There’s an overwhelming amount of new AI tools today, all claiming they “revolutionize” content creation. 

But the reality is not all of these tools are useful for content creators, and only a handful of them are worth their hefty price tag. 

So let’s cut through the noise and show you the best AI tools for Instagram reels that you’ll actually use. 

And these will all be organized into categories like scripting, visuals, and editing, so you can see which part of your reel creation they help with the most. 

But first, a snapshot…

Tldr: My Favorite Tools for Instagram Reels

Don’t have all day? Here’s a quick rundown of my favorite tools!

• Claude AI (Scripting, captions, general planning)
• HeyGen (Realistic avatars)
• Kling (AI footage)
• Submagic (Editing)
• NotebookLM (Research, content ideas)

Now for the details (and how to use each AI tool)

The 10 Best AI Tools for Instagram Reels by Category

Best AI Tools for Instagram Scripts and Captions

Claude AI

• Price: Free, Pro ($20/mo)

Claude is my go-to for anything text-related. 

Their free model is already a strong copywriter, so you don’t even have to pay anything to start using it. 

Once you learn how to do proper prompts, Claude can give you awesome hook ideas, tight scripts, and captions that’ll get engagement. 

While the free version is already great, it does have usage limits. 

There’s no fixed usage limit (like 100 messages a day), and Claude doesn’t publish how it calculates your usage limit. But what we do know is that it depends on several factors like message length, file uploads, conversation length, model used, and even system demand (if many people are using the tool). 

Once you reach the limit, you won’t be able to use Claude until it resets every 5 hours. 

But for only $20/mo (and access to a bunch of other features), I highly recommend getting the Pro version if you use it a lot. 

ChatGPT 

• Price: Free, Plus ($20/mo)

ChatGPT is the most famous AI for text-related output. 

Everything Claude can do, ChatGPT can do too. 

That said, I slightly prefer Claude over ChatGPT. To me, Claude’s copywriting is a step above ChatGPT’s. 

I also feel that ChatGPT is now on the defensive, trying to keep up with other AI companies. It used to be the go-to AI tool for everyone, but with so many competitors coming out, its days could be numbered (don’t quote me on this! This is just how I feel). 

That said, it’s still a very good tool for getting your hooks, scripts, and captions. 

Best AI Tools for Instagram Visuals

HeyGen

• Pricing: Creator $29/mo

HeyGen is arguably the best tool for talking-head videos using an AI avatar. Perfect if you’re making a faceless content account. 

And no, by AI avatar, I don’t mean cartoonish. 

In fact, you can use HeyGen to generate an AI twin for YOU. You can generate super-realistic talking head videos of yourself with this tool. 

Just upload a photo or video of your real face, write out a script, and HeyGen will generate the rest. It can also clone your voice. 

Plus, the latest updates to HeyGen are scarily realistic. We’re getting to a point where you probably won’t be able to tell the difference between a real talking head video and an AI-generated one. 

At just $29/mo for unlimited videos, this is a tool I highly recommend for creators. 

Kling 

• Pricing: Standard ($6.99/mo), Pro ($25.99/mo)

If HeyGen is for avatars, Kling is for all other types of AI footage. 

You can generate videos from the viewer’s POV, or just any scene that you can think of. 

All you have to do is type the footage that you want into the AI, and Kling will create it for you. 

The more details you add in, the better the output will be, so get descriptive! Tell the AI the setting, what point-of-view to use, what style to use (realistic or cartoonish), and as many other details as you can add. 

Kling uses a credits system, so the higher pricing tiers allow you to generate more footage. 

VEO3

• Pricing: Google AI Plus ($7.99), Google AI Pro ($19.99/mo), Google AI Ultra ($249.99/mo)

VEO3 is built by Google, so you get so much more than just a video generator with these plans. 

You also get access to Nanobanana, which is one of the best AI still image generators. You can use it for your carousels, reel covers, or you can even generate an image, then use it as a visual style guide when you’re generating videos in VEO3. 

