Reduce GIF file size without losing quality
Shrink a GIF or video to a target size or quality preset, in your browser.
Undo is off for this step: the device needed the memory.
Some steps can no longer be undone or redone: the device needed the room.
Your original file can no longer be read. It may have been moved or deleted.
Compress / Optimize options
Drop a video or GIF here
GIF, MP4, MOV, WebM · up to 2 GB and 300 seconds
Your file stays on this device.
Working…
Try a different file
GIF, MP4, MOV, WebM
How to use
- Drop or choose a GIF, MP4, MOV, or WebM file.
- Pick a quality preset (high, medium, or small) or switch to a target size and either click a common size (256 KB, 512 KB, 1 MB, 2 MB, 5 MB, 10 MB) or type your own size in KB.
- For a GIF, optionally lower the color count, drop every second or third frame, or resize it smaller; all three shrink the file further.
- Click Optimize and compare the before and after file size shown on the page.
- Download the result.
Worked example
Input: a 5 MB animated GIF, “small” quality preset. Expected output: a file at least 40% smaller than the original on typical footage, with a visible before/after size readout on the page, and a preview of the actual output (not the source) so you can see the trade-off before downloading.
Input: the same GIF, with a target size of 2 MB typed in instead of a preset. Expected output: if 2 MB is reachable at reasonable quality, the tool reaches it; if it isn’t, the page states the smallest size it could actually achieve at these settings (for example, “smallest achievable at these settings is 3.1 MB”) rather than silently missing the target or failing quietly.
Edge case: if the file is already about as small as it can get, running it through this tool returns the original bytes unchanged and says plainly that it was already optimized. You never receive a “compressed” file that is actually larger than what you started with.
Limits and formats
| Accepted input | GIF, MP4, MOV, WebM |
| Output | Same format as the input, plus a before/after size readout |
| Target size presets | 256 KB · 512 KB · 1 MB · 2 MB · 5 MB · 10 MB, one click each, or type any size in the same field |
| GIF controls | Quality preset or target size in KB; color count (256/128/64/32); drop every Nth frame; optional resize |
| Video controls | Quality preset or target size in KB, applied through bitrate and quality settings |
| Maximum clip length | This tool has a length cap so a job stays quick to produce. The current limit is shown on the page before you start, not buried in a refusal after the fact. On a phone or tablet, a GIF is usually bounded first by what the device’s memory can hold once it’s decoded (its frame count times its pixel size) rather than by this cap; the tool names that measure directly if it has to refuse a GIF for that reason |
| Maximum file size | This tool has a size cap, above which a file is refused with a plain reason instead of a crash. The current limit is shown on the page before you start. Below that cap, a GIF is admitted or refused by what the device’s memory can hold once it’s decoded, not by its byte size: frame count times pixel size, the same measure the tool names if it refuses one |
| Limits on this page | Files up to 2 GB; clips up to 5 minutes. A GIF must also fit in this browser's memory once decoded. |
| GIF output frame cap | Up to about 300 frames. Frame rate is reduced before width if a result would exceed it |
Privacy
This tool runs entirely in your browser. When you pick a file, it is decoded and re-encoded on your own device using your browser’s built-in codecs and an open-source GIF encoder. It is never uploaded to a server, and Inkclip never sees it. The only network activity while you work is the page itself, plus an ad request and visit statistics (the page you open and which tool you use, never your file), all described in the privacy policy.
Frequently asked questions
How do I get a GIF under a size limit some chat platforms enforce?
Click one of the target-size presets (256 KB, 512 KB, 1 MB, 2 MB, 5 MB, 10 MB) or type your own size in KB instead of picking a quality preset (for example, 700 for a 700 KB limit). The tool works backward from that number using color count, frame-dropping, and resizing together, and tells you the smallest size it can actually reach if your exact target isn’t possible. Chat-app and platform limits change over time, so the presets are round numbers rather than a specific platform’s name. Type your own figure in KB if you know the exact limit you need.
Will this make my GIF look worse?
The preview shows the real output before you download, so you can judge the trade-off yourself. Lowering the color count and dropping frames are the two biggest levers on file size, and both are visible in the preview before you commit.
What if the file is already small?
If optimizing would make it larger, the tool returns your original file unchanged and says so. You never get an “optimized” result that’s bigger than what you started with.
Does this work on video too, or only GIFs?
Yes. For MP4, MOV, and WebM the tool adjusts bitrate and quality instead of color count and frame count, and the output stays in your original format.
Why is my GIF still large after compressing it?
GIF size is driven mostly by width and frame count, not by compression settings alone. If the result is still too big, resizing it smaller or lowering the frame rate first, then compressing again, usually gets further than compression settings on their own.