Download Edits App for Android and iPhone - Free, No Watermark

To download Edits, open Google Play (Android) or the App Store (iPhone), search "Edits, an Instagram app", check the developer is Instagram, and tap Install. The app is free, publishes no watermark on exports, and signs in with the Instagram account you already have. That's the entire process - there is nothing to pay, nothing to unlock, and no separate account to create.

The rest of this page exists because "just install it" skips the questions people actually have. Which listing is the real one, when several apps are called "Edits"? Will it run on an older phone? Why does the Play Store say it isn't available in my country? Do I need a separate account? Why is the iPhone version getting a feature my Android friend doesn't have yet? What if the install stalls at 90% or the app crashes on first open? Every one of those is answered below, in order, so you can read straight through or jump to the section you need.

Edits - listed in both stores as "Edits, an Instagram app" - is Instagram's own standalone video editor, launched in April 2025 and owned by Meta Platforms. It was built to give creators a full mobile editing suite without sending them to CapCut or InShot first: a frame-accurate timeline, keyframe animation, auto captions with translation, a royalty-free music library, AI cutouts and restyling, a teleprompter, and performance Insights pulled straight from your Reels - all exporting at up to 4K with no watermark.

Three things matter about the download specifically. It's free, with no subscription for its core tools. It's one app on both platforms - the Android and iPhone versions are built from the same product and share the same features, with only small timing differences on new releases. And it's tied to your Instagram account, which is what powers direct publishing and the Insights tab. If you want the deeper story on the app and its features, our free video editor, no watermark guide covers it end to end; this page sticks to getting it onto your phone.

Step by step

1. Open the Play Store and search for Edits, an Instagram app - or tap the button above to land on the listing directly.
2. Verify the listing. The developer line under the app name must read Instagram. The app icon is the Edits logo on a dark background. If the developer is anyone else, you're looking at a copycat - there are several unrelated apps named "Edits" in the store.
3. Tap Install. The download is a few hundred megabytes depending on your device, so Wi-Fi is sensible but not required. No payment prompt will appear.
4. Tap Open once the install finishes, or find the Edits icon in your app drawer.
5. Allow permissions when asked. Edits needs access to your photos and videos (to import clips) and the camera and microphone (to record in-app). It will ask when each feature is first used; you can grant them one at a time.

How to confirm you got the genuine app

Three checks, and you only need to do them once. The developer is Instagram; the listing's "About this app" section describes 4K export with no watermark; and, if you're curious, the package name in the Play Store URL is com.instagram.basel ("Basel" was the project's internal codename). Copycat apps typically fail the first check immediately. Also note that the real listing is free with no in-app-purchase warning for editing tools; a lookalike that asks for a subscription to "unlock export" is not Edits.

Step by step

1. Open the App Store and search for Edits, an Instagram app, or tap the button above.
2. Verify the listing. The publisher should be Instagram, Inc. and the price "Get" (free). The screenshots show the Ideas, Projects and Insights tabs.
3. Tap Get, then confirm with Face ID, Touch ID or your Apple ID password. This is Apple's standard confirmation for any free download - it isn't a purchase.
4. Open Edits from your Home Screen or App Library.
5. Grant permissions for Photos, Camera and Microphone when prompted. For Photos, "Full Access" is the simplest option; "Limited Access" also works but you'll have to pick clips through the system picker each time.

Already have Instagram installed?

Then logging in takes one tap - Edits detects the Instagram app and offers to continue with the account already signed in there. You don't need to type a password, and switching between multiple Instagram accounts works the same way it does in the main app. If Instagram isn't installed, you'll sign in with your username and password as usual.

Edits is a real video editor rendering real 4K timelines, so it's more demanding than Instagram itself. Here's what it needs and what it merely prefers.

A practical rule: if your phone runs Instagram Reels smoothly and has a couple of gigabytes free, it will run Edits. If it's a budget device from several years ago, basic trimming and captions will still work but AI features and 4K export may be slow or unavailable. Edits chooses export options based on what your hardware can handle, so a lower resolution ceiling on an older phone is normal, not a bug.

The first open is short. Edits asks you to sign in with Instagram - either by continuing with the account already logged into the Instagram app on your phone, or by entering a username and password. There's no separate "Edits account" to create and nothing to verify by email. Once signed in you land on three tabs:

• Ideas - a scratchpad for saved Reels, audio and notes, plus weekly topic suggestions.
• Projects - every video you make lives here and stays editable forever. Tap + to start.
• Insights - real performance data for the Reels you've published: views, retention curves, skip rates.

