Lightworks review

Lightworks is professional video-editing software for Windows, macOS and Linux. The homepage says it has been used to edit films, television and documentaries for more than 30 years; that history alone doesn’t tell you whether its workflow will suit your next project.

The software covers the main editing stages: import footage, organise shots with bins, tags and search, then cut and trim clips on a timeline. It also includes colour and sound adjustments, effects and graphics, and exports for social media, broadcast or film. The interface can use a fixed or floating layout.

There’s a free version, plus Create and Pro subscriptions and a perpetual licence. The published pricing information lists Free as offering exports up to 1080p, but does not publish the paid prices. Treat the free tier as a way to assess the editing workflow—not as proof that Lightworks fits a paid production setup.

Lightworks has a broad editing feature set before you get to its paid tiers. The Free plan is listed as free forever and includes exports up to 1080p, effects and transitions, colour correction and grading, and multitrack audio editing. That makes it worth considering for HD projects if the workflow works for you.

The paid tiers appear aimed at specific production needs. Create adds exports up to 4K, BRAW and ProRes decoding, NewBlue Titler Pro, audio effects and noise reduction, and cloud storage integration. Pro is listed with support up to 8K, 10-bit video, HDR editing and full scopes, Apple ProRes encoding, and AU, VST3 and LADSPA support. The price for either tier is not published on the vendor's site, so you can’t compare their value from the feature list alone.

Lightworks also offers practical organisation tools—bins, tags and search—and a customisable fixed or floating interface. One Reddit commenter says they liked its workflow, though that’s an individual view, not evidence that new editors will find it easy.

The biggest buying question is cost transparency. The published pricing information lists monthly and yearly subscriptions and a perpetual licence, but gives no paid prices. TotalFX, Avid DNxHD codec purchases and some advanced 10-bit codec licences may also cost extra; those prices are not shown. Check the current terms before building a workflow around a format or effect.

The Free plan’s listed export ceiling is 1080p. Create is the listed route to 4K export, while Pro lists support up to 8K and 10-bit video. Those are concrete limits to weigh against your delivery needs. One Reddit commenter reported that Free was limited to 720p, which conflicts with the published plan details; confirm the current export cap rather than relying on an older discussion.

Workflow is another risk. In a Reddit thread, one user called Lightworks’ editing procedure unintuitive, and commenters reported crashes or poor usability. These are anecdotes, not a reliability test, but they’re enough reason to try the free version with a real project before paying or migrating a team.

Lightworks Free costs $0 and exports up to 1080p, with effects and transitions, colour correction and grading, and multitrack audio editing. The published pricing information does not publish prices for Create or Pro, so we can’t calculate the jump between tiers or compare monthly, yearly and perpetual costs. The pricing page lists all three purchase options, but doesn’t show their prices in the published text.

Create is the tier for 4K export and adds BRAW and ProRes decode, NewBlue Titler Pro, audio effects and noise reduction, and cloud storage integration. Pro raises video support to 8K and adds 10-bit support, HDR editing, full scopes, Apple ProRes encoding, and AU, VST3 and LADSPA support. Check the exact tier you need before budgeting: 4K is not included in Free. TotalFX, Avid DNxHD and some advanced 10-bit codecs may also cost extra; their prices are not published on the vendor's site. Those add-ons make the headline subscription price, when available, an incomplete cost picture.

Lightworks runs on Windows, macOS and Linux, and its editing features include bins, tags, search, a timeline and a trim engine. That gives editors a clear set of workflow differences to check against their current tool, but the published material does not document project import, project interchange, media relinking or export of editable projects. Before switching, confirm that your existing projects and media can move across in the formats you need; don’t assume a finished video export preserves an editable timeline.

The product supports media from phone clips to RAW, but that alone does not establish compatibility with every codec or project format. The available pricing information also leaves paid-plan costs and some codec fees unpublished, which can affect whether a move is worthwhile. We can’t report what makes users leave based on Reddit: no Reddit posts or comments were included in the published sources. If you’re considering a switch, test a representative project and confirm the required codecs and tier before committing.