quso.ai vs OpusClip: Which AI Clipper Should You Pay For?
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If you record podcasts, streams or long YouTube videos and want shorts out of them, two names come up in nearly every Reddit thread: OpusClip and quso.ai (the tool formerly called vidyo.ai). Both upload a long video, find moments worth clipping, reframe them to vertical and add captions. The differences are in the free plans, what one minute of footage costs you, and which features sit behind which tier. Here is a plain comparison with every price checked on the official pages on November 1, 2026.
Side-by-side: free and entry plans
| quso.ai | OpusClip | |
|---|---|---|
| What a credit means | 1 credit ≈ 1 minute of processed video | 1 credit = 1 minute of the original video imported |
| Free plan credits | 75 per month | 60 per month |
| Free plan export | 720p, quso.ai watermark | Up to 1080p rendered clips, with watermark |
| Free plan aspect ratios | 16:9, 9:16 and 1:1 | 9:16 |
| Free plan editing | CutMagic AI editing on your first 3 videos | "No editing" (captions and auto reframe only) |
| How long free work stays | 7 days data retention | Clips can no longer be exported after 3 days |
| Cheapest paid plan (monthly) | Lite: $29/month, 100 credits | Starter: $15/month, 150 credits (monthly billing only) |
| Next tier (monthly) | Essential: $39/month, 300 credits | Pro: $29/month, 300 credits |
| Top self-serve tier | Growth: $49/month, 600 credits | Pro with extra "packs" (each pack adds 300 credits/month; pack pricing — check the official site) |
| Free trial of paid features | Free plan (no time limit stated) | "Start your free trial", no credit card required, on Starter and Pro |
What one minute of footage really costs
Both tools charge by the length of the source video, not by the number of clips you get out of it. So the question is simply: how many minutes of long-form content do you upload each month?
| Plan | $/month | Credits (≈ minutes) | ≈ $ per minute |
|---|---|---|---|
| OpusClip Starter | $15 | 150 | $0.10 |
| OpusClip Pro (1 pack) | $29 | 300 | $0.10 |
| quso.ai Lite | $29 | 100 | $0.29 |
| quso.ai Essential | $39 | 300 | $0.13 |
| quso.ai Growth | $49 | 600 | $0.08 |
Worked example: a weekly 45-minute podcast is about 180–200 minutes a month. That's more than OpusClip Starter (150) and quso Lite (100), so you are realistically comparing OpusClip Pro at $29 with quso.ai Essential at $39, both at 300 credits. Two episodes a week (≈ 400 minutes) is where quso.ai Growth at $49 for 600 credits becomes interesting; on OpusClip you would need a second Pro pack, and you should check what that costs on their site before deciding.
Two credit details worth knowing. OpusClip rounds partial minutes down (a 4.5-minute video costs 4 credits) and anything under a minute costs 1 credit. Its pricing page also says unused Pro credits roll over for 2 months. quso.ai's pricing page doesn't say whether unused credits roll over — check the official site if that matters to you.
quso.ai: where it's stronger
- A usable free plan for testing. 75 credits is enough to run one full podcast episode plus a short test, and you can try CutMagic editing on your first three videos.
- All three aspect ratios on every plan. If you post landscape clips to X or LinkedIn and square clips to feeds, quso.ai lists 16:9, 9:16 and 1:1 even on the free plan. OpusClip only adds 1:1 and 16:9 from Pro.
- Scheduling. Essential ($39) schedules to 7 platforms and adds AI filler and silence removal plus a content planner. Lite only publishes to TikTok.
- Subtitles in many languages. quso.ai's subtitle generator lists 99 spoken languages, with SRT download on paid plans. It transcribes; it does not translate.
- Cheapest per minute at high volume. Growth gives 600 credits for $49, plus brand kit, templates and analytics.
The weak spot is the entry price: Lite at $29 for 100 minutes is expensive per minute. If you're on Lite, you're mostly paying to remove the watermark and get 1080p. My full quso.ai pricing guide breaks down every tier.
OpusClip: where it's stronger
- Cheapest way to go watermark-free. Starter at $15/month gives 150 credits, removes the watermark, and includes the virality score, an editor, filler and silence removal, and auto-posting to YouTube Shorts, TikTok and Instagram Reels.
- Pro is packed for $29. 300 credits with rollover, 2 seats, AI B-roll, input from 10+ sources, a social scheduler, video dubbing, speech enhancement, and export to Adobe Premiere Pro and DaVinci Resolve.
