Are you starting out on YouTube and wish to showcase your creativity on your new channel? If so, you will find out how valuable it can be to use stock footage when creating videos on YouTube.

YouTube is about creating videos and captivating your viewers with a great visual experience that engages them with your brand, channel, and work. One of the many ways you can achieve this is by using stock videos to add optical power to your videos, helping you achieve the much-needed impact to succeed.

Today, this guide outlines the best sites where you can get stock footage suitable for your YouTube videos. However, most of the websites we will suggest are paid sites. We don’t advocate for free sites because those videos are usually under a form of Creative Commons License, which means they are, in most cases, copyrighted. You can use the free videos, which you may later find out are copyrighted and will get you in trouble with YouTube.

But using the paid sites which mostly own and manage the copyrights assures you of no problems with YouTube’s Content ID system. Plus, paid sites will have better quality videos, and once you pay, you can use the videos for as long as you like.

 

1.   Artgrid.io

We kick off the list with Artgrid.io. Artgrid is a royalty-free stock video site where you can get quality videos to use in your YouTube videos. If you pay for their subscription, you get access to their unlimited library of quality footage. The advantage of using Artgrid is it’s among the sites with the best quality. Use the Artgrid discount code to get an extra two months free when you subscribe, which you get to save a lot.

Artgrid comes with three different pricing plans, and the discount code works on all of them. So whichever plan you choose on Artgrid can work for your budget and all your content needs.

 

2.   Shutter stock

The second one on our list is shutter stock. The advantage of choosing shutter stock is the collection of new clips and celebrity videos. Typically, you won’t find these clips on other sites, but it will probably cost you more if you do. However, we prefer shutter stocks clips because their license is much more favorable.

With that said, shutter stock doesn’t come cheap, and if you are starting out on YouTube, this may not be the best choice for you budget-wise. Shutter stock costs $2000/year for 20 clips a month.

 

3.   Storyblocks

Most people have heard about Storyblocks because they do a lot of sponsored YouTube videos. This video site gives you unlimited access to the downloads, which you only have to pay once. Storyblocks also comes with a good selection of video footage, even 360-degree videos if you prefer those.

They are affordable compared to shutter stock because they charge around $360/year, including stock photos.

However, you may come to notice that some of their videos may feel a bit generic at times. With that said, let’s move to the next one.

 

4.   Motion array

Motion array is another site that offers stock videos for YouTube. Their pricing is somewhat similar to Storyblocks but may be cheaper if you choose to pay per year. You will notice that their license talks explicitly about YouTube’s Content ID System, which is great for YouTubers.

Their video selection is similar to story block, with great quality and unlimited access. It also has a free tier, but we found the video selections in the free level left a lot to be desired, and we wouldn’t recommend them.

 

5.   Envato Elements/Videohive

Envato elements also come with a wide selection of stock footage, and they are also affordable going for around $16.50 a month. Once you pay, you not only get access to the stock footage, but you also get stock images, fonts, sound effects, and even music. So if you are starting out your YouTube channel, you have a wide selection of clips, images, or music to produce amazing content.

However, it is essential to note that once you download a stock clip from Envato, you must register the clip every time you use it. Some people attempt to download many clips once they subscribe then use the clips without registering. This usually leads to Envato issuing YouTube Content ID notices.

We included Videohive here because they claim to be part of the Envato market. This means that if you are subscribed to Envato, you also have access to Videohive. Videohive has more stock videos available on their site than Envato, which is a significant plus for you.

 

6.   Pond5

Pond5 also makes it to our list of sites providing stock images for YouTube. They also have a similar platform as that of Shutterstock. They have two options: buy a clip at $40, or pay for a membership, which gives you access to download ten clips per month.

Pond5 sells stock footage, stock videos, and even after-effects. It also comes with excellent video quality, as good as Artgrid.

The site doesn’t offer subscriptions as all their payments are made with real cash credits. However, you can save some cash by buying credit packs. For example, buying a $250 credit pack will give you a $25 bonus.

Pond5 also has the best price guarantee, which means if you find the stock clip elsewhere at a lower price, they will try to match the price. However, they typically don’t go lower than $15/video footage.

 

7.   Adobe stock

Adobe Stock is an excellent choice if you use adobe creative cloud for content creation. The site even allows you to try the clips or images before purchasing them. Once you are done editing and are satisfied, you buy the ones you like and discard the ones you don’t.

However, adobe stock is quite expensive, but their quality is excellent. However, if you are starting out and want the same quality, we recommend starting with something like Artgrid, especially now that they have a discount with two months of free access to their stock videos.