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Adobe After Effects free download

Motion graphics, visual effects and animated titles. Here's the safe, official way to download and install After Effects on Windows or Mac, with requirements, free trial facts and fixes for common errors.

WindowsmacOSUpdated

What is Adobe After Effects?

Adobe After Effects is the go-to app for motion graphics, animated titles, visual effects and compositing. It's used for everything from YouTube intros and explainer videos to film and broadcast work.

After Effects is one of Adobe's most demanding apps, so this guide puts extra focus on hardware. It covers the official way to install it, what the trial includes, and how to fix the setup and performance issues people see most.

What you can do with After Effects

  • Animated titles, lower thirds and logo reveals
  • Motion graphics for explainer and social videos
  • Visual effects, compositing and green-screen keying
  • Motion tracking and rotoscoping
  • Animated templates for Premiere Pro (Motion Graphics templates)

Can you download After Effects for free?

After Effects has no free version. Adobe usually offers new customers a free trial (typically 7 days), then a paid plan is required.

“Free” or cracked copies from third-party sites are unsafe: they often contain malware and can't be updated or activated legitimately.

Free After Effects alternatives & free versions

After Effects free download: install it step by step

The whole process usually takes 15 to 30 minutes, most of it waiting for the download.

  1. Check that your computer is compatible

    Compare your computer with the After Effects system requirements on this page. Pay special attention to your operating system version, memory (RAM) and free disk space, since those cause most failed installs.

  2. Choose a plan or free trial on adobe.com

    Adobe sells Adobe After Effects as a subscription through Creative Cloud. You can pick a single-app plan, a bundle that includes it, or the free trial if one is offered in your region.

  3. Sign in with your Adobe account

    Create a free Adobe account or sign in with an existing one. Use an email address you check often, because your license is tied to it.

  4. Install the Creative Cloud desktop app

    Adobe delivers After Effects through the Creative Cloud desktop app. After you start a plan or trial, Adobe's site gives you the Creative Cloud installer. Run it and sign in with the same account.

  5. Install After Effects from the Apps tab

    In the Creative Cloud app, find After Effects in the list of apps and select Install. The download is several gigabytes, so it can take a while on slower connections. Keep the computer awake until it finishes.

  6. Open After Effects and confirm activation

    Launch After Effects from the Creative Cloud app or your Applications/Start menu. If you are asked to sign in, use the same Adobe account. The app checks your license online and is then ready to use.

Ready for your After Effects free download?

This takes you to After Effects on Adobe’s official site, where the download starts.

Free DownloadAfter Effects · official 7-day free trial · Windows & Mac

Download After Effects for Windows PC or Mac

The steps above are the same on both systems. These are the details that differ.

After Effects for Windows 10 & 11 (PC)

  • Adobe’s installer for Windows is a small .exe file. Run it and approve the User Account Control prompt so it can install.
  • After Effects needs 64-bit Windows 10 or Windows 11. Check yours under Settings → System → About.
  • On PCs with ARM processors (such as Snapdragon), check Adobe’s list of apps that support Windows on ARM before you buy.
  • If Microsoft Defender SmartScreen warns about an “Adobe” installer, stop. Real Adobe installers are digitally signed by Adobe Inc.: right-click the file and check Properties → Digital Signatures.

After Effects for Mac (Apple silicon & Intel)

  • On a Mac, Adobe’s installer comes as a .dmg file. Open it, double-click the installer inside and enter your Mac password when asked.
  • After Effects runs natively on Apple silicon (M-series) Macs as well as supported Intel Macs. Check yours under Apple menu → About This Mac.
  • If macOS warns that it can’t verify the developer of an “Adobe” installer, delete it. Adobe’s installers are signed and notarized, so that warning means the file isn’t from Adobe.
  • After installing, macOS may ask you to allow access to folders or other permissions. Approve them in System Settings → Privacy & Security.

After Effects system requirements

Typical requirements for the current release. Adobe updates them with each version, so confirm the details on Adobe's official system requirements page before installing.

Adobe After Effects system requirements for Windows and macOS
RequirementWindowsmacOS
Operating systemWindows 10 (64-bit, version 22H2 or later) or Windows 11One of the three most recent macOS releases
ProcessorMulticore Intel or AMD 64-bit processor with AVX2Apple silicon (M-series) or a supported multicore Intel processor
Memory (RAM)16 GB minimum, 32 GB or more recommended16 GB minimum, 32 GB or more recommended
GraphicsDirectX 12 GPU with 2 GB of VRAM (4 GB or more recommended)Metal GPU; Apple silicon unified memory works well
StorageAbout 15 GB for the app, plus SSD space for the disk cacheAbout 15 GB for the app, plus SSD space for the disk cache
InternetRequired to download the app, activate it and validate your planRequired to download the app, activate it and validate your plan

After Effects plans and how to buy

After Effects is sold directly by Adobe. Plan names and prices change often and vary by country, so compare the current options on adobe.com. These are the main ways to get it:

  • After Effects single-app plan: After Effects plus cloud storage and Adobe Fonts.
  • Creative Cloud all-apps plans: After Effects with Premiere Pro, Photoshop, Illustrator and more. Ideal if you edit and animate.
  • Student and teacher plans: discounted all-apps pricing for eligible students and educators.
  • Business plans: centrally managed licenses for studios and teams.

Fixing common After Effects installation problems

The After Effects installer freezes or fails partway through

Make sure your connection is stable and temporarily pause VPNs, proxies or strict firewall rules. Restart the computer, open the Creative Cloud app and retry the install. If it still fails, write down the exact error code: Adobe documents each one on its help site, so searching the code is the fastest way to the right fix.

There isn't enough free disk space

Installers need room for the app and for temporary files, often more than the final install size. Free up space, or choose a different drive in the Creative Cloud app under Preferences → Apps → Installation location.

After Effects keeps asking you to sign in, or says your trial has ended

Sign in with the same Adobe account email you used to buy the plan. Sign out of the Creative Cloud app, restart, and sign back in. Also set your computer's date and time to update automatically, because license checks depend on them.

Your operating system isn't supported

New releases of After Effects drop support for older versions of Windows and macOS. Update your operating system if your hardware allows it. If it doesn't, open the Creative Cloud app, click the menu (…) next to After Effects and choose Other versions to install an earlier release.

Previews won't play in real time

Lower the preview resolution to Half or Quarter, then purge old cache with Edit → Purge → All Memory & Disk Cache. In Preferences → Memory & Performance, reserve less memory for other apps so After Effects can use more.

Third-party plugins or effects are missing after installing

Plugins are tied to each version. Reinstall them, or download the version built for your release, from the plugin developer's website.

Next step

Using After Effects? Set up Premiere Pro too.

Professional video editing for YouTube, film, TV and social. Our Premiere Pro guide covers the official download, requirements and the fixes people need most.

Premiere Pro free download All free download guides

After Effects download FAQ

No. After Effects requires a paid plan after any free trial, which Adobe usually offers to new customers for about 7 days.

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