If you need the additional tools of Mocha Pro, wait for a sale and pick it up for $495. You must close Mocha Pro to switch back to AE. It's modal, meaning you can't click back to AE while Mocha is open. With Pro, you are locked into the Mocha interface. So you can easily switch between the Mocha interface and the AE interface just by clicking the windows. When you have the Mocha window open in the free version, you can pop back to AE easily to take a look at it if you need to.

Lastly, the workflow in the free one is better than Pro IMHO. Also, there's a bug when pasting key frames in Pro that doesn't exist in the free version. This doesn't happen with the built in version. It's non-destructive (just for use with dark scenes) but still super annoying nonetheless. There's a bug with the way Pro handles color if you need to brighten a scene. In fact, it's actually better than the Pro version.

Often, stabilization requires time consuming, multiple feature tracking, but mocha offers an efficient solution with mocha's planar tracker you can choose to lock off a camera, smooth the camera out, or refocus the shot of important objects or people in a scene.If you need tracking and roto, the free Mocha AE can't be beat. Artists can use stabilization to lock down a shot, refocus a shot, stabilize an area for easy visual effects creation, or even extend the set. Stabilization is a common problem editors and VFX artists face in film and video post-production. More than just a tracker! Use mocha's planar tracking tools to artistically stabilize or refocus your shots, extend your sets, and more. In this free, live webinar, Imagineer Systems product specialist, Mary Poplin covers planar tracking stabilization techniques using mocha AE, mocha Pro, and mocha import+ for After Effects and Nuke.

Mocha ae vs mocha pro