DaVinci Resolve is available in two versions. DaVinci Resolve which is free, and DaVinci Resolve Studio, which is $295 for a lifetime license, no subscription. Studio licenses are also bundled with many Blackmagic Design cameras and hardware products. Blackmagic Design has hinted that updates may incur a fee in the future, but for now, this is the deal.
For most student and independent short film work, the free version of DaVinci Resolve 20 is sufficient. It provides basic editing, color grading, audio mixing, and compositing tools on the Cut, Edit, Color, Fairlight, and Fusion pages. You can import, edit, and grade footage at any resolution and export up to 4K UHD at 60 fps.
Consider upgrading to Studio if you need temporal/spatial noise reduction for low-light footage, Magic Mask for rotoscoping, text-based editing for documentary work, Voice Isolation for cleaning up dialogue, or HDR delivery workflows (Dolby Vision / HDR10+). Below is a detailed summary of the differences.
General Features
Feature
Free
Studio
Price
Free
$295 (one-time)
macOS / Windows / Linux support
Yes
Yes
Maximum export resolution
4K UHD
32K
Maximum timeline frame rate
60 fps
120 fps
GPU-accelerated processing
Single GPU
Multiple GPUs
Hardware-accelerated H.264/H.265 encoding
No
Yes
Hardware-accelerated H.264/H.265 decoding (AMD)
No
Yes
High 10 profile H.264 decoding
No
Yes
Network / remote / headless rendering
No
Yes
External scripting (Python, Lua, JavaScript)
No
Yes
Frame.io integration
No
Yes
Dropbox Replay integration
No
Yes
AVC Intra 50/100/200 encoding
No
Yes
Sony XAVC renders
No
Yes
IMF-based renders / DCP from CPL
No
Yes
Kakadu JPEG 2000 renders over 2K
No
Yes
CDL export
No
Yes
Stereoscopic 3D tools
No
Yes
VR toolset (180° VR support in v20)
No
Yes
Clean feed viewer on additional display
No
Yes
Collaboration Features
Feature
Free
Studio
Multi-user project collaboration
Yes
Yes
In-app chat
Yes
Yes
Blackmagic Cloud project sharing
Yes
Yes
Remote grading (real-time sync between systems)
No
Yes
Remote monitoring (DaVinci Remote Monitor)
No
Yes
Sync markers/comments via Dropbox
No
Yes
Organizations web app / license rental
No
Yes
AI (Neural Engine) Features (v20 means new in Version 20)
Feature
Free
Studio
AI scene cut detection
No
Yes
AI smart reframe
No
Yes
AI face detection / recognition
No
Yes
Magic Mask (v3 with paint brush in v20)
No
Yes
Speed Warp (optical flow retiming)
No
Yes
Super Scale (incl. 3x/4x Enhanced in v20)
No
Yes
Auto color / color matching
No
Yes
Object removal
No
Yes
AI deinterlacing
No
Yes
AI IntelliScript (timeline from script) v20
No
Yes
AI Multicam SmartSwitch v20
No
Yes
AI Animated Subtitles v20
No
Yes
AI Voice Convert v20
No
Yes
AI Music Editor (retime music to edit) v20
No
Yes
AI Audio Assistant v20
No
Yes
AI Auto Beat Detection v20
No
Yes
Smart Auto-Grade v20
No
Yes
Cut and Edit Page Features
Feature
Free
Studio
Core editing tools (trim, ripple, roll, etc.)
Yes
Yes
Multicam editing
Yes
Yes
Speed ramps / retime controls
Yes
Yes
Transitions and effects library
Yes
Yes
Titles and generators
Yes
Yes
Text-based editing / audio transcription
No
Yes
IntelliTrack
No
Yes
UltraNR noise reduction
No
Yes
Dedicated keyframe editor
Yes
Yes
Safe Trim mode
Yes
Yes
Voiceover palette
Yes
Yes
Cut page mixer
Yes
Yes
Color Page Features
Feature
Free
Studio
Primary color wheels / bars / curves
Yes
Yes
Secondary qualifiers (HSL, etc.)
Yes
Yes
Power Windows
Yes
Yes
Node-based grading
Yes
Yes
LUT support
Yes
Yes
Color Warper
Yes
Yes
Scopes (waveform, vectorscope, parade, histogram)
Yes
Yes
Camera LUT in a node
No
Yes
Dolby Vision HDR grading
No
Yes
HDR10+ support
No
Yes
HDR metadata and mastering
No
Yes
HDR scopes (ST.2084 / HLG)
No
Yes
External HDR display support
No
Yes
Gamut mapping (improved)
No
Yes
Temporal noise reduction
No
Yes
Spatial noise reduction
No
Yes
Film Grain FX
No
Yes
Film Look Creator (halation, bloom, response curves)
No
Yes
Face Refinement
No
Yes
Chroma Warp mode
No
Yes
Magic Mask v3 (brush-based)
No
Yes
Resolve FX (Selected) Features
Effect
Free
Studio
Beauty / Face Refinement
No
Yes
Lens Blur / Tilt-Shift Blur
No
Yes
Lens Flares / Lens Reflections
No
Yes
Chromatic Aberration Removal
No
Yes
Dehaze
No
Yes
Analog Damage
No
Yes
Halation
No
Yes
Pencil Sketch / Watercolor
No
Yes
Sharpen / Sharpen Edges / Texture Pop
No
Yes
Dead Pixel Fixer
No
Yes
Deflicker / Deband
No
Yes
Dust Buster / Automatic Dirt Removal
No
Yes
Detail Recovery
No
Yes
Patch Replacer
No
Yes
Motion Trails
No
Yes
Warper
No
Yes
False Color
No
Yes
DCTL
No
Yes
Background Defocus
No
Yes
Fusion (VFX/Motion Graphics) Features
Feature
Free
Studio
Node-based compositing
Yes
Yes
2D/3D title creation
Yes
Yes
Keying tools
Yes
Yes
Particle systems
Yes
Yes
Rotoscoping (Multi-Poly)
Yes
Yes
Camera tracker
No
Yes
Lens distortion correction
No
Yes
Match Move
No
Yes
CCTV / Drone overlay FX
No
Yes
Speed Warp in Fusion
No
Yes
Deep image compositing (3D Z-depth)
No
Yes
180° VR editing and preview
No
Yes
Dome Light tool
No
Yes
Fairlight (Audio) Features
Feature
Free
Studio
Multitrack audio editing
Yes
Yes
EQ, dynamics, and bus routing
Yes
Yes
ADR tools
Yes
Yes
Audio plugins (VST/AU)
Yes
Yes
Voiceover recording
Yes
Yes
Dolby Atmos / SMPTE ST.2098
No
Yes
Auro-3D support
No
Yes
MPEG-H support
No
Yes
96 KHz / 192 KHz project sample rates
No
Yes
Power Mastering
No
Yes
B-Chain audio monitoring
No
Yes
Voice Isolation
No
Yes
Dialog Separator
No
Yes
Music Remixer FX
No
Yes
IntelliCut (auto-remove silence, split by speaker)
No
Yes
Dialogue Matcher
No
Yes
Immersive 3D Audio / Ambisonic
No
Yes
Auto Panning (IntelliTrack-powered)
No
Yes
Deliver Page Features
Feature
Free
Studio
Export to common formats (H.264, H.265, ProRes, etc.)