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Ever wondered how to make a dark video brighter without losing quality? Whether you're editing travel footage on your phone or color-correcting a cinematic clip on your desktop, getting the right brightness makes all the difference. A video brightener app helps fix underexposed footage by automatically adjusting brightness, contrast, and color tones to restore natural light and detail.
In this guide, we’ve tested 8 of the best apps to brighten videos — from quick mobile editors like InShot and ActionDirector, to advanced AI tools like UniFab HDR Upconverter AI, which uses deep learning to intelligently brighten dark scenes while preserving tone and texture.
Whether you’re on iPhone, Android, Windows, or Mac, this list will help you find the best solution to make your dark videos visible, vivid, and ready to share.
A dark video usually happens when your camera captures less light than required — a common issue in both professional and mobile shooting. Understanding why your video looks dark is the first step to fixing it and making your footage visible again.
1. Technical reasons
2. Environmental factors
3. Device or upload display issues
Understanding these causes is the first step toward improving the visual quality of your video. This ensures your audience gets a clear, vibrant viewing experience.
4. How to fix dark videos
To fix underexposed footage, you can increase brightness, contrast, or gamma values in editing software — or use an AI video brightener app like UniFab HDR Upconverter AI, which automatically enhances dark videos and balances exposure for a natural look.
Choosing the best app to brighten a video depends on your device, workflow, and how much control you want over lighting.
Below is a comparison of the top 8 AI video brightener apps — from professional HDR tools like UniFab HDR Upconverter AI to free online editors such as Clideo or VEED.IO.
his table highlights brightness enhancement quality, ease of use, and supported platforms to help you pick the right tool.
| Video Brightener App | AI Brightening Quality | Output Formats | Ease of Use | Best For | Supported Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UniFab HDR Upconverter AI | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Advanced AI dynamic brightness, contrast, color balance, tone curves | Exports HDR10/Dolby Vision (10–12 bit, Rec.2020/DCI‑P3) | Very Easy (AI automatic process, 30-day free trial without watermark) | Professionals who want cinematic HDR results | Desktop (Windows and Mac) |
| UniFab Video Converter | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Built-in editor to adjust brightness, contrast & color; fast batch processing | 1000+ formats (MP4, MKV, AVI, MOV, 8K, audio) | Very Easy | Beginners & editors who want quick fixes | Desktop (Windows and Mac) |
| Wondershare UniConverter | ⭐⭐⭐ Basic brightness/exposure filter with presets | 1000+ formats | Easy | General users editing 4K & HDR content | Desktop (Windows and Mac) |
| Fotor Video Brightener | ⭐⭐⭐ Automatic AI enhancement for quick online results | Common video formats (MP4, MOV, and WebM) | Very Easy | Casual users brightening short clips | Web |
| Clideo | ⭐⭐ Manual brightness/contrast sliders | MP4, MOV, AVI, WMV, VOB, others | Easy | Quick online fixes | Web |
| VEED.IO | ⭐⭐⭐ Online editor with filters and brightness controls | MP4, MKV, AVI, WEBM, etc. | Easy | Social media creators | Web |
| InShot | ⭐⭐ Mobile lightness control + filters | Mobile formats (iOS/Android) | Very Easy | iPhone & Android users | iOS, Android |
| ActionDirector | ⭐⭐ Manual brightness control with filters | Up to 4K mobile/desktop formats | Easy (but ads/watermarks in the free version) | Android users editing fast-action clips | Android, Windows |
Among all these options, UniFab HDR Upconverter AI stands out as the best AI app to brighten dark videos automatically — thanks to its deep learning tone mapping and HDR enhancement engine.
If you just need quick fixes, online tools like Clideo or VEED.IO are convenient, but for consistent color grading and cinematic brightness, UniFab delivers professional-grade results across devices.
Now that you’ve seen how each video brightener compares, let’s dive deeper into how to brighten a video step by step using these tools.
