GIF Converter
GIF is limited to 256 colours per frame, which is why it survives for animation and flat graphics rather than photographs. Almost anything it does, PNG does better for stills and WEBP does better for animation, so most GIF conversion is about escaping that colour ceiling.
GIF at a glance
| Full name | Graphics Interchange Format |
|---|---|
| Extension | .gif |
| MIME type | image/gif |
| Compression | Lossy |
| Transparency | Yes |
| Animation | Yes |
| Colours | 256 (8-bit) |
| Browser support | All browsers, all devices |
| Typical use | Animations, simple graphics, memes |
| Introduced | 1987 |
Convert GIF to another format
Create GIF from another format
Already have GIF files that are too large? Compress GIF instead of converting.
GIF questions
Why does my GIF look grainy or banded?
GIF allows 256 colours per frame, so a photograph or a gradient has to be approximated. Dithering scatters pixels to fake the missing shades, which reads as grain. Nothing fixes it within GIF; PNG or WEBP is the answer for images that need real colour.
Should I still use GIF for animation?
Rarely. Animated WEBP and MP4 both give full colour at a fraction of the size, and every current browser plays them. GIF survives because it is pasteable into places that accept nothing else, such as chat clients and older forums.
Does GIF support transparency?
Only as a single fully transparent palette index, not a smooth alpha channel. Against a background colour other than the one it was prepared for, the edges show a hard fringe. PNG and WEBP handle this properly.
Can I convert an animated GIF and keep the animation?
Yes, to WEBP or to another GIF, both of which keep every frame. Converting to a still format such as JPG or PNG writes only the first frame, because those formats have nowhere to put the rest.