That video is growing is nothing new at this point.
What is new is the exponential increase in demand for this type of content during 2020.
Although the Cisco study (1) predicted that 82% of all content created on the Internet would be video by 2022, the pandemic has multiplied the demand for video content even more.
This has caused the supply of video to skyrocket, significantly increasing competition among audiovisual content creators.
Therefore, it is essential to differentiate yourself from the rest by creating eye-catching and original content that captures your audience’s attention.
Among the most used and effective techniques to achieve this goal is to use original animated backgrounds.
But what are they really?
What are animated video backgrounds?
They are a kind of motion video whose purpose is to provide an original and animated background for slideshows, youtube videos, streams, and many other audiovisual productions.
They offer a unique effect that will help you capture the attention of your viewers simply.
Now, where can we get this type of animated background?
The truth is that there is a wide variety of websites where you can download these video backgrounds.
And in Legis Video we have selected for you the ones that, according to our own experience, we consider the best.
However, to understand why these services are the best and why we recommend them, first you should know the following.
Animated background videos are protected under licenses
As with many other digital assets such as music tracks or photographs, videos are also copyrighted.
In case you are not clear about the concept, copyrights are the exclusive intellectual property rights that authors have over their creations.
And they are the ones who determine whether you can use their videos or not, and in what way you can do it.
They do this by protecting their audiovisual pieces by putting them under the so-called Creative Commons licenses.
Background videos under Creative Commons licenses, how can I use them legally?
Creative Commons licenses are the ones that set how you can use a certain piece of art.
And they do it through 4 conditions that, depending on how they are combined, will lead to one type of use or another.
These conditions are the following:
- BY (Attribution): It will be necessary to mention the author of the video.
- NC (Non-Commercial): It will not be possible to use it for commercial purposes.
- ND (No Derivate Works): It cannot be used to create another video derived from it.
- SA (Share Alike): The video piece may be used in a new production, as long as this new production has the same type of license as the video that was used.
These four conditions can be combined in 6 different ways, resulting in these licenses:
- BY
- BY-SA.
- BY-ND
- BY-NC
- BY-NC-SA
- BY-NC-ND
Limitations of Creative Commons animated backgrounds
As you have seen in the different use cases, one of the limitations when using Creative Commons animated background videos is that you must always mention the author of the video (all licenses are labeled ‘BY’, that is, they require attribution).
Another limitation of using this type of video is that 50% of the time, you will not be allowed to use it in commercial projects.
And we say 50% because, in 3 out of 6 licenses, you will find the ‘NC’ tag, which means “Non-Commercial”.
Therefore, if the video you want to use has this tag, you will not be able to monetize any project in which you use that video.
And as the last limitation, there is the ND tag.
If you use original animated backgrounds that are under a Creative Commons license with the ND tag, you should know that you will not be allowed to create other videos derived from those animated backgrounds.
That said, you may be asking yourself: “Are there any alternatives?” And if there are, “What are they?
Royalty-free videos are the alternative you are looking for
Yes, there are alternatives to videos under Creative Commons licenses.
And those are royalty-free video libraries, in which you can find plenty of videos that you can use in your commercial projects without any of the limitations mentioned above.
They are also known as stock videos and are usually found on Internet platforms.
In fact, there are many websites where you can find them, both paid and free.
Where to find cool animated background footage?
You may want to opt for free stock video websites at first.
But before you click on the link above, let us warn you of the following:
The vast majority of free stock videos are under Creative Commons licenses and, therefore, they will have the limitations you saw above.
So, if you’re looking to create a video for private use and don’t need to monetize it in any way, free stock videos can be a fantastic option for you.
However, if you want motion backgrounds for monetizable projects such as YouTube videos, Twitch thumbnails, or animated presentations for online courses, we don’t recommend you to use such videos, as their limitations will prevent you from doing it legally and professionally.
In that case, we recommend you take a look at the 3 best platforms with animated backgrounds on the Internet.
And we say the best not only because we have tested them, but also because they have turned out to be our winners when compared to other platforms we have been able to test.
Envato Elements
Envato Elements 
is one of the major players in the digital goods market.
It has one of the largest catalogs on the Internet, with over 54 million files, of which 1.7 million are exclusive videos of great quality and variety.
In fact, so that you can find the type of video you are looking for, you can filter them by:
- Properties
- Categories
- Minimum resolution
- Frames per second (FPS)
- Duration
For example, in the case of animated backgrounds, you can make them in two ways:
- Use your search engine, choosing the option “Stock Videos” and typing “Backgrounds”.
- Within the filters, check the “Motion Graphics” box, and then check the “Backgrounds” box.
As you can see, you’ll have at least 99,111 original animated backgrounds to choose from.
And we say “at least” because Envato Elements is a live marketplace, with new videos being added every week.
You can preview all of them to see if you’ve found just the animated background you were looking for.
However, in order to download them and get their licenses, you will need to subscribe to their service.
The monthly price of Envato Elements is 14.50 € / month, and gives you access not only to the stock videos but to a large creative catalog, which includes, among other things:
- Graphics templates
- Video templates
- Stock photos
- Music tracks
- Web templates
Take a look at the platforms because we are convinced that you will find it a very interesting option to get your cool animated backgrounds.
Videvo
Another well-known platform with animated backgrounds on the Internet is Videvo.
