Seconding the recommendation above! CapCut is solid, but i think its worth looking at technical stability too.

• Descript Creator Plan is around $15/month and technically great for AI captions.
• Veed.io Basic costs roughly $18/month and has reliable stock footage. Honestly, just be cautious and test the free trials first. It depends on your needs, so dont commit until youre sure the quality is decent lol.

Seconding the recommendation above! CapCut is solid, but Simplified Video Editor is also great for small budgets. Just dont forget to check storage limits tho... gl!

Can confirm this works. Did the same thing on mine and its been solid ever since.

omg I have been hunting for the exact same thing for my side hustle for like three months now and it is beyond frustrating. I have tried so many budget options that promise the world but they always end up being super glitchy or crashing right when I am about to export. It actually reminds me of when I used to do wedding videography back in the day with those old heavy tape cameras and firewire cables... I spent more time worrying about the equipment failing than actually filming. I even missed a cake cutting once because a battery just died out of nowhere and I had no backup charged... that was a nightmare to explain to the bride lol. Reliability is everything to me now but I still havent found the right balance for AI video stuff yet. Anyway, just wanted to say you are definitely not alone in the struggle tho.

Big if true

hey just checking real quick before you dive in... are you doing most of this on a phone or a computer? i only ask because you gotta be careful with the performance side of things. some of these web tools use a ton of ram and i always worry they might fry my motherboard or just crash constantly if i leave too many tabs open. i actually had a laptop melt its own fans once because i was trying to run too many programs at once while the heater was on in my office. it was right when i was trying to set up my first shop display and i had to run out and buy a massive bag of ice just to keep the computer from shutting down during the inventory sync. the guy at the electronics store looked at me like i was totally crazy but it actually worked for like twenty minutes before the condensation started getting everywhere and i got scared of getting electrocuted. anyway lol sorry kinda went off topic there.

^ This. Also, I have been using a desktop-based setup lately because I got tired of browser crashes during long exports on my older machine. Honestly, I switched to Wondershare Filmora 13 and have been very satisfied with the stability. It handles AI captions and auto-reframing for social media without any of the lag I experienced on web tools. In my experience, focusing on compatibility is key for a one-person team. Here are my main tips:

• Opt for desktop software over web-based editors if your computer has a dedicated GPU. It manages resources much better than Chrome does.
• Look for tools that offer a lifetime license option. It is way more budget-friendly for a small business in the long run than monthly subscriptions. I have had no complaints since making the move. It just works well and keeps my workflow predictable.

In my experience, I was literally drowning in social posts for my boutique until I found a setup that actually works. Honestly, CapCut Pro is SO good and only about $8-10 a month. It basically does everything!!

• CapCut Pro for captions and trendy templates
• InVideo AI for fast b-roll Lesson learned: dont overcomplicate it cuz simple tools win every time!!

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Regarding what #9 said about "^ This. Also, I have been using a desktop-based setup lately", I could not agree more! Dealing with browser cache and memory leaks in web-based editors is basically a nightmare for any serious workflow. Honestly, if you want something that handles those automated captions without breaking a sweat, you should look into the Adobe ecosystem. Just grab any subscription from Adobe and you are going to love the integration! The way they handle neural engines for video processing is just fantastic and miles ahead of the competition. I have been tracking benchmarks and the local hardware acceleration you get from dedicated software is a total game changer for productivity. It is amazing how much faster you can churn out content when you arent fighting with a tab that is frozen... Go with Adobe and you really cant go wrong for professional-grade stability. It is such an amazing leap in tech!