Permissions come up as you use features rather than all at once: Photos the first time you import, Camera and Microphone the first time you record. Grant them when asked and you won't be prompted again. If you decline by accident, both platforms let you fix it in Settings (Android: Settings → Apps → Edits → Permissions; iPhone: Settings → Edits).

Which account should you use? The one you post from. Insights and direct publishing are tied to the signed-in account, so a creator who edits on a personal account but publishes from a brand account will see no Insights for their brand content. You can switch accounts inside Edits at any time from the profile menu.

Edits ships updates on a near-weekly cadence - more than 130 features landed in its first year - so an out-of-date install is missing real tools, not just bug fixes. Both stores update automatically by default; if you've turned auto-updates off, open the store, go to your installed apps, and update Edits manually whenever a new version appears.

Staged rollouts

Meta releases new features gradually, so a friend may have a tool you don't for a few days even on the same version. That's a server-side rollout, not an install problem - there's nothing to download, and it will reach your account shortly. Force-closing and reopening the app after an update sometimes speeds up the switch.

Betas

On iPhone, Instagram runs a TestFlight beta for Edits that often gets experimental features first; access is by invitation through the TestFlight app. On Android, the Play Store occasionally lists a "Join the beta" option on the Edits page. Betas can be less stable - if you rely on the app for client work, stay on the public release.

This page is about phones, but the same download reaches further than you might expect.

• iPad: install from the App Store using the same listing. The app runs in a phone-sized layout on larger screens, which is fine for editing but not a dedicated tablet interface.
• Mac (Apple silicon, M1 or newer): the iOS app installs directly from the Mac App Store and runs natively - no emulator. Details in the Edits for PC and Mac guide.
• Windows: no native build yet, though Meta has confirmed a desktop version is in development. For now, run the Android version inside an emulator such as BlueStacks or LDPlayer; the PC guide above walks through it.
• APK (Android without Play Store, or regional gaps): the genuine installer is hosted by APKMirror and APKPure; verify the package name com.instagram.basel and the developer before installing. Full walkthrough in the APK download guide.

Functionally, almost none - and that's deliberate. Meta ships Edits as one product, so the timeline, captions, keyframes, audio tools, AI features, Insights and 4K export are the same on both. The differences people notice come down to timing and hardware:

If you're choosing a device specifically for mobile editing, a recent iPhone or a flagship Android with 8 GB of RAM will both handle long 4K projects comfortably. Mid-range phones on either platform work well for typical Reels under a minute.

"This item isn't available in your country" (Android)

Edits hasn't reached your region's Play Store yet. Use the APK route - the genuine installer from APKMirror or APKPure works anywhere - and switch back to the Play version when it appears.

The listing doesn't show up at all (iPhone)

Either your iOS version is too old for the app or the App Store region on your Apple ID doesn't have it yet. Update iOS first (Settings → General → Software Update). If that's not the issue, search the full name "Edits, an Instagram app" rather than just "Edits".

Install stuck or "Pending"

On Android, pause other downloads in the Play Store, clear the Play Store cache (Settings → Apps → Google Play Store → Storage → Clear cache) and retry. On iPhone, a stuck "Waiting..." icon usually clears if you tap it to pause, tap again to resume, or restart the phone. On both, check you actually have the free space the app needs.

"Install" button greyed out

Your device fails a requirement - almost always the OS version. Update the operating system if an update is available; if your phone can't update further, Edits won't install on it.

Crashes on first open

Restart the phone and try again; most first-open crashes are a one-time permission or cache issue. If it persists, uninstall, reboot, reinstall. Make sure Instagram itself is updated too, since Edits uses it for one-tap login.

Can't log in

Confirm you can log into the Instagram app with the same credentials. If two-factor authentication is on, Edits will ask for the code the same way Instagram does. Accounts with restrictions or pending appeals on Instagram may not be able to sign into Edits until those are resolved.

Imported videos won't appear

Photos permission was set to limited or denied. Fix it in your phone's Settings (paths in section six), then reopen Edits.

You've got the app. Here's the quickest path to a finished video.

• Start a project from the Projects tab: tap +, import a few clips or record one with the in-app camera.
• Cut it on the timeline - trim edges, split at the playhead, drag to reorder. Pinch to zoom for frame-level precision.
• Add captions with one tap, fix any misheard words with find & replace, and highlight a key word or two.
• Add sound from the royalty-free library if the video is for a brand or client; trending audio is fine for personal posts.
• Export at the highest resolution your phone offers and publish straight to Instagram or save the clean file for any other platform.

For the expanded walkthrough, see How to start with Edits. For what every tool does and how Edits compares with CapCut, InShot and VN, the no-watermark guide is the long read.

The questions people ask most about downloading Edits.