--- title: When to use DaVinci Resolve vs invideo description: DaVinci Resolve for the finish: grade, multicam, Fairlight audio and delivery above 1080p. invideo to generate and assemble the cut, then hand over a project. --- It depends on where your team works, not on what the editor can do. invideo's timeline has the tools you use in DaVinci Resolve: multitrack editing, keyframes, color grading with LUTs, masks and scopes, an audio mixer with buses and a limiter, effects and transitions, and a project file in and out. Use Resolve when you need delivery above 1080p from the app, a timeline merge, or offline work. Use invideo when your team and your agents build and finish the cut together in one cloud project. DaVinci Resolve has simultaneous editing that invideo does not have: several people work on one timeline at the same time, with bin and timeline locks, and Resolve compares two timelines and merges the changes into a master timeline; Resolve 21.1 Studio added MCP support for AI assistants. invideo is a multiplayer editor: you, your teammates and your agents work in one cloud project at the same time and watch every edit land live, each agent under its own name. Every timeline has branches, checkpoints and tags, like git branches for code: each person or agent works on their own branch, you compare the branches, restore any checkpoint, and make the winning branch the default. Anyone you share with can fork the project. An NLE (non-linear editor) is a desktop editing app. DaVinci Resolve is one, with edit, color, Fusion effects and Fairlight audio in one app. invideo is a cloud editor with a timeline that your agent drives, and it exports a project that Resolve opens. The job: a two minute brand film from interview footage, b-roll and two generated shots, graded and delivered above 1080p. **In DaVinci Resolve.** You import the footage, sync the cameras in a sync bin, and cut by hand. You make the generated shots in another tool. You grade on the color page, mix on Fairlight, and deliver at full resolution. Your team can work in the same project from Blackmagic Cloud. An AI assistant can drive the open project through MCP in Resolve Studio, or through the Python and Lua scripting API, on your computer. **In invideo, then Resolve.** Your agent transcribes the interview with `media` `audio.transcript`, finds the quotes, and lays the cut on a branch. It generates the two missing shots after a `dry_run`. A good pick is `veo_31.frames`. Your agent can search for others with `find_models`. Models retire. If a model is not found, your agent runs `find_models` with the job in words, uses the best match, and tells you. The agent adds music and temp captions, checks frames with `capture`, and runs `export` with `format` set to `davinci`. You open the project in Resolve for the grade, the mix and the final delivery. ## At a glance Checked on 29 October 2026 against the DaVinci Resolve product pages, and on 3 November 2026 for collaboration and agent access. They may change. | | DaVinci Resolve | invideo | | --- | --- | --- | | Editable timeline after the cut | Yes | Yes, on a branch you can review | | Collaboration | Several people on one timeline at once, with locks; timeline compare and merge into a master timeline | People and named agents in one cloud project, with branches, checkpoints and tags | | Generation | Not stated; its AI tools do smart reframe and auto color | Video, image, voice and music models through `generate` | | Captions | Captions and subtitles on the Edit page | `add_captions` from a transcript | | Agent access | MCP support in Resolve 21.1 Studio, plus a Python and Lua scripting API on the open project | CLI and skills for terminal agents; MCP server for clients without a shell | | Project files out | Its own projects | A project for DaVinci Resolve, Premiere Pro or Final Cut Pro | | Offline | A desktop app for Mac, Windows and Linux | No, invideo runs in the cloud | | Batch | Not stated on its product page | `duplicate_timeline` and `export` per row, run in parts | ## Use DaVinci Resolve when Resolve fits these cases. - You deliver above 1080p from the app. invideo exports 1080p and upscales after. - You need to merge two timelines into one. invideo has branches, not a merge. - You work offline, or you render on your own machine. - You mix sound in depth on Fairlight. - Several editors and a colorist work on one timeline at the same time. - You work on local media on your own computer. ## What DaVinci Resolve does better Say it plainly. Resolve is better at some things. - **Resolution.** It delivers 4K and above from the app. invideo exports 1080p, and upscales after with `media` `video.upscale`. - **Timeline merge.** It compares two timelines and merges the changes into one. invideo has branches, checkpoints and tags; a branch reaches main when you make it the default. - **Offline.** It edits and renders on your own machine. invideo runs in the cloud. - **Multi-user finishing.** Several people edit one timeline at once, with bin and timeline locks. It compares two timelines and merges the changes into a master timeline. invideo has no merge: a branch reaches the main timeline when you make it the default. - **Local work.** It runs on your computer with your local files. invideo runs in the cloud and needs a connection. ## Use invideo when invideo fits the whole cut, from the first assembly to the finish, when the team works together. - You want your agent to build the first cut from a transcript or a script, then grade and mix it on the same timeline. - You need generated shots, stock, voice or music in the same project. - You want people and several named agents in one cloud project, each trying a cut on its own branch. - You want to hand the colorist a Resolve project, not a flat MP4. Edits and exports are free, project files included. ## Use both This is the common path. Your agent assembles the cut in invideo, then runs `export` with `format` set to `davinci`. `media_packaging` sets whether the media comes as a folder, a zip or not at all. The editor opens the project in Resolve, grades and delivers. The steps and what carries over are on [Export to Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve or Final Cut Pro](/how-to/export-to-premiere-resolve-final-cut). ```bash invideo edit export --format davinci --media-packaging zip ``` `` is the timeline's URL, from `invideo edit new` or `list_projects`. ## Related - [AI video tools compared, including invideo](/compare/alternatives) - [When to use Premiere Pro vs invideo](/compare/premiere-pro) - [Export to Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve or Final Cut Pro](/how-to/export-to-premiere-resolve-final-cut) - [Color grade log footage and match shots](/how-to/film/color-grade-log-footage) - [Generate a missing shot or extend a clip inside your edit](/how-to/film/generate-a-missing-shot) - [Edit a documentary or interview from the transcript, with b-roll and lower thirds](/how-to/film/documentary-and-interview-edit)