A reaction for the group chat
That half-second of someone's face is funnier on a loop than buried in a ten-minute video. Trim to it, crop in close, send it.
Video to GIF Maker
Got a video with one great moment in it? Cut out that moment, crop it, stick a caption on it if you like, and you'll see roughly how big the GIF will be before you make it.
- Reaction GIF
- Screen recording
- Meme with a caption
How to make a GIF from a video
Most good GIFs start life as an ordinary video. A clip from your phone, a screen recording, something a friend sent you at 2am. MP4, MOV and WebM all work here, and you can even drop in an existing GIF if you just want to cut it down.
The thing that makes or breaks a GIF is where you cut it. Start right as the action starts, not half a second before. End just after the punchline. Get the whole thing under five or six seconds and it'll loop nicely without turning into a huge file.
After that it's mostly taste. Crop out what nobody needs to see, add a line of text if the clip needs context, and keep an eye on the size number while you play with the settings. When it looks right, make the GIF.
- 1
Add your video
Drop it into the box, paste it with Ctrl+V, or paste a direct link. It starts playing in your browser right away, so you can scrub around.
- 2
Pick the moment
Drag the two handles until only the good part is left. Two to six seconds is usually plenty.
- 3
Shape it
Crop it, add a caption, speed it up, or flip it backwards. You see all of it in the preview before anything gets converted.
- 4
Make the GIF
Check the size estimate, hit Create GIF, and download it when it's done.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Reaction GIF | 480px · 15fps · 2 to 4 seconds | Faces read fine at this size and the loop stays punchy. |
| Screen recording | 720px · 10fps · crop to the window | Text stays readable, and nobody notices a lower frame rate on a UI. |
| Meme with a caption | 480px · 15fps · two captions · white text | It's the layout everyone already knows how to read. |
| Seamless loop | Boomerang · 480px · 1 to 2 seconds | It plays forward then back, so there's no jump at the end. |
Where this comes in handy
Showing a bug instead of describing it
Record the problem, cut it down to the few seconds where it happens, and drop the GIF in the ticket. Nobody has to press play.
A teaser for a page or newsletter
A short loop of your product actually doing something beats a screenshot, and email clients that block video will still show a GIF.
Common mistakes, and what to do instead
- Keeping the whole clip because cutting feels wastefulCut hard. The best GIFs have nothing wasted in them, and shorter means smaller.
- Going straight for the biggest widthStart at 480px and glance at the estimate. Only go wider if you can actually see detail disappearing.
- Starting the GIF a beat too earlyStart on the action. A slow first half-second drags every single time the loop restarts.
Common problems and quick fixes
My GIF is too big to upload
Cut it shorter first, then try Fit to 8 MB. If it still won't fit, WebP or MP4 will, as long as the place you're posting accepts them.
The GIF looks grainy
That's GIF's 256-colour limit showing. Bump quality to Best and the width up a notch, or switch to WebP, which keeps full colour.
I can't see a preview of my video
Your browser just doesn't know that codec. Type the start and end times in by hand and convert. The server can still read it.
It says my clip is too long
The result can be up to 60 seconds. Trim it, or speed it up and the limit stretches with it.
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
You're making a GIF, so that's the default. The others are worth a look when size or colour matters more than working everywhere.
| Format | For this clip | Typical size | Good to know |
|---|---|---|---|
| GIFSuggested | The safe choice. It plays in every chat app, doc and email client. | Largest | 256 colours, up to 720px and 20fps |
| WebP | Same loop, full colour, and usually a lot smaller. Check that wherever you're posting supports it. | About 5× smaller | Full colour, animated, loops |
| MP4 | The smallest by far, but it needs a video player and won't loop on its own. | About 15× smaller | Up to 1080px and 30fps, no loop flag |
| APNG | Lossless and crisp, but you'll pay for it in file size. | Larger than GIF | Lossless, full colour, loops |
Video to GIF questions
Can’t find yours? The converter explains problems in plain language as they come up.
How do I make a GIF from a video?
Add the video, drag the trim handles around the bit you want, and press Create GIF. If you want to crop it, caption it or change the speed, do that first.
Which video formats can I use?
MP4, MOV, WebM and GIF. You can also paste a direct link to one of those.
How long can a GIF be?
Up to 60 seconds. That said, a 60-second GIF is going to be enormous. Most of the good ones are somewhere between two and six seconds.
Will the GIF have sound?
No. GIF is a silent format, so the audio gets dropped.
Is it free? Is there a watermark?
It's free and there's no watermark. You don't need an account either. There's an hourly limit per browser so nobody hogs the servers.
Other conversions
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