MP4 to GIF Converter
To convert MP4 to GIF here, drop the video on the page and mark up to 20 seconds: your browser turns that section into a GIF on your device, and nothing is uploaded. You choose the width and the frame rate, and the page shows the estimated file size before you start.
- Free
- No sign-up
- No watermark
- Runs in your browser
Loading the tool.
How many frames your MP4 turns into
A GIF made from an MP4 is a series of pictures, and every picture is stored in full. The size of the file therefore follows the number of frames, and the number of frames follows the length and the frame rate. The page starts on the first 5 seconds at 15 frames a second, which is 75 frames. This table lists the frame count for every combination it offers.
| Frame rate | 5 seconds (the starting selection) | 10 seconds | 20 seconds (the longest) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 fps | 50 frames | 100 frames | 200 frames |
| 15 fps | 75 frames | 150 frames | 300 frames |
| 20 fps | 100 frames | 200 frames | 400 frames |
At the starting settings of 480 px and 15 fps, the page estimates about 2.4 MB for 5 seconds of a 16:9 landscape MP4 and about 7.6 MB for 5 seconds of a vertical 9:16 phone video. A vertical frame at 480 px wide is 480 × 853, which holds about three times the pixels of a 480 × 270 frame. On a vertical test clip, 3 seconds at 480 px and 15 fps made a 4.61 MB GIF, and the page's estimate for it was 4.55 MB.
What the tool reads from an MP4
The browser decodes the picture of the MP4 with WebCodecs, so the page needs a browser that has it: Chrome or Edge 94 or newer, Safari 16.4 or newer, or Firefox 130 or newer on a computer. An MP4 with H.264 video, the usual kind, is read widely. An MP4 with HEVC video, which some phones and cameras write, works only where the device can decode HEVC, and otherwise the page names the codec it could not decode. The soundtrack is ignored, because a GIF has no sound.
How the section and the width are chosen
The first 5 seconds are selected when the file opens, and you move the handles or type times to change them. The section can be 20 seconds at most, because every extra second adds a full second of whole pictures to the file. The tool also never enlarges the video. An MP4 that is 360 px wide stays 360 px even if you pick 480, since stretching would add size and no detail.
Making the GIF from an MP4 smaller
Shorten the section first, then lower the frame rate, then narrow the width. For 5 seconds of a vertical phone video, the page's estimate falls from 7.6 MB at 480 px and 15 fps to 5.1 MB at 10 fps, and to 2.8 MB at 320 px and 10 fps. These are estimates from typical camera footage. Flat graphics and screen recordings come out smaller, and grainy or busy video comes out larger.
Questions people ask
How do I convert an MP4 to a GIF?
Open the MP4, drag the two handles to choose up to 20 seconds, and pick a width and a frame rate. Press Create GIF and wait for the progress bar. The GIF then plays on the page with its real size, frame count and length, and the Download button saves it.
Why is my GIF so much bigger than the MP4?
An MP4 stores most frames as changes from the frames around them and keeps millions of colors. A GIF stores every frame as a whole picture with at most 256 colors, so the same seconds take far more space. Shorten the section, lower the frame rate or choose a narrower width to bring the size down.
Can I turn just a part of a long MP4 into a GIF?
Yes. The first 5 seconds are selected when the file opens. Drag the handles on the timeline or type a start and an end time, and press Play the section to check it. The selection can be 20 seconds at most, and if you type a longer one, the other end moves to keep it there.
Why does a GIF from a vertical phone MP4 come out so heavy?
A vertical 1080 × 1920 video at 480 px wide becomes 480 × 853, about three times the pixels of a 480 × 270 landscape frame, and the file grows with the pixels. At the starting settings the page estimates 7.6 MB for 5 seconds of vertical video and 2.4 MB for 5 seconds of landscape. A width of 320 px saves the most.
What a GIF cannot carry
A GIF has no sound and at most 256 colors in each frame. GPT-Video makes clips that keep the voice and full color: it cuts a long video into short vertical clips and adds captions generated from the speech, so the moment still works when viewers watch with the sound off.
Related
Your file is processed on your device and never uploaded.