Frequently asked questions
The short version: the app is free to download, indexes an unlimited library for free, runs entirely on your machine, and costs $79 once if you want full-quality export.
Privacy and offline use
Does Reelary upload my footage?
No. The vision model runs on your own CPU or GPU and the resulting index is written to a folder on your disk. No frames, thumbnails, transcripts or filenames are sent anywhere.
Does it work without an internet connection?
Yes. Reelary downloads a vision model once, on first run. After that, indexing, search, timeline assembly, captioning and export all work with the network disconnected. The one exception is the Places map: its map tiles are loaded from OpenFreeMap, so the map background needs a connection. Reading GPS from your files and searching by place name stay offline.
Is there an account to create?
Not for the app. There is no sign-in inside Reelary. The website has optional accounts purely so you can look up a license key you bought there.
Does the app send telemetry or analytics?
No. The app makes no analytics or telemetry requests. Its network traffic is limited to: downloading models you choose, a periodic license check on machines activated with a hand-entered key, an update check in the Windows and direct-download Mac versions (the App Store version is updated by the App Store), and map tiles from OpenFreeMap while the Places map is open. Map tile requests reveal which area of the map you are looking at, the same as any web map; no file names, footage or coordinates list is sent. If you switch on LAN sharing, the app also answers browsers on your local network that enter your access code; it is off by default.
What it does
What file formats can it index?
Video: MP4, MOV, MKV, WebM, AVI, M4V, WMV, FLV, MPG/MPEG and OGV. Images: JPG, PNG, WebP, GIF, BMP, TIF/TIFF and HEIC.
How does it search inside a long video?
Every image and one frame every two seconds of video is embedded separately, so a long clip becomes many searchable moments. A search result is a range of consecutive clips - the usable part of the shot, not just the file it lives in.
Can it export to Premiere, Final Cut or Resolve?
Yes. Reelary exports FCPXML and EDL that reference your original files on disk, so you can rough-cut in Reelary and finish in your NLE. That export is a Pro feature.
Can it search dialogue as well as visuals?
Yes. With Pro, Reelary transcribes every video in the background with an on-device Whisper model (the language is detected automatically) and search matches what was said as well as what was seen. Transcripts are also indexed by meaning, so a query in English can find a line spoken in Spanish. Visual semantic search stays on the free tier.
Can it find every clip of a specific person?
Yes, with Pro. Faces in indexed frames are detected and grouped into people on your machine. You name a person once, and from then on their name works as a search term and their face in the sidebar lists every clip they appear in. Renaming a person to a name that already exists merges the two.
Does it describe what is in each shot?
Yes, on the free tier. After an optional one-time model download, a local vision-language model writes a one-line description of each indexed frame. Descriptions show in the inspector and are searchable, including by meaning rather than exact words.
Can it find text that appears in a photo or video, like a "for sale" sign?
Yes, on the free tier. Reelary reads the text in every indexed photo and video frame on your machine: signs, titles, captions, labels and documents. Search for "sale" and the shot of the sign comes up, with the text it read shown on the result and in the inspector. The small text model (about 6 MB) downloads by itself. Large, clear text reads best; very small or blurry text may be missed.
Can it show where my footage was shot?
Yes, with Pro. Reelary reads the GPS position from photos (EXIF) and from videos shot on iPhone, Android, DJI drones and GoPro cameras, and plots every file on a map. Typing a city, state or country name finds the footage shot there, using an offline place-name database. Files without GPS can be dragged onto the map by hand; that position is stored in the library and your original files are never modified.
Can other people on my network search my library?
Yes, with Pro. Turn on LAN sharing in Settings and anyone on the same local network can open the library in a web browser, type the access code you set, search it the same way you do, preview the matching shots and download a clip or the original file. They cannot change anything. LAN sharing is in the Windows version and the Mac download, not the Mac App Store version.
What does it deliberately not do?
Colour grading, motion graphics, keyframe animation, unlimited track stacking and audio sweetening. Reelary aims to get you to a solid rough cut or a finished simple edit; anything past that belongs in a full NLE, and Reelary exports a project so you can go there.
Hardware
What are the system requirements?
Windows 10 or 11 (64-bit), or macOS 12 or later on Apple Silicon or Intel.
Do I need a powerful GPU?
No. Reelary benchmarks the machine on first run and picks a vision model that fits it, so a modest laptop indexes more slowly rather than refusing to work. On Windows it also tests every graphics adapter through DirectML, including integrated graphics, and runs on whichever is fastest, falling back to the CPU if none helps; on an AMD Radeon 780M laptop this cut per-frame time from about 245 ms to 70 ms. On a Mac it runs on the CPU, which Apple Silicon handles well. A faster GPU mostly shortens the initial indexing pass; searching an existing index is fast on any supported machine.
How long does indexing take?
It depends on the machine and the library size. Indexing runs in the background and is incremental - once a folder is indexed, only new or changed files are processed.
AI agents
Can I use Reelary from Claude, Cursor or Codex?
Yes. Run "npx reelary" and it installs the app, starts it in the background and connects it as an MCP server to Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Cursor and Codex, plus a set of skills (github.com/reelary/skills). The agent can then index folders, search your footage, build a rough cut from a script and export an MP4 or an NLE timeline. It needs the direct-download version, not the Mac App Store or Microsoft Store one.
Does the agent upload my footage?
No. The app does the indexing, searching and rendering on your machine. The agent receives text results - file paths, time ranges, short shot descriptions and, with Pro, the matching dialogue - plus small preview frames only if it asks for them. That text goes to the agent's model provider, as anything in the chat does.
Pricing and licensing
What is actually free?
Unlimited libraries, unlimited files, unlimited indexing, full visual semantic search, smart folders and tags, script-driven shot search and timeline editing. Exports on the free tier are capped: exports capped at 720p with a light watermark, up to 60s.
Is there a limit on how many files I can index for free?
No. Indexing is unlimited and permanently free. The paid tier is about export quality and advanced capabilities, never about the size of your library.
Is it a subscription?
No. Reelary Pro is $79 once. Free lifetime updates are included, with no renewal.
Does one purchase cover both Mac and Windows?
Yes. A single license works on both platforms.
Can I use Reelary for paid client work?
Yes. Pro and Studio both allow commercial use: client projects, monetized videos, ads and anything else you are paid for. You own everything you make with Reelary. Studio differs only in machine count and priority support, for teams with several editing machines.
How many machines can I use it on?
A hand-entered license key activates 3 machines, and you can free a seat by deactivating a machine from inside the app. Macs unlocked through the App Store in-app purchase do not consume seats at all - every Mac on your Apple ID is covered.
I bought a license key on this site. Can I use it on my Mac?
Yes. Install the Mac version from the download page (the direct download, not the App Store one) and paste your key under Settings → License. The App Store version can only be unlocked with an in-app purchase.
I bought on the Mac App Store. How do I use it on Windows?
Open Settings → License on the Mac; it shows the license key minted for your purchase. Paste that key into the Windows build.
What if I get a new computer?
Deactivate the old machine from inside the app to release the seat, then activate the new one. If the old machine is gone, seats are also reclaimed automatically once they stop checking in.
Can I get a refund?
Yes, within 14 days of purchase. Email support@reelary.app. Because the free tier has no time limit, we would rather you tried it thoroughly before paying.
Still unsure? Email support@reelary.app, or read how on-device search works and how Reelary compares with Scenelet, Wideframe and Jumper.