Then there’s Notebook LM, which is another AI tool I’m very fond of. I’ll talk about it more in a bit. 

Finally, getting one of Google’s AI plans also gives terabytes of storage in Google One. So if you’re already using things like Google Drive, Google Photos, or anything else Google, this is a great plus. 

For the video generation itself, VEO3 is great. However, you can only use the weaker “VEO3 Fast” with the AI Plus and AI Pro plans (you’ll need the $249.99/mo plan for the full VEO3). 

AI Plus only lets you generate 2 videos per day, while AI Pro gets you 3 videos a day. 

That’s why, if you just need a tool for video generation, I’d go for HeyGen or Kling instead. 

Best AI Tools for Editing Instagram Reels

Submagic

• Pricing: Starter ($19/mo), Pro ($39/mo)

Submagic is hands-down my favorite AI tool for editing. 

Just upload your videos, and Submagic will do all the editing for you. 

It’ll piece together your content, add editing effects like zooms and cuts, and auto caption your videos. 

The Pro Plan also includes a subscription to Storyblocks, one of the biggest stock footage libraries in the world. So it can add in related B-roll whenever it’s needed. 

Opus Clip

• Pricing: Starter ($15/mo), Pro ($29/mo)

Another one worth mentioning is Opus Clip. 

Opus Clip is a clipping tool. When you upload a long video, it’ll identify and clip out potentially viral moments for you to use.  

This makes it great if you make long-form videos or run a podcast and want to repurpose the content for social media. 

But even if you aren’t doing long-form video, Opus Clip can help remove dead space (silence) between your long videos, making it more optimized for reels. 

CapCut

• Pricing: Pro ($19.99/mo)

An honorable mention is CapCut. 

The free version of CapCut is one of the best simple editing tools for Instagram. But its Pro version actually has AI features that make editing even easier. 

It’s not a fully automated editor like Submagic, but it can identify and cut out dead space in your clips, add auto captions, and can also find stock footage to add to your video for you. 

It has AI avatars and text-to-speech, but they’re not the greatest.

If you want the fastest editing experience, definitely go for Submagic instead. But if you’re already using CapCut, then why not grab Pro to speed up your process?

Best Other AI Tools for Instagram 

Notebook LM

• Pricing: Google AI Plus ($7.99), Google AI Pro ($19.99/mo), Google AI Ultra ($249.99/mo)

Notebook LM is a research assistant AI. It’s a powerful tool that can extract information from multiple sources (documents you upload, articles on the internet, YouTube videos, and more) and come up with great ideas for content. 

Claude and ChatGPT are great if you already know who your target audience is. 

But if you’re still trying to figure that out (what their pain points are, and what your messaging to them should be), NotebookLM can be a great tool. 

So, add any ideas you have, let the AI grab YouTube videos about your audience, or Reddit posts to learn what kind of language they use, and ask it to help you create strategy and content plans. 

Canva

• Pricing: Canva Pro ($15/mo)

You probably already know about Canva. 

But what you might not realize is that its paid version actually has an AI assistant that can help with visuals.

So if you don’t want to make your own carousels, just tell the Canva AI the idea, and it’ll do the rest. 

Or, if you want catchy covers for your reels, just tell it to Canva’s AI, and it’ll do that as well.

My 5-Step AI Workflow For Instagram Reels

Now that you know the tools, how do you actually use them together?

Here’s a quick 5-step AI workflow you can use to pump out those reels as fast as possible. 

Step #1: Research (Notebook LM, Claude)

Researching your niche and planning a bunch of content ahead is the right way to do content. You don’t want to be scrambling to create a post the day you need to post it. Planning ahead makes things easier for you, allows you to create better content, and gets you to 1k followers much faster. 

To do this, start a back-and-forth conversation with NotebookLM or Claude. 

Give it ALL the information you have about your target audience, such as their pain points, desired results, and all demographic and psychographic information you have. 

