Beginner vs Advanced Tools in Zella

Quick answer: Zella opens in a simple beginner mode - just the essentials, nothing overwhelming. Behind it sits the depth toolset: keyframes and the curve (bezier) editor, luma scopes, Color Match, feathered effect masks, speed ramps, and per-drum Beat Sync. It is part of Zella Pro on Mac and iPhone alike, and one Universal Purchase covers both. On the Mac you reveal it with the Advanced switch in the editor’s top toolbar. It gates the controls, never your video - a project that already uses these features previews and exports on every tier. The AI Assistant is free on every tier, on both platforms, and always has been.

On this page: why two modes · the switch · what unlocks · pro · turning off · on iPhone · impact · FAQ

Why Zella has two modes

A full video editor can be intimidating - dozens of buttons you may never touch. So Zella starts in beginner mode, showing the tools most people need to make a great video: cut, trim, zoom, captions, effects, transitions, audio, and export. When you’re ready for finer control, one switch reveals the advanced tools the pros use. Nothing is hidden forever; it’s just tucked away until you ask for it.

Where the switch is

The Advanced toggle lives in the editor’s top toolbar (next to the Cut and Zoom controls):

Open a project in the editor.
In the top toolbar, click the Advanced switch (the slider icon).
When it’s on, the label lights up and the extra tools appear across the editor.

A small lock on the switch means you’re not on Pro yet - see below.

What Advanced Tools unlocks

Turning the switch on reveals the depth toolset throughout the editor. This is the same six-item list on Mac and iPhone:

Keyframes & the curve (bezier) editor - hand-animate zoom and motion, and shape the easing with a graph editor for exactly how fast a move speeds up or slows down. (See Zoom & keyframes.)
Luma scopes - a live graph of your image’s brightness, so you can grade by the numbers instead of by eye. (See Color.)
Color Match - copy the look of one shot onto another so clips match. (See Color.)
Feathered effect masks - apply an effect to only part of the frame, with a soft edge, instead of the whole picture. (See Effects.)
Speed ramps - smooth slow-motion ramps, on top of the plain slow/fast/freeze/reverse set. On the Mac the blade, replay and rewind moves come with them. (See Speed.)
Per-drum Beat Sync - control the kick, snare, and hats separately instead of one combined slider. (See Beat Sync.)

The AI Assistant and the full 25-transition library used to be listed here. They are not part of the depth toolset and never require Pro - the Assistant is free on every tier and on both platforms (it uses your own free provider key), and every transition is free, with “More transitions” revealing the whole catalog and its category filter. See AI Assistant and Transitions.

In beginner mode these features are simply not shown - the underlying tools still exist, so any project that uses them keeps working.

Advanced Tools is part of Zella Pro

The depth toolset is a Zella Pro feature. If you’re not on Pro, the Advanced switch shows a lock, and clicking it opens the paywall so you can upgrade - it won’t flip on until you do. Once you’re Pro, the switch turns the toolkit on and off freely.

Pro is one purchase for every device. The one-time $89 Pro is a Universal Purchase: it unlocks the depth toolset on Mac and iPhone together. There’s no subscription and no per-device fee. Every new install also runs the complete Pro feature set free for its first seven days - no card, no account and nothing to cancel - so you can try keyframes, scopes and ramps before deciding.

Everything outside this toolkit stays free forever on both platforms: the complete editor, all the AI (including the Assistant and Auto B-Roll), unlimited recording, and watermark-free export up to 2 minutes at up to 1080p. 1080p is free forever, and free exports are never watermarked.

Turning the switch off is always allowed, whether or not you’re Pro. The lock only guards turning it on for the first time.

Turning Advanced Tools back off

You can flip Advanced off any time to get the clean beginner layout back. The advanced tools just disappear from view - they don’t break anything:

A project that already uses keyframes, ramps, masks, Color Match and the rest still plays and still exports exactly the same.
The AI Assistant tab is unaffected - it is free and always available, whether Advanced Tools is on or off.

So it’s safe to hop between modes: keep it simple most of the time, flip Advanced on for the one shot that needs fine control.

