then you are in luck as you are able to have more than 30 different options of trailer templates available.

Most of them are pretty easy to use, and they work quite effectively as well.

Automatic magic-wand – iMovie has a feature that is called ‘Automatic magic-wand’. This allows users to automatically select the colour scheme and pattern of the video clip and apply it on a different clip.

This helps in continuing the overall flow of the video and is a great colour-correction tool.

Features of Final Cut Pro

Face and Object Tracking – This is a feature that was recently introduced in Final Cut Pro after high demand because its competition already had them.

As you can guess by its name, this feature allows users to track a certain object or someone’s face in a video, and you are able to add text and other objects that track with the selected object.

Apple Silicon Support – The new MacBooks and macOS devices are running on Apple’s powerful M1 and M2 chipsets.

Final Cut Pro is able to advantage of the horsepower of these chipsets, making it one of the most powerful video editing software there is available right now.

Multi-cam editing – Multi-cam editing is also a feature that you have access to while you are using Final Cut Pro. Through multi-cam editing, you are able to sync up to 64 different types of shots.

Making it simpler for the director and editor to see all the shots at once and choose which ones they want to use and which ones to leave.

Cinematic Mode – Cinematic Mode is an option that is available on the latest iPhones that allow users to shoot videos that look quite cinematic in nature.

The new update of Final Cut Pro allows users to edit those videos that were shot in Cinematic Mode on their iPhones.

✅Pros

iMovie	Final Cut Pro
✅Simple User Interface ✅Free for all Mac devices ✅A number of different filters and effects ✅Good movie templates ✅Easy to use	✅Magnetic timelines make it easy to edit ✅Lots of different editing tools to offer ✅Multicam video editing ✅Quick performance ✅360 Degree VR editing

❌Cons

If you have a bunch of different Pros for a particular subject, then you can also expect cons for it as well.

iMovie	Final Cut Pro
❌Lacks some premium features like Motion tracking and multi-cam video editing ❌Difficult to export files as they are directly shared on different social media sites ❌Only two video tracks are available	❌Available only on macOS devices ❌Expensive price ❌Not traditional video editing UI

Supported Devices

iMovie	Final Cut Pro
Available on iOS and macOS devices.	Available only on macOS devices.

UI of iMovie

The overall UI of iMovie is pretty simple and straightforward. As I mentioned above, it is a software that is designed for beginners, and you don’t want beginners to feel overwhelmed when they are first trying out a particular software.

Most of the features that are available for iMovie are all placed on the top of the software so that people are able to access the different list of features easily.

The entire UI is black in colour, so all the enthusiasts of the Dark Mode would certainly appreciate it. And even the tracks that are available don’t have the specific borders that you see in other different video editing apps.

UI of Final Cut Pro

If you have seen the UI of iMovie, then you might feel right at home with the UI of Final Cut Pro as well. The overall software is just a more elaborate and more technical version of iMovie.

The overall UI of Final Cut Pro is also fairly simple to understand and use, and you have various lists of features available all around the software. It also follows the same magnetic timeline setup as iMovie.

The overall look and feel of this particular software feel a lot more like the ‘pro’ version of what you get on iMovie, and that is a great thing on its own as both the softwares are available only on macOS devices.

Customer Service of iMovie

Apple has a dedicated website available that has all the links necessary for a customer to approach the customer service team of iMovie.

You can also log in to your YouTube account and search for the channel ‘Apple Support’. Over here, Apple released videos related to all the videos of their products if you are facing any issues with them.

So far, I haven’t read a lot of complaints regarding iMovie’s customer service, so you are in fairly good hands.

Customer Service of Final Cut Pro

Same laws apply to Final Cut Pro as well. It also has a website that is dedicated to all the links that a customer might need to contact the customer care service of Final Cut Pro.

You also have the option of choosing and searching your issues on Apple Support’s YouTube page and clarifying all your doubts regarding the particular topic.

However, there have been many reports from customers who have faced quite a lot of issues with the Customer Service of Final Cut Pro.

Problems such as slow response time, not being able to fix the issues, etc. So you might want to keep that in mind before using the software.

FAQs

Let’s discuss some of the frequently asked questions regarding this topic.

Can you use iMovie professionally?

The answer actually depends on your use case. You have a bunch of professional features while you are using iMovie, and most of them work pretty great, all things considered.

However, when you compare the software to its superior, Final Cut Pro, and if you are someone who is genuinely interested in filmmaking and video editing and want to become a professional, then iMovie is not the right option for you.

It has a list of features that can help you in starting out to becoming a video editor, and those list of features come in pretty handy as well, but it is not the most professional video editing software you can download.

Is iMovie good enough for video editing?

iMovie is plenty good enough for video editing. The overall software is available for free to download and use, and the list of features that you get from using the software is pretty damn good.

Apple has made sure that the people who are using this software are pretty satisfied with the list of features that they have put in this software.

The overall point of iMovie is that users continuously use the software, and once they start to yearn for some more list of premium features, such as multi-cam editing, face tracking, etc., they don’t look for anywhere except Final Cut Pro.

But, overall, iMovie is a very strong and good video editing software in its own way.

Do Professionals still use Final Cut Pro?

Professionals very much still use Final Cut Pro. As I mentioned above, many professionals use Final Cut Pro for many different purposes, such as making professional videos or even feature-length films that you see on the big screen.

The list of features that is available on Final Cut Pro is unparallel, and they go head-to-head with the professional video editing softwares that are present in the market right now.

Many YouTubers, who have become quite big and successful, hire editors to edit their videos and most of the editors that use the video editing software use Final Cut Pro.

So, yes. Professionals still use Final Cut Pro, and as long as Apple continuously updates it with the new list of features, people will still continue to use it.

Is there anything better than Final Cut Pro?

Final Cut Pro is considered to be one of the best video editing software present in the market, but it is not the only software that is considered one of the best video editing softwares.

There are many softwares that offer almost the same list of features and specs as Final Cut Pro does but at almost half its price.

Softwares like CyberLink’s PowerDirector are considered to be one of the more affordable options that also provide premium-level video editing features.

Then you also have Adobe Premiere Pro, which is also considered to be a rival to Final Cut Pro, and there are many more as well.

In fact, I have written a separate article where I have written six of the best alternatives that you can find to Final Cut Pro right now. All the alternatives are targeted at different groups of people and all have their own sets of pros and cons.

You can read that article to know about some better alternatives to Final Cut Pro.

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Conclusion

Well, there you have it. A comparison between iMovie and Final Cut Pro. Both the softwares are targeted at different groups of people.

iMovie is a software is made for use by beginners, and also intermediates with the list of features that they have, and Final Cut Pro, on the other hand, is a software that is designed for professionals.

If you are someone who is not looking for serious video editing, then iMovie should be more than sufficient for you as it has most of the features that you would want to use on video editing software.

It also has the added advantage that it is available on both iOS and macOS devices for free! That isn’t something that you can say about Final Cut Pro.

It is one of the most expensive video editing software that is very exclusive to macOS devices. Still, it is considered to be one of the best video editing softwares present with all the list of features.

As always, these have been my take on this topic. What about you? Do you agree with what I have said about iMovie and Final Cut Pro?

Or do you think that I am wrong? Whatever your thoughts are, do let us know about them in the comments down below!

Sanjit Mansingh

Sanjit Mansingh is a Journalism and Mass Communication graduate. While studying in this field he quickly realized what he wants to do in his life: Filmmaking. His interest in writing scripts is what made him give a try in the world of content writing. Sanjit's an avid Movie Geek and is an award winning Director as well.