Instagram‘s take on CapCut has finally arrived. Edits, the Meta-owned app that carries on a long tradition of copycat features on Instagram, is surging up the download charts on both the Apple App Store and the Google Play store.
Edits looks to offer a similar experience to CapCut, which millions of TikTokers use to touch up their videos before uploading them. With its second-to-second controls, green screen tools, and video capture capabilities, the Edits interface resembles CapCut. The most noticeable difference between the two apps is a cosmetic one: Videos created through Edits will have no watermark, which could help Instagram promote original content for its Reels format.
When Instagram announced Edits earlier this year, platform head Adam Mosseri noted that the CapCut competitor is more professionally oriented than its TikTok-affiliated rival. Edits, he said, is “more for creators than casual video makers. Not just video editing, but an inspiration tab, idea tracking, and insights built in.”
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Now that Edits is finally available (after a months-long pushback from its initial February launch date), we’re seeing that casual creators are also interested in the new tool. At the time of this post, Edits is ranked #1 among photo and video editing hubs on the App Store. On Google Play, Instagram’s new app has already been download more than one million times.
Those are serious numbers, but Edits may not reach its full potential unless TikTok is banned in the United States. The new app’s announcement came days after CapCut briefly went offline in the U.S. amid regulatory pressure. TikTok’s operating status is looking a little more stable these days, and if the ByteDance-owned app stays available on U.S. app stores, Instagram would lose out of an influx of Edits users it may have been counting on.
Of course, even if TikTok and CapCut stick around for the long haul, there’s a lot to like in Instagram’s new editing suite. Reels are a hot format for Meta, and since they might be getting their own app soon, videomakers would be wise to learn about the creative tools Edits has to offer.
