Feature
Auto zoom video editing: zooms added for you
Cutroom adds small zooms to your talking video by itself, where a new sentence starts, and on the Punch and Native styles on key words too. You do not place anything by hand, and the zooms cost nothing extra.
In short
- Auto zoom means your editor adds the zooms for you. Cutroom adds them at the start of sentences, and on the Punch and Native styles on key words too.
- Each zoom moves 6 to 12% closer, or starts that close and eases back out. Zooms stay at least 6 seconds apart.
- Before you upload, you pick one of four edit styles. Straight cut zooms the least, and Punch and Native zoom the most.
- You do not place any zoom by hand, and the editor has no zoom control, so the style you pick decides the zooms.
- Zooms cost nothing extra. A 30-second video costs about 110 credits in total, and your first video is free.
- How much closer each zoom goes
- 6–12%
- Shortest time between two zooms
- 6 s
- Most zooms in a 60-second video, on Punch or Native
- 10
What is auto zoom in video editing?
Auto zoom means the editor adds quick zooms for you, so you do not have to place each one by hand. Editors call a quick zoom-in a punch-in.
- A punch-in is a quick zoom-in on the same shot, so a video filmed with one camera feels like it has two.
- It gives the viewer something new to look at without changing the scene.
- It works best on a claim, a number or the thing you ask viewers to do at the end.
- In an edit with cuts, a small zoom also hides the jump where a pause was cut out.
Where Cutroom places the zooms
You never place a zoom by hand. Cutroom picks the spots from the words in your video, and the edit style decides which spots count.
- On Punch and Native, Cutroom zooms first on the key words it picks out, like a number or a claim. If there is room left, it zooms where a new sentence starts.
- On Straight cut and Flow, the zooms land where a new sentence starts, never in the middle of a sentence.
- One zoom goes in and the next goes back out, so the frame never creeps closer and closer.
How Cutroom decides where a zoom goes
Cutroom places every zoom from the words in your clip, so you never set one yourself.
Cutroom reads your clip
It finds each sentence start and the key words
Punch and Native zoom on key words
Then on sentence starts, if there is room
Straight cut and Flow zoom on sentence starts
Never in the middle of a sentence
Zooms stay at least 6 seconds apart
About 17 seconds on Straight cut
Zoom in, then back out
Each zoom goes the other way from the last one
This is the whole editor
Highlight a phrase and a clip lands on those exact words. No timeline, no keyframes, no layers.
How big the zooms are and how often they happen
The edit style you pick before you upload sets the size, the spacing and the place of the zooms.
Every zoom moves 6 to 12% closer, or starts that close and eases back out. It comes at least 6 seconds after the last one.
Zoom size and spacing in each style
| Style | Where the zooms land | Zoom size | Time between zooms | Zooms in a 60-second video |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Straight cut | Start of a sentence | 8% closer | About 17 seconds or more | 4 at most |
| Flow | Start of a sentence | 8% closer | At least 12 seconds | 5 at most |
| Punch | Key words first, then sentence starts | 12% closer | At least 6 seconds | 10 at most |
| Native | Key words first, then sentence starts | 12% on key words, 6% at the start of a sentence | At least 6 seconds | 10 at most |
Style: Straight cut
- Where the zooms land
- Start of a sentence
- Zoom size
- 8% closer
- Time between zooms
- About 17 seconds or more
- Zooms in a 60-second video
- 4 at most
Style: Flow
- Where the zooms land
- Start of a sentence
- Zoom size
- 8% closer
- Time between zooms
- At least 12 seconds
- Zooms in a 60-second video
- 5 at most
Style: Punch
- Where the zooms land
- Key words first, then sentence starts
- Zoom size
- 12% closer
- Time between zooms
- At least 6 seconds
- Zooms in a 60-second video
- 10 at most
Style: Native
- Where the zooms land
- Key words first, then sentence starts
- Zoom size
- 12% on key words, 6% at the start of a sentence
- Time between zooms
- At least 6 seconds
- Zooms in a 60-second video
- 10 at most
How to get calmer or bolder zooms
The edit style you pick before you upload sets how often the video zooms. You cannot change it in the editor, and there is no switch that turns the zooms off.
- Choose Straight cut if you want calm zooms. It zooms the least, only where a new sentence starts, which suits a founder story or a serious topic.
- Choose Flow if you want something in between, with small zooms at sentence starts no more than once every 12 seconds.
- Choose Punch if you want bold zooms. It zooms 12% closer on key words, as often as once every 6 seconds.
- Choose Native if you want frequent zooms that feel lighter, with small ones when a new sentence starts and bigger ones on key words.
What auto zoom in Cutroom does not do
Cutroom's auto zoom is built for talking videos. For other edits, a timeline editor is the better tool.
