Last checked October 2026 · 3 alternatives to Adobe After Effects in our catalog
People look for a free alternative to Adobe After Effects to cut cost or avoid lock-in. Below are 3 options with a free plan or no price at all - 2 are completely free, 2 are open source and 3 run on Linux.
Picked from listing data (price model, license, platforms, community votes), not hands-on testing.
| Alternative | Price | Open source | Platforms | What it is |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DaVinci Resolve | Freemium | No | Windows, Mac, Linux | Professional video editing, color grading, and audio post in one app. |
| Blender | Free | Yes (GPL) | Windows, Mac, Linux | Free 3D creation software |
| Natron | Free | Yes (GPL-2.0) | Windows, macOS, Linux | Free open-source node-based compositing software |
Professional video editing, color grading, and audio post in one app.
Free plan includes: Video editing · Color grading · Audio editing
Free 3D creation software
Free open-source node-based compositing software
DaVinci Resolve is the first free alternative we list for Adobe After Effects. Others worth a look: Blender and Natron. Which one fits depends on what you use Adobe After Effects for, so check the platform and free-plan details for each.
Yes. Blender and Natron have no paid tier. The rest of the list are freemium: a free plan with paid upgrades.
Yes: Blender and Natron. Open-source options can usually be inspected, modified and self-hosted.
We don't have confirmed free-plan details for Adobe After Effects. Check its pricing page directly.
How this list is built: alternatives come from our catalog's curated alternative relationships; price model, license and platforms come from each product's listing; order is fully-free first, then community votes.
