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15 Best Free Video Splitters

Edited by Ben Jacklin
22,730

If you’re struggling to edit a huge video file, it might be easier to split it. The best way to do this is to use free video splitter software to separate your video into two or more sections, which you can then edit and manipulate separately.

If you’re looking for a video splitter for free that can handle the type of content you’re creating, it’s worth trying one of the 15 different video splitters we’ve mentioned below. These include desktop software you can download for your PC or Mac, as well as video cutters you can try online without any additional software.

Quick summary

  1. Full-featured editing software: Movavi Video Editor

    The program offers basic tools, like splitting, cropping and rotating, as well as advanced features, e.g. Chroma key.

  2. Simple online video editor: Fastreel

    This online tool is a fast way to split a video. Fastreel also lets you create simple videos using templates.

  3. Media player with editing functions: VLC

    VLC is a multifunctional media player. It lets you split videos by recording the fragments you need.

Software

Best for

Download

Beginners and professionals who need a good, all-round video editor

Beginners who want a simple and fast video splitter

Beginners and amateurs

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  • When selecting products to include in our reviews, we research both demand and popularity.

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Best free video splitter software

  • Our rating:

    10/10

  • Supported formats:

    All major formats, including MP4, MKV, WebM, and WMV

Movavi Video Editor is truly one of the best video editing software available for Mac and Windows users, with a one-click option that will let you split up a video into two or more sections. This automatic video editor also supports a number of major video editing features, including trimming and 3D video editing.

You can also convert your files into other formats, capture and split recorded video from outsource sources (such as your webcam), and more – all within a super simple and easy-to-use modern interface. You can try this app with a 7-day free trial.

Main features:

  • Fully-fledged video editor for Windows and Mac users with basic features (to trim, crop, etc), as well as more advanced effects

  • Saves and converts videos to all major video file formats up to 4K

  • Supports DVD burning and direct video capturing

Best for: beginners and professionals who need a good, all-round video editor

Pros:

  • Easy to use interface

  • Lots of useful features for editing video and audio tracks

  • One-click option for video splitting, with advanced options for multiple video splitting

Cons:

  • Limited trial period, the full version is paid

  • Our rating:

    6/10

  • Supported formats:

    All major video formats, including MP4 and MKV

VLC has near-universal name recognition among media lovers, thanks to cross-platform support and an easy-to-use interface. It supports almost all major video formats, allowing you to play any content you like. VLC also offers basic video editing tools, including video splitting.

You can easily split a video in VLC by “recording” the parts you want into separate files. VLC is completely free and open source, allowing you to quickly edit the videos you like. If speed is an issue, however, you may need to look at alternatives like Movavi Video Editor instead.

Main features:

  • Well-known and open-source video player for Window, Linux, and Mac computers

  • Supports all major video file formats

  • Allows for basic video editing and transcoding

Best for: beginners and amateurs

Pros:

  • Easy to use interface

  • Completely free to use

Cons:

  • Not a true “splitter” tool, as it involves playing and recording each video segment, which can prove lengthy

  • Doesn’t offer timestamp precision

  • Our rating:

    6/10

  • Supported formats:

    All major video formats, including MP4 and MKV

Shotcut is another open-source, totally free video editing tool with features that make it popular with professionals. It supports all the major formats, allows you to directly capture webcam and other video feeds, and includes features for adding special effects, customizing audio tracks, and more.

It also performs more basic tasks, like video splitting. It does this by cutting excess parts of the video, allowing you to save the segments you want. This is more “cutting” than “splitting” a video, however, so if you want a true splitting tool, you may need an alternative.

Main features:

  • Professional-grade video editing tool for Windows, Mac, and Linux PCs

  • Offers support for all major video formats, thanks to cross-platform FFmpeg library support

  • Includes basic and advanced editing features, including video filters and support for direct video capture

Best for: professionals who prefer open source software

Pros:

  • Free and open source

  • Includes hundreds of features and special effects

  • Customizable interface with different themes and layouts

Cons:

  • Steeper learning curve than more basic editing tools

  • Not a true “splitter” tool, as it involves cutting the source file, rather than splitting it into several sections

  • Our rating:

    7/10

  • Supported formats:

    Limited video file support, supporting M4V, MP4, AVI, and some Apple-specific formats such as MOV and QT

Mac users, especially beginners, can take advantage of the freely-available iMovie for basic video editing. It’s pre-installed on every single Mac, and offers basic editing tools and support for 4K video. This isn’t a professional editor, but few video editing programs prove this easy to use.

As far as video splitting is concerned, iMovie couldn’t make it easier. Using the timeline at the bottom, you can select the video segments you want to split, then complete the job in just a few clicks. You can use your clips elsewhere in your video, or export them as separate files to use elsewhere.

