<b>The free-tier watermark trap nobody warns you about</b>

<b>The free-tier watermark trap nobody warns you about</b>

Free short-form editors love a paywall hidden at export.

What actually gates you:
— CapCut free: clean export, but premium effects stamp a watermark mid-clip
— VEED free: 720p + corner watermark, hard cap
— Canva free: no video watermark, but stock clips are paywalled
— InVideo free: 720p with a watermark on every export, brutal

Verdict: if budget is zero, CapCut and Canva give the cleanest watermark-free Shorts. InVideo's free tier is a demo, not a tool.

Not for you if your niche needs 4K — every free tier caps at 1080p or lower. Pick CapCut free as the honest zero-dollar baseline.