For your team
Video tools for media companies: Riverside records, Descript edits, OpusClip makes clips
Media companies usually need a tool to record, a tool to edit and a tool to turn shows into short vertical clips. Here is which tool does which job, what each costs and where Cutroom fits.
In short
- Media companies usually use Riverside to record, Descript or Premiere Pro to edit episodes, and OpusClip or Vizard to cut clips.
- OpusClip and Vizard turn long shows and podcasts into short vertical clips for you, and both have a free plan with a watermark.
- Cutroom edits one short segment of up to 3 minutes into a finished vertical video with captions, in about a minute.
- Cutroom does not clip long shows, so it suits segments recorded on purpose, like a 90-second summary after the show.
- A 60-second Cutroom video costs 120 credits, and Lite is $19.99 a month for 1,250 credits.
- Longest segment Cutroom takes
- 3 min
- Until Cutroom's edit comes back
- ~1 min
- Cutroom credits for a 60-second video
- 120
Video tools for media companies at a glance
These six tools cover recording, editing full episodes, clipping long shows and editing short segments.
Video tools for media companies
Prices as each company publishes them on the day shown. Plans change, so check before you buy.
| Tool | Best for | Editing approach | Platform | Pricing from |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Riverside | Recording remote interviews and podcasts | Records each guest on their own device, then you edit by text | Web, Mac app, mobile apps | Free plan; Pro $24/month billed yearly ($29 monthly) |
| Editing long recordings and podcasts as text | You edit the transcript, and the video is cut to match | Web, Mac, Windows | Free plan with watermark; Hobbyist $16/person/month billed yearly | |
| Editing full episodes on a professional timeline | A full timeline editor from Adobe, with text-based editing and AI tools | Windows, Mac; iPhone and Android apps | US$22.99/month on an annual plan; 7-day free trial | |
 DaVinci Resolve | Professional editing and colour for free | Editing, colour, visual effects and audio in one app | Mac, Windows, Linux | Free; Studio $295 one-time |
 OpusClip | Turning long videos and podcasts into short clips | Its AI picks moments from a long video, turns them vertical and adds captions | Web, mobile | Free plan with watermark; Starter $15/month |
| Cutroom | Turning a short spoken segment into a finished vertical video | You upload one clip of someone talking, and it cuts it and adds captions, stock clips and a headline | Web | First video free; Lite $19.99/month |
- Riverside
- Best for
- Recording remote interviews and podcasts
- Approach
- Records each guest on their own device, then you edit by text
- Platform
- Web, Mac app, mobile apps
- Pricing from
- Free plan; Pro $24/month billed yearly ($29 monthly)
Descript
- Best for
- Editing long recordings and podcasts as text
- Approach
- You edit the transcript, and the video is cut to match
- Platform
- Web, Mac, Windows
- Pricing from
- Free plan with watermark; Hobbyist $16/person/month billed yearly
Premiere Pro
- Best for
- Editing full episodes on a professional timeline
- Approach
- A full timeline editor from Adobe, with text-based editing and AI tools
- Platform
- Windows, Mac; iPhone and Android apps
- Pricing from
- US$22.99/month on an annual plan; 7-day free trial
- DaVinci Resolve
- Best for
- Professional editing and colour for free
- Approach
- Editing, colour, visual effects and audio in one app
- Platform
- Mac, Windows, Linux
- Pricing from
- Free; Studio $295 one-time
- OpusClip
- Best for
- Turning long videos and podcasts into short clips
- Approach
- Its AI picks moments from a long video, turns them vertical and adds captions
- Platform
- Web, mobile
- Pricing from
- Free plan with watermark; Starter $15/month
Cutroom
- Best for
- Turning a short spoken segment into a finished vertical video
- Approach
- You upload one clip of someone talking, and it cuts it and adds captions, stock clips and a headline
- Platform
- Web
- Pricing from
- First video free; Lite $19.99/month
Prices and plans read from each vendor's own pricing page on 21 September 2026.
Which tool does which job?
Each job usually needs its own tool, although Descript and Riverside cover more than one.
- Vizard works like OpusClip. Its free plan gives 60 minutes of video a month at 720p with a watermark, and Creator costs $29 a month, or $14.50 a month billed yearly.
- Descript can record too. Its Rooms feature records you and up to 10 guests.
Which tool does which job
| Job | Tools that do it |
|---|---|
| Record remote interviews and podcasts | Riverside, Descript |
| Edit a full episode | Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, Descript, Riverside |
| Cut a long show into short clips | OpusClip, Vizard, Descript, Riverside |
| Turn a short spoken segment into a finished vertical video | Cutroom |
Job: Record remote interviews and podcasts
- Tools that do it
- Riverside, Descript
Job: Edit a full episode
- Tools that do it
- Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, Descript, Riverside
Job: Cut a long show into short clips
- Tools that do it
- OpusClip, Vizard, Descript, Riverside
Job: Turn a short spoken segment into a finished vertical video
- Tools that do it
- Cutroom
This is the whole editor
Highlight a phrase and a clip lands on those exact words. No timeline, no keyframes, no layers.
Should you clip the show or record a short segment?
Both work. A clip cut from a long show often starts in the middle of a thought. A segment recorded on purpose can open with a clear first line.