Main features:

  • Basic video editing tool for Mac users

  • Support for most major video formats, although with some limitations for some proprietary video codecs

  • Allows you to share video editing projects between iMovie on Mac and iPhone

Best for: absolute beginners

Pros:

  • Available for free on every Mac

  • Supports 4K video editing

  • Extremely beginner friendly

Cons:

  • Limited special effects and a small number of basic video editing features

  • Method for exporting split video clips isn’t as clear as it could be

Best video splitters

Fastreel
9/10
Editor’s choice
VLC
6/10
  • Our rating:

    5/10

  • Supported formats:

    Supports most major video formats, but with some limitations due to limited proprietary video codec support

While some video editors offer professional-grade features, that isn’t quite the case with Avidemux. This is aimed at beginners, with a limited feature set that focuses on basic video editing, including video splitting.

Like Movavi Video Editor, Avidemux has a one-click solution for splitting a video file. Select the start of the segment by clicking your mouse on the timeline and pressing A, then repeating it to select the end by pressing B. When you save the video, only the segment you selected will save.

Main features:

  • Free, open-source and cross-platform video editor for Mac, Windows, and Linux users

  • Offers basic video editing features in an easy-to-use interface

  • Customizable with plugins and custom scripts

Best for: beginners

Pros:

  • Completely free to use

  • Extremely easy for beginners

Cons:

  • Interface is outdated

  • Features are limited

  • Doesn’t allow you to split a video into multiple files at once

  • Our rating:

    4/10

  • Supported formats:

    Extremely limited video file support, with FLV, AVI, MP4, MOV, MPEG and WMV supported

If you’re struggling with other video editing tools, the freeware Free Video Splitter will do the job. This tool is solely focused on splitting videos, giving you options to split it equally or to split it using user-selected cut points.

There are some concerns, however, with the installer prompting users to install adware, although you can decline this. Otherwise, this Windows-only video splitting tool is exactly as the name suggests, allowing you to split up videos precisely and without additional software.

Main features:

  • Freeware video splitting tool for Windows users

  • Simple to use interface with options to split videos equally or into user-defined segments

Best for: beginners on Windows PCs

Pros:

  • Completely free to use

  • Interface guides users through each step, making it simple for beginners

Cons:

  • Installer comes with adware that prompts you to install other software

  • Interface is a little outdated

  • Video file support is limited to some major formats only

  • Our rating:

    4/10

  • Supported formats:

    MP4 videos only

MP4 Tools is actually two tools rolled into one, with MP4 Joiner that allows you to combine multiple MP4 videos files, and MP4 Splitter that allows you to split them. Totally free to use and with cross-platform support, MP4 Tools is quite limited in scope, but not in performance.

Focusing on MP4 Splitter, the tool itself is extremely simple to use. Insert the source video, select your split points, then press start---easy as that. The only downside to MP4 Tools is the focus on the MP4 format, which makes this an option that many users may avoid.

Main features:

  • Offers tools for joining and splitting MP4 videos

  • Cross platform support on Windows and Mac (with compilable source code for Linux users)

Best for: beginners

Pros:

  • Completely free to use

  • Extremely simple interface that allows you to split videos in a few clicks

Cons:

  • Supports MP4 files only

  • Interface is outdated and blurry on high-resolution screens, such as Retina-display MacBooks

Best free online video splitters

  • Our rating:

    9/10

  • Supported formats:

    MP4, MOV, MKV, AVI, and WMV

Fastreel is a simple video splitter that’s free and online. The app lets you upload video files up to 500 MB. Splitting a video in Fastreel is easy and will take you just a couple of clicks. 

Apart from splitting, Fastreel can help you join videos, apply transitions and filters, add text and music, rotate and flip your videos, and much more. Fastreel also offers templates for quick video making. 

The free version will put a watermark on an output video. Paid plans allow export without a watermark and grant access to a wider range of tools and templates. 

Main features:

  • Support for popular video formats

  • Ready-made templates

Best for: beginners who want a simple and fast video splitter

Pros:

  • Simple and straightforward interface

  • Multiple editing tools

Cons:

  • A watermark in the free version

  • The file size is limited to 500 MB

  • Our rating:

    7/10

  • Supported formats:

    Major video file formats, including MOV, MP4, WebM, AVI, MPEG, and M4V

Apowersoft’s online cutting tool offers a quick three-step approach for splitting up longer videos. Import your file, select your segments, then allow Apowersoft’s servers to complete the job and export the finished result. It supports all the major video file formats, and allows you to split source videos into multiple files.

You can also trim videos with very basic video editing features, as well as share your videos online to social media platforms such as Facebook and YouTube.

Main features:

  • Online video cutting tool with support for major file formats

  • Supports direct exporting to social media and video sharing sites

Best for: social media fans

Pros:

  • Extremely easy to use interface

  • Allows you to cut video segments, as well as split them

  • Guarantees videos are deleted after 24 hours

Cons:

  • More specialist video file formats are excluded

  • Our rating:

    7/10

  • Supported formats:

    Supports all major video formats

Online Video Cutter is more than just a video cutting tool. With support for all the known video formats, it's one of the best free video splitters available out there. It also allows you to crop, trim and rotate videos, and offers initial support for (quite large) 500MB video files.

