Cavalry vs Placeit

Cavalry and Placeit side by side, as of September 2026: what each one costs, what it's made for, and when smooth.video, a free animation tool that runs in your browser with no account, does the job instead.

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Cavalry vs Placeit at a glance

CavalryPlaceitsmooth.video
PriceFree for individualsSingle purchases, or a subscription from US$89.69 a yearFree

As of September 2026. Plans change, so check those of Cavalry and Placeit before you decide.

Cavalry

Install
Desktop app for Mac and Windows
Account
Canva account required
How you animate
Keyframes plus procedural tools: duplicators, falloffs, behaviours
Transparent video
WebM, ProRes 4444, plus APNG, GIF and WebP
Animation driven by spreadsheets
Yes
Rigging, dynamics, scripting
Yes
Lottie and SVG export
Yes

When Cavalry fits better

You build complex motion design: hundreds of shapes driven by one rig, charts animated from a spreadsheet, dynamics, scripts, or Lottie and ProRes deliverables. smooth.video has none of that.

Cavalry vs smooth.video

Placeit

Watermark
On previews, until you buy
What you can change
Text, colours, images and music in the template
Formats
MP4 for videos, PNG for designs
Product mockups and logo generator
Yes

When Placeit fits better

You sell merch and need photo mockups of your designs on shirts, mugs and phones, or want a logo generated for you along with matching assets. smooth.video only animates.

Placeit vs smooth.video

When smooth.video fits better

You need an animated title, a logo reveal or a social post today, on any computer, including one where you can't install software, and you don't need procedural systems to get there.

You need one intro or logo animation rather than a subscription, want it to move your way, or need it on a transparent background.

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Questions

Can I animate a chart from a spreadsheet?
No, you type the values in. smooth.video suits a handful of figures; for charts built from real data, Cavalry is the better fit.
Can I open Cavalry projects?
No. smooth.video opens its own .smooth files and imports images, video, audio and layered PSD files.
Do I need to install anything?
No. The editor and every export run in your browser.
Can I use my own logo?
Yes. Import it as an image, remove its background in one click if it has one, and animate it.
Does smooth.video make mockups?
No. It animates: intros, logo reveals, titles and social posts. For product mockups, Placeit is the better tool.
Is there a watermark?
No. The download is free and clean.