Timeliner vs Shade.inc
AI-powered media library — search every clip by face, transcript, or scene. A DAM with review on top.
Honest comparison for a 5-editor video agency. We list what they do better, where they fall short for our ICP, and the real monthly cost.
Real cost for a 5-seat video team
Posted prices, not list prices. The line item isn’t the whole stack — read the note below.
Shade.inc
Growth — 5 seats × $29.75 (annual)
Timeliner
Elite — 5 seats, every feature
Why the gap matters: Shade is priced per seat with massive media storage. For an agency that doesn't have a 10TB+ footage library, you're paying for AI search you may rarely use.
Timeliner Pro
$79/mo — 3 seats included ($59 base + 2 seats). Right for solo editors and tiny teams.
Timeliner Elite
$129/mo flat — 5 seats with every feature unlocked. Right for a real production team.
Where Shade.inc genuinely wins
We’re not pretending Shade.inc is bad. These are real strengths — pick Shade.inc if any of them are central to how you work.
- AI search across the entire media library — find a clip by face, by spoken word, or by 'shot of someone running on a beach.'
- Cloud NAS streaming — full-resolution playback without downloading source files.
- Automatic metadata tagging on ingest, including transcripts and scene detection.
- Built for high-volume libraries (sports, news, content engines with thousands of clips).
Where it falls short for a 5-editor video agency
- Not a project management tool — no task pipeline, no editor assignment, no deadlines.
- No internal-then-client review gating.
- No payment tracking or per-project revenue.
- No team output analytics built for editors.
- Branded share links, but no multi-brand client portal.
The headache you’ll feel
A 5-editor agency rarely shoots enough footage to justify $149/mo for AI library search. You'll still need a separate PM tool, a separate client portal, and a separate payment-tracking tool — Shade is the asset library, not the studio.
Feature Comparison
Green = supported natively. Amber = partial / via add-on. Grey = not available.
| Feature | Timeliner | Shade.inc |
|---|---|---|
| Timestamped Video Comments | ||
| Side-by-Side Version Comparison | ||
| AI Media Search (face / transcript / scene) | ||
| Full-Resolution Cloud Streaming | ||
| Project & Task Management | ||
| Custom Task Workflows | ||
| Internal-then-Client Review Gate | ||
| Client Approval Portal (No Login) | ||
| Branded Client Portal (Logo + Colors) | ||
| Team Analytics & KPIs | ||
| Payment Tracking & Pricing Templates |
Timestamped Video Comments
Side-by-Side Version Comparison
AI Media Search (face / transcript / scene)
Full-Resolution Cloud Streaming
Project & Task Management
Custom Task Workflows
Internal-then-Client Review Gate
Client Approval Portal (No Login)
Branded Client Portal (Logo + Colors)
Team Analytics & KPIs
Payment Tracking & Pricing Templates
When Shade.inc is the right call
If your team manages a huge stock-footage or sports/news archive and finding a specific clip is your daily bottleneck, Shade's AI search is genuinely magical. For ad agencies and freelance editors, it's the wrong center of gravity.
Frequently Asked Questions
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