← All tools

Agents & MCP for Creative Work · AI Video Editors

Shotstack

Cloud video editing API with a hosted MCP server, CLI and Studio editor so AI agents can compose and render videos.

Visit Shotstack

No affiliate links and no sponsorship on this page. Our disclosure policy.

Best for
Pro: editors and motion designers
Free plan
Yes
Agent-ready (MCP / API)
Yes
Platforms
Web, API
Last verified
Oct 15, 2026

Overview

Shotstack is a cloud video editing platform built so software, and now AI agents, can make videos. An agent reads Shotstack’s authoring conventions, writes an edit as JSON, previews it in Studio, and renders it in the cloud. Shotstack documents a hosted MCP server, a command-line tool with an agent skill, and Director, an agent inside Studio.

Who it fits

It suits developers, automation teams and agencies who want to produce many videos from templates and data, or let Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor draft an edit that a person can adjust. Real-estate, automotive and sports highlight workflows are among its listed use cases.

What the plans include

You can start free with 10 credits. Pay as you go is $10 for 50 minutes, and subscriptions run from $39 a month for 250 minutes to $499 for 10,000. Pro and above support 4K output.

Limits and alternatives

It rewards comfort with APIs and JSON. Mosaic is an agentic video editor with a visual node interface, Eddie AI acts as an assistant editor for footage, and Remotion renders videos from React code.

Who it's for

A good fit if you are…

  • Developers and automation teams who want an agent to draft, review and render videos at scale
  • People producing personalized or templated videos from data

Another tool may suit you better if you are…

  • Beginners who want a point-and-click editor only
  • Anyone who wants a one-time license rather than usage-based rendering

Pricing

Start free with 10 credits. Pay as you go: 50 minutes for $10. Starter $39 a month (250 minutes), Pro $99 (750), Scale $199 (2,000), Volume $499 (10,000). As of Oct 2026, verify.

  • Shotstack's pricing page lists pay as you go at $10 for 50 minutes, Starter at $39 a month for 250 minutes, Pro at $99 for 750 minutes, Scale at $199 for 2,000 minutes and Volume at $499 for 10,000 minutes.
  • Starter is 1080p; Pro and above support 4K. Unused minutes roll over for 3 months on subscriptions and last 12 months on pay as you go.
  • AI generation inside edits is billed per model; Director, Shotstack's agent inside Studio, is included with allowances by plan.

Prices as of Oct 2026 (checked Oct 15, 2026), verify before buying. Source: vendor pricing page.

Key features

  • Hosted MCP server for Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor and other clients
  • CLI and a skill for coding agents such as Claude Code, Codex CLI and Gemini CLI
  • Studio: browser editor to review and change an agent's draft
  • Edit API for layered timelines, captions, transitions and cloud rendering
  • Templates with merge fields for bulk video

Integrations: MCP server at mcp.shotstack.io (OAuth or API key), Shotstack CLI, Studio editor, REST Edit API, templates and white-label editor.

Agent-ready? Yes. Shotstack documents an official hosted MCP server (studio, render_video, get_render_status, generate_asset and more), a CLI and an agent skill.

Pros and good to know

Drawn from the vendor's own documentation and public sources.

Pros

  • Official MCP server, CLI and agent guide
  • Human review step in Studio before render
  • Published per-minute pricing

Good to know

  • Developer-oriented, with JSON edits behind the scenes
  • Pricing is per rendered minute
  • Not a stand-alone creative editor for beginners

Alternatives

  • Mosaic: Node-based video editing platform where reusable AI 'tiles' cut, caption, reframe and remix footage, with an API and timeline export.
  • Eddie AI: AI assistant editor that builds rough cuts from raw footage and hands them to Premiere, Resolve or Final Cut, with an MCP server.
  • Remotion: Make videos and motion graphics with React code, render them in bulk, and let coding agents help.

Sources

Spotted a mistake or out-of-date price? We want to fix it, see About for how to reach us.