GIF file format (.gif)
256 colours, animation support. Universally playable.
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What is a GIF file?
In short: A GIF file (.gif) is an image file in the GIF format. GIF holds at most 256 colours chosen per image, and it can hold several frames with delays between them, which is why it became the format for short looping animation. It can be converted to JPG, PNG or WEBP for free in a web browser with iHateFiles, without uploading it.
Created by CompuServe in 1987, years before the web existed, for downloading images over dial-up.
GIF holds at most 256 colours chosen per image, and it can hold several frames with delays between them, which is why it became the format for short looping animation. Its transparency is a single colour switched on or off, with no partial values, so edges against a coloured background look ragged.
What GIF is good at
- Animation that plays anywhere, including in email
- Tiny files for flat colour, line art and simple diagrams
- Nothing has ever needed a plugin to show one
Where GIF falls short
- 256 colours means photographs band and dither visibly
- Transparency is all or nothing, so edges look jagged
- Larger and lower quality than a short video of the same clip
When to use GIF
Use GIF for short looping animation that has to work in places video does not, such as email or a chat client. For anything longer than a few seconds, a video file is smaller and looks better.
How to open a GIF file
Everything, including email clients that block video.
| Windows | Opens everywhere. |
|---|---|
| macOS | Opens everywhere. |
| Linux | Opens everywhere. |
| Phone | Opens everywhere. |
| In a browser | Every browser animates GIF. |
The thing that usually goes wrong
A ten-second GIF is often larger than the MP4 it came from and looks considerably worse. The 256 colour limit, not the length, is what does the damage.
Questions
What is a GIF file?
256 colours, animation support. Universally playable. Files use the .gif extension.
How do I open a GIF file?
Most image software opens GIF directly. If yours does not, convert it here to something more common. It takes a few seconds and nothing is uploaded.
Can I convert GIF for free?
Yes. Every conversion here is free and unlimited, because your own device does the work rather than a server we have to pay for.
Is GIF lossless?
Partly. The compression itself loses nothing, but GIF first reduces the image to a 256-colour palette, and that step cannot be undone. Flat graphics survive it well; photographs visibly do not.