Guides
GIF guides
Practical answers about GIFs, backed by measurements. We encode test clips with the same encoder EasyGIF uses, measure the files, and write down what we found: which settings shrink a GIF and which don't, when dithering is worth it, and when a GIF is the wrong format.
11 guides · Written by Li Jiang · Last updated
Start with your problem
- My GIF is too big to upload or send.How to make a GIF smaller →
- Gradients look striped, or the picture looks grainy.GIF dithering explained →
- A transparent GIF has jagged or light edges on a dark page.How to make a transparent GIF without jagged edges →
- I'm not sure a GIF is the right format at all.GIF vs WebP vs APNG vs MP4 →
- The GIF plays faster or slower than I set it.GIF frame delay and frame rate →
- I want to turn a screen recording into a short GIF.How to turn a screen recording into a GIF on Mac, Windows, iPhone, and Android →
- A video from my iPhone or camera won't open.Why an HEVC video won't open in your browser, and three fixes →
- Discord won't accept my GIF as an emoji.Discord GIF size limits →
- My GIF doesn't animate in Outlook, or is too big for email.Animated GIFs in email →
- I want to check that my files aren't uploaded.How to check whether a GIF maker uploads your files →
- My photos play in the wrong order, or an iPhone photo won't open.Making a GIF from photos →
File size & quality
- How to make a GIF smaller: what each setting actually savesWe encoded the same clip dozens of ways and measured the file each time. Width and frame count matter most; colors and dithering come next; frame delay saves nothing.7 min read · Updated
- GIF dithering explained: when it helps and when it just adds sizeDithering hides color banding in photos but fills flat graphics with noise. Side-by-side crops and measured file sizes show when to turn it on or off.4 min read · Updated
- How to make a transparent GIF without jagged edgesGIF transparency is all-or-nothing per pixel, so soft edges turn jagged or leave a halo. Why it happens, and how matching the background color fixes it.4 min read · Updated
Formats & timing
- GIF vs WebP vs APNG vs MP4: which format for a short animation?We exported the same 24-frame clip as GIF, APNG, animated WebP, H.264, and AV1 and compared the files. Here's when GIF is still the right choice and when to switch.4 min read · Updated
- GIF frame delay and frame rate: how GIF timing really worksGIFs store time in hundredths of a second, browsers slow down delays under 20 ms, and loop count lives in a 1990s Netscape extension. What that means for your GIF's speed.5 min read · Updated
- Why an HEVC video won't open in your browser, and three fixesWhy some iPhone and camera videos won't open in a browser GIF maker, which browsers can decode HEVC (H.265), and three ways to get the clip working.4 min read · Updated
Workflows
- Making a GIF from photos: order, HEIC, file size, and shapeHow photos become GIF frames: file-name order, iPhone HEIC, the 20 MB limit, and fitting portrait and landscape shots into one size. Plus settings for spins, emoji, before-and-after, and slideshows.3 min read · Updated
- How to turn a screen recording into a GIF on Mac, Windows, iPhone, and AndroidRecord your screen with the tools already built into your device, then turn the clip into a small, sharp GIF for docs, bug reports, and chats. Settings that keep text crisp included.4 min read · Updated
- Discord GIF size limits: emoji, stickers, and uploadsDiscord's limits for GIF emoji, stickers, and chat uploads from its help pages, with measured settings that get an animated emoji under 256 KB.4 min read · Updated
- Animated GIFs in email: which clients play them, and how big to make themWhich email clients play animated GIFs and which show only the first frame, how to design for both, and measured settings that keep a GIF near 1 MB.4 min read · Updated
Privacy
How these guides are tested
The file sizes and quality scores in the guides come from a script that runs the same encoder as the site (gifenc 1.0.3 with EasyGIF's Floyd–Steinberg dithering) outside the browser. The current numbers were measured on October 29, 2026. When the encoder changes, the script is run again and the numbers in every guide update with it.
- Test material. A 24-frame pan across a portrait photo (480 × 270 px, 10 fps), a slideshow of six photos (480 × 480 px), and a 20-frame drawn app window standing in for a screen recording (640 × 400 px). Each guide says which one it used.
- One change at a time. Each row in a table changes one setting from the baseline, so the number shows what that setting is worth on that clip. Combinations are only quoted where they were measured.
- Quality as a number. Where a guide compares quality, it gives PSNR between each GIF frame and its source frame, in decibels; higher means closer to the source.
- Other software. Steps for other apps and operating systems are checked against the vendor's own documentation. Each guide lists those sources and the date they were last checked.
Your own clips will give different sizes: more motion and detail make a bigger GIF at the same settings. Use the percentages to see which setting matters most. The disclaimer explains the limits of these measurements. If a step or number is out of date, please tell us.