Kapwing vs Adobe Express

Kapwing and Adobe Express 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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Kapwing vs Adobe Express at a glance

KapwingAdobe Expresssmooth.video
PriceFree plan, then Pro from US$16 a month billed yearlyFree plan, Premium at US$9.99 a monthFree, no paid plan
Where your files liveIn Kapwing's cloudIn Adobe's cloud, 5 GB on the free planOn your computer

As of September 2026. Plans change, so check those of Kapwing and Adobe Express before you decide.

Kapwing

Account
Required to save a project
Watermark
On free plan exports
Export resolution
720p on the free plan, 1080p and 4K on Pro
Projects
Deleted after 3 days on the free plan
AI subtitles, translation, dubbing
Yes
Real-time collaboration
Yes

When Kapwing fits better

You edit talking videos and need subtitles, translations or dubbing in many languages, or several people edit and comment in the same project. smooth.video has no subtitle generator and no shared workspace.

Kapwing vs smooth.video

Adobe Express

Built for
Every kind of design: social posts, flyers, PDFs, presentations, video
Motion
In, Loop and Out presets, with duration, speed and intensity
Transparent video
Not supported
Photoshop files
PSD and Illustrator files placed linked or converted
Templates and stock
100,000+ templates and Adobe Stock
Generative AI
Firefly, with monthly credits

When Adobe Express fits better

You need matching flyers, posts and presentations from a huge library of templates and stock, you work with Photoshop and Illustrator files that stay linked, or you want AI to generate images. Animation is a finishing touch.

Adobe Express vs smooth.video

When smooth.video fits better

You're making the animated pieces of a video, like titles, lower thirds, logo stings or animated stats, want them at full quality without a watermark, and don't need a team workspace.

The animation is the deliverable: an intro, a lower third, an animated stat, a Reel. You want to decide exactly where each element is at each moment, and a transparent export to put over video.

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Start from a template

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Questions

Does smooth.video generate subtitles?
No. You can type captions as text elements and time them on the timeline, but nothing is transcribed automatically.
How long are my projects kept?
They stay in your browser until you clear its data. Save any of them as a .smooth file to keep a copy or open it on another computer.
Is there a watermark?
No, never.
Can I bring my Adobe Express designs in?
Yes, as images: download your design or its parts as PNG, add them to a scene and animate them in smooth.video.
Can I animate a Photoshop file?
Yes. Drop the PSD into the editor and each layer becomes its own element, in place, ready to animate.