Convert video to GIF
Turn a short clip into an animated GIF.
Drop your file here
Processed securely and deleted within the hour.
Why the palette matters
A GIF can hold only 256 colours. Converting naively means picking a generic palette and mapping every frame onto it, which is why so many converted GIFs look banded and muddy.
This runs two passes. The first examines the actual frames and builds a palette from the colours your clip really contains; the second applies it with dithering. The difference is substantial — the result looks like the video rather than like a 1998 web graphic.
GIFs are enormous, and here is why
GIF has no interframe compression worth the name: every frame is stored almost independently, where a video codec stores only what changed. A ten-second clip that is 2 MB as MP4 can be 20 MB as GIF.
Three settings control this, and they multiply together:
- Length — the biggest factor. Two seconds is usually enough to make the point.
- Frame rate — 10 to 12 fps looks fine for most clips. 24 fps doubles the size for a difference few people notice.
- Width — 480px is plenty for a chat or a document. Halving the width quarters the pixel count.
When not to use GIF
If the destination accepts video, use video. An MP4 is smaller, sharper, and now plays inline and loops silently almost everywhere GIFs do. GIF to MP4 exists precisely because so many GIFs should have been videos.
GIF still wins in exactly one situation: somewhere that accepts images but not video. That is a real and common situation, which is why this tool exists.
Sound is not included
GIF has no audio track at all. Anything spoken in the clip is lost, which is worth checking before you convert a clip that depends on it.
Common questions
Why is my GIF so large?
GIF stores each frame almost independently. Shorten the clip, lower the frame rate, or reduce the width — the three multiply together.
What frame rate should I use?
10 to 12 fps looks smooth for most clips. Higher multiplies file size for little visible gain.
Does the GIF have sound?
No, GIF has no audio track. Anything spoken in the clip is lost.
How long can the clip be?
Up to 30 seconds, though anything past a few seconds gets very large.
Why does the quality look better here?
The palette is generated from your actual frames rather than a generic one, which removes most of the banding.
Should I use MP4 instead?
Yes, wherever video is accepted — it is smaller and sharper. Use GIF only where video is not allowed.