What keyframes do and where to find them

Keyframes are markers you place on your timeline to tell CapCut when an effect, position, or property should change. When you set a keyframe at one point in your video and another keyframe at a different point with a different value, CapCut automatically animates the change between them. On CapCut PC, keyframes live in the Inspector panel on the right side of your screen, next to the timeline.

The most common use is moving text or images across the screen, fading audio in and out, or changing the size of a clip over time. Without keyframes, any change you make applies to the entire clip at once. With keyframes, you control exactly when the change starts and stops.

Key Takeaways

  • Keyframes are set by clicking the diamond icon next to any property in the Inspector panel, then moving your playhead to a new time and changing the value.
  • You must have a clip selected on the timeline and the playhead positioned at the exact frame where you want the change to begin or end.
  • The keyframe timeline at the bottom of the Inspector shows all your keyframes as small diamonds; you can click and drag them to adjust timing without re-entering values.
  • Common keyframe animations include position (moving clips), scale (resizing), opacity (fading), and rotation, all controlled through the same diamond-icon method.
  • Deleting a keyframe removes that marker but does not undo the animation; you must delete both the start and end keyframes to stop the effect entirely.

Setting your first keyframe step by step

Open CapCut and load a project with at least one clip on the timeline. Click the clip you want to animate—text, image, or video all work the same way. The Inspector panel appears on the right. You will see properties like Position, Scale, Rotation, and Opacity, each with a small diamond icon to the left of the value.

Move your playhead (the vertical line on the timeline) to the exact frame where you want the animation to start. For example, if you want text to slide in at the 2-second mark, click on the timeline at 2 seconds. Now click the diamond icon next to the property you want to animate. That diamond turns solid, and CapCut records the current value as your first keyframe.

Move your playhead forward in time—drag it to the right on the timeline. This is where the animation will end. Change the value of the same property. If you clicked the Position diamond, drag the clip to a new location on the canvas. If you clicked Scale, adjust the size slider. As soon as you change the value, CapCut creates a second keyframe automatically. The animation between the two keyframes plays when you hit the spacebar to preview.

Animating position to move clips across the screen

Position keyframes are the most visual and easiest to understand. Select your clip, then click the diamond next to Position in the Inspector. Your playhead should be at the frame where movement begins. Now move your playhead forward—try 1 second ahead—and drag the clip to its final position on the canvas. You will see the clip move smoothly between the two positions when you play the video.

If the movement looks too fast or too slow, you do not need to delete and redo the keyframes. At the bottom of the Inspector, you will see a small timeline showing your keyframes as diamonds. Click and drag either diamond left or right to shift when the keyframe happens. The animation speed adjusts automatically.

Fading audio and video with opacity keyframes

Opacity controls transparency. Set your playhead at the start of a fade, click the Opacity diamond, then move forward and lower the opacity value to 0 to fade out, or raise it to 100 to fade in. This works for both video clips and audio tracks. For audio, the opacity keyframe controls volume instead of visibility.

A common pattern: set opacity to 100 at frame 0, move to frame 30, and set opacity to 0. The clip fades out over one second. Reverse it—start at 0, end at 100—to fade in. You can also create a fade-in and fade-out on the same clip by setting three keyframes: 0 opacity at the start, 100 in the middle, and 0 at the end.

Scaling and rotating with keyframes

Scale keyframes resize your clip. Click the Scale diamond at your starting frame, move the playhead forward, and adjust the scale percentage in the Inspector or by dragging a corner handle on the canvas. A clip that starts at 50% scale and ends at 100% will grow larger over time. Rotation works the same way: set the first keyframe, move forward, and adjust the rotation value.

Combining scale and rotation creates more complex animations. You can make text spin while shrinking, or an image zoom in while rotating. Each property gets its own set of keyframes, and they all play at the same time. The Inspector shows all active keyframes together, so you can see at a glance which properties are animated.

Adjusting and deleting keyframes

Once keyframes are set, you can edit them without starting over. Click the small diamond timeline at the bottom of the Inspector to see all your keyframes for that clip. Click any diamond to jump your playhead to that exact frame. Then change the value in the Inspector, and the keyframe updates. You can also drag a diamond left or right to shift its timing without changing the value.

To delete a single keyframe, click it in the diamond timeline and press Delete, or right-click and select Remove Keyframe. Deleting one keyframe does not remove the animation—it only removes that marker. If you delete the first keyframe but leave the second, the clip will jump to the end position when ready at the second keyframe. To stop an animation entirely, delete both the start and end keyframes.

Common mistakes and how to fix them

The most frequent error is forgetting to move the playhead before changing a value. If you set a keyframe, then when ready change the value without moving the playhead, both keyframes end up at the same time and no animation occurs. Always move the playhead first, then adjust the property. A second mistake is clicking the wrong diamond icon—make sure you are animating the property you intend.

If an animation plays too fast, the keyframes are too close together on the timeline. Drag the second keyframe to the right to give the animation more time. If it plays too slow, drag the keyframe left. If the animation does not play at all, check that both keyframes have different values. A keyframe at position (100, 100) followed by another at (100, 100) creates no visible change.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I copy keyframes from one clip to another?

CapCut PC does not have a direct copy-keyframes feature. The fastest workaround is to duplicate the clip with keyframes already set, then replace its content. Select the clip, right-click, and choose Duplicate. Delete the media inside and add your new clip. The keyframes remain attached to the layer.

What is the difference between linear and curved keyframes?

CapCut PC uses linear keyframes by default, meaning the change happens at a constant speed. You cannot switch to curved (eased) keyframes in the standard Inspector. If you need acceleration or deceleration, you can fake it by adding a third keyframe in the middle with a value closer to the start, creating a slower beginning and faster end.

Do keyframes work on text layers the same way as video clips?

Yes. Text layers support all the same keyframe properties: Position, Scale, Rotation, and Opacity. The workflow is identical—select the text, set the first keyframe, move the playhead, and change the value. Text animations are common for titles and lower-thirds that slide in or fade.

Can I see all keyframes for all clips at once?

No. The keyframe timeline in the Inspector only shows keyframes for the currently selected clip. Click a different clip and the keyframe display updates. If you want to see the overall structure of your animation, look at the main timeline—clips with keyframes do not have a visual indicator, so you must click each one to check.

What happens if I move a clip on the timeline after setting keyframes?

The keyframes stay attached to the clip and move with it. If you drag a clip from the 5-second mark to the 10-second mark, all its keyframes shift forward by 5 seconds. The animation itself does not change—only when it plays in your video.