You can also import videos from cloud services or directly from a URL, although YouTube isn’t supported. Like Apowersoft, Online Video Cutter guarantees to delete any uploaded content quickly, removing it within a few hours.

Main features:

  • Online video cutting tool with support for all known video file formats

  • Allows you to import from online cloud services or by web address

Best for: users who need to edit their videos before splitting them

Pros:

  • Simple, easy-to-use interface

  • Offers basic video editing, such as video trimming, rotating, and stabilization

  • Guarantees videos are deleted within a few hours

Cons:

  • Limited to 500MB videos

  • Our rating:

    5/10

  • Supported formats:

    Supports most major video file formats, including M4V, MOV, MP4, and MPEG

Clideo’s video splitting tool may be labeled as an MP4 splitter, but it also offers support for most major formats. You can use the platform to split videos into two or more separate files, as well as convert files into other formats.

The only downside to Clideo is the watermark. Any videos you upload will see a watermark applied to them, which you can only remove by paying a monthly fee.

Main features:

  • Allows you to cut videos online and convert them to other formats

  • Supports direct exporting to cloud storage drives

Best for: beginners who want to convert their videos

Pros:

  • Simple and beginner-friendly interface

  • Quick to use

Cons:

  • Not so fast to upload for bigger files

  • Watermark applied to videos, with a monthly fee to remove

  • Our rating:

    7/10

  • Supported formats:

    Supports most major video file formats, including M4V, MOV, MP4, and MPEG

BeeCut is a clone of Apowersoft, offered by the same company and with the same features and website, even down to the color scheme. Just like its twin, BeeCut allows you to split videos, as well as edit them with basic trimming or rotating tools.

You can also export your split videos to social media and online video sites directly, and like Apowersoft, any videos you upload are removed within 24 hours.

Main features:

  • Supports all major video file formats

  • Allows you to export split videos to social media or video sharing sites

Best for: social media fans

Pros:

  • Interface is easy to use

  • Can remove or customize videos before you split them

  • Privacy guaranteed with 24-hour removals

Cons:

  • Some rarer video file formats aren’t supported

  • Our rating:

    7/10

  • Supported formats:

    Supports most major video file formats, including MP4, WebM, HEVC, and MOV

Unlike other online video splitters, InVideo is a video-editing tool in its own right. From your browser, you can customize your source file by adding text, inserting picture-in-picture captions, adding filters or other special effects, and more.

It also allows you to perform basic tasks like trimming or splitting your video. InVideo also supports export to online social media and video sharing sites directly.

Main features:

  • Fully-fledged online video editing tool with support for major file formats

  • Basic and advanced features, including filters and special effects

  • Allows you to export files to web-friendly formats

Best for: professionals who need to edit and split videos online

Pros:

  • Interface is easy to use, with a timeline-style interface like desktop editors

  • Completely free to use

  • Supports up to 4K videos

Cons:

  • Slightly slower to use compared to other online video splitters

  • Our rating:

    7/10

  • Supported formats:

    Supports some major formats, including MP4, WebM, AVI and MKV

Clipchamp, like InVideo, is a video editing tool in your browser that offers a full set of features for extensive video editing. Amateurs will love the social media templates and simple-to-use interface, while beginners will make use of more advanced features, such as transitions and color adjustment tools.

Video splitting is easy, with the ability to split or combine videos, as well as trim excess sections. You can export videos up to 480p for free, but 720p and full HD videos require a paid account.

Main features:

  • Powerful online video editor with professional features

  • Support for several major video file formats

  • Extensive number of video templates for social media-friendly video creation

Best for: amateurs and professionals for source video editing

Pros:

  • Simple and clean interface for beginners to use

  • Lots of video editing features

Cons:

  • Free users are limited to 480p videos without watermarks

  • Our rating:

    4/10

  • Supported formats:

    Supports major formats, including M4V, MP4, MPEG, AVI, and MKV

VideoToolbox is a video editor with support for large video files up to 1.5 GB in size. It allows you to crop, cut, and merge videos, as well as split them into sections. You can upload multiple files at once, as well as customize the output files by resolution, codec, bit rate, and more.

The interface is somewhat outdated, but each section and feature is clearly explained. If you’re looking for a one-click splitter, however, you may prefer to use one of the other alternatives listed above.

Main features:

  • Professional-grade video conversion and basic editing tool, aimed at professionals

  • Supports most major file formats

  • Allows you to upload multiple files

Best for: professionals

Pros:

  • Large file support (1.5 GB)

  • Advanced video conversion features and settings

  • Supports audio and subtitle editing

Cons:

  • Outdated and difficult interface

  • Not beginner friendly

Frequently asked questions

How do I split a video into multiple parts?

What is the difference between cut and split?

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