DaVinci Resolve how-to
How to cut a clip in DaVinci Resolve (Blade, Ctrl-B, Ctrl-\)
Short answer
Move the playhead to the frame and press Command-B (Ctrl-B on Windows) for Timeline > Razor, or Command-\ (Ctrl-\) for Split Clip, to cut the clips on the selected tracks at the playhead. Or press B for Blade Edit Mode and click the clip where you want the cut, then press A to go back to the Selection tool. Delete the unwanted piece with Backspace, or with Delete (Forward Delete) to ripple the gap closed.
Checked against: DaVinci Resolve 21 (free and Studio), Windows, Mac and Linux, per the Resolve 21 Reference Manual (July 2026).
Method 1: Cut at the playhead
Choose the tracks
Select the tracks that have clips you want to split (or the clips themselves).
Park the playhead
Move the playhead to the exact frame; use the left and right arrow keys to step one frame.
Split
Choose Timeline > Razor (Command-B / Ctrl-B) or Timeline > Split Clip (Command-\ / Ctrl-\).
TimelineRazor
Method 2: Blade Edit Mode
Switch to Blade mode
Click the blade icon in the toolbar above the timeline, or press B.
Click to cut
Click a clip where it should be cut. With Linked Selection on, linked audio is cut too; turn Linked Selection off (or hold Option/Alt) to cut video or audio alone.
Back to Selection mode
Press A for the Selection tool before you click anything else.
Method 3: Remove a section
Ripple delete
Select the piece between two cuts and press Forward Delete (or Shift-Backspace on keyboards without it) to delete it and close the gap. Backspace alone leaves a gap.
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Edit page cutting keys
| Action | Mac | Windows |
|---|---|---|
| Razor at playhead | Command-B | Ctrl-B |
| Split Clip | Command-\ | Ctrl-\ |
| Blade Edit Mode | B | B |
| Selection mode | A | A |
| Ripple delete selected | Forward Delete / Shift-Delete | Delete / Shift-Backspace |
If it doesn't work
| What you see | Fix |
|---|---|
| Ctrl-B cut nothing | Only selected tracks or clips under the playhead are cut. Select the track or clip first. |
| Audio wasn't cut with the video | Linked Selection is off or the audio was unlinked. Turn Linked Selection on in the toolbar. |
| Every click cuts | You are still in Blade mode; press A. |
| A dotted line shows at the cut | That's a through edit: the cut is there but the timecode is continuous. It behaves like any other cut. |
Questions people ask
What is the shortcut to cut in DaVinci Resolve?
Command-B (Ctrl-B) cuts at the playhead; B switches to Blade Edit Mode for click-to-cut.
How do I cut a clip on the Cut page?
Use the Split Clip (scissors) button on the left of the Cut page edit commands.
Can Resolve cut a long video into scenes automatically?
Scene Cut Detection does it, but the manual lists the timeline version as Studio only.
More DaVinci Resolve guides
Sources and how we checked
- DaVinci Resolve 21 Reference Manual: Blade Edit Mode, Split Clip and Razor (p. 849, 3947) (checked 2026-10-05)
- DaVinci Resolve 21 Reference Manual: Unlinking and relinking audio and video; Linked Selection (p. 850, 939) (checked 2026-10-05)
Blackmagic's manual lists Mac shortcuts; on Windows and Linux use Ctrl for Command and Alt for Option. The A key for Selection mode and the ripple-delete keys follow the default Resolve keyboard map as listed by several current guides.
Reviewed October 5, 2026 by the Koldflux team. Each step is compared with DaVinci Resolve's own documentation (linked above) and with the top search results for this task; where they disagree, the maker's documentation wins. Steps without a source link follow the menu names that several current guides agree on.