- To make a short segment, the host can stay in the chair for two more minutes after the show and answer one question.
- Clipping tools are the better choice for a back catalogue of long episodes.
A clip from the show and a segment recorded on purpose
How it starts
- Clip cut from the show
- Often in the middle of a thought
- Segment recorded on purpose
- With a first line meant to open the video
Who finds the moment
- Clip cut from the show
- An editor or a clipping tool searches the episode
- Segment recorded on purpose
- Nobody, it was recorded to be a clip
Length
- Clip cut from the show
- However long the moment was
- Segment recorded on purpose
- Up to 3 minutes, by choice
Tool
- Clip cut from the show
- OpusClip, Vizard, Descript or Riverside
- Segment recorded on purpose
- Cutroom
| Clip cut from the show | Segment recorded on purpose | |
|---|---|---|
| How it starts | Often in the middle of a thought | With a first line meant to open the video |
| Who finds the moment | An editor or a clipping tool searches the episode | Nobody, it was recorded to be a clip |
| Length | However long the moment was | Up to 3 minutes, by choice |
| Tool | OpusClip, Vizard, Descript or Riverside | Cutroom |
Which tool should a media company choose?
It depends on where your short videos come from.
Which tool should you choose
Choose Riverside if you record interviews with remote guests and want each guest recorded in high quality.
Choose Descript if your producers edit full episodes and want to edit by changing the transcript.
Choose Premiere Pro if you have trained editors who cut full episodes on a timeline and review them in Frame.io.
Choose DaVinci Resolve if you want a professional editor without a subscription. The base version is free.
Choose OpusClip if you have long shows or podcasts and want clips cut from them for you.
Choose Cutroom if you record short segments for social and want each one finished and captioned in about a minute. Your first video is free.
How Cutroom edits a short segment
You upload the segment and get a finished vertical MP4 with captions burned in, in about a minute.
- The producer reviews the whole video as text, on one screen, before it goes out.
- If Cutroom mishears a name, you fix the word in the transcript and the captions change with it.
- Highlight a phrase, and a clip goes over exactly those words, like your own shot of the street a reporter names.
- Upload your own clips to your library once and use them in later videos, or search millions of free stock clips.
- You edit by changing words, not by dragging clips on a timeline, so producers need no editing experience.
From the studio chair to a posted vertical video
Record the segment
Up to 3 minutes, with the mic still set up
Cutroom edits it
About a minute: cuts, captions, stock clips, headline
A producer reads it
Fix a name, swap a clip
Export
A vertical MP4 with captions burned in
What Cutroom costs, and what it does not do
Each video costs 100 credits to edit plus 20 credits per minute of export, so a 60-second video is 120 credits.
- Four 60-second segments a week is about 16 videos a month, which fits in Basic.
- Every export is a 1080x1920 vertical MP4. There is no landscape version and no subtitle file.
- One account has one login. There are no team invites, so a desk with its own billing needs its own account.
- Someone has to speak on camera, like a host, a reporter or an editor.
Cutroom plans
| Plan | Price | Credits | 60-second videos |
|---|---|---|---|
| First video | Free, no card | 600, for one video | 1, made within 7 days, with a Cutroom watermark |
| Lite | $19.99 a month | 1,250 | About 10 a month |
| Basic | $39.99 a month | 2,500 | About 20 a month |
| Premium | $79.99 a month | 5,000 | About 41 a month |
| Top-up | $39.99 | 2,500 more | About 20 more |
Plan: First video
- Price
- Free, no card
- Credits
- 600, for one video
- 60-second videos
- 1, made within 7 days, with a Cutroom watermark
Plan: Lite
- Price
- $19.99 a month
- Credits
- 1,250
- 60-second videos
- About 10 a month
Plan: Basic
- Price
- $39.99 a month
- Credits
- 2,500
- 60-second videos
- About 20 a month
Plan: Premium
- Price
- $79.99 a month
- Credits
- 5,000
- 60-second videos
- About 41 a month
Plan: Top-up
- Price
- $39.99
- Credits
- 2,500 more
- 60-second videos
- About 20 more
Questions people ask
- What video tools do media companies use?
- Usually one per job: Riverside or Descript to record, Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve or Descript to edit full episodes, and OpusClip or Vizard to cut long shows into short clips. Cutroom edits short segments recorded for social.
- Can Cutroom cut clips out of our hour-long show?
- No. Cutroom edits one video of up to 3 minutes. For clips from long shows, use a clipping tool like OpusClip or Vizard. Cutroom suits a short segment recorded on purpose, for example right after the show.
- Is OpusClip free?
- It has a free plan, but animated captions carry a watermark and exports are kept for only 3 days. Starter costs $15 a month and removes the watermark.
- How fast does Cutroom return a segment?
- In about a minute. Then a producer reads the transcript, fixes anything that needs fixing and exports the MP4.
- Can several desks share one Cutroom account?
- Only by sharing one login. There are no team invites, so desks that need their own logins and billing need separate accounts.
- What does a week of four segments cost in Cutroom?
- About 480 credits at 60 seconds each: 100 to edit and 20 to export, four times. Basic is $39.99 a month for 2,500 credits, which is about 20 sixty-second videos, so four a week fits with credits to spare.
Record one short segment after the show and get a finished, captioned vertical video back in about a minute. Your first video is free.