Clipchamp Needs 8GB of RAM - Twice What Windows 11 Itself Asks For

Microsoft's own support page says Clipchamp wants at least 8GB of RAM, ideally 16GB - which is double what Windows 11 itself requires, on the editor Windows 11 installs for you.

A laptop running a video editing timeline beside a single memory module with its contacts glowing magenta

Clipchamp is free, well reviewed, and already on your PC if you run Windows 11.

It is also a good deal heavier than it looks.

What Microsoft actually says

The page is titled Make sure Clipchamp works well for you, and it lists four things:

Memory: at least 8GB of RAM available, with 16GB or more described as better.
A 64-bit setup: 64-bit Windows, and the 64-bit version of Edge or Chrome if you use the browser version.
Graphics: a recent graphics card, with no model named.
Storage: more free space on the internal drive than the size of the videos you are editing.

Below that, Microsoft says the editor may still run - but you could hit slow performance, freezing and crashes.

Why that is awkward

Windows 11's minimum is 4GB of RAM. Clipchamp arrives preinstalled. So a laptop that passes Windows 11's own compatibility check can still sit below the floor Microsoft sets for the video editor it ships with.

That is most likely to bite on budget laptops and older desktops - exactly the machines people reach for Clipchamp on, because it is free and it is already there.

If Clipchamp is struggling on your PC

Start with Microsoft's own tips, which cost nothing: close other tabs and programs, keep Clipchamp in the foreground while it works, and restart the browser or app before a long session.

The tip that makes the biggest difference is buried at the bottom of the page: shrink 4K footage to 1080p before you import it. The free HandBrake does that in a few clicks, and a 1080p file is a fraction of the work for the editor.

If you only need to cut clips - trim the start, drop the boring middle - LosslessCut does it without re-encoding, so it is fast and asks very little of the machine.

And if you are ready to try something else entirely, our guide to the best free video editors without a watermark compares the alternatives. Be warned: any real editor wants plenty of memory for HD work, so on a 4GB machine the honest fix is often the footage, not the software.

The bottom line

Clipchamp is fine on a PC with 8GB or more and a reasonably recent graphics chip. Below that, expect it to stutter - and shrink your footage before blaming the editor.