Claude for video editing.
Claude decides what to do; a connected editor does the cutting. Here is the setup in Claude and Claude Code, and the honest limits.
Claude does not edit video by itself: Anthropic documents its vision as image understanding, and it cannot take a video file and cut it. To edit video with Claude, add a video editor's MCP server as a custom connector (in Claude) or with claude mcp add (in Claude Code). Vidmoat's server gives Claude 117 tools to cut, caption, grade, preview frames and render.[1][2][3]
Vidmoat is not made by Anthropic. This page explains the setup, what Claude can then do, and the other editors with MCP servers.[2]
Published by Vidmoat. Descript, invideo, OpusClip are named here only to compare them; Vidmoat is not affiliated with or endorsed by them. Each claim about another product links to the page it came from, with the date we read it.
View sourcesWhat it can and cannot do on its own
Claude accepts images (JPEG, PNG, GIF and WebP) and, per Anthropic's docs, only reads the first frame of an animation. It cannot open your MP4. What it can do is call tools on an MCP server you connect, and read what they return.[1][2]
Vidmoat runs its own MCP server with 117 first-party tools: create a project, import footage, cut, caption, grade, render a preview frame and render the finished video. Claude cannot watch your footage directly, so Vidmoat gives it the transcript it makes and frames drawn by the same renderer as the export, which lets it check a caption position before rendering the whole video.[1]
Connect Claude to Vidmoat
- In Claude (web or desktop): Customize, then Connectors, then Add custom connector. Name it Vidmoat, paste https://api.vidmoat.com/api/mcp, and sign in when asked. Anthropic says Free accounts can add one custom connector.[2]
- On a Team or Enterprise plan, an owner adds the connector in Organization settings first; members then connect it themselves.[2]
- In Claude Code, run: claude mcp add --transport http vidmoat https://api.vidmoat.com/api/mcp. Then run /mcp inside Claude Code and finish the sign-in in your browser.[3]
- In a chat, turn the Vidmoat connector on from the + menu and ask for the edit.[2]
The options
A hosted multi-track editor with a first-party MCP server (117 tools). Claude edits the same project you open in the web editor and can render frames to check its own work.[2]
Best for: Footage-first edits: cuts, captions, reframes, grades, b-roll and a rendered file at the end.
Publishes an official MCP for Claude and other clients: import, edits Underlord can do, publish to a share link, and timeline exports. Its page says it does not hand back an MP4 and cannot import YouTube links yet.[4]
Best for: Podcasts and interviews where the transcript is the edit.[5]
Side by side
Swipe or scroll sideways to see every option.
| FEATURE | VIDMOAT | DESCRIPT | INVIDEO | OPUSCLIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First-party MCP server | Yes, first-party, 117 tools, OAuth on every plan | Yes[4] | Yes[6] | Yes[8] |
| Claude can get a rendered MP4 | Yes, render_project returns the exported file | No MP4 on request; publish to a share link[4] | Not stated on its MCP page[6] | Not checked[8] |
| Multi-track timeline | Yes, multi-track: video, audio, text and effects layers | Yes, plus transcript editing[5] | Yes, NLE timelines[6] | Text and timeline editing on paid plans[10] |
| Free plan | Yes: 720p, small watermark, 40 AI credits a month | Yes: 720p, watermarked[11] | Not stated on the pricing page[12] | Yes, with limits[10] |
Where the others are genuinely better
- Descript is the better MCP target when the material is spoken word: its whole editor is built around the transcript, and Claude can ask for anything Underlord can do.[4][5]
- invideo's MCP reaches many generation models in one place. Vidmoat offers fewer AI video models, and only on Studio.[6][7]
- OpusClip is built for bulk clipping with a virality score; Vidmoat has no virality score.[10][9]
Who should pick which
You want Claude to finish a footage-first edit and hand you a rendered file, on a project you can still open and change.[2]
Your edits are podcasts or interviews and you think in transcripts.[5]
Most of the video is generated rather than filmed.[7]
How to do it in Vidmoat
- Create a free Vidmoat account and upload your footage, or let Claude import it for you.
- Add Vidmoat to Claude as a remote MCP server using https://api.vidmoat.com/api/mcp, then sign in to Vidmoat and approve the connection.
- Ask for the edit in plain words, for example: "cut the dead air, add bold captions and make a 9:16 version".
- Ask it to render a preview frame and check its own work before it renders the whole video.
- Open the project in the Vidmoat editor whenever you want to take over by hand, then export.
Pricing
Vidmoat Hobby is free: 3 projects, 720p exports with a small watermark and 40 AI credits a month. Creator is $19 a month, or $15 a month billed yearly, with 2160p (4K) exports, no watermark and 1,500 AI credits a month. Studio is $49 a month, or $39 a month billed yearly, with 6,000 AI credits a month, AI video generation and personal API keys.
Other products’ prices are in the table above, each linked to the page it was read from. Prices change and some vary by region, so check the source before you decide. Vidmoat pricing
What Vidmoat does not do
- Claude never sees your raw footage through Vidmoat: it reads transcripts and rendered frames. Judgement about pacing still benefits from your review.
- Talking photos and lip sync are not generally available to Vidmoat accounts today.
- Fetching a video from a social link is not switched on today.
Frequently asked
Can Claude edit videos?
Not on its own. Anthropic documents Claude's vision as image understanding. Connected to a video editor's MCP server, Claude can make the edit by calling that editor's tools.[1][2]
Is there a Claude video editor?
Anthropic does not make one. Video editors publish MCP servers that Claude can use, Vidmoat and Descript among them. Vidmoat is an independent company.[2][4]
How do I use Claude Code for video editing?
Add an editor's MCP server, for Vidmoat: claude mcp add --transport http vidmoat https://api.vidmoat.com/api/mcp, then run /mcp to sign in. Claude Code can then create projects, cut, caption and render.[3]
Does it work on Claude's free plan?
Anthropic says Free accounts can add one custom connector. Vidmoat's MCP connection works on every Vidmoat plan, including free Hobby; credits apply per tool.[2]
Is this an official Anthropic, OpenAI or Cursor product?
No. Vidmoat is a separate company and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Anthropic, OpenAI or the makers of Cursor. Those assistants support the open Model Context Protocol, and Vidmoat publishes an MCP server they can connect to.[13][2][14][15]
Related
- Claude API docs: vision (supported image formats, image understanding only), read 2026-10-28.
- Claude Help Center: getting started with custom connectors using remote MCP, read 2026-10-28.
- Claude Code docs: connect Claude Code to tools via MCP, read 2026-10-28.
- Descript: MCP, read 2026-10-28.
- Descript: homepage, read 2026-10-28.
- invideo: MCP, read 2026-10-28.
- invideo: homepage, read 2026-10-28.
- OpusClip: MCP, read 2026-10-28.
- OpusClip: ClipAnything, read 2026-10-28.
- OpusClip: pricing, read 2026-10-28.
- Descript: pricing, read 2026-10-28.
- invideo: pricing, read 2026-10-28.
- Model Context Protocol: the specification, read 2026-10-28.
- OpenAI Apps SDK docs: connect from ChatGPT (custom MCP server), read 2026-10-28.
- Cursor docs: Model Context Protocol (mcp.json), read 2026-10-28.