- Handing off to a real editor. That Premiere/DaVinci export matters if an editor (or you) wants to finish the clip properly instead of fighting a web editor.
The catches: Starter is 9:16 only and monthly only, its media storage expires after 29 days, and OpusClip's pricing page lists caption languages as "20+", far fewer than quso.ai's 99. That's fine for English, but check that your language is supported if you work in a less common one. The free plan is a demo rather than a working plan, since it has no editing and a 3-day export window.
OpusClip has no affiliate link on this site; you can find it at opus.pro.
Clip quality: what nobody can promise you
Every "X vs Y" page wants to name a winner on clip quality, but the honest answer is that it depends on your footage. AI clippers work from the transcript: they look for complete thoughts, strong opening lines and emotional peaks. A two-person interview with clear audio clips well in most tools. Fast gaming, comedy that relies on timing, or a mostly visual video will need manual trimming whichever tool you use. Creators on Reddit say the same thing about the whole category: the AI finds candidate moments, and a human picks the good ones.
So don't choose on someone else's demo. Choose on a test with your own recording.
A fair 30-minute test on both free plans
- Pick one typical recording of about 30–45 minutes (not your best episode). Under 60 minutes fits both free plans.
- Upload the same file to both tools on the same day.
- For each tool, count how many suggested clips you would actually post after small fixes. That "usable clip rate" matters more than the total number of clips.
- Time how long each usable clip takes to fix: trimming start and end, correcting caption words (names and numbers especially), re-framing speakers.
- Download your favourites quickly — OpusClip free clips stop being exportable after 3 days, and quso.ai keeps free data for 7.
- Watch the results on your phone, not your monitor. Check that captions don't sit under the TikTok or Reels buttons.
Then do the maths from the table above with your real monthly minutes. The cheaper tool is the one with the lowest cost per usable clip, not per credit.
If you only need captions, you may need neither
Both tools are built for finding clips in long videos. If you already cut your own shorts and just want animated, word-by-word captions, a finishing tool such as Submagic is more focused — see my Submagic pricing guide. And if money is tight, CapCut's free auto-captions get you surprisingly far. If you need English and Chinese on the same clip, neither clipper translates; follow the bilingual subtitles workflow instead.
Which one should you pick?
- Solo creator, vertical only, under 150 minutes a month: OpusClip Starter ($15).
- About 300 minutes a month, want an editor handoff or B-roll: OpusClip Pro ($29).
- About 300 minutes a month, posting to many platforms in several formats: quso.ai Essential ($39) for the 7-platform scheduler and all three aspect ratios.
- Around 400–600 minutes a month: quso.ai Growth ($49) is the cheapest per minute listed; compare it with the price of extra OpusClip packs on the day you buy.
- Not sure you'll keep posting: stay on the free plans, pay monthly, and only buy yearly once you've posted consistently for a couple of months.
FAQ
Is quso.ai the same as vidyo.ai?
Yes. quso.ai is vidyo.ai's new name, and its pricing page says existing vidyo.ai plans and pricing are unchanged.
Which has the better free plan?
quso.ai's: more credits (75 vs 60), three aspect ratios instead of one, some AI editing and a 7-day window instead of 3. OpusClip's free clips can render at up to 1080p, though, versus 720p on quso.ai. Both add a watermark.
Can either one translate subtitles into Chinese?
quso.ai's subtitle tool says plainly that it doesn't translate. OpusClip lists multi-language transcription and video dubbing on Pro; for subtitle translation, check the official site. For EN/CN dual subtitles, see the bilingual guide.
Can I just hire someone instead?
Yes. AI clippers save time, but someone still has to pick the clips and fix the captions. If you'd rather hand that off, I cut clips from long videos with captions and EN/CN subtitles.
Related guides
How to Add English + Chinese Bilingual Subtitles to a Short Video with AI (2026)
A step-by-step workflow for dual EN/CN subtitles on TikTok, Reels and Shorts: transcribe, translate, proofread, style for 9:16 and export — with free and paid options.
PricingSubmagic Pricing & Free Trial (2026): What You Actually Get
Submagic's Starter, Pro and Business plans explained in plain English: credits, video length limits, watermark, the free trial, and when a free tool is enough.
Pricingquso.ai (formerly vidyo.ai) Free Plan & Pricing Explained (2026)
What quso.ai's free plan really includes (75 credits, 720p, watermark), how credits map to minutes, and whether Lite, Essential or Growth is worth it for clipping long videos into shorts.