Ready to start using plugins and scripts in After Effects? Take a look at our list of plugins and download them for free.
If you got to that point in your experience with After Effects that you are ready to try new plugins, try these free ones first. We have curated a list of the best After Effects presents, scripts, plugins that you take your motion design skills to a new level.
You can jump to the free plugins and scripts below. If you need more information about how to get free plugins and how to install them, read on.
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How to Get Free Plugins for After Effects
There are a lot of sites and motion designers that may share their plugins and scripts for free. Some share their work for free to help the community. Others share plugins for free as samples of their products and services or as freebies to onboard users to their paid libraries.
In our free collection of AE plugins below, we only focus on free products. If a demo video or trailer are available, we will share them too.
Where to Install Plugins in After Effects
Time needed: 3 minutes
If you use CC2019 or above, you will need to use these 3 simple steps to install plugins.
- Download the plugin (free or paid).
If your plugin is an archive file, unzip it to a folder of your choice. Plugin are .jsx or jsxbin files.
- Open After Effects and go to File.
Then Scripts and Install Script UI Panel. Locate the plugin in the folder and double click on it.
- After restarting After Effects, the installed plugin should show up at the bottom of the Window menu.
Go to Window, find the plugin, check it to activate it.
Free After Effects Plugins
Now that we’re ready to download the free stuff, here is our collection of free plugins and scripts.
Saber Plugin
This free plugin will help you create light and energy beams. Plus, it will help add a bunch of realistic glows.
Orb
This 3D sphere plugin was designed to create realistic planets. It is powerful in adding advanced illuminations and reflections.
Limber Lite
This free script will help enhance your animation skills in After Effects.
FX Console
This free plugin will help speed up your workflow in AE. It includes a ton of customizations.
Displacer Pro
This free plugin will help create humble displacement maps, including gamma, softeness, easing.
Dojo Glitch
Create chaotic glitches and distortions inside After Effects with this free plugin. It’s perfect for titles, sci-fi animations, FUI.
gridRig
Create grid animations with a couple of keyframes with this free AE script.
Thicc Stroke
This free stroke plugin will help create curves and gradient along paths. It has a good amount of customizations.
Long Shadow
Create flat long shadows in AE with this free plugin. This handy preset will also help create flat extrusions to give your elements more depth.
Text Border
This free plugin creates well sized and customizable borders around your text.
Squash and Stretch
This free tool will help you create dynamic animations.
Numbers+
Numbers+ is a preset for After Effects that gives you full control over creating custom counters, timers, clocks, and other number related text. You will get full control over formatting, timing, and animation.
AE Juice Pack Manager 3
This free plugin comes with over 100+ presets, assets, and transitions for you to use in your projects, with a manager to organize your own assets.
VHS Look Preset
This free preset will help create that vintage VHS look from the 80s.
ButtCapper
This free script will help change strokes and join caps.
Typeflow
This free text preset will help add smooth easing and soft overshoot text animations.
Wiggly Text
This free preset will help create a line boil effect in AE.
Camera Projection Script
This free script will allow you to create your camera mapping and projection mapping scenes.
AE Viewer 2
This is a free media browser for After Effects that allows you to navigate and preview the media you want to work with.
Ugly
This free plugin will make people in your videos look kind of ugly.
Need more elements and free stuff for After Effects? Take a look at our curated collections: