Best for
Best for editors and small studios who want editing, grading, effects and audio post in one application, with AI tools that speed up finishing rather than generate footage.
Video Editing Comparison
DaVinci Resolve vs. Nuke
At a glance
At a glance
Best for
Best for VFX compositors and studios that combine plates, CG renders and 3D across a shared pipeline.
Cataleo does not name a winner. Both statements come from the vendors themselves.
Full Comparison
| Criterion | DaVinci Resolve | Nuke |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | lower value Free; Studio $295 The free version handles 8-bit formats at up to 60fps in Ultra HD 3840 x 2160. DaVinci Resolve Studio 21 is $295 and adds the DaVinci AI Neural Engine, 10-bit video up to 120fps and resolutions beyond 4K. | From $499 / year Nuke Indie, for users with annual gross revenue under $100,000, single user, output up to 4K. Nuke is $3,839, NukeX $5,219 and Nuke Studio $6,379 a year, or $2,089, $2,869 and $3,509 a quarter as rentals, plus applicable taxes. Students get 90% off commercial prices. |
| Free trial | Free version with editing, colour, effects, audio, multi-user collaboration and HDR grading; the AI Neural Engine tools need Studio | Free trial of the commercial versions; Nuke Non-commercial is free with output limited to HD. No trial of Nuke Indie |
| Output | Edited, graded and mixed video, up to Ultra HD at 60fps in the free version and beyond 4K at up to 120fps in Studio, plus graded stills from the Photo page | Composited shots and renders, up to 4K on Indie and up to HD on Non-commercial |
| API | Python and Lua scripting, workflow integration plug-ins and encoding APIs in DaVinci Resolve Studio | Python API with PySide, C++ SDK and BlinkScript |
| Hosting | Desktop app for Mac, Windows and Linux, with Blackmagic Cloud for remote collaboration | Desktop app for Windows 11, macOS Sequoia and Tahoe, and Rocky Linux 9 |
| Inputs | Footage, audio and stills already in the project, plus screenplays in Final Draft or plain text for IntelliScript. The one generation from text is the AI Speech Generator, which creates spoken narration; no video is generated from a prompt | Plates, CG renders and 3D scenes brought into a node graph, with OpenEXR, USD and Hydra support. Nuke Studio also conforms and ingests AAF, XML and EDL files, and the UnrealReader node pulls renders from Unreal Engine with render layer isolation and camera override. No video is generated from a prompt |
| Timeline and editing | Yes, editing, colour, Fusion effects and motion graphics, Fairlight audio and a Photo page in one application. DaVinci AI Neural Engine tools in Studio include Magic Mask, IntelliSearch, text-based editing, IntelliScript, Smart Reframe, Speed Warp retiming, AI UltraSharpen, AI Motion Deblur, AI CineFocus for changing the focal point and depth of field, AI Face Reshaper, AI Face Age Transformer and AI Blemish Removal | Node-based compositing with over 200 creative nodes rather than an editing timeline. Nuke Studio adds multi-shot management, an editorial timeline and conform |
| Platforms | Desktop app for Mac, Windows and Linux; Blackmagic tests its codec list on macOS, Windows 10 and Rocky Linux 8.6 with CUDA. Blackmagic Cloud links editors on different machines for remote collaboration | Windows 11 (64-bit), macOS Sequoia (15.x) and Tahoe (26.x), and Rocky Linux 9 (64-bit). GPU-accelerated nodes on Windows and Linux need an NVIDIA GPU with drivers for CUDA 12.8 or above, or a supported AMD Radeon PRO card. Nuke 17.1 is the final version with a build for Intel-based Macs |
| Formats and codecs | The free version works with virtually all 8-bit formats at up to 60fps in Ultra HD; Studio adds 10-bit video at up to 120fps and resolutions beyond 4K. Blackmagic's codec list for Resolve 20 (July 2025) decodes Blackmagic RAW, ARRIRAW, REDCODE RAW, Sony RAW and X-OCN, Canon C200 RAW, Nikon N-RAW and Cintel RAW, and encodes Apple ProRes, DNxHD and DNxHR, H.264, H.265, GoPro CineForm, IMF and DCP. AV1 decodes on every platform and encodes on Windows and on Linux with Nvidia graphics, not on macOS. Encoding some Sony XAVC and Panasonic AVC-Intra variants needs Studio | OpenEXR, plus USD and Hydra in the 3D system, and AAF, XML and EDL for conform in Nuke Studio. MPEG4 and H.264 are disabled in Non-commercial, and Indie does not ingest H.264 or AAC audio. No full codec list is published on the product page |
| Colour grading | Yes, the core of the product: 32-bit float processing with YRGB colour science and a wide gamut colour space for HDR, primary controls for contrast, temperature, mid-tone detail and saturation, PowerWindows, qualifiers and tracking for secondaries, and a node editor with custom curves and HDR colour wheels. HDR grading is included in the free version | Colour management with OpenColorIO and ACES, plus MatchGrade and GenerateLUT nodes, which do not export LUTs on the Indie and Non-commercial licences |
