Convert MP4 to GIF
Online & Free
Convert MP4 to an animated GIF in your browser: 12 fps, 480 px wide and a color palette built for each clip. No video upload, no watermark, no signup.
Drag & drop your video here
or click the button to select a file
Supports: MP4, plus MOV, WebM and AVI (up to ~30s recommended)
How to convert MP4 to GIF?
Add your MP4
A screen recording, a downloaded clip or a phone video. It's converted in full, so trim it first if you only want part of it.
ffmpeg in your browser
The video is reduced to 12 frames per second and 480 px wide, and a 256-color palette is generated from its own frames.
Download the GIF
An endlessly looping GIF, ready to paste into a document, a chat or an email.
Why Pictulab for MP4 to GIF?
Free, no watermark
Convert as many MP4 files as you like, with no signup or daily limit and no logos on your GIF.
Nothing is uploaded
ffmpeg runs on your device. Handy when the MP4 is a screen recording with internal data.
One after another
Add several MP4 files and convert them all: they're processed in order, one after the other, in the same engine.
A tailored palette
Each GIF gets a palette generated from its own video, which reduces washed-out colors and visible banding.
Frequently asked questions
When does converting MP4 to GIF make sense?
When the place you're putting it handles images well but not video: emails, repository READMEs, wikis, some ticketing tools or presentations. A GIF plays by itself, on a loop, with no player.
Why is the GIF bigger than the MP4?
Because MP4 (usually H.264) mostly stores what changes between frames and compresses very efficiently, while GIF compresses each frame with a much simpler method. Ten seconds of GIF can take up considerably more than the MP4 did.
Is the audio kept?
No. GIF has no sound track: the MP4's audio is dropped.
Can I choose the fps or size?
No. The tool always uses 12 fps and 480 px wide, with proportional height. It's a balance between smoothness and file size meant for everyday GIFs.
Does the GIF work in email?
In most email clients it animates. Some desktop versions of Outlook show only the first frame, so it's worth making sure that frame makes sense on its own.
MP4 to watch, GIF to show
MP4 is the most common video format: Android phones record it, editors export it and many screen recording tools save it. It's efficient and has sound, but it needs a player.
A GIF needs nothing. It shows up wherever an image does and loops on its own. That's why it's used to show an interface step, a bug being reproduced or a short animation in a README, a wiki or an email.
What you gain and what you lose
You gain compatibility: the GIF plays on its own where an MP4 shows up as an attachment or doesn't show up at all. In exchange you lose sound, smoothness (12 fps versus the usual 30 or 60), resolution (480 px wide) and color: GIF only allows 256 colors per palette.
That's why screen recordings with flat colors work better than footage with gradients, skies or skin, where color banding is more noticeable.
A light GIF starts with the MP4
GIF size grows with duration and with movement. Trim the MP4 to the seconds that matter before converting; as a guide, we recommend staying under about 30 seconds, because everything is processed on your device. The video is never uploaded to a server at any point.
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