Free video editing tools have improved enormously, which makes the case for paying for software like Movavi less obvious than it used to be — the honest answer depends on what you're actually trying to produce.
Basic cutting, trimming, simple transitions, and text overlays are covered well by several genuinely free tools, including options built into phones and free desktop editors bundled with operating systems. For quick social clips or simple home videos, free tools are often entirely sufficient.
The gap shows up in format support (handling a wider range of video and audio codecs without conversion headaches), built-in effects and templates that don't require external plugins, faster export performance, and often bundled tools beyond editing itself — screen recording, format conversion, or slideshow creation in one package rather than needing separate apps for each task.
Many free editors either watermark exports or cap resolution/length unless you upgrade — worth checking specifically, since a "free" tool that requires payment to export a usable, watermark-free file isn't actually saving you money if you were going to publish the result anyway.
If you're editing regularly enough that faster exports and a wider effects library save real time, or you specifically need the bundled screen recording and conversion tools rather than juggling separate free apps, a paid editor's cost is usually justified by the time saved. For occasional, simple edits, a capable free tool remains the more sensible choice.
