Edits is Instagram’s free video editor for short-form video, built for creators who make Reels, TikToks, and Shorts on their phones. It is a single app with one name on both stores, published by Instagram, and it costs nothing to download or use. This page is the straightforward route to it: what the app does, how to install it on Android and iPhone, what it needs, and what to do when a computer is the device you actually want to edit on.
30-SECOND ANSWER
On Android, install Edits from Google Play. On iPhone, install it from the App Store. There is no desktop version and no separate paid version – any site offering one is not offering Edits. On a Windows PC or Mac, run the official mobile app in an emulator instead.
In this guide
- What the Edits app is
- Get Edits on Android
- Get Edits on iPhone
- What your phone needs
- Sign in and make your first edit
- Is Edits really free?
- What about a computer?
- Troubleshooting
- Frequently asked questions
What the Edits app is
Edits is a mobile video editor made by Instagram for vertical video. Its home is the phone: you shoot or import clips, cut them on a multi-track timeline, add captions and text, layer music and voiceover, and export a finished video sized for Reels and other short-form feeds. It is designed for speed – the tools you reach for most, like trimming, splitting, captions, and transitions, are a tap or two away rather than buried in menus.
Three things define the app. First, it is built around the vertical 9:16 frame, so exports come out at 1080 x 1920 by default, ready to post. Second, it leans on automation where that saves real time: automatic captions, background removal, and AI-assisted effects that would take far longer by hand. Third, it is tied to Instagram without being locked to it – you sign in with an Instagram account, but the videos you export are yours to post anywhere, with no watermark stamped on them.
Edits is not a desktop program, a web app, or a plugin. If you see a website offering an Edits download for Windows or macOS as a direct file, that file did not come from Instagram. The legitimate desktop routes are covered later in this guide and on our desktop page.
Get Edits on Android
On any Android phone with Google Play, installing Edits takes under a minute. Open the Play Store, search for Edits, and look for the listing published by Instagram – the icon is the app’s wordmark, and the listing shows the developer name clearly. Tap Install, wait for the download, and open the app from the store page or your app drawer. If your phone does not have Google Play, our APK guide covers the safe sideloading route.
Before you install, check two things on the listing: the developer reads Instagram, and the app is free. Copycat editors with similar names and icons are common on Play, and the developer name is the fastest way to tell them apart. If the listing you found is published by anyone else, it is not Edits, however similar it looks.
Get Edits on iPhone
On iPhone, Edits comes from the App Store and needs iOS 16.3 or later. Open the App Store, search for Edits, and confirm the seller is Instagram, Inc. before tapping Get. The app downloads, installs, and appears on your home screen like any other app. Sign in with your Instagram account when it opens, and you are ready to edit.
iPhone users sometimes ask whether the Android APK files they read about online can be used on iOS. They cannot: APK is an Android format, and iOS installs only from the App Store. Any site offering an Edits file for iPhone outside the App Store is not offering a genuine install.
What your phone needs
Edits is not a heavy app, but video editing rewards a phone with room to breathe. The table below is a practical minimum, not a marketing claim: below these levels the app may install and still feel slow, especially on longer timelines.
| Requirement | Android | iPhone |
|---|---|---|
| Operating system | A recent Android version with Google Play | iOS 16.3 or later |
| Free storage | At least 1 GB free, more for long projects | At least 1 GB free, more for long projects |
| Account | Google account for Play, Instagram account for Edits | Apple ID for the App Store, Instagram account for Edits |
| Connection | Wi-Fi recommended for the first download and for AI features | Wi-Fi recommended for the first download and for AI features |
If your phone is short on storage, clear a few old videos before your first project rather than during it. Edits keeps drafts and exported files on the device, and running out of space mid-export is the most common reason an otherwise fine edit fails at the last step.
Sign in and make your first edit
Installing is the easy part. The first run-through below gets you from a blank app to a finished, exported video, so you can confirm everything works before investing time in a real project.
