Convert a JPEG to GIF
Turn a JPG into a GIF online. No account needed.
or drop your JPEG anywhere on this page
JPEG → GIF
One still GIF for each JPG
To change a JPEG to GIF, drop the photo on this page, or pick it with Select JPEG file, and press Convert to GIF. There is nothing to set. This free JPG to GIF converter works online but inside your browser, so the photo is never uploaded, and the GIF keeps its width, height and name: holiday.jpg is saved as holiday.gif.
Every JPG gives exactly one GIF, and it does not move. Add up to 100 photos in one go and each becomes a GIF of its own; save them one at a time, or press Download all (ZIP) for whatafile-converted.zip. A photo that was stored on its side, as phones often do, is saved the right way up.
Hoping for a slideshow that plays by itself? That needs Images to GIF, which turns pictures into an animated GIF with the time per frame, the width and the repeat you choose. Give it at least two JPGs, drag them into order, pick between 0.1 and 3 seconds a frame and press Make GIF. The result is named after the first photo: beach.jpg first gives beach_animated.gif.
How to convert JPEG to GIF
- 1Select or drop your JPG
It stays on your device.
- 2Choose your options
We show the route and its fidelity grade up front.
- 3Download your GIF
Nothing was uploaded, so there is nothing to delete.
Photographs, compressed. Small files, no transparency, slight fuzz.
256 colours and a loop. Old, limited, immortal.
GIF keeps only 256 colours, so fine detail is lost. It looks right at normal size.
Why smooth skies break into stripes
Our test photos held between 58,185 and 344,778 different colours. A GIF holds 256 at most, so the converter chooses the 256 that suit each photo and moves every pixel to the nearest of them. It does not scatter dots of two colours to fake the shades in between (dithering). Busy detail hides the change; a smooth gradient cannot, and turns into flat stripes with hard edges.
| The JPG | Colours | File size | How the GIF looked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunset over the sea, full size, 4096 × 2160 | 344,778 to 256 | 3.2 MB to 2.5 MB | Stripes across the sky, rocks fine |
| The same sunset for the web, 1200 × 633 | 133,780 to 256 | 142 KB to 331 KB | Stripes across the sky, rocks fine |
| Diggers on sand dunes, camera original, 4032 × 2688 | 113,040 to 254 | 3.7 MB to 4.6 MB | Detail kept |
| The same photo for the web, 1600 × 1066 | 58,185 to 255 | 420 KB to 633 KB | Detail kept |
| Settings screenshot, 2560 × 1600 | 4,447 to 238 | 181 KB to 84 KB | Text as sharp as in the JPG |
| Logo of 3 flat colours, 256 × 256 | 777 to 107 | 5 KB to 4 KB | No visible change |
The logo shows a JPG quirk: its 3 colours had become 777 in the file, because JPG compression leaves faint in-between shades along every edge. The GIF dropped most of them again. Both browsers saved exactly the same GIF from each JPG.
When to keep the JPG
Before you convert JPG to GIF, check what the place you are sending to accepts. If it takes JPG, send the JPG. It keeps every colour of the photo, and it was usually the smaller file: three of our four photos grew as GIFs, the web-sized sunset to more than double. A GIF is worth making for a forum, an old system or a form that takes nothing else, and for simple graphics, which often shrink.
- A screenshot or logo you also have as a PNG: start from that and convert PNG to GIF. With no JPG shades to sort out, our settings screenshot made a 62 KB GIF of 93 colours from its PNG, against 84 KB and 238 colours from its JPG. A logo you also have as an SVG is better still: convert SVG to GIF draws it fresh from its shapes, so no JPG smudges come along.
- Print or scanning software that asks for TIFF: convert JPG to TIFF instead. It copies every pixel of the photo with no colour limit, in a much bigger file.
- An animated WebP, such as a sticker saved from a website: convert WebP to GIF keeps every frame and its timing.
- Going back later: convert GIF to JPG gives you a JPG again, but the shades the GIF dropped do not return, so keep your original photo.
Questions people ask
How do I change a JPEG into a GIF?
Drop the JPEG on this page, or press Select JPEG file; you can add up to 100 at once. Press Convert to GIF, then Download to save the GIF, or Download all (ZIP) for several. There are no settings, and the photo stays on your device.
Can I make an animated GIF from several JPGs?
Not on this page, which makes one still GIF from each JPG. Images to GIF does it: add two or more photos, drag them into order, set the Time per frame and whether it plays Forever, Once or 3 times, and press Make GIF.
Why do skies look striped in the GIF?
A GIF holds at most 256 colours, and each pixel is moved to the nearest of them with no dots mixed in to soften the steps. A smooth sky needs more shades than that, so it breaks into flat stripes. Detailed areas such as rocks or sand hide it.
Will the GIF be smaller than my JPG?
Usually not for a photo. Three of our four test photos grew: a 142 KB web-sized photo became a 331 KB GIF. Screenshots and simple logos tend to shrink: a 181 KB screenshot became 84 KB.
Does JPEG to GIF work on Windows and on a Mac?
Yes. Open this page in a current Chrome, Edge or Firefox on a Windows PC or a Mac. The GIF is made inside the browser, so there is no app to download and nothing to install.
Is converting JPG to GIF free?
Yes, and there is no daily limit. The conversion runs in your browser, so it costs us nothing to run.
What happens to my files?
Nothing leaves your device. The JPG is read and the GIF is made inside your browser, so there is nothing on our servers to delete.
Will the GIF look exactly like the JPG?
This pair grades as “Very good”. We show the exact route and that grade before you convert, so there are no surprises about what survives the trip.
Do I need to install anything?
No. Pick or drop a file here, it is converted in your browser, and you save the result.
How large can my file be?
As large as your browser can handle: pictures up to about 90 megapixels on a typical computer, less on a phone.
Can I convert several files at once?
Yes. Add up to 100 files at a time and they convert one after another on your device.
