A stock video library is a catalogue of clips you can license and cut into your own videos. For short vertical content, it fills the gaps your camera roll leaves. The problem is that everyone uses the same libraries. Search "coffee pour" and the top results are clips other accounts have already posted.
This guide compares the main libraries for reels and shorts: what's free, what's paid, where to find vertical clips, what the licence lets you do, and how to cut stock in so the video still looks like yours.
Which stock video library should you use?
Two groups: free libraries you can use without paying, and paid ones you subscribe to or buy per clip. Licence terms change and differ by site, so read the licence page before you publish anything commercial.
| Library | Cost | Vertical clips | Licence in short | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pexels | Free | Yes, filter by orientation | Free use, no credit required; limits on reselling unaltered clips | Everyday b-roll |
| Pixabay | Free | Yes, filter by orientation | Free use under the Pixabay licence, with limits on identifiable people and resale | Broad search, mixed quality |
| Mixkit | Free | Some | Free for commercial use under Mixkit's own terms | Polished short clips |
| Coverr | Free | Some | Free for commercial use | Lifestyle and tech b-roll |
| Storyblocks | Subscription | Yes | Royalty-free for subscribers; read the plan's business terms | Volume on a budget |
| Envato Elements | Subscription | Yes | Licence per download, tied to a project | Footage plus templates and music |
| Artlist (footage) | Subscription | Yes | Universal licence on paid plans | Cinematic footage with music |
| Adobe Stock, Shutterstock | Per clip or subscription | Yes | Standard and extended licences | Specific shots, brand and ad work |
Free libraries: good enough for most reels
For a personal account or a small business, Pexels and Pixabay cover most b-roll needs: hands, cityscapes, nature, food, offices. Both let you filter by orientation, which matters more than resolution for a reel. Mixkit and Coverr are smaller but often more polished. The catch with free is that the most popular clips are everywhere.
Paid libraries: depth and clearer terms
A paid library is worth it when you need a specific shot, you're making ads, or a client needs a licence on paper. You get more clips per search, more vertical options, and terms written for commercial use. Check two things before you subscribe: whether downloads stay licensed after you cancel, and whether the licence covers paid ads.
How do you find vertical stock footage?
Most stock is still shot horizontal. Cropping a 16:9 clip to 9:16 keeps less than a third of the width, so a wide shot turns into a blurry close-up. In order:
- Filter by portrait or vertical orientation in the library's search.
- Search for close-ups and centred subjects when you have to crop: a single object, a face, hands on a table. They survive the crop.
- Skip wide shots with text or action at the edges. They lose the part that made them work.
- Download the highest resolution offered, so the crop still looks sharp. Reel video quality covers export settings.
How do you use stock video without looking generic?
Stock looks generic when it carries the whole video. It looks fine when it supports something only you have. Five rules:
- Mix it with your own footage. Stock for the establishing shot or the gap, your own clips for the product, the place, the hands, the face. Even two of your own shots per reel change how it reads.
- Give everything one colour look. Stock from four creators looks like four videos. One filter across all of it makes it one. Colour grading short video explains how.
- Cut it short. Use one to two seconds of a stock clip, not the whole eight. Short cuts on the beat hide that the clip wasn't shot for you.
- Put your words on it. Your hook, your caption style, your font. Text is the part nobody else has.
- Avoid the first page of results. Scroll past the clips everyone downloads.
Can stock footage live inside your editor?
Downloading clips, renaming them and dragging them into an editor is where most of the time goes. Easy Reels puts stock inside the library on the Ultra plan: you search stock footage and music without leaving the app, with 100 imports a month. You can save a search as a folder, and a template can draw from that folder like any other.
That last part is what makes stock useful at volume. A template in Easy Reels is a song, a filter, a text design and the folders it draws from. Point it at a folder of your own clips and a saved stock search, and each render picks different clips, cuts them on the beat and applies the same colour look and text. A batch makes up to 50 videos on Ultra. You get the mix of your own footage and stock from the rules above without assembling every video by hand.
Easy Reels isn't a stock site, and it doesn't make footage: it edits the clips you bring or import. Ultra is $39 a month, or $390 a year, after a 14-day free trial with full access; cancel before it ends and you aren't charged. Pro is $19 a month without the stock search. See pricing. If you need a single clip for a single video, a free library and any editor will do. Pick one library from the table, filter it to vertical, and build a folder of clips you'd actually reuse.
Common questions
Is free stock video really free for commercial use?
On most of the big free sites, yes, but under each site's own licence, not with no rules at all. Common limits include reselling clips unaltered and using identifiable people or brands in misleading ways. Read the licence page before you use a clip in an ad.
What's the best free stock video library for reels?
Pexels and Pixabay, because both have large catalogues and an orientation filter for vertical clips. Mixkit and Coverr are worth a search when you want something more polished.
Can I use stock footage in Instagram ads?
Usually, if the licence covers commercial and advertising use. Paid libraries state this clearly; with free sites, check the terms and avoid clips with recognisable people or logos unless the site says they're cleared.
How do I stop stock footage from looking cheap?
Use it short, grade it to match your own clips, and put your own text on it. Stock looks cheap when it's the whole video and fine when it fills a gap.