Our verdict: Kinovea is the standard free tool for coaches, physiotherapists and researchers who study movement on video. It slows clips down, compares two takes side by side and measures angles, distances and trajectories. It is not a video editor and only runs on Windows.
About Kinovea
Kinovea is a video annotation tool designed for sport analysis. It captures, slows down, compares, annotates and measures motion in videos. You can step frame by frame, draw lines, arrows and angles on the image, track a point across frames and calibrate the picture to measure real distances and speeds.
It is released under the GNU GPL v2, and the developer states it can be used for free for any purpose, including commercial work in clinics, bike-fit shops or university courses, without registration. Live capture works with webcams and, through a separate plugin, with GenICam machine vision cameras from Basler, Baumer, IDS and others.
What it does well
- Slow motion and frame stepping. Plays clips at reduced speed and moves one frame at a time.
- Drawings and annotations. Adds lines, arrows, angles, text and markers on top of the video.
- Measurement and tracking. Measures angles and distances and tracks points to plot trajectories.
- Side-by-side comparison. Shows two videos together and synchronizes them on a common moment.
- Camera capture. Records from webcams or machine vision cameras with a delayed live view.
Who it is for
Good fit
Coaches, athletes, physiotherapists and students who analyze movement from video.
Look elsewhere
People who want to edit and export finished videos, or who use a Mac.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Free for any use, including commercial
- Precise angle and distance measurement
- Two videos side by side
- Portable version available
Cons
- Windows only, no Mac or Apple Silicon support
- Not a video editor
- Online manual still describes version 0.9.5
How to install Kinovea
The download page offers a Windows installer and a portable ZIP; the installer is the simpler choice. Kinovea needs .NET Framework 4.8, which Windows 10 and 11 already include. The developer warns not to run it from a OneDrive-synced folder. Machine vision camera support is a separate plugin copied into the Plugins\Camera folder.
Questions about Kinovea
Is Kinovea free?
Yes. Kinovea is open source under the GNU GPL v2 and free forever for personal, academic and commercial use, with no registration.
Can Kinovea measure angles and speed?
Yes. It has angle and distance tools, and after calibrating the image it can measure real distances and track points over time.
Does Kinovea run on a Mac?
No. Kinovea is a Windows application, and the developer notes it does not work on Apple Silicon Macs even in virtualization.
