How to Make Animated GIFs Smaller

Animated GIF files come in an array of sizes. Animated GIFs can make for an excellent avatar or icon online, but the size of the GIF can often be prohibitive. Shrinking down an animated GIF to meet a pixel requirement is not hard to do and can be completed without downloading any special software.

Things You'll Need

• A source GIF, either online or on your computer
• Internet connection

Instructions

1. Open the GIFWorks Image Editor, found at http://www.gifworks.com/image_editor.html.

2. Select "Open Image" in the drop-down menu marked "File."

3. If your GIF is online, enter the URL in the box under "Fetch a GIF From a Remote Location" and click the "Fetch Image" button, then proceed to Step 5. If not, proceed to Step 4.

4. Click the "Browse" button under the "Upload a GIF From Your Hard Drive" heading. Locate the file you want to shrink and click "Open," then click the "Upload Image" button.

5. Select the "Resize" option in the "Edit" drop-down menu.

6. Enter the desired dimensions in the pop-up window's height and width fields, then press "OK."

7. Right-click on the image if using a PC, then select "Save Image As." Click and hold on the image if using a Mac, then select "Save Image As."

8. Save the file in the desired location on your hard drive with a name of your choosing.

Tips & Warnings

• The "Constrain Proportions" option in the pop-up window will maintain the aspect ratio of the image automatically.

• Saving the file in the same location as the source image, with the same name, will overwrite the original image.