Use Cases

Edit YouTube Shorts, or Cut Them From Your Long Videos

Q: How long can a YouTube Short be?

Up to 3 minutes, in a vertical or square format. StoryCut’s video length limit depends on your plan: 4 minutes on Free, 7 on Starter, 10 on Pro and 30 on Business, so every plan covers a full-length Short.

Q: Can StoryCut turn my long YouTube videos into Shorts?

Yes. AI clips takes a YouTube link (up to 120 minutes) or an upload (2 to 150 minutes) and returns 3 to 12 vertical clips with captions, each with a virality score. Free includes 1 long video a month, Starter 10, Pro 50 and Business 100.

Q: Do burned-in captions help my Shorts show up in YouTube search?

Not directly, because YouTube can’t read text that is part of the picture. Burned-in captions help viewers who watch without sound. To give YouTube your words as text, download the SRT file from StoryCut and upload it as subtitles.

Q: What resolution should I export Shorts in?

1080x1920 (1080p, 9:16) is the usual target. StoryCut exports 720p on Free, 1080p on Starter, 2K on Pro and 4K 60fps on Business.

Q: Can StoryCut upload to YouTube for me?

No. StoryCut doesn’t connect to YouTube. Download the MP4 and upload it from YouTube Studio or the YouTube app.

Q: How much does StoryCut cost for YouTube Shorts?

You can start free: 3 videos at a time in 720p with a watermark, plus 1 long video a month into AI clips. Starter costs $7/mo billed yearly (1080p, no watermark). Pro costs $14/mo billed yearly ($19/mo monthly) and adds clean audio, magic zoom, sound effects, AI music and the AI cover.

Caption a Short you filmed, or paste the link to a long YouTube video and let AI clips pick up to 12 moments, reframed to 9:16 with captions. Clean audio, zoom and an AI cover are one click each on Pro.

Make a Short free

Included in the free plan
No credit card required

Updated October 3, 2026

StoryCut for YouTube Shorts: key facts

What it does: Two ways in: upload a Short and get animated captions automatically, or turn a long video (YouTube link or upload) into 3 to 12 vertical clips with AI clips.
Long videos into Shorts: Included in every plan. Long videos per month: Free 1, Starter 10, Pro 50, Business 100. Each clip gets captions, 9:16 reframing around faces and a 0–100 virality score.
Price: Free: 720p with a watermark, videos up to 4 min. Starter: $7/mo billed yearly, 1080p, no watermark. Pro: $14/mo billed yearly, 2K, clean audio, magic zoom and AI cover.
Export: 9:16 MP4, up to 4K 60fps on Business, plus an SRT subtitle file on any plan.
Not included: No direct upload or scheduling to YouTube. You download the video and upload it in YouTube Studio or the app.

Why captions and clean audio matter on Shorts

YouTube has reported more than 70 billion daily Shorts views. With that much on the shelf, a Short has only a moment to look worth watching. Captions keep it readable when the sound is off, and clear audio keeps people listening when it’s on. StoryCut handles the captions automatically and makes the rest one click, whether you film Shorts on purpose or cut them from videos you already published.

Built for Shorts

Long video to Shorts (all plans)

Paste a YouTube link or upload a video from 2 to 150 minutes. The AI reads the transcript, picks 3 to 12 moments and reframes each one to 9:16 around faces and the active speaker.

Captions on screen and as a file

Captions are burned into the video in your style. YouTube can’t read text that is part of the picture, so you can also download the SRT and add it as subtitles in YouTube Studio.

Clean audio (Pro)

One click runs ElevenLabs voice isolation to remove background noise from your voice. Toggle before and after to compare.

AI cover (Pro)

An image model creates a cover from frames of your video and your title, in 6 styles. Download it, or place it as the first frame of the video.

YouTube Shorts

Captions, Audio and Zoom in One Editor

Captions appear after upload. Clean audio, magic zoom, sound effects, music and the AI cover are one click each on Pro. Export 9:16 in 720p (Free), 1080p (Starter), 2K (Pro) or 4K 60fps (Business).

StoryCut editor: YouTube Shorts editing workflow

How It Works

Your YouTube Shorts Workflow

01
Upload a Short or paste a link
Upload a vertical video, or open AI clips and paste the YouTube link of a long video you want to cut into Shorts.
02
Captions and edits
Captions are added automatically. Fix any word, pick a style, and add clean audio, zoom or an AI cover (Pro). For landscape footage, pick 9:16 and set the frame position, or let AI clips reframe around faces.
03
Download and upload
Download the MP4 (and the SRT if you want closed captions), then upload them in YouTube Studio or the YouTube app.

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

How long can a YouTube Short be?

Can StoryCut turn my long YouTube videos into Shorts?

Do burned-in captions help my Shorts show up in YouTube search?

What resolution should I export Shorts in?

Can StoryCut upload to YouTube for me?

How much does StoryCut cost for YouTube Shorts?

Make Your Next Short

Upload your video. Get back a scroll-stopper with viral captions, cinematic transitions, auto zoom, and clean audio. The same tools top creators use to explode views.

Caption a Short you filmed, or cut a long video into up to 12 Shorts with AI clips. Free plan, no credit card.

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