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GIF to WebP converter

GIF → WebP returned a single-frame 404 byte WebP from our two-frame GIF, not an animated WebP.

  • Converted with Image engine · nothing stored
  • Free: 5 conversions a day · 5 MB each
  • Higher limits →

From real runs

What you get — and what changes

  • Frame zero Kept

    The red first frame carried through to the WebP output and kept the 64×48 frame size.

  • Animation frames Lost

    The green second frame was not present because the source GIF was flattened before WebP encoding.

  • Loop and duration Lost

    The output opened as one WebP frame, so timing metadata was not useful for playback.

  • Palette source Changed

    GIF palette pixels were decoded to RGB before WebP compression.

  • File size Changed

    The 542 byte two-frame GIF became a 404 byte still WebP at quality 90.

  • Transparency Changed

    Transparency can be carried by WebP, but the tested opaque first frame produced an RGB WebP.

Sample conversions

Two-frame animation

Input
A 64×48 GIF with red and green frames plus two different frame durations.
Output
A 404 byte WebP in RGB mode with one frame. The red first frame was visible, and no motion remained.

Marketing reaction GIF

Input
An animated reaction GIF intended to keep moving after upload to a modern site.
Output
A still WebP thumbnail. It saved bytes but did not meet the requirement to preserve motion.

A real GIF → WebP run

We converted our GIF sample (16 KB) with Image engine on 2026-10-20. It took 98 ms and produced a 18 KB WebP file, about the same size as the input. The engine raised 1 warning, listed below.

Input · sample.gif · 16 KB

1200 × 800 px, GIF87a

Width
1,200
Height
800
Encoding
GIF87a

Output · sample.webp · 18 KB

1200 × 800 px, lossy VP8

Width
1,200
Height
800
Encoding
lossy VP8
  • Image metadata stripped from output.

Is your file a scan?

For GIF screen captures, this pair sees only the first frame. Extract the relevant frame sequence or use OCR on a chosen frame when the content changes over time.

Options and when to change them

quality
Adjust only for the still first frame; it does not turn this route into animated WebP encoding.
width
Resize the first frame for static thumbnails or previews.
height
Use with width when the still WebP needs an exact layout box.
fit
Choose contain for a padded still frame or cover for a cropped thumbnail.

Do it yourself

gif2webp

bash
gif2webp in.gif -o out.webp

gif2webp can preserve animation, unlike the still-image behavior observed in this image-ir path.

GIF to WebP by API or MCP

The HTTP API and the MCP server run the exact engine this page uses (Image engine); the response carries the same warnings the web converter shows. Check support first with GET /api/v1/pairs?from=gif&to=webp.

curl
curl -X POST https://filetypeconverters.com/api/v1/convert \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $FTC_API_KEY" \
  -F "file=@input.gif" -F "from=gif" -F "to=webp" \
  -F 'options={"dpi":96}' \
  --output output.webp

Options this engine accepts for GIF → WebP

KeyApplies toTypeDefault
dpiReading GIFnumber96
widthWriting WebPnumber0
heightWriting WebPnumber0
fitWriting WebPcontain · cover · fillcontain
qualityWriting WebPnumber90
backgroundWriting WebPstring#ffffff
stripMetadataWriting WebPbooleantrue
API reference

When this is the wrong conversion

  • Use dedicated animated WebP tooling if motion must survive.
  • Use GIF → PNG when you want a lossless still frame with sharp palette art.
  • Use GIF → JPG only when the target rejects WebP and transparency is not needed.

GIF to WebP questions

Does GIF → WebP keep the animation?

No in the tested API path. The output opened as one WebP frame even though the input GIF had two frames.

Why would I use GIF → WebP if motion is lost?

Use it for a static thumbnail or poster frame. Use animated WebP tooling when playback is the goal.

Can quality change the selected GIF frame?

No. Quality affects WebP compression for the extracted first frame, not which frame is chosen.

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