ShortsAIThe free Vizard alternative
ShortsAI is a free AI clip generator with no paid tier at shortsai.app. Vizard is a closed-source cloud product starting at $19.99/month.
Both find viral moments in long video and reframe them to 9:16 with face tracking. ShortsAI adds dubbing into 30+ languages and AI UGC video with lip-synced actors. Vizard has the more polished caption library.
Pick Vizard if you want zero setup and nothing else matters. Pick ShortsAI if you want zero cost, no account and no watermark.
Is ShortsAI a real alternative to Vizard?
Yes, with one honest caveat. ShortsAI covers the same core job: it takes a long video, finds the segments worth clipping, cuts them, reframes them to 9:16 and burns in subtitles. It adds two things Vizard does not have, AI voice dubbing into more than 30 languages and an AI UGC generator with lip-synced actors. The only thing you bring is your own Google Gemini API key, which has a free tier, and you use it at shortsai.app with no setup. There is no paid tier.
What does Vizard cost?
Pricing checked 2026-07-27. Vendors change plans without notice; verify before you buy.
- Creator and higher tiers: From $19.99/month, scaling by minutes processed
Vizard is built around a browser editing timeline, so it sits between a pure auto-clipper and a full editor. That is useful if you intend to hand-adjust every clip, and overhead if you do not.
What does ShortsAI cost?
ShortsAI comes in two editions and they are priced very differently, so it is worth being precise. ShortsAI has no paid tier at all. Free at shortsai.app, with nothing to install. You paste your own Google Gemini API key (free tier: 1,500 requests a day) in Settings and it stays encrypted in your browser. No plans, no watermark, no usage cap, no account. The site is supported by ads. You bring your own Google Gemini API key, whose free tier covers 1,500 requests a day; the site is supported by ads.
Vizard vs ShortsAI, feature by feature
| Feature | ShortsAI | Vizard |
|---|---|---|
| Entry price | $0 · no paid tier · no watermark | $19.99/month |
| Account required | No | Yes |
| Source video retained | No, deleted after processing | Yes, in your library |
| AI viral moment detection | Yes, Gemini 3.1 Flash-Lite | Yes |
| Face-tracked 9:16 reframing | Yes, MediaPipe + YOLOv8 | Yes |
| Word-level auto subtitles | Yes, faster-whisper | Yes |
| AI voice dubbing, 30+ languages | Yes, ElevenLabs | No |
| AI UGC video with lip-synced actors | Yes, from $0.65/video | No |
| Free AI YouTube thumbnail & title studio | Yes | No |
| Usage cap | None | Metered on every tier |
What Vizard does better
A comparison that finds nothing good to say about the other tool is not worth reading, so here is where Vizard genuinely wins:
- Genuinely usable in-browser editor after the AI pass
- Strong multi-language subtitle support
Where the two differ
- ShortsAI runs the whole pipeline unattended and is designed to be scripted or scheduled; Vizard expects a human in the timeline.
- Vizard's editor is better than ours if you want to hand-correct each clip before posting.
Which one should you pick?
Vizard is the better pick if you plan to manually refine every clip in a timeline. ShortsAI is the better pick for volume and automation.
Common questions
- Is there a free alternative to Vizard?
- Yes. ShortsAI is free, with no watermark, no usage cap and no account. Vizard starts at $19.99/month.
- Is there a Vizard alternative that needs no account?
- ShortsAI needs no account and deletes the source video after processing. Vizard keeps a library tied to your account.
- Can I switch from Vizard without losing quality?
- The pipelines are comparable on the core job. ShortsAI transcribes with faster-whisper at word level, detects scenes with PySceneDetect, and scores moments with Google Gemini 3.1 Flash-Lite, then reframes with MediaPipe face tracking stabilised against jitter. The honest difference is caption styling, where the commercial tools generally ship more presets.
- Does ShortsAI put a watermark on clips?
- Never. There is no watermark code in ShortsAI at all.
Sources
- Vizard pricing, checked 2026-07-27 on the vendor's public pricing page.
- ShortsAI pipeline details from the project source at shortsai.app.