How to Export Premiere Pro Video With a Transparent Background

How to Export Premiere Pro Transparent Background Videos (Step-by-Step)

Learning how to export Premiere Pro videos with transparent backgrounds is a breeze. What you’re really learning is how to use alpha channel in Premiere Pro. It’s an export setting that controls how finished videos are handled, meaning you can even create a transparent video if you so choose.

To demonstrate, let’s use the Subscribe Lower Thirds | Premiere Pro MOGRT stock footage from Envato Elements.

1. Launch the Export Menu

With your template open in Premiere Pro, let’s get to work. Pause for a moment and think about what you’re doing. As you can see, this template shows a Subscribe button.

You can use it to promote a YouTube channel, for example. But notice the black background around the template. If you exported without a transparent background, you’d have a full video with a black backdrop.

You couldn’t place the button graphic as an overlay on another video. The non-transparent background would cover up the other clip.

What you want is to export a video with a transparent background. This way, you can overlay the Subscribe button over another video or image in Premiere (or another editing app).

The first step to export transparent videos from Premiere is to open the Export settings menu. Think of this menu as the control center for your Adobe Premiere Pro projects. There, you’ll control exactly how the finished video looks and sounds.

To open the Export menu, go to the File dropdown. You’ll find it in the upper left corner of your screen. Click File, then hover over Export. Then, from the list of options listed, click Media.

2. Select a Video Format

The next step in learning how to make a video transparent, is to select a video format.

The Export menu will launch in Adobe Premiere. On the left, you’ll see several options listed for exporting. These are Media File, YouTube, Vimeo, and so on. Here, we’ll want to use Media File, so go ahead and click into it. 

Now, look in the Settings group. It’s in the center of the Export menu. At the top, you can name your file and choose where to save it. But most importantly, you can select the Format of the video.

Format refers to the file type of your finished video. And in this case, it’s vital to choose QuickTime. QuickTime files are the only reliable way to export videos with transparent backgrounds from Premiere Pro. 

Click on the Format dropdown. From it, click QuickTime.

3. Choose Render and Export Settings

Now, open the Video dropdown. In the upper section of the Video group, locate the Video Codec menu. From the Video Codec dropdown, you’ll see several options. The best is typically None (Uncompressed RGB 8-bit).

Sometimes, you may also experience better results if you choose Animation. But None is an excellent option to use at the start. 

With your codec selected, scroll down again in the Video group. You may see a More tab, and if you do, go ahead and click it. With the More group open, you have several options that you’ll need to specify. On some screens, these options will be visible by default.

Begin by clicking the Render at Maximum Depth checkbox. Then, let’s look at how to use alpha channel in Premiere Pro to export transparent video backgrounds. To do this, click on the Depth dropdown. On it, click 8-bpc + alpha. 

Alpha channels control transparency in a piece of footage or image. By including them, you’ll export a finished video with a transparent background using these settings. 

4. Export the Transparent Video Background Clip

Your last step is to export your file, transparent video background included! To do it, find the blue Export button. It’s in the lower right corner of the Export menu. Click it, and you will export transparent videos from Premiere as a QuickTime (.mov) file.

Now, let’s look at the finished result. As you can see, I’ve placed the transparent background clip above another in a Premiere Pro Timeline. As you can see, only the Subscribe button itself is visible!

Thanks to the transparent video background, other content shows through with ease. It’s shown here with the Boston City Aerial stock footage from Envato Elements.

That’s it! You’ve just learned how to make a video transparent in Premiere Pro. Using these features, you can transform footage and projects into something truly special. As you can see, it only takes a few clicks. It’s a quick and elegant way to create a transparent video background and bring more depth to your projects.

The Top Source for the Ultimate Adobe Premiere Pro Templates (With Unlimited Downloads)

Envato Elements is the ultimate source for the very best Adobe Premiere Pro templates. These templates elevate your work. And with thousands to choose from, Elements has you covered for all of your project needs.

The Elements offer is powerful: unlimited downloads. For a flat monthly rate, you can download and use as many templates as you want! Plus, over 15 million other digital assets are included. Among these are fonts, stock photos, music, and more.

Choose a premium Envato Elements template and you’ll enjoy:

• Easy-to-use features. Templates are easy to use, thanks to intuitive layouts. Many also include helpful tutorials or video guides. 
• Cinematic styling. Want a video that looks like it was produced by experts? Elements has you covered. Those experts build the templates, and you just add in your own content! 
• Creative flexibility. While templates guide your work, they won’t hold you back. You can always make your own edits so that videos look exactly how you want! 

Envato Elements is the best creative value in 2023 and beyond. Join today and find your new favorite templates! 

Export Transparent Background Videos in Adobe Premiere Pro Today

Today, you learned how to make a video transparent. The key was learning how to use alpha channel in Premiere Pro settings. With a transparent background video file, you can add video overlays to other clips and more.

All you have to do is use alpha channel settings in Premiere Pro, which we walked through. By adjusting a few quick parameters, you can export any transparent background video in Premiere Pro. So, what are you waiting for? Get started today!