| Effects and motion graphics | The Fusion page has hundreds of 2D and 3D tools for visual effects and motion graphics, with point, planar and 3D camera tracking, rotoscoping, keying and 3D particles, plus the Krokodove toolset of over 70 graphics in version 21. The Edit page adds hundreds of titles, transitions and effects, version 21 brings over 100 new motion graphic effects, and Studio carries more than 100 GPU and CPU accelerated Resolve FX | Over 200 creative nodes including keyers, deep compositing that reduces re-rendering of CG elements when content changes, and an integrated 3D environment for projection work with custom geometry. NukeX adds advanced camera tracking, a Planar Tracker, the Smart Vector toolset, Furnace plug-ins, Kronos retiming, lens distortion, a 3D particle system and Cara VR for mono and stereo 360° stitching |
| Audio | Yes. Fairlight offers up to 2,000 tracks, ADR tools, AI effects including Voice Isolation and Music Remixer, IntelliTrack AI tracking to drive the audio panner from video, and mixing in stereo, 5.1, 7.1 and immersive formats up to 5th order ambisonics. The AI Speech Generator creates narration from text with Blackmagic voice models or a voice cloned from a 10-second clip, with adjustable speed, pitch and inflection. No lip-sync feature is documented | An AudioRead node reads uncompressed WAV and AIFF files to show a waveform in the Curve Editor and Dope Sheet, turn it into keyframe curves and flipbook the comp with sound. Nuke Studio adds audio tracks on the timeline from WAV files or audio inside MOV containers, with independent volume for track headers and shots, file channels assigned to separate tracks and eight output channel options per shot, including centre and LFE |
| Performance and output | No clips are generated from a prompt, so there is no generation queue. The DaVinci AI Neural Engine is cross-platform and GPU-based, Studio's more than 100 Resolve FX are GPU and CPU accelerated, and exports run through a render queue that takes multiple jobs, with remote rendering as an option | GPU-accelerated nodes on NVIDIA and AMD cards, and Nuke Render, a headless render-only licence at $462 a year, runs on render farms. NukeX annual subscriptions include two Nuke Render and two Nuke Assist licences |
| Licence and pricing model | Free download, or DaVinci Resolve Studio at a listed price of $295, with no subscription offered. A Studio activation key also comes with several Blackmagic control panels | Annual subscription or quarterly rental for Nuke, NukeX and Nuke Studio. Nuke Indie is $499 a year for one user with annual gross revenue under $100,000, with up to 4K output, Python limited to 10 commands and project files readable only by Indie or Non-commercial. Nuke Non-commercial is free, without watermark, with HD output and files that cannot be opened in the commercial version |
| AI features | The DaVinci AI Neural Engine, in full in Studio: Magic Mask, IntelliSearch, text-based editing, IntelliScript, Smart Reframe, Speed Warp retiming, Super Scale, AI UltraSharpen, AI Motion Deblur, AI CineFocus, face refinement tools, auto colour and colour matching, and AI spatial noise reduction. Fairlight adds Voice Isolation, Music Remixer and the AI Speech Generator. No video is generated from a prompt | CopyCat in NukeX trains neural networks on an artist's own shots to create custom effects, on an NVIDIA GPU or an Apple silicon GPU; inference and other machine learning plug-ins can also run on the CPU at much lower performance. No video is generated from a prompt |
| Deployment | On-premise | On-premise |
| Support | more entries Email helpdesk, Phone, Community forum | Community forum |
| Onboarding | more entries Documentation and knowledge base, Video tutorials, Live online demos and webinars, On-site training | Documentation and knowledge base |
| Integrations | more entries Blackmagic Cloud, Final Draft, Dolby Vision | Unreal Engine |
Add a tool
Adds a column to the table, from the tools in this category.
Row where the values differ The small markers point at the lower number, the longer list or the stated feature. They describe the data, they are not a verdict.
The short version
Key Differences
- Starting price DaVinci Resolve Free; Studio $295 Nuke From $499 / year
- Free trial DaVinci Resolve Free version with editing, colour, effects, audio, multi-user collaboration and HDR grading; the AI Neural Engine tools need Studio Nuke Free trial of the commercial versions; Nuke Non-commercial is free with output limited to HD. No trial of Nuke Indie
- Hosting DaVinci Resolve Desktop app for Mac, Windows and Linux, with Blackmagic Cloud for remote collaboration Nuke Desktop app for Windows 11, macOS Sequoia and Tahoe, and Rocky Linux 9
- Support DaVinci Resolve Email helpdesk, Phone, Community forum Nuke Community forum
- Output DaVinci Resolve Edited, graded and mixed video, up to Ultra HD at 60fps in the free version and beyond 4K at up to 120fps in Studio, plus graded stills from the Photo page Nuke Composited shots and renders, up to 4K on Indie and up to HD on Non-commercial
Every line is one datapoint from the table above, picked automatically. Nothing here is written text.
