How to Edit/Trim/Cut Videos in VLC Media Player

Summary:

VLC video editor, VLMC, seems to be coming, although there is no download and only source code is available on its official site. The media player VLC also comes with some basic video editing features, and we'll show you how to edit video with VLC in this article. But if you need a better video editor with more editing features, you should really try VideoProc Converter AI, a free and easy-to-use video editing tool.

VLC has long been known as a free media player. But the hidden features in VLC are far more interesting. Just to name a few, VLC also works as video editor, DVD ripper, and video converting tool. But don't expect it to meet all your video editing needs. It is by no means as professional as Adobe Premiere Pro, iMovie, or even Photos, the Windows 11/10 built-in video editor.

We are going to reveal all the VLC video editing features, and show you how to trim video in VLC, as well as how to rotate, merge, and crop video in VLC.

VLC Video Editing Review

Can VLC edit video?

As we mentioned before, VLC also comes with some video editing features. It allows you to cut, rotate, crop, merge videos, and more. Thanks to its rich format support, this program can edit videos in almost all formats.

Pros:

• Free and open source software to edit video.
• No need to install other programs if you already have VLC as a player.
• Edit video by trimming, cropping, rotating, merging, etc.

Cons:

• Not very easy to find the editing features you need.
• Editing features are not very easy to use in VLC.
• You cannot preview the video you are editing in real time.

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How to crop video length or trim a video?

Step 1. Launch the program and go to the Video menu from the welcome screen.

Step 2. Add the video to the program by dragging and dropping it, or use the +Video button.

Step 3. Go to the Toolbox tab and double-click the trim tool.

Step 4. Drag the green knobs to set cut time position.

Step 5. Click Done and click Run to start trimming the video.

How to Edit Videos with VLC

Tips: To start any video editing in VLC, turn on "Advanced Controls" under "View" in the menu bar.

1. VLC Trim Video

To trim video with VLC, follow these simple steps:

1. Open the video file by clicking Media > Open File > Open in the menu bar.
2. Click View in the menu bar, then turn on "Advanced Controls".
3. Drag the playing slide bar to the start point.
4. Click the "Record" button and "Play" button to start trimming.
5. Click the "Record" button again to stop at the end point of the desired video part.
6. Check the trimmed video clips in the Videos library or My Documents folder.

If you want to change the output folder to save the VLC trimmed video, follow this guide:

1. Click Tools > Preferences from VLC menu (for Mac version, go to Menu > Preferences).
2. In the Preferences dialogue box, tick Input/Codecs.
3. In the Record directory or filename section, click Browse to select the export folder.

So technically, VLC media player cuts your video in a video recording way. Besides, if you are running VLC on a Mac computer for cutting a video, there will be some differences from the steps mentioned above, and please refer to how to cut a video using VLC on Mac.

2. How to Merge Videos in VLC

You can merge video in VLC either using the command line or its graphical interface. Follow the steps below to merge multiple videos into one in VLC.

1. Open VLC.
2. Go to Media > Open Multiple Files in the menu bar.
3. Import the videos by clicking the Add button.
4. Press Alt+O on the keyboard to bring up the Convert window.
5. Choose a format from the Profile drop-down list.
6. Click Start to combine videos.

3. Crop Video VLC

There are two ways for you crop video with VLC media player:

• Method 1:
1. Click "Video" in the menu bar.
2. Move down to "Crop".
3. Select a specific aspect ratio, like 16:10, 4:3, 1.85:1, 1:1, etc.
4. Then video will be cropped for playback at that aspect ratio.
• Method 2:
1. Scroll down to the bottom of the player.
2. Click "Show extended settings" in the toolbar.
3. Switch to "Video Effects" tab > Crop.
4. Set different values in the four positions (left, right, top and bottom).
5. Save the settings.

As you can see, using VLC to crop unwanted areas of a video is not easy. You can read here for alternative ways to crop a video on Windows, easily and straightforwardly.

4. Rotate Video in VLC

There are two settings for you to change video orientation inside VLC: Transform and Rotate.

From the drop-down list of Transform, you can choose Rotate by 90/180/270 degrees, Flip horizontally or vertically, Transcope or Anti-transcope. Or just turn on the Rotate option and set a specific rotate angle.

Note that enable Transform and Rotate simultaneously only if needed, or you will have to rotate the video at a cropped aspect ratio.

Color correction settings and some others are also available in VLC. But to add text, watermark, or subtitles, VLC is not a good way to go. As we said before, you can't even adjust the font size. If another software with more editing features is still needed, try VideoProc Converter AI, a video processing tool for entry-level user.

VLC Video Editing Features

Check out the list below (only visible on computer) for what edits you can do with VLC. From our experience, you better not add text with VLC. There are no options of font style, font color or font size. VideoProc Converter AI and Photos are two good and free alternatives.

Better Choice than VLC Video Editing

VLC is absolutely a good free video playing and editing tool. But sometimes it is just not good enough. For example, you can't stabilize shaky video in VLC. As we mentioned before, "Add text" in VLC needs to be improved. Besides, splitting video is not that easy to operate in VLC. Given the editing features VLC lacks, another easy video editor needs to stand by.

VideoProc Converter AI is a good alternative. Download VideoProc Converter AI for Free to Start Easy Video Editing!

Most preferred by entry-level user of DJI drones, action cameras, GoPro series, iPhone, Sony and many more. VideoProc Converter AI wins popularity for its ease of use, wide range of input/output formats and editing features. Both basic editing and advanced options are included: crop, split, rotate, speed up/slow down, add text/subtitle, filters, color correction, stabilize, denoise, etc. Click here to learn more about easy video editors.

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