Last updated: 2026-10-11
ChatCut is a conversational AI video editor that, per the vendor, serves 300,000+ creators. It runs as a web editor, a Mac and Windows desktop app, and a plugin inside the ChatGPT desktop app and Claude Code, keeping each edit on a multi-track timeline that stays editable by hand.
About ChatCut
ChatCut is an AI video editor where you describe the cut and an agent does the work on a real multi-track timeline. It was founded in 2024 by the filmmakers Kaiwen Li and Alima Strickland, and it closed a $1.35M seed round in October 2025 led by ZhenFund with Antler taking part. The vendor says more than 300,000 creators use it, a figure HokAI has not verified.
You upload raw footage and ask for filler words and dead air to be removed, the strongest moments pulled, word-level captions styled, music added, and motion graphics such as lower thirds and charts generated from a prompt. The same agent can generate clips with Seedance 2.5 and Kling 3.0 and still images from Nano Banana 2 and from an OpenAI image model (annual plans also list MiniMax H3), then place them beside your own footage. Nothing is baked into a flat export, so you can retime or rewrite a section later. A library of prebuilt Skills covers jobs such as motion graphics, product promos and long-to-short repurposing, and you can save your own workflow as a Skill to run in batches.
ChatCut also runs inside other agents. In the ChatGPT desktop app on Mac and Windows it installs as a plugin (the vendor says the earlier Codex plugin is the same one, after OpenAI merged Codex into ChatGPT in July 2026), and Claude Code can use it too, so one session can write code and cut the product demo. Descript centers on editing through a transcript and CapCut is a manual editor with AI features, while ChatCut treats the chat as the main interface. Clippers, OpusClip among them, are narrower, and generators like Runway make footage rather than assemble a full edit. Other neighbours in the directory are Pexo, a chat-driven video maker, HeyGen for avatar presenters and Higgsfield for cinematic generation.
It suits creators, marketers and small teams with talking-head, podcast, UGC-ad and app-promo work. The agent still struggles with very heavy files, according to its own founders, so review the timeline before you publish. For a wider shortlist, read our guide to AI video editing and creation.
Pricing
Free plan with 5 credits. Paid Plus plans bill by credit allowance, listed monthly at $25, $50, $100 and $200 for 100, 200, 400 and 800 credits, with larger ladders up to 10,000 credits that the page did not price. Checked 2026-10-11; discounts shown that day are limited-time offers and change.
| Tier | Monthly price | What it includes |
|---|---|---|
| Free | Free | credits |
| Plus 100 credits | $25/mo | credits |
| Plus 200 credits | $50/mo | credits |
| Plus 400 credits | $100/mo | credits |
| Plus 800 credits | $200/mo | credits |
Key Features
- Conversational editing: Describe an edit in plain language and an agent applies it to a multi-track timeline, where every change stays editable instead of baking into a flat export.
- Filler-word and highlight cuts: Reads through raw footage, removes filler words and dead air and pulls the strongest moments; in the vendor demo one talking-head edit took 8 minutes 31 seconds of agent time.
- Prompted motion graphics: Generates animated titles, lower thirds and data charts from a prompt, and paid plans add transparent export, with the entry allowance covering up to 500 motion-graphics clips a month.
- Video and image generation: Produces video with Seedance 2.5, Seedance 2.0 and Kling 3.0 and stills from two image models, then drops each result onto the timeline.
- Captions, music and voice: Transcribes and styles word-level captions, generates original music and sound, removes noise and clones voices for reuse across projects.
- Agent plugins and Skills: Installs in the ChatGPT desktop app and in Claude Code from a pasted install prompt, and ships a Skills library whose workflows you can save and run in batches.
Pros
- Edits live on a real timeline you can adjust by hand, unlike tools that hand back one finished file, and the vendor says it can export the project to continue elsewhere.
- Reaches you where you already work: a web editor, Mac and Windows desktop apps, and agent plugins for ChatGPT on the desktop and for Claude Code.
- Credit allowances are listed per model on the pricing page, so you can estimate the cost of a generation before you spend credits.
Cons
- At launch the founders listed taste, timing, reliability and long or heavy video files as weak spots, so expect to review and fix the cut.
- Each video-model call draws down credits, so heavy generation can drain a plan quickly, and no per-clip price list is published beyond the allowances.
- No iOS or Android app is listed, and the ChatGPT plugin installs only in the desktop app, not in web or mobile ChatGPT.
- The privacy policy covers account data, cookies and deletion on request but names no compliance attestation such as SOC 2, and it does not say whether uploads are used for model training.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does ChatCut actually cost?
ChatCut has a free plan with 5 credits, then credit-based Plus plans that start at a $25 monthly fee and step up through three larger allowances to $200. On 2026-10-11 the pricing page showed monthly discounts of 10% to 20% and annual billing from $42, $49 and $98 for the 200, 400 and 800 credit plans, which the vendor presents as limited-time offers. Video generation spends credits, so heavy use of the video models is the main extra cost.
Does ChatCut have a free plan?
Yes. The free plan needs no credit card and includes basic editing, AI images and motion graphics, AI captions and music, and AI avatars with voice cloning and previews. Web export is capped at 60 minutes in total, and the Seedance and Kling video models are listed under the paid plans. The vendor also says some features are completely free when used through Codex, Claude and WorkBuddy.
What should you use instead of ChatCut?
Descript is the closest on spoken-word editing, so pick it when most of your work is interviews and podcasts. CapCut suits people who want a manual editor with AI effects, OpusClip fits repurposing long videos into short clips, and Runway fits teams that mainly want generated footage. Choose ChatCut when you want an agent to assemble a full edit on a timeline you can still adjust.
What separates ChatCut from Descript?
Descript is built around editing a transcript like a document, while ChatCut takes an instruction and has an agent cut, add motion graphics, generate clips and score music in one pass. ChatCut also ships plugins for the ChatGPT desktop app and Claude Code, which is its clearest difference. Descript is the older and more established product, so test ChatCut exports and reliability on your own footage before a client project.
How do you set up ChatCut?
Open app.chatcut.io, create a free account, upload footage and type what you want, such as removing filler words and adding captions. For ChatGPT, install the plugin from the Plugins sidebar of the desktop app on Mac or Windows; for Claude Code, paste the vendor install prompt into a session, sign in to ChatCut and start a new session. The install prompt tells your agent to read a setup guide on chatcut.io, so read that guide before approving it.
Top Alternatives
- Descript: Pick Descript if you mainly edit spoken content through a transcript; pick ChatCut if you want an agent to assemble the whole edit.
- CapCut: Choose CapCut when you want hands-on control of a manual editor; choose ChatCut when you would rather instruct an agent.
- OpusClip: Pick OpusClip to turn long videos into short clips fast; choose ChatCut when the project needs motion graphics, music and a full timeline.
- VEED: Choose VEED for a browser editor with familiar tools; pick ChatCut when prompting should drive the edit.
- Runway: Pick Runway when generated footage is the goal; choose ChatCut when you need to cut and finish a whole video around your own clips.