A square version for a profile or a grid
Cut a wide clip to 1:1 and it sits in an avatar slot or a thumbnail grid without anything cropping it again.
What cropping does to a GIF, and what it doesn't
Cropping throws away the edges of every frame and keeps the rectangle you chose. It's the quickest way to fix a GIF that has black bars, a browser toolbar, or a lot of empty room around the thing you're showing. It also changes the shape, so a wide clip becomes a square one that fits a profile picture or a chat thumbnail.
One thing surprises people: cropping doesn't shrink the file by itself. You set the output width separately, and the cropped part is scaled up to that width. A 480px GIF cropped to a small corner is still a 480px GIF, just a closer one. It gets smaller only when the part you cut off had movement or detail in it, because that's what costs bytes. A static background costs almost nothing either way.
The crop happens first, then rotate and flip, then the speed and size. That order matters if you do all of them: you crop the picture as it was filmed, and the turn is applied to the result.
- 1
Add your GIF or video
Drop it in, paste it with Ctrl+V, or paste a link. Trim it to the part you want first, so you're judging the crop on the right frames.
- 2
Open the Edit tab and pick a shape
Original, 1:1, 16:9, 9:16 or 4:5, or Free to draw any rectangle. The frame appears on the preview.
- 3
Move and resize the frame
Drag it, or click it and use the arrow keys to nudge it, and Shift with the arrows to resize. It keeps the shape you picked.
- 4
Check the size and convert
The estimate updates as you move the frame. Press Create GIF when the frame sits where you want it.
Settings that work for common jobs
Treat these as a first try, not a rule. The size estimate tells you quickly whether to nudge them up or down.
| If you're making | Try | Why it works |
|---|---|---|
| Profile picture or avatar | 1:1 · 256px · 10fps · 2 to 3 seconds | Small enough to load instantly, and the square shape is what the slot wants. |
| Vertical story or short | 9:16 · 480px · 15fps | Fills a phone screen without letterboxing. |
| Remove black bars | Free · drag the frame to the picture · 480px | The bars are wasted pixels that cost nothing to cut. |
| Zoom in on a detail | Free · small frame · 720px | A bigger output width keeps the closer view sharp. |
Where this comes in handy
Cutting the browser out of a screen recording
Crop to the part of the page you're talking about, and the toolbar and tabs disappear.
A vertical clip from a landscape one
Pick 9:16 and drag the frame over the subject. It's the quickest way to a story-shaped GIF.
Common mistakes, and what to do instead
- Expecting a crop to shrink the fileThe width setting decides the size. Crop for the shape, then lower the width for the weight.
- Cropping so tight that it blursA tiny frame scaled up has few real pixels. Leave room, or use a larger output width.
- Cropping before you trimTrim first. You'll judge the crop on the frames that actually stay.
Common problems and quick fixes
The cropped GIF is the same size as before
Cropping doesn't change the width setting. Lower the width on the Format tab, or crop away the part that moves.
The crop frame won't stay the shape I picked
A ratio such as 1:1 or 16:9 is locked while you resize. Choose Free if you want to change the shape as well.
The result looks blurrier than the original
A small frame scaled up to the output width has fewer real pixels. Use a bigger width, or a larger crop.
I can't drag on my phone
Use the Edit tab's shape buttons, which fit the frame for you, or tap the frame and move it with the arrow keys if you have a keyboard.
What it looks like
These are real screenshots from this site, taken with a demo clip. Your own file will give different sizes, but the controls are exactly these.
Which format to choose
A cropped clip is usually small and often square, which suits some formats better than others.
| Format | For this clip | Typical size | Good to know |
|---|---|---|---|
| GIFSuggested | Works everywhere, and a small cropped frame keeps it light. | Largest | 256 colours, up to 720px and 20fps |
| WebP | Much smaller for the same look, if the place you're posting accepts it. | About 5× smaller | Full colour, animated, loops |
| MP4 | The smallest, and fine when it doesn't need to loop as an image. | About 15× smaller | Up to 1080px and 30fps, no loop flag |
| APNG | Lossless and crisp for graphics, but large. | Larger than GIF | Lossless, full colour, loops |
Crop GIF questions
Can’t find yours? The converter explains problems in plain language as they come up.
How do I crop a GIF?
Add the GIF, open the Edit tab, choose a shape or Free, move the frame over the part you want to keep, and press Create GIF.
Can I crop to a square?
Yes. Pick 1:1 and the largest centred square is chosen for you; drag it if you want a different part.
Does cropping make the GIF smaller?
Only if the part you cut had movement or detail in it. The output width is a separate setting, and a cropped GIF is scaled up to it.
Can I rotate or flip it as well?
Yes, there's a Rotate and flip row on the same tab. Rotating by 90 degrees swaps the width and height of the result.
Does it work on videos?
Yes. MP4, MOV, WebM, animated WebP and APNG work the same way as a GIF.
Other conversions
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