How to Use LUTs in DaVinci Resolve (Step by Step)

DaVinci Resolve is one of the best places to use LUTs – and the free version supports them fully. This guide shows you how to install LUTs so they appear in Resolve every time, how to apply them the right way, and the node setup professionals use to get clean, consistent results.

Step 1: Install your LUTs in Resolve

Unzip your LUT pack. Inside each LUT Land pack you will find folders for Rec709, S-Log3, V-Log and C-Log3, each full of .cube files.
Open DaVinci Resolve and any project.
Go to File > Project Settings (or click the cog icon, bottom right).
Open Color Management and scroll down to Lookup Tables.
Click Open LUT Folder. This opens Resolve’s LUT folder on your computer.
Copy the whole LUT Land folder into it. Keeping the sub-folders makes the LUTs easy to find later.
Back in Resolve, click Update Lists, then Save.

Your LUTs now appear in every project. You only need to do this once.

Step 2: Set up your nodes

On the Color page, a simple three-node setup gives you the best control:

Node 1 – Correct: fix exposure and white balance here.
Node 2 – LUT: the LUT goes on its own node.
Node 3 – Fine-tune: small adjustments to contrast, saturation or skin after the look.

Add a new serial node with Alt+S (Windows) or Option+S (Mac).

Step 3: Apply the LUT

Select Node 2.
Right-click it and choose LUTs, then find the LUT Land folder and pick a look.
Alternatively, open the LUTs panel (top left of the Color page), hover over a LUT to preview it on your clip, and drag it onto the node.

Which version? Standard footage (phone, drone, normal camera profiles) uses the Rec709 folder. Footage shot in S-Log3, V-Log or C-Log3 uses the matching log folder. See log vs Rec709 LUTs for more.

Step 4: Adjust the strength

To soften the look, select the LUT node and lower Key Output Gain in the Key panel (1.0 = full strength, 0.6 = 60%). Many looks are at their best between 0.6 and 1.0.

Step 5: Copy the grade to other clips

Select a graded clip, then select the other clips in the timeline and middle-click the graded one to copy the grade across.
Or right-click the viewer and choose Grab Still, then apply that still to any clip from the Gallery.

Troubleshooting

My LUTs don’t show up

Make sure you clicked Update Lists after copying them, and that the files end in .cube. Restarting Resolve also refreshes the list.

The image looks too contrasty or too saturated

You are probably using a log LUT on footage that is not log, or Resolve’s colour management is already converting your log footage. If you use Resolve Color Managed (RCM) or a Color Space Transform, use the Rec709 version of the LUT after the conversion instead of the log version.

Skin looks orange or green

Correct the white balance on Node 1 before the LUT. A LUT exaggerates whatever is in the clip.

Get LUTs made for Resolve

All LUT Land packs are .cube files tested in DaVinci Resolve, with Rec709, S-Log3, V-Log and C-Log3 versions of every look. Browse the LUT packs or save with the All 6 LUT Packs bundle. New to LUTs? Start with What is a LUT?