If you don’t yet have this information about your target audience, use NotebookLM to scrape Reddit, YouTube, and other sources to come up with an ideal customer profile. 

Then, give your AI information about yourself, such as why you chose this path, the challenges you’ve faced, your “hero story,” your goals, and also how you plan to monetize. 

Pro tip: I like to use the microphone option when doing this. It takes a while to write all this down, so talking to your AI can speed things up. 

Once you’re done giving your AI all the information, you can then ask it for ideas for content pillars, reels, carousels, or even a content calendar. 

Step #2: Script and Caption (Claude)

Once you have a bunch of ideas, it’s best to batch script them. 

Give Claude (or whatever AI you choose) your titles, and ask it for hooks, scripts, and payoffs. 

But don’t just take what it gives you. 

Treat it like an assistant and go back and forth with it. Tell it what you don’t like, what you want changed, or whenever it doesn’t sound like you anymore. 

This back and forth is the best way to get a polished script, ready for visuals. 

Once you have the full script, ask Claude to write a caption based on the script. 

Step #3: Generate Visuals (HeyGen + Kling)

If you’re making a faceless account, you don’t have to worry about ever turning your camera on. 

Just go to HeyGen, create an avatar, then paste your scripts and have the avatar go at it. 

For other footage, like cinematic scenes, b-roll, or landscapes without people, you can use Kling. Type in the scenes you want, and the AI will generate them for you. 

For prompting, try to add details when you’re describing what you want. Let the AI know: 

• Shot Angle – Do you want a POV reel? The view from a third-person? A wide-angle shot of scenery? Or close-ups of a specific thing? Tell this to the AI, so it’ll know exactly what to generate for you. 

• Mood / Lighting – Do you want bright, happy scenery? Or a dark, mysterious tone? Add this in your prompts so the feel of your clips matches your reel’s energy. 

• Movement – Movement is great for improving retention. Try telling your AI to slowly zoom in if you’re showing a clip for an extended period, or to pan the camera around a scene. 

Step #4: Edit (Submagic)

Once you have all the footage, drop it into Submagic and let the AI piece it together for you. 

The three main features of Submagic are its automatic dead space cutting, captions, and B-Roll importer. Here’s one way you can use these:

1. Once you upload a clip, all you have to do is click the “Remove Silence” button, and it’ll trim down your video to have no dead space anywhere. 

2. Click the auto captions button to generate super accurate captions. You can style these captions however you want, or choose from their template library. 

Head to the B-Roll section, and click on “Magic B-Roll.” The AI will analyze your script and suggest related B-Roll it pulls from Storyblocks, and you can choose to add that in or skip it. 

If you see anything you don’t like, you can go in there and make some manual tweaks. But most of the heavy lifting will be done for you by the AI. 

Step #5: Create a Cover Photo (Canva)

This step is optional, but a good cover photo should get a few more clicks on your reel (especially in the Explore page). 

So use your best image related to the reel, and add a catchy text to give more people more context (and get them to click). 

You can build your own cover in Canva, or just use its AI tool to generate one for you. 

You don’t have to overdo things, and you probably shouldn’t spend more than a couple of minutes on this. A lot of creators don’t even bother to add a cover photo at all. 

But cover photos can be helpful, especially if you’re doing a series. A uniform cover photo for a series can help a lot (since people might go to your profile to search for your previous episodes). 

Once you have that, you’re now ready to publish your reel. 

Don’t Want to Do All That? Use THIS All-In-One AI Tool Instead

These are the best AI tools for Instagram Reels, and they’re awesome at what they do. 

But the truth is…it can be a hassle to work with different tools (not to mention, their prices add up). 

If you’re looking for an all-in-one AI tool instead, that’ll help you with research, content ideas, scripting, generating visuals, editing visuals, and creating cover photos, then check out our AI Content Generator. 

If you want to grow an Instagram account as fast as possible, this tool will get you there.

So check it out here to get instant access!