Replacing GIFs on a web page
Convert each one and serve WebP. The saving across a page full of small graphics is usually substantial and requires no markup changes in modern browsers.
Browser-local tool
Use GIF to WebP
Your image is decoded and re-encoded on this device. No upload request is made.
WebP preserves transparent pixels. Maximum quality minimizes further loss, but browser encoders do not guarantee mathematically lossless WebP.
Explore image tools
Find related browser-local tools for nearby tasks without starting another search.
Browse all image toolsAbout GIF to WebP
GIF is a remarkably inefficient way to store an image on a modern web page, and WebP is the natural replacement. The reason is structural: GIF compresses with an algorithm designed in the 1980s around a 256-colour palette, while WebP uses prediction techniques borrowed from video compression. For the flat graphics and simple illustrations that people still keep as GIFs, WebP typically produces a much smaller file at the same visible quality, and it does so while keeping transparency intact. The one thing to be clear about is animation. WebP as a format supports it, and animated WebP is genuinely excellent, but a browser canvas can only write a single still image - so an animated GIF converts to its first frame here, and producing an animated WebP needs a dedicated encoder this site does not ship.
Shape and export choices
- The GIF is decoded and its first frame drawn onto a transparency-enabled canvas, so no background colour is imposed.
- The frame is encoded as lossy WebP at a high quality setting, which is where the size advantage comes from.
- Transparency is preserved through the alpha channel, so cut-out graphics stay cut out.
- Dimensions are unchanged; only the encoding differs.
- Both byte counts are shown so the saving can be confirmed for your particular image rather than assumed.
Good fits for GIF to WebP
An illustration kept as a GIF for years
WebP handles the flat colour well and keeps the transparency, producing a much smaller file than either GIF or PNG.
Check the image before download
- Animation is not preserved. WebP supports animation but the browser encoder writes a single frame, so an animated GIF yields its first frame only.
- The encoding is lossy, so the 256-colour reduction already in the GIF is now joined by a second compression step. It is rarely visible on photographic content and can be on flat graphics.
- Sharp edges and small text soften slightly. PNG remains the better choice when pixel-exact edges matter.
- A few older applications and email clients still refuse WebP. It is a format for web delivery rather than universal interchange.
- Very small GIFs may not shrink, because format overheads dominate below a few kilobytes.
Questions about GIF to WebP
Can I keep the animation?
Not here. Animated WebP exists but requires a dedicated encoder; a browser canvas writes one frame at a time.
How much smaller will it be?
Usually considerably, especially for larger graphics. Both byte counts are displayed so you can see the real figure.
Is transparency kept?
Yes. WebP has a full alpha channel, so it handles transparency better than GIF did.
WebP or PNG?
WebP for a web page, since it is much smaller. PNG if the file will be edited further or handed to someone else.
Related tools
GIF to PNG
Convert a GIF to PNG in your browser. Transparency is preserved and the colour limit is lifted for future edits.
GIF to JPG
Turn a GIF into a JPG your software will accept. Runs in your browser with nothing uploaded.
PNG to WebP
Convert PNG to WebP in your browser. Transparency survives the conversion, unlike PNG to JPG, and the file usually gets much smaller.