5 Top Free Stock Video Sites To Lean On

Written by Matt Clement

November 29, 2018

The pivot to video for brands and publishers has been occurring for a long period of time. It can be an expensive pivot, especially if you are looking for quality. Here we’ll be providing you with what we consider to be some of the top free stock video sites for you to lean on, hopefully cutting down the expenses for your team’s move to the medium.

Each site’s unique qualities will be pointed out, along with links to important areas. Additionally, we’ll give you info in regards to licensing requirements. We’ll be doing this so you can make use of these free stock video resources in the simplest manner possible.  Let’s get started!

Pixabay

As we mentioned in The 5 Best Free Stock Photo Sites To Have In Your Toolbox blog, Pixabay has excellent breadth in terms of both photos and videos. Additionally, the interface is simple and straightforward, as you simply need to choose from the dropdown within the search bar on the homepage to indicate your preferred resource. The videos are excellent throughout the site, but I would say that specifically the Nature/Landscapes section is of very high quality.

Furthermore, these free stock video assets can be categorized based on their slow-motion, animation, or time lapse characteristics. The time-lapse videos, and those that are specifically nature related, really hold a wow factor.

All videos on Pixabay are released under the Creative Commons Zero License. This means you can edit or change the videos and use them for personal and even for commercial projects. All this can be done without asking for permission or setting a link to the source. Thus, they may be used freely for almost any purpose. The site goes on to state that attribution is suggested but not required.

Pexels

From first glance, the resources on this site may seem a bit lacking, as there are quite a few resources that look as if they were simply shot on portrait mode with a phone. A deeper dive though will allow you to see that there are some sections on this site that hold definitive value.

One of the most impressive sections has to be the blurred effect videos. There is a substantial wealth of high quality, varied assets in this area of the site. In the midst of using stock video, these pieces help to create the feel of a location without providing specifics, hence doling out a feel of authenticity, even though the footage is stock. I’ll often use blurred stock from Pexels for pieces that we create to tell a story through our PageRaft and nxtbook4 platforms.

On top of the blurred effect videos, the time-lapse assets from Pexels also have a high quality.

In terms of licensing, Pexels has a similar stance to Pixabay, as they state all their free stock videos are licensed under the Creative Commons Zero license.

Videvo

Videvo is a great site if you are looking for more than your standard video.  Motion graphics, as well as sound effects and music, can all be found on the site. The search navigation is similar to that of Pixabay in that you simply need to change the search dropdown in order to change the category you are seeking to find. Once within each section, it is simple to break down the category into more finite specifications.

Although the overall look and feel of the site, as well as the method of previewing, aren’t as sleek as Pixabay and Pexels, the quality of the footage, motion graphics, sound effects, and music tend to be solid across the board.

In regards to licensing, the free stock video site goes on to state that you may use clips free of charge, in both personal and commercial productions. There are clips that do not fall underneath the Creative Commons Zero license, though, and hence require attribution to the original author.

Videezy

Videezy is a great site not only for footage but also templates, especially if you are working off of Adobe After Effects or Premiere. Additionally, the granularity and simplicity of the browsing functionality is unmatched. Looking for shots specifically of fish? No problem. Slow-motion of bugs? Easy. It definitely pays to have Videezy as one of your go-to free stock video sites, especially if you are using the Adobe Suite of post-production products.

Videezy’s licensing requirements tend to be a little bit stricter than the rest, so you may want to check out what they have to say here before using their content for commercial purposes. Within their licensing page, it does state that attribution is required for all works unless you have purchased a subscription.

Life of Vids

This is another site that we mentioned in our free stock photo blog. It includes a superbly constructed set of works by Montreal-based Leeroy Creative Agency in an aesthetically pleasing website. Life of Vids gives you well-edited assets that are both scenic and minimalistic. Also, the collections page helps you to cleanly browse the best Leeroy has to offer.

The only drawback for Life of Vids is the number of resources. Matching them up to the aforementioned sites, you will not find the breadth. The quality does seem to make up the difference though.

Although the site does not directly point out the Creative Commons Zero license, it states similar verbiage (in a very off the cuff manner): “Is it really free? Hell yeah! No copyright restrictions (personal & commercial). How about that? The only thing we don’t want is our entire collection on your website, so we had set the redistribution limited to 10 videos on other sites.”  Seems pretty clear.

We hope this in depth look at these unique free stock video sites prove helpful as you continue forward in your video journey!  If you need help along the way feel free to reach out to us! On top of digital publishing, we have experts who focus on video day in and day out.

About Nxtbook Media: Turning your print works into a high-quality online piece is more important than ever. With this in mind, Nxtbook Media creates top of class, interactive digital publishing solutions that are a great fit for all types of marketing and brand collateral. From magazines to brochures, reports, white papers, catalogs, booklets, and manuals, we have software that can turn your print into an on-point digital content experience that works well on any device. In turn, you’ll be able to extend the reach of your creative and make the most impact with your content.

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