- You cannot put a zoom at an exact second yourself.
- It never zooms in more than 12%, so there are no big, fast zooms.
- It does not time zooms to your music. A timeline editor lets you do that by hand.
- It only works on your own talking video, up to 3 minutes long, and only makes 9:16 videos.
What it costs
Zooms are part of the edit, so they cost nothing extra.
Credits per video
| Step | Cost |
|---|---|
| The edit, with captions, b-roll and zooms | 100 credits |
| Export | 20 credits per minute of video |
| A 30-second video, all in | About 110 credits |
| Your first video | Free within 7 days of signing up, no card, with a Cutroom mark |
| Lite plan | $19.99 a month for 1,250 credits |
Step: The edit, with captions, b-roll and zooms
- Cost
- 100 credits
Step: Export
- Cost
- 20 credits per minute of video
Step: A 30-second video, all in
- Cost
- About 110 credits
Step: Your first video
- Cost
- Free within 7 days of signing up, no card, with a Cutroom mark
Step: Lite plan
- Cost
- $19.99 a month for 1,250 credits
Zooms in other video editors
Submagic and Gling also add zooms for you. CapCut, Descript and Premiere Pro, going by their own guides, have you place each zoom yourself.
- Choose Submagic if you already have short clips and want captions, b-roll and zooms added to them.
- Choose Gling if you edit long recordings and want silences removed and zooms added for you.
- Choose CapCut, Descript or Premiere Pro if you want to place every zoom yourself.
- Choose Cutroom if you film short talking videos and want the zooms, cuts and captions done together.
Who places the zooms in each editor
Zoom features from each company's own guides and prices from its own pricing page, checked 21 September 2026.
| Tool | Zooms | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Submagic | Adds zooms to short videos for you, from the Pro plan | Pro $23 a month billed yearly, or $39 monthly |
| Gling | Zooms in and out for you, on every plan | Free plan with a watermark, Plus $10 a month billed yearly |
| CapCut | You add a zoom effect or keyframes yourself | Free, Pro $19.99 a month, price varies by region |
| Descript | You add a Zoom and Pan effect yourself | Free plan with a watermark, Hobbyist $16 a month billed yearly |
| Premiere Pro | You set Scale keyframes yourself | $22.99 a month on a yearly plan, no free plan |
| Cutroom | Adds zooms for you in every style, at sentence starts and, on Punch and Native, on key words | First video free, Lite $19.99 a month |
Tool: Submagic
- Zooms
- Adds zooms to short videos for you, from the Pro plan
- Price
- Pro $23 a month billed yearly, or $39 monthly
Tool: Gling
- Zooms
- Zooms in and out for you, on every plan
- Price
- Free plan with a watermark, Plus $10 a month billed yearly
Tool: CapCut
- Zooms
- You add a zoom effect or keyframes yourself
- Price
- Free, Pro $19.99 a month, price varies by region
Tool: Descript
- Zooms
- You add a Zoom and Pan effect yourself
- Price
- Free plan with a watermark, Hobbyist $16 a month billed yearly
Tool: Premiere Pro
- Zooms
- You set Scale keyframes yourself
- Price
- $22.99 a month on a yearly plan, no free plan
Tool: Cutroom
- Zooms
- Adds zooms for you in every style, at sentence starts and, on Punch and Native, on key words
- Price
- First video free, Lite $19.99 a month
Questions people ask
- Why is there no zoom on an important word?
- On Straight cut and Flow, zooms only land where a new sentence starts, so a key word in the middle of a sentence never gets one. On Punch and Native, the last zoom was probably less than 6 seconds earlier.
- How big is the zoom?
- Between 6 and 12% closer, depending on the style you pick. Straight cut and Flow zoom 8% closer, Punch and Native 12%, and Native keeps its zooms at the start of a sentence at 6%.
- Do zooms cost extra credits?
- No. They are part of the edit, which costs 100 credits. You only pay for the export on top, at 20 credits per minute of video.
- Can I turn the zooms off?
- No. There is no off switch. Straight cut zooms the least, so pick it before you upload if you want very few zooms.
- Can I change the zooms after I upload?
- No. The style you picked sets the zooms, and the editor has no zoom control, so you cannot add, remove or move a zoom.
- Does CapCut or Premiere Pro zoom automatically?
- No, going by their own help pages. In both, you add each zoom by hand. With keyframes, you set one at the clip's normal size and one a moment later at a slightly bigger size, and the clip zooms between them.
- Can Cutroom zoom every 2 seconds?
- No. Zooms stop at 12% and stay at least 6 seconds apart. For a zoom every 2 seconds, use CapCut or Premiere Pro and place each one yourself.
Upload one clip of yourself talking and see where the zooms land. Your first video is free.