YouTube Shorts · Reels · TikTok
Long Video to Shorts
One upload. A week of Shorts.
You already made the long video. FreeClip finds its best moments (usually 20–60 seconds each) and turns each one into a vertical Short with captions — so a single upload keeps your channel posting all week.
How it works
From long video to Shorts
The repurposing work, done in minutes.
- I
Upload the long video
A YouTube video, podcast episode, livestream recording or webinar — up to 60 minutes and 2 GB.
- II
AI picks the Shorts
The full transcript is scored for moments that make sense on their own and open with a hook.
- III
Post vertical clips
Each moment comes back as a 9:16 Short with word-by-word captions, a title and the hook line.
Why turn long videos into Shorts?
Shorts are where new viewers discover a channel. Long videos are where they stay. Cutting Shorts out of the long videos you already publish connects the two: each Short is a trailer for the full episode, and it costs you no extra filming.
The hard part has always been the editing. Finding the good moments means rewatching the whole video, then cropping to vertical, keeping the speaker in frame and typing captions. For a one-hour video that can easily take an afternoon. An AI long-video-to-Shorts converter does that first pass for you.
What the AI looks for in a long video
- A strong first line. Shorts are decided in the first second. The AI favors moments that open with a claim, a question or a surprising number.
- A complete thought. A good Short makes sense without the rest of the video. Moments that depend on earlier context are skipped.
- The right length. Clips usually run 20 to 60 seconds and start and end on sentence boundaries, so nothing is cut off mid-word.
- A score for every clip. Each clip comes with a 0–100 score estimating how well it should perform, so you know which Short to post first.
Long video to Shorts vs. editing by hand
| By hand in an editor | FreeClip | |
|---|---|---|
| Finding moments | Rewatch the whole video | AI reads the transcript |
| Vertical crop | Keyframe the crop manually | Auto-centered on the speaker |
| Captions | Type or fix auto-captions | Word-by-word, burned in |
| Time for a 1-hour video | Hours | Usually 10–15 minutes |
| Cost | Your time, or an editor | Free, no watermark |
An editor still gives you full creative control — use FreeClip for the first cut, then polish the one or two clips you care most about.
Best long videos to turn into Shorts
- Podcasts and interviews — conversation is full of quotable moments.
- Webinars and lectures — one sharp insight makes a great standalone Short.
- Tutorials and explainers — a single tip is often the perfect length.
- Livestream recordings with commentary — trim the stream to the part you want (up to 60 minutes) and upload it.
A simple weekly Shorts routine
- Publish your long video as usual.
- Upload it to FreeClip and download the clips with the highest viral scores.
- Post one Short a day, each linking back to the full video.
- Watch which hooks perform best and lean into those topics in your next long video.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
How do I turn a long video into Shorts?
Upload the long video above. The AI transcribes it, picks the strongest self-contained moments, crops each one to 9:16 around the speaker and adds captions. You download ready-to-post Shorts.
How many Shorts can I get from one long video?
Between 3 and 5 per video: 3 for videos under 10 minutes, 4 under 30 minutes and 5 for longer ones. You can clip 3 videos a day for free, or 5 when signed in.
How long is each Short?
Each clip is usually 20 to 60 seconds, which fits YouTube Shorts, Instagram Reels and TikTok.
Can I turn a webinar into Shorts?
Yes. Webinars, lectures and recorded talks work well because they are speech-heavy. Upload the recording (up to 60 minutes) and the AI picks the moments that stand on their own.
Can I paste a YouTube link instead of uploading?
Not yet. For now, upload the video file from your computer or phone. If it's your own channel, you can download the original from YouTube Studio.
Will the Shorts be in the right format?
Yes. Clips are exported as vertical 9:16 MP4 files with burned-in captions, so you can upload them straight to YouTube Shorts.
Is there a watermark?
No. The clips are clean and free to post.
Explore more
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The home page — clip any long video into vertical shorts.
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- Long video to short video AI
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- Podcast clips
Turn video podcast episodes into clips for social.
Your long videos are full of Shorts. Let the AI find them.
Upload it now — FreeClip finds the moments and hands back vertical clips with captions.
Clip a video freeNo sign-up · No watermark