Apple Motion

Summary

Overview

Motion is Apple’s motion graphics app, aimed at custom titles and effects for Final Cut Pro. It is a one-time purchase or part of Apple Creator Studio.

Who it fits

Motion makes most sense if you already edit in Final Cut Pro. Apple’s App Store listing says you can save any title, effect, transition or generator and open it directly in Final Cut Pro, customise Final Cut titles by opening them in Motion, and build templates with rigs that expose a slider, pop-up menu or checkbox inside Final Cut. That template route is the main reason to pick it over a general-purpose compositor. It is better suited to Final Cut users than to anyone who shares After Effects projects, since Motion works in its own project format.

What it costs

Apple lists a one-time price of $49.99 on the Mac App Store. Motion is also included in the Apple Creator Studio subscription, listed at $12.99 a month or $129 a year after a one-month free trial, with student and educator pricing of $2.99 a month or $29.99 a year. The suite also covers Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro and Pixelmator Pro. Apple’s FAQ says people who already own the standalone apps can keep using them. There is no permanent free tier.

Strengths and limits

Apple lists more than 230 behaviors for animating without keyframes, 2D and 3D titles, about 200 particle presets, masking and tracking tools, and an AI-powered Magnetic Mask. It is Mac-only, and the system requirement depends on how you buy: the Creator Studio page lists macOS 15.6 or later for Motion, while the App Store listing states macOS 26.6 or later for the standalone app, so check your Mac before buying. For node-based compositing, look at DaVinci Fusion; for the widest plugin ecosystem, After Effects; DaVinci Resolve covers editing and motion work in one app.