Here you can find thousands and thousands of high-quality audiovisual pieces, both free and paid.
In fact, in terms of quality, on this website you will be spoilt for choice, with filters available to select 4K videos -2160p-, Full HD -1080p- or HD -720p- stock videos.
You can also choose the type of license, among which you can find “Royalty Free”, something that will undoubtedly save you valuable time in the search for the animated background you need.
And speaking of animated backgrounds, in Videvo it will be extremely easy to find them.
Just go to the category filter and select the “Motion Backgrounds” option: more than 15,000 original backgrounds await you.
Some of them are free and you can use them in your commercial projects without even having to mention the author of the video.
However, the vast majority of them will be available to you if you subscribe to one of Videvo’s paid plans.
As you can see in the image, Videvo offers three economical plans with limited downloads so you can choose according to your needs.
However, if you think you need unlimited downloads, you will have to opt for the following annual plans:
- Videvo Plus annual ($144 annual equivalent to $12 per month).
- Videvo Pro annual ($240 annual equivalent to $20 per month).
However, the best thing to do is to visit the platform and discover its huge catalog to see if you can find the original animated backgrounds you need.
VideoHive
VideoHive 
is also another of the most demanded options for finding animated background videos, and you’ll soon understand why.
Firstly, like Envato Elements, it is also owned by the Internet’s leading marketplace, Envato Market.
And, in a way, it’s quite similar to Envato Elements, in that VideoHive also offers many other creative solutions such as:
- Audio tracks
- Stock images
- 3D animations
- Web templates
- And much more!
If we look only at the stock videos available on the platform, we will realize that there are more than 2.5 million, which can be filtered by category, resolution, frames per second, duration, or the number of sales, to name a few.
To filter the animated backgrounds from this huge collection you will only have to go to the video library, choose the “Motion Graphics” option and check the “Backgrounds” section, with more than 190,000 videos to choose from.
And this is where we find a differentiating feature compared to previous platforms.
VideoHive chooses to offer its customers a pay-per-video system instead of a temporary subscription.
That is, any video you want from the platform, you can purchase separately.
You search for it, find it, pay for it, download it and use it.
Fast, simple, without subscriptions, and any copyright problems.
It is true that some of the animated backgrounds that you can find cost the same or more than a monthly subscription to the previous platforms.
Therefore, you will have to decide whether it is worth opting for a library with thousands of videos or opt for downloading a single video for the same price or more.
What is clear is that in VideoHive you will have:
- A large number of videos to choose from.
- A wide variety of styles and categories to choose from.
- And the highest video quality you can access.
So give it a try, visit their website and find that original animated background you were looking for.
Other alternatives to find cool animated background videos
As previously mentioned, the three platforms you have just seen are the ones we consider the best.
However, you may want to discover and test other platforms and decide which one best suits your needs.
In that case, you can take a look at our wide list of sites with stock videos where you will find as many as 55 platforms where you will surely find all kinds of cool animated backgrounds.
In that list, you will also have free stock footage websites, but if you prefer, you can access them directly by clicking on the link above.
However, we remind you that the vast majority of free stock videos that can be found on the Internet are usually licensed under Creative Commons licenses.
In those cases, you must mention the artist of the video, and, possibly, you may be forbidden to create new derivative videos or create pieces for commercial purposes.
Conclusion
Far from suffering a slowdown in its continuous progression, video consumption has seen exponential growth, even greater than in previous years.
The coronavirus and its consequences have changed people’s entertainment habits, making video by far the most demanded format compared to other formats.
Faced with so much demand, supply has had to adjust, and the hours of content uploaded to platforms such as YouTube, TikTok or Instagram have multiplied several times over.
And you will agree with us that when there is a lot of supply in a market, competition grows, something that also happens with audiovisual content.
Therefore, you must capture your audience’s attention with unique content, but at the same time differentiate yourself from other content creators.
One of the ways to do this is by adding animated and original background videos, which give a special touch to your productions.
However, you know that, as with songs or images, videos are also copyrighted.
You will have to be very careful not to download videos illegally or use them in a not-allowed way.
You have already learned the limitations of using free stock videos under Creative Commons licenses.
To avoid complications and simplify the task of finding the best animated video backgrounds, we share with you what we consider to be the 3 best platforms on the Internet:
- Envato Elements
- Videvo
- VideoHive
Each one with its unique proposal, exclusive catalog, and competitive prices.
But all of them have a great variety and quantity of animated backgrounds that will more than meet your most demanding expectations.
From LegisVideo, we encourage you to take a look at them and choose the one that best meets your needs.
FAQ. Frequently Asked Questions about Cool Animated Backgrounds
They are not the same thing, but they can certainly be confused with each other.
Video loops are a type of animated background with a constantly repeating animation, giving an “infinite video” look.
However, animated backgrounds can be videos with animation beyond just repeating, like loops.
If you want to know more about them or simply what you need are copyright-free video loops, we recommend you to read our explanatory article by clicking on the link above.
Yes, of course.
To do this you will need to create your settings in the software you use for streaming and use the animated video in the window of your choice.
Or if you are looking to create the effect of the animated video appearing behind you, you will need to use a chroma key background (the so-called “green screen”), and replace it in the software you use with the animated background you have downloaded.
It is very simple!
To make it easier for you to understand and apply, here is a YouTube video that explains it very well.
*Some icons icons have been downloaded from Icons8.com.