Comparison
Sift vs Frame.io search.
Frame.io is a review and collaboration platform with search built in. Sift searches footage before it ever gets uploaded. They solve different halves of the job.
In short: Use Frame.io search to find assets already uploaded to Frame.io, including transcripts and comments. Use Sift to find footage on your own drives before upload, including drives that aren’t connected. Many editors will use both: Sift to find and send, Frame.io for formal review.
No editor needed. Sift works on its own as a desktop app on Mac and Windows: search, preview, build Selects and share footage by link without opening an editor. The editor panels are optional.
Written by the maker of Sift Clips, so read it with that in mind. Other products’ details come from the sources listed, checked October 21, 2026. Features and prices change, so check each vendor before buying. This is a workflow comparison, not a speed or accuracy test.
Side by side.
| Frame.io search | Sift Clips | |
|---|---|---|
| What it searches | Assets in your Frame.io account, plus transcripts and comments | Footage in the folders and drives you add, uploaded or not, and Frame.io projects you connect |
| Spoken words | Yes: transcript search across the account | Yes: Spoken search, transcribed on your computer |
| Picture content | Semantic search is described for Teams and Enterprise plans on newly ingested assets | Visual search, included in the license |
| Footage must be uploaded first | Yes | No: it is indexed where it is |
| Frame-accurate comments and approvals | Yes, that is its job | No: shared links are for watching and picking Selects |
| Where the footage is processed | In Frame.io’s cloud | On your computer |
| Cost | Frame.io plans; see Frame.io | $99 a year for one computer |
How to choose.
- Where is the footage today?
Already uploaded to Frame.io: use its search. Still on drives: Sift.
- What do you need from the viewer?
Watching and picking: a Sift link. Comments and approval: Frame.io.
- Check plan limits
Frame.io search features vary by plan, so confirm what your plan includes.
Who each suits.
Teams that already live in Frame.io for review and approvals, and want search over what’s been uploaded.
Editors who need to find footage on drives before it is uploaded, or who want quick-look links without a review platform.
Find a moment with Sift, send a quick link, move approved material to Frame.io for formal review. Sift 1.0.12 can also search the Frame.io projects you connect, next to your drives: siftclips.com/connect-frameio/.
Questions
Does Frame.io search find what’s said?
Per Frame.io’s documentation, yes: transcript search across all transcriptions in the account, and comment text is searchable too.
Does Sift replace Frame.io?
No. Sift’s shared links are for searching, watching and sending Selects back. There are no frame-accurate comments or approval workflows.
Does Sift upload my footage like Frame.io does?
No. Sift searches footage in place on your computer. Only footage you share by link goes online, as small 540p copies.
Can I try Sift free?
Yes. Free for 3 days or 25 searches. No card. Then $99 a year.
Updated 2026-10-22
Keep reading.
Try it on your own footage.
Free for 3 days or 25 searches. No card. Then $99 a year for one computer, Mac or Windows. Everything in Sift, including the optional editor panels and one free link to share footage.