Now that you’ve compared the best AI video brightener apps, let’s explore how to brighten a dark video step by step using professional desktop software. We have tried and tested these 3 top desktop AI video brightener software to brighten and enhance a video without hassle. These tools are ideal when you need higher-quality, HDR-ready results instead of basic online filters.
UniFab HDR Upconverter AI is an AI-powered video brightener designed to make dark or underexposed videos look clear, vibrant, and naturally illuminated. Instead of simply increasing brightness like basic filters, UniFab analyzes every frame using HDR tone mapping to enhance light, contrast, and color balance intelligently. It automatically converts any SDR footage into HDR10 or Dolby Vision, expanding brightness levels and color depth for lifelike results. By optimizing pixel luminance and recovering shadow details, UniFab effectively brightens your video while preserving natural highlights and skin tones — delivering a cinematic, professional look with just one click.
So, let’s see how to brighten a video using this AI-powered video brightener for desktop.
30-day Free Trial with full feature access!
After launching and opening the UniFab tool on your desktop, select the “HDR Upconverter” option. Then, upload your desired dark video for brightening, hit the “+” option or drag the file.
Now, select between HDR 10 or Dolby Vision, and you can also select from two Color Spaces.
Select the “Start” option to brighten your video by converting it to HDR.
If you’re new to video editing, UniFab Video Converter is the simplest way to make dark footage visible. It combines an easy interface with essential video adjustment tools like brightness, contrast, and saturation.
Wondershare UniConverter software is software for editing, converting, and all other video-related operations. This software can easily edit your video and apply special effects to make it ready to post on your social media accounts. In the popup box under the Video Effect label move the slider to the right side and the video brightness will be increased. You can also adjust contrast, and saturation, and apply premade filters on the videos.
Pros
Brightens dark videos with a click, with advanced video editing functions.
Seamlessly handles high-res (4K, 8K, and HDR) files.
Convert and enhance bulk videos without hassle.
Supports over 1000+ formats for effortless conversion.
Download videos directly from YouTube and 1000+ other video-sharing sites.
Cons
Expensive price plans compared to lower-cost alternatives.
Limited advanced editing with only basic editing features.
Occasional slow performance and crashes, especially with large and complex tasks.
Each of these AI video brightener tools provides a unique balance of automation and control.
If you need instant, high-quality enhancement with zero manual work, UniFab HDR Upconverter AI delivers the best automatic results.
Next, let’s explore how to brighten videos online — using lightweight web-based tools that don’t require software installation.
Online tools are quite popular among casual users. However, since they pose a threat to privacy, it is essential to use only the most reliable ones. We have discovered the three top tools to help you brighten video online. Let's dive into learning their pros, cons, and detailed working steps to see how you can put them to use.
To know how to brighten a dark video, Fotor is a quick fix with its instant and automatic video brightening function. It lets you brighten videos available in three formats such as MP4, MOV, and WebM. After brightening any video, you can instantly share it to any required social media platforms like TikTok, YouTube, etc. You don't need to install or download this online tool. While brightening any video, this tool focuses on the main object of the video while maintaining its details.
Pros
Full automatic and instant brightening with an advanced AI algorithm.
Online tool works on all devices and OS, including Windows, Mac, Android & iOS.
Automatic adjustment of brightness, contrast, and saturation with artificial intelligence.
It also upscale video from low resolution to HD.
Cons
There is no manual parameters adjustment option.
You need to take a paid version of the app to download the output in HD quality.
Clideo is a handy online tool for brightening up dark videos without any cost or installation. It's easy to use directly in your browser, but some features are limited in the free version. For full access, you need to upgrade to the premium version.
Pros
Simple and intuitive interface.
Change the different video file settings for enhanced brightness.
It supports adding fade and vignette effects to video clips.
Converts the output video to popular media formats such as MP4, AVI, MOV, VOB, WMV, and more.
Convenient slider bar to adjust individual options.