The trade-offs
Strengths and Limitations
DaVinci Resolve
Strengths
- The free version covers editing, colour, effects, audio and multi-user collaboration up to Ultra HD
- Editing, colour grading, visual effects and audio post in one application
- AI Speech Generator can clone a voice from a 10-second sample
- Runs on Linux as well as Mac and Windows
Limitations
- The DaVinci AI Neural Engine tools require the paid Studio version
- No video generation from a text prompt
- The free version is limited to 8-bit formats at up to 60fps
Nuke
Strengths
- Deep compositing reduces re-rendering when CG elements change
- CopyCat trains custom machine learning effects on your own footage
- Runs on Windows, macOS and Linux
- A free, non-watermarked non-commercial version of Nuke, NukeX and Nuke Studio
Limitations
- Commercial seats start at $3,839 a year for Nuke
- Indie is limited to 4K output, 10 Python commands and community support
- Non-commercial project files cannot be opened in the commercial versions
Plans
Pricing
DaVinci Resolve
- DaVinci Resolve Free Editing, colour, Fusion, Fairlight and the Photo page, with 8-bit formats at up to 60fps in Ultra HD 3840 x 2160, multi-user collaboration and HDR grading.
- DaVinci Resolve Studio $295 Everything in the free version plus the DaVinci AI Neural Engine, additional Resolve FX, temporal and AI spatial noise reduction, text-based editing, Magic Mask, 10-bit video up to 120fps and resolutions beyond 4K.
Nuke
- Nuke Non-commercial $0 Non-watermarked Nuke, NukeX and Nuke Studio for non-commercial use. Output limited to HD (1920 x 1080), limited Python, no third-party plug-ins.
- Nuke Indie $499 / year For users with annual gross revenue under $100,000. One user, up to 4K output, NukeX compositing tools and Nuke Studio's editorial environment, Python limited to 10 commands, community support only.
- Nuke $3,839 / year Or $2,089 a quarter as a rental. Over 200 creative nodes, integrated 3D environment, Python API and C++ SDK.
- NukeX $5,219 / year Or $2,869 a quarter as a rental. Adds advanced camera tracking, cleanup and correction plug-ins, Cara VR and CopyCat; the annual subscription includes 2 Nuke Assist and 2 Nuke Render licences.
- Nuke Studio $6,379 / year Or $3,509 a quarter as a rental. Adds multi-shot management, an editorial timeline and conform of AAF, XML and EDL.
- Nuke Render $462 / year Headless render-only licence for render farms.
What users say
Review Scores · opens after launch
DaVinci Resolve
- Ease of use
- Not rated yet
- User interface
- Not rated yet
- Onboarding
- Not rated yet
- Support and service
- Not rated yet
- Value for money
- Not rated yet
- Features
- Not rated yet
No reviews yet. Nothing has been published here yet, and no score is shown. How a review is checked before it appears is described below.
Nuke
- Ease of use
- Not rated yet
- User interface
- Not rated yet
- Onboarding
- Not rated yet
- Support and service
- Not rated yet
- Value for money
- Not rated yet
- Features
- Not rated yet
No reviews yet. Nothing has been published here yet, and no score is shown. How a review is checked before it appears is described below.
How we check reviews
Reviews are not published yet. The form on a tool's page works and reaches us, but nothing from it appears on this site, so no score here is based on a review. The rules below are the ones that will apply once reviews go live.
Every review is read by a person before it appears. We require a working email address and use it to come back to the author, so a review has a reachable sender rather than being anonymous. We publish positive and negative reviews alike, we pay nothing and offer nothing for a review, and we accept none that was bought or incentivised.
What we cannot do is verify a purchase. There is no shop here and no account, so whether the author really used the tool rests on what they tell us, plus the plausibility of what they write. We say so rather than implying a check that does not exist.
A vendor cannot have a review removed, cannot buy one, and cannot have one changed. Paid placement and a paid listing have no effect on which reviews appear or on any score.
Where this comes from
Where this comes from
DaVinci Resolve https://www.blackmagicdesign.com/products/davinciresolve · checked against the official source on 2026-09-29
Nuke https://www.foundry.com/products/nuke-family/nuke · checked against the official source on 2026-10-15
This table lists factual criteria taken from information the vendors publish themselves. For how we put it together, see the methodology.