Selects and Premiere Assistant can both take you from raw footage to a captioned, finished edit. Selects is a full AI-native video editor that covers the same editing and captioning work as Premiere Assistant, and goes much further. Premiere Assistant is a simpler, lower-cost plugin that works inside Adobe Premiere. You don't need both.
The choice comes down to two things: whether you want to keep your workflow inside Premiere, and how much you want AI to do. This guide helps you decide.
What each product does
Selects
Selects is a standalone AI-native video editor for Mac and Windows. It takes you from raw footage to a finished video in one place: multi-cam sync, transcription, topic breakdown, rough cuts you direct in chat, captions, effects and transitions, color, motion graphics, and AI-generated video, voice, and images. Export the finished video straight from Selects.
Best for:
Editors who want more control over the edit, and want to direct it by chatting with AI
Multi-camera shoots and long-form footage, like interviews, podcasts, and documentaries
Editors who want generative AI for video, voice, and images inside the editor
Editors who want an AI agent, like Claude or Codex, to operate the editor for them
Anyone who uses Final Cut Pro or DaVinci Resolve, or wants one app for the whole edit
Free plan available. Transcription and analysis use credits, and new users get free trial credits. Paid plans start at $20/month, or $16/month billed annually.
Tip: Selects also works with AI agents through the Selects MCP (Model Context Protocol). Your agent makes real edits in your timeline through conversation: you say what to change, it makes the edit, you review, and you keep going. You can bring in scripts, reference files, and other assets to help it decide. It works with Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Codex, and OpenClaw.
Premiere Assistant (Cutback) plugin
The Premiere Assistant plugin works inside Adobe Premiere. It adds transcription, text-based editing, one-click cleanup, and animated captions to the timeline you already have. It is a simple tool with preset-based controls.
Note: The Premiere Assistant plugin only works with Adobe Premiere. If you use Final Cut Pro or DaVinci Resolve, it is not compatible with your workflow.
Best for:
Editors who want to stay inside Premiere from start to finish
Editors who want a simple tool for captions and quick cleanup
Casual or hobby creators, and anyone editing a few videos a month
Anyone who wants the lower-cost option
Free plan available. Paid plans start at $9/month, or $8/month billed annually.
How to decide between Selects and Premiere Assistant
To decide between Selects and Premiere Assistant, ask yourself three questions.
Do you want to stay inside Adobe Premiere? If yes, and Premiere Assistant does the job you need, stick with it. If you use Final Cut Pro or DaVinci Resolve, or want one app for the whole edit, choose Selects.
How much do you want AI to do? If you want to direct edits in chat, generate video, voice, or images, or let an AI agent run the editor, choose Selects. If you want a few reliable one-click tools, Premiere Assistant is enough.
What is your budget? Premiere Assistant costs less. Selects does more.
Both have a free plan, so you can try each and keep the one that fits. In Selects, transcription and analysis use credits, and every new user gets free trial credits to test with.
Note: To be upfront, most of our development effort now goes into Selects, so new features land there first.
Feature | Selects | Premiere Assistant |
Where it runs | Its own desktop app | Inside Adobe Premiere only |
AI editing | Chat: write your direction and iterate on drafts | Preset-based tools |
Works with AI agents (MCP) | Yes | No |
Multi-camera sync | Yes (supports 10+ cameras) | No |
Multi-camera auto switch | Yes | Yes |
AI rough cut | Yes | No |
Topic detection | Yes (deeper breakdown for long footage) | Yes |
Text-based editing | Yes | Yes |
Search scene using text | Yes | No |
Remove silence | Yes, natural | Yes, mechanical |
Remove filler words | Yes, natural | Yes, mechanical |
Remove retakes | Yes, natural | Yes, mechanical |
Edit according to script | Yes | Yes |
Vertical shortform clips | Yes | Yes |
Animated captions | Yes | Yes |
Caption line length and punctuation settings | Yes | Yes |
Caption translation | Yes, through chat | Yes (Basic plan and above) |
Effects, transitions, and color grading | Yes | No |
Generate video, voice, and images with AI | Yes | No |
Export the finished video | Yes | Through Premiere |
Hand off to other editing software | Premiere, Final Cut Pro, DaVinci Resolve | Not needed |
AI analysis (transcription) | Pooled credit limits by plan, can top up credits at any time | Limited by plan |
Do you need both Selects and Premiere Assistant?
You don't need both Selects and Premiere Assistant. If you use Selects, it already covers the work Premiere Assistant does.
Some editors still pair them because they like to finish in Premiere. In that setup, build the edit in Selects, hand it off to Premiere, and add your captions there with Premiere Assistant. Captions, effects, and color you add in Selects are rendered when you export a video from Selects, and they don't carry over in a handoff.
How to use Selects and Premiere Assistant together
To use Selects and Premiere Assistant together, hand your edit off from Selects and open the transcript Selects already made. You don't transcribe again in Premiere Assistant, so you don't need a paid plan for transcription hours.
In Selects, analyze your footage and build your edit.
Click [Export], choose [Adobe Premiere] under [Handoff to], and save the project file.
On the same computer, open the project in Premiere and open the sequence.
Open Premiere Assistant and choose [Trim], [Edit captions], or [Edit multi-cam].
Click [Open] on the "Open transcript for this sequence?" banner. If you clicked the transcribe button, select [Open previous transcript] and click [Next].
Premiere Assistant opens the transcript from Selects, with your speaker names, and you can start captioning or editing right away.
Caution: Don't select [Transcribe again]. It overwrites the transcript from Selects and uses your transcription hours.
Note: The transcript is passed along on the computer where you ran the handoff. To continue on another computer, see How to reload a previous transcript.
FAQs
I use Final Cut Pro or DaVinci Resolve, not Adobe Premiere. Can I still use these products?
You can use Selects. It is a standalone editor, so you can finish your video in Selects, or hand off to Final Cut Pro, DaVinci Resolve, or Adobe Premiere. The Premiere Assistant plugin only works inside Adobe Premiere.
Is Premiere Assistant going away?
Premiere Assistant is not going away. It stays available and supported. To be upfront, most of our development effort now goes into Selects, so that is where new features land first.
I am already paying for Selects. Do I also need to pay for Premiere Assistant?
You don't need to pay for Premiere Assistant if you already have Selects. Selects covers the same work, including captions and translation. If you still like captioning inside Premiere, the Premiere Assistant free plan is there at no extra cost.
I only make a couple of videos per month. Should I switch to Selects?
If Premiere Assistant covers what you do, it is the more cost-effective choice for a couple of videos per month. Switch to Selects if you want more control, AI chat editing, or generative AI in your editor. Both have a free plan, so you can try Selects without paying.
Can I cancel my Premiere Assistant subscription and just use Selects?
You can cancel your Premiere Assistant subscription and just use Selects, since Selects covers the same work. Canceling a paid plan moves you to the Premiere Assistant free plan, so the plugin is still there if you need it.
Does the Premiere Assistant plugin have an MCP or API?
The Premiere Assistant plugin does not have an MCP or API integration. If you want an AI agent to make edits in your timeline through conversation, you need Selects.
Can I use the same account for both Selects and the Premiere Assistant plugin?
You can use the same account for both. Selects and the Premiere Assistant plugin are both made by Cutback and use the same Cutback account. Sign up once, and you have access to both.
Does Selects work on Mac and Windows?
Selects works on both Mac and Windows. Download Selects
Can I try Selects before paying?
You can try Selects before paying. All new Selects users get 3,600 credits when they first sign up, which covers up to 10 hours of video analysis.
Not sure which one is right for you? Chat with us using the icon in the bottom right corner and we will help you figure it out.