Cons
Lacks advanced video editing features.
Potential for slow processing times with no collaborative editing.
Requires upgrading to a paid version to remove the watermark on the output video.
Veed.io is another fresh add brightness to an online video website where you can insert videos from the computer hard drive and add special effects or light. Using this online brighten dark videos website, you can also make other adjustments to the videos such as adjusting contrast, saturation, exposure, and many more things. There is an online player available inbuilt on the website where you can play near about any format videos.
Pros
Supports many animations and transitions for enhanced video effects.
Inbuilt camera and recorder to record camera, audio, screen, and slides.
Allows for preview and editing of video before export.
Shares the enhanced videos directly on social media platforms.
Cons
Lacks a batch editing mode to process bulk video simultaneously.
Requires signing up or logging in to download the output clip.
Dependence on internet connection and performance issues when working with large files.
Each of these online video brightener apps provides quick, browser-based ways to fix dark videos without installation.
Next, let’s see how to brighten a dark video on Android and iPhone, using mobile apps designed for on-the-go video enhancement.
If you’re editing videos on your phone, several Android apps to brighten videos can help you fix dark footage instantly. Unlike desktop software or online editors, these mobile apps let you enhance brightness, contrast, and color on the go — ideal for vloggers and social media creators. Let’s explore one of the best options below.
ActionDirector stands out as one of the best video brightness editor apps for brightening a video on the go. Here, we have tested the ActionDirector app to help you learn how to brighten a dark video on Android. Let's check its strengths and weaknesses and learn the detailed guide.
Pros
Explore advanced editing with color, brightness, contrast, and saturation adjustment.
Experiment with cutting and cropping to highlight any specific part of the video.
Try multiple video filters to make your video distinct and dynamic.
Use various transitions to give a seamless streaming experience to multiple videos.
Give a dynamic appeal to any video with animated stickers.
Cons
Users face annoying ads & take lots of time to process lengthy video.
Output video comes with a watermark.
Next, let’s see how to make a dark video brighter on iPhone using similar brightness adjustment app.
Having the convenience of brightening a dark video on the go is a blessing. What if you can do it conveniently on your iOS?
InShot is the video brightness editor app that is widely used by commoners and professionals for iPhone video brightness. Aside from just filters and adjustments, this app has some great in-built features like mirroring, pixelating or flipping your videos. This app is only supportable on the iOS platform.
Pros
Try multiple ready-to-use filters to adjust brightness, curves, and contrasts.
Get output video in 4K 60fps quality.
Experiment with voice-over, music, and sound effects.
It lets you control video speed with slow motion or speed up.
Smart green screen editing option.
Create multi-layered video with Picture-in-Picture effect.
Cons
Maximum exclusive features are available in the paid version.
Some professional effects are missing.
Brightening dark videos is easier than ever with today’s AI-powered tools. If you need quick edits, online platforms and mobile apps like InShot, VEED.IO, or Clideo get the job done. But for the best results and full HDR quality, UniFab HDR Upconverter AI stands out as the most advanced desktop video brightener software — automatically enhancing brightness, color, and contrast to make your videos vivid and professional in just one click.
Many free and paid video brightener software programs are available to enhance the brightness of videos. Simply upload your video to any platform and manually adjust the brightness and contrast. Then, change the color balance of the video. While these tips can be helpful, the process is somewhat time-consuming and complex.
The best app to brighten a dark video automatically is UniFab HDR Upconverter AI, which uses artificial intelligence to detect underexposed areas and apply HDR tone mapping for natural brightness and color accuracy.
Desktop tools like UniFab HDR Upconverter AI or UniFab Video Converter provide higher-quality results and more precise control,
while mobile apps like InShot or ActionDirector are ideal for quick edits on the go.
Yes. Tools like VEED.IO and Clideo can enhance brightness online, but for true HDR-level enhancement and detail recovery, AI-powered desktop software like UniFab delivers superior results.