You're standing there, thumb hovering over the screen, staring at a three-minute video of your dog finally catching a frisbee. The problem? The first two minutes and forty seconds are just you whistling and tripping over a lawn chair. It’s annoying. We’ve all been there, filling up our iCloud storage with dead air and shaky camera movements because we think editing is a "whole thing." Honestly, it’s not. Knowing how to cut parts out of a video on iPhone is probably the single most useful skill you can have if you actually want people to watch the clips you send them.
Most people think they need a MacBook or a fancy subscription to Premiere Pro to clean up their camera roll. That's just wrong. Apple has tucked some surprisingly powerful tools right inside the Photos app, and if those don't work, there are free options that don't add those tacky watermarks.
The Photos App Method (The One You Already Have)
Let's start with the basics. You don't need to download anything. Open that bloated Photos app. Find the video.
Tap Edit in the top right corner. You’ll see a timeline at the bottom with yellow handles. Now, this is where people get tripped up. Most users only know how to trim the ends. You drag the left side to start later, drag the right side to end earlier. Simple. But what if the middle is the problem? What if you want to cut parts out of a video on iPhone that aren't at the beginning or the end?
Strictly speaking, the native Photos app doesn't "cut" a hole in the middle and stitch it back together in one go. It’s a bit of a workaround. You basically have to trim the first half, save it as a new clip, then go back to the original, trim the second half, save that as a new clip, and then join them. It’s clunky. If you’re just trying to shorten a clip for Instagram, the yellow sliders are your best friend. Just remember to hit Done and then select Save Video as New Clip so you don't accidentally butcher your original file forever.
Why iMovie Is Still the King of Free Edits
If the Photos app feels too limiting—and it usually does once you want to get fancy—iMovie is the next logical step. It’s free. It’s probably already sitting in a folder labeled "Extras" on your home screen.
Open iMovie, start a new Movie project, and select your clip. This is where you get real surgical. To actually cut parts out of a video on iPhone using iMovie, you just scrub the playhead (the white vertical line) to the exact spot where the junk starts. Tap the video strip. Tap the Scissor icon. Hit Split.
Now, move the playhead to where the junk ends. Hit Split again. You now have a little "island" of video in the middle that you don't want. Tap it so it's highlighted in yellow, then hit Delete. Boom. It's gone. The two remaining pieces will snap together automatically. No gaps. No weird silence. It’s the cleanest way to do it without spending a dime.
Apple’s official support documentation notes that iMovie handles 4K video at 60 frames per second quite well, so you aren't sacrificing that crisp iPhone 15 or 16 Pro quality just because you're editing on a phone.
The Secret "Slide" Technique for Precise Trimming
Sometimes the "Split" method feels like using a sledgehammer when you need a scalpel. There is a lesser-known gesture in iMovie. If you hold your finger over the edge of a clip, you can drag it to "roll" the edit point.
Precision matters. Use two fingers to pinch and zoom in on the timeline. This expands the view so you can see individual frames. It’s the difference between cutting exactly when someone starts speaking and cutting off the first syllable of their sentence. Professionals call this "frame-accurate editing." For us, it’s just making sure we don't look like amateurs.
Third-Party Apps: When Should You Bother?
You've probably seen ads for CapCut or LumaFusion. Are they worth it?
If you're making TikToks or Reels, CapCut is genuinely impressive. It handles the "cut parts out of a video on iPhone" workflow with a feature called "Delete Left" or "Delete Right," which saves you a few taps compared to iMovie. It’s built for speed. However, be wary of privacy. ByteDance owns CapCut, and while it’s a powerhouse, some users prefer staying within the Apple ecosystem for data security reasons.
LumaFusion is the other end of the spectrum. It costs money—usually around $30. It’s basically Final Cut Pro for an iPad or iPhone. Unless you’re trying to edit a literal documentary on your phone, it’s probably overkill. But if you hate the way iMovie limits your tracks, LumaFusion is the answer. It lets you layer six or more tracks of video and audio.
Common Mistakes That Ruin Your Video Quality
One thing that drives me crazy is when people edit a video and it comes out looking like it was filmed on a potato. This usually happens during the "Export" phase.
When you finish learning how to cut parts out of a video on iPhone and you're ready to save, check your settings. In iMovie, when you hit the Share button, tap Options at the top of the share sheet. Ensure the resolution is set to 1080p or 4K and that "Match Frame Rate" is toggled on if you have the option. If you don't, your phone might down-convert your beautiful 4K footage into a blurry mess just to save a few megabytes. Don't let it.
Also, watch out for HDR. If you shot your video in High Dynamic Range (that bright, vivid look), some third-party editors might strip that data away, leaving the video looking grey and washed out. Stick to the native Photos app or iMovie if you want to keep that Dolby Vision pop.
Handling Slo-Mo and Cinematic Mode Clips
Editing a standard video is one thing. Cutting a Slo-Mo clip is a nightmare if you don't know the trick. In the Photos app, you'll see a second set of white tick marks under the video timeline. These control where the slow-motion effect happens.
If you're trying to cut parts out of a video on iPhone that was shot in Slo-Mo, fix the speed first. Set the slow-motion area, then do your trims. If you do it in reverse, you’ll find yourself constantly chasing the timing.
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Cinematic Mode is even more complex. Since the phone is recording depth data, every time you "Split" a clip in iMovie, the phone has to re-calculate the focus points for those new segments. It works, but it can be laggy on older hardware like an iPhone 12 or 13. Give it a second to breathe.
Summary of Actionable Steps
Stop leaving the boring parts in your videos. It’s killing your engagement and wasting your storage space.
- For quick end-trims: Use the Photos app. Tap Edit, drag the yellow handles, and save as a new clip.
- To remove the middle: Use iMovie. It’s free and handles "Splitting" and "Deleting" segments far better than the default app.
- To stay high-res: Always check export settings before saving. Verify you aren't accidentally dropping from 4K to 720p.
- For social media flair: Use CapCut if you need trendy transitions, but be mindful of the app's data permissions.
- Precision is key: Zoom in on your timeline. Frame-by-frame editing is what separates a "home movie" from something people actually want to watch.
Start by going into your camera roll right now. Find one video that's too long. Use the iMovie "Split" method to take out just five seconds of shaky footage. Once you do it once, the mental barrier is gone. You'll never send a bloated, unedited video again.