Reset to defaults
Need help?Compress GIF files online with this GIF compressor. Upload an animated GIF, or several, and either set a size cap — a percentage of the original, an exact size in KB or MB, or a Discord, Email or Forum preset — and let the compressor find the settings, or switch to Custom and set image quality, colours, dropped frames and resolution yourself. The output stays a GIF.
How to compress a GIF
- Upload your GIF: Click Upload or drop .gif files on the page. Batch is supported and the same settings apply to every file.
- Set a cap or go Custom: File Compression starts on Max file size with Size limit on Custom size % (default 50). Pick Custom size value to type an exact size, choose a preset, or switch File Compression to Custom to adjust each setting by hand.
- Compress and download: Click Compress. A note under the Size limit dropdown reports, per file, what your cap means for that file. Download each GIF or the batch as a ZIP.
Max file size
The default mode: you name the ceiling and the compressor searches combinations of quality, palette, dropped frames and resolution to land at or under it with as much quality as the cap allows. Size limit offers three presets — Discord (20 MB), Email (25 MB) and Forum (2 MB) — plus Custom size % (a slider from 1 to 100) and Custom size value (a number in B, KB or MB, starting at 8 MB). If the cap cannot be reached without ruining the animation, the per-file note says so.
Image quality (Custom)
A slider from 1 to 100, starting at 80. The GIF is re-encoded with lossy LZW compression, which trades a little dithering and noise for a smaller file. GIFs made from video or photographs tolerate 60 to 80 well; flat screen recordings gain more from the Colors setting.
Colors
Original keeps each frame's palette. By Color Reduction + Dither re-quantises every frame to 256, 128 (default), 64, 32, 16, 8, 4 or 2 colours, with a Dither toggle (off by default). A GIF frame holds at most 256 colours, so cutting the palette is one of the biggest savings: 64 colours is usually invisible on screen recordings and line art. Dither smooths banding on photographic content at the cost of some of the saving.
Drop Frames
Original keeps every frame; otherwise the compressor removes every 2nd to every 10th frame (default every 3rd). The tool's guidance: above 20 FPS drop every 2nd frame, at 15 to 20 FPS every 3rd, and below 15 FPS keep every frame and use quality, colours or resolution instead, because dropping further makes motion visibly jumpy. The file's FPS is shown on its card after upload.
Image resolution
Resolution Percentage scales both dimensions (default 80). Preset Resolutions offers 4320p down to 144p (default 768p) with Use as max resolution on, so a smaller GIF is never upscaled. Width, Height or Width x Height take pixels or a percentage. Resizing is the strongest lever: halving both dimensions removes about three quarters of the pixels, so match the GIF to the size it will be displayed at.
Hitting a size limit
Chat and mail services enforce upload caps: 20 MB on Discord's free tier, 25 MB on Gmail, 1 GB on Slack. Pick the matching preset under Max file size, or Custom size value with a figure a little under the cap. Animated emoji have far tighter limits than message uploads; for those, resize to the display size first, then cut the palette.
When compression hurts
GIF limits every frame to 256 colours, so each lever has a visible cost somewhere: palette reduction bands photographs and gradients, frame dropping makes fast motion jumpy, lossy quality adds noise on smooth areas. Transparency is kept (a GIF pixel is either transparent or opaque), but anti-aliased edges over a transparent background can look harsher after palette reduction. If the destination plays video, GIF to MP4 or GIF to WebP gives a far smaller file than any GIF setting.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I compress a GIF to a specific size?
Keep File Compression on Max file size, set Size limit to Custom size value and type the size in KB or MB, or choose the Discord, Email or Forum preset. The compressor picks the settings that fit.
Does compressing a GIF lose quality?
Yes, by design: palette reduction, frame dropping, lossy quality and resizing each remove information. The Max file size mode keeps as much as the cap allows; in Custom mode compress, compare, and step one setting back if you see banding or stutter.
Does the compressed GIF keep its transparency and loop?
Yes. The transparency flag and the loop setting are carried through; only colours, frames, quality and dimensions change according to your settings.
Are my files private?
Files are uploaded over an encrypted connection, processed on our servers and deleted automatically after a few hours. Nothing is shared or indexed.
Related tools
- GIF to MP4 — far smaller where video is accepted
- GIF to WebP — smaller animated images for the web
- MP4 to GIF — make the GIF at a target size from the start
- Resize GIF — change dimensions only
- Image Compressor — JPG, PNG and WebP