- Step 1: Open Edits and sign in. Sign in with your Instagram account and grant the permissions the app asks for: camera, microphone, and photos or media access. Without media permission, the app cannot see your clips.
- Step 2: Start a project. Tap to create a new project and pick two or three short clips from your camera roll. Short first projects teach the timeline faster than long ones.
- Step 3: Trim the clips. Drag the ends of each clip to cut the dead air at the start and finish. A tight first cut is worth more than any effect.
- Step 4: Add captions. Generate automatic captions for any spoken audio, then read them through and fix the mistakes. Captions are the single biggest watch-time improvement for short-form video.
- Step 5: Add music or a voiceover. Lay a track under the edit or record a short voiceover, and set its level so speech stays audible over the music.
- Step 6: Export a test video. Export at 1080 x 1920 and watch the result end to end on your phone, with sound, before you post it anywhere.
- Step 7: Save the project. Keep the project in Edits so you can re-cut or re-export it later without rebuilding the timeline.
Is Edits really free?
Yes, as of October 2026 Edits is free to download and free to use, with no paid tier, subscription, or watermark on exports. That is worth stating plainly because the search results around it are full of the opposite claim: sites selling a pro version, a premium unlock, or a watermark remover for Edits. None of those products exist, because there is nothing to unlock. If a site asks for payment for Edits itself, it is selling you something else – or nothing at all.
The same rule applies to the app stores. If a listing charges for an app called Edits, it is not the Instagram app. The genuine listing is free, published by Instagram on Play and sold by Instagram, Inc. on the App Store.
What about a computer?
There is no official Edits app for Windows or Mac, so a computer needs one of two honest routes. The first is the emulator route: install an Android emulator on your computer and run the official Edits app inside it, exactly as on a phone. Our Windows guide and Mac guide walk through that setup, including the system requirements and the export steps. The second is the phone-plus-desktop workflow: edit in Edits on your phone, then move the finished video to your computer for posting, captioning, or archiving, as described on our desktop page.
What you should not do is download a file that claims to be Edits for Windows or macOS. Instagram has not published one, so any such file is a repackaged or fake app. The full set of safe routes is on our download hub.
Get the official app
Use the buttons below on your phone to get the genuine app from the official stores.
Troubleshooting
I cannot find Edits in the store. Check the spelling and the developer name. If you are on Android without Google Play, or on a device the store marks incompatible, use our APK guide instead of a random download site.
The install stalls or fails. Free up storage, switch to Wi-Fi, and try again. Large app downloads over a weak mobile connection fail more often than people expect.
Edits will not sign in. Confirm you are signing in with an Instagram account, not a Facebook-only login, and check your connection. If the app is very out of date, update it from the store first.
Exports fail or look wrong. Free up storage, shorten the project for a test export, and confirm the export resolution is 1080 x 1920. Persistent failures on a full phone are almost always a storage problem.
The app feels slow. Close other apps, restart the phone, and keep projects short while testing. Video editing is the most demanding thing most phones do, and an older device will show it on long timelines.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Edits app free?
Yes. Edits is free to download and free to use, with no paid tier or subscription as of October 2026. Any site charging for Edits is not selling the genuine app.
Can I download Edits on iPhone?
Yes, from the App Store. It requires iOS 16.3 or later, and the seller is Instagram, Inc.
Can I download Edits on Android?
Yes, from Google Play, published by Instagram. If your Android device has no Google Play, our APK guide covers the safe archive route.
Is there an Edits app for PC?
No. Instagram has not released a desktop version. On Windows or Mac, run the official mobile app in an Android emulator, as our PC and Mac guides explain.
Do I need an Instagram account to use Edits?
Yes. You sign in with an Instagram account when the app opens, and your projects stay tied to that account.
Do Edits exports have a watermark?
No. Videos exported from Edits carry no watermark, whether you installed from Google Play, the App Store, or a verified APK.