On iPhone

The depth toolset is not Mac-only. Keyframes with the curve editor, luma scopes, Color Match, feathered masks, speed ramps and per-drum Beat Sync all exist on iPhone, and they are Zella Pro there too - the same feature set, the same tier, unlocked by the same single purchase.

What’s free on the phone

Plenty, and it is not a stripped-down tier:

Zoom blocks - punch into a moment anywhere on the timeline.
Reverse, Instant Replay, Rewind and constant speed changes.
The complete touch timeline: cut, trim, ripple-delete, reorder, per-clip volume, overlay layers.
All the on-device AI - Auto-Polish, Clean Up, Make Vertical, background removal, captions and translation, Auto B-Roll cutaways.
The AI Assistant (71 actions on iPhone, 101 on the Mac).
Watermark-free export up to 2 minutes at up to 1080p.

What Pro adds

Speed ramps, motion keyframes and the curve editor, feathered masks, Color Match, the luma scope and per-drum Beat Sync - plus unlimited export length, 4K, transparent-background export (HEVC with alpha on iOS, ProRes 4444 on the Mac), 60 fps, custom bitrate, the multi-aspect export queue and saved custom templates. 8K is the one Pro extra the Mac has and the phone doesn’t.

It gates the controls, not your video

This is the important part, and it works identically on both platforms: a project that already uses keyframes, a ramp, a mask or Color Match still previews and exports on every tier. Pro decides what you can reach, never whether your existing work will render. Hand a Pro-toolset project from the phone to the Mac as a .zella file and every one of those controls is waiting for it. (The reverse trip is not supported: the iPhone app cannot open a .zella file.)

Detail on the touch versions: the iOS editor · sound & Beat Sync · iPhone vs Mac.

What impact the two modes have

For creators and editors, the two-mode design lets one app fit both ends of the spectrum:

A gentle start - beginner mode means you can make a polished video the first day without wading through pro panels.
Room to grow - the same app scales up to keyframed motion, real scopes, and speed ramps when your edits get ambitious.
No relearning - you’re not switching apps as you improve; you flip one switch in the tool you already know.
Nothing lost - turning Advanced off never damages a project, so experimenting is risk-free.

Advanced Tools FAQ

Where is the Advanced Tools switch? In the editor’s top toolbar, next to the Cut and Zoom controls.

What do I get when I turn it on? Keyframes and the curve editor, luma scopes, Color Match, feathered masks, speed ramps, and per-drum Beat Sync. That is the whole list - the AI Assistant and the transition library are free and not part of it.

Is Advanced Tools free? It’s part of Zella Pro. Turning it on when you’re not Pro opens the paywall. Every new install gets the full Pro set free for its first seven days, so you can try it first.

If I turn it off, do my advanced edits break? No. Projects that use advanced features still play and export. The tools just hide from view.

Why is there a lock on the switch? The lock means you’re not on Pro yet. Turning the switch on needs Pro; turning it off is always allowed.

Is the depth toolset on iPhone too? Yes - keyframes with the curve editor, luma scopes, Color Match, feathered masks, speed ramps and per-drum Beat Sync all exist on the phone, and they are Pro there as well. See On iPhone.

Do I have to buy Pro twice to get it on both? No. Pro is a Universal Purchase - one payment of $89 unlocks Mac and iPhone together.

Is the AI Assistant part of this? No. The Assistant is free on every tier, on both platforms, and is not part of the depth toolset. Same for Auto B-Roll and all 25 transitions.

Will a Pro-toolset project still export if I’m on the free tier? Yes. The gate is on the controls, not the render. A project that already uses keyframes, a mask or a ramp previews and exports on every tier, on both platforms.

Pro tips & gotchas

The Advanced switch is in the top toolbar on the Mac - one click reveals the whole depth toolset.
The depth toolset is a Pro feature on every device; a lock on the switch means clicking it opens the paywall.
Turning it off never harms a project - advanced edits still play and export, the tools just hide.
Stay in beginner mode for everyday videos and flip Advanced on only when a shot needs keyframes, ramps, scopes, or masks.
Try it during Pro Week. A new install runs the complete Pro set free for seven days, with no card and nothing to cancel.
The Assistant is not in here. It’s free on both platforms, whether Advanced is on or off.