Top 5 Free After Effects Plugins/Extensions

Hi, fellow editor! 

Kease

Kease is a script for Adobe After Effects CC available for Mac and Windows. It’s a small yet powerful panel that helps you in your daily keyframing routine. There’s also a pro version available.

Price: Free!

Requirements: Adobe After Effects(version 22) and previous up to version 15 of 2017.

What it can do:

Copy and paste easing curves, copy and paste values, linearize spatial interpolation, duplicate and mirror multiple keyframes. With pro version, you’ll also be able to use the simple and complex easing presets.

Type Array

A simple, versatile solution that applies custom interpolation to each index with delay or markers. The result is a tool that does however much or little you need it to, gets out of the way.

Price: Free!

Requirements: After Effects CC 2019 and above

What it can do:

Create complicated animations easily, apply detailed animations to each index(character, word, or line), use dynamic referencing, shift property, match effects to the selector in the Timeline and many other. 

EasyEdit Viewer + Assets

EasyEdit Viewer - quick and simple access to thousands of video templates. Here you can preview and import ready-made compositions to your project in just one click.

Apart from that, you can find and download free media resources from all over the internet, with seamless integration to After Effects and Premiere Pro.

Price: Free!

Requirements: After Effects and Premiere Pro CC 2014 and above

What it can do: 

Here you’ll be able to add a pack of templates, preview and import any template and easily customize it. Animation, editing or content creation - everything becomes much easier.

If you click to the Assets tab, you’ll be able to choose the media file you need to add in your project from any available stock website - video, photo or GIF. Here you can choose the resolution, format or source of the file, easily preview suggested media files and import them to the project or your computer.

Find more about Assets in this guide.

Advanced Selection

Expands the capabilities of After Effects to select layers. It offers a vast amount of filters you can choose from to narrow down your selection, like layer types, layer options, blending modes, search by name, label colors and more.

Price: Free!

Requirements: After Effects CC 2019 and above

What it can do:

The mass selection allows working with multiple layers and huge projects. Set multiple filters to the composition, such as Light, Shape, Text, Blending Mode, 3D Layer, Motion Blur, Track Matte or many others. 

Buttcapper

The stroke cap selector Adobe forgot. Change all stroke caps and joins faster than you can twirl open a single path. A powerful time-saver. Easily use Buttcapper with expressions!

Price: Free!

Requirements: After Effects CS6+

What it can do:

Change caps on all selected layers, set stroke joins too, maintain stroke width, use with expressions and with Kbar.

To Sum Up

We’re sure that some of these extensions can do a great job in your every day’s work and bring a lot of freedom to your workflow - they are great time savers!

For more tips for editors, check our blog - we create guides for After Effects, Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve and Final Cut; tips for designers, filmmakers and especially - for editors.