head to head · open source
Shotcut vs Kdenlive
Shotcut has 15,230 GitHub stars, 1,507 forks, 52 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Kdenlive has 5,701 stars, 513 forks, 0 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Shotcut leads on adoption by 167% (15,230 vs 5,701 stars). Shotcut is written in C++ under GPL-3.0; Kdenlive is written in C++ under GPL-3.0. Shotcut has attracted 10% as many forks as stars, Kdenlive 9%. Kdenlive was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| Shotcut | Kdenlive | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 15K | ★ 5.7K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | C++ | C++ |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.5K | ⑂ 513 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Shotcut if
- You weight community size — 15K stars and counting
- You want the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches C++
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Kdenlive if
- You want the Kdenlive feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches C++
- You evaluated both and Kdenlive fits your workflow better
About Shotcut
Shotcut is a free, open source, cross platform video editor written in C++ and released under the GPL 3.0 license. It lives in the Qt and MLT ecosystem, using Qt for its application and user interface and MLT as its multimedia authoring framework. It provides regularly built binaries for Linux, macOS, and Windows, and is positioned as an open alternative to Adobe Premiere Pro and DaVinci Resolve (Studio).
read the full Shotcut overview →
About Kdenlive
Kdenlive is a free and open source video editor written in C++, released under the GPL 3.0 license, and developed as part of the KDE ecosystem. It builds on the MLT framework for its editing and playback engine, uses Qt and KDE Frameworks 6 for its graphical interface, and draws on frei0r for video effects and LADSPA for audio effects. The project lives within KDE's development infrastructure, with its primary repository hosted on KDE Invent and a GitHub mirror maintained for visibility, and it is distributed through the official kdenlive.org website.
read the full Kdenlive overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Shotcut or Kdenlive more popular?
Shotcut has 15,230 GitHub stars and Kdenlive has 5,701. Shotcut has the larger community by that measure.
Are Shotcut and Kdenlive free?
Both are open source. Shotcut is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Kdenlive under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Shotcut and Kdenlive?
Shotcut is written in C++ and Kdenlive in C++. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Shotcut or Kdenlive?
Choose Shotcut if you want the larger community (15,230 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose Kdenlive if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.