How to use the gif to png frames
- Choose a GIF with the file picker or drop it onto the box. The file is checked by its first bytes, so a renamed file of another type is refused, and SVG files are not accepted.
- Pick how many frames to keep: every frame, or every 2nd, 3rd, 5th or 10th frame. Then press Split into PNG frames.
- Wait for the progress bar. The page shows the picture size, the frames in the GIF, the PNG files made and the total animation time from the delays stored in the file.
- Download one frame with its Download PNG button, or press Download all as ZIP to get every PNG in one file named like animation-frame-001.png.
A 4 frame GIF gives 4 images
A GIF with 4 frames gives 4 PNG files when you keep every frame. Keeping every 2nd frame of a 10 frame GIF gives 5 images, frames 1, 3, 5, 7 and 9. The frame numbers in the file names stay the original numbers, so you can tell which frames you kept.
Each PNG is the full picture as a viewer shows it at that moment. Many GIFs store only the part of the picture that changed from the last frame, and some frames contain transparent pixels that let the earlier picture show through. The tool combines these in order, the way a browser does, so each PNG stands on its own without the others.
How the frames are rebuilt
An animated GIF is a stack of small images with timing information. To save space, a frame is often just a rectangle that changes, and a flag says what to do with that rectangle before the next frame: leave it, clear it to transparent, or put back what was there before. This tool reads those flags, applies them in order and writes the whole picture for every frame you keep.
The GIF format has no partial transparency, so a pixel is either fully transparent or fully solid. The PNG files keep that as an alpha channel, which means transparent areas stay transparent when you place a frame over another background. For GIFs with a limited color palette the PNG files are exact copies of the colors, not recompressed approximations.
Limits and what to expect
GIFs up to 25 MB and 500 frames are accepted, with a picture size of up to 16,384 pixels on a side and 120 megapixels per frame, and checks that stop a GIF from using too much memory when unpacked. A truncated file gives the complete frames it contains, and the message says so.
If you want smaller or different files, follow with the image converter or the image compressor, and resize with the image resizer. To cut one image into a grid instead of splitting an animation, use the image splitter grid. Everything is done in your browser and nothing is uploaded.
Assumptions and limits
- Only GIF files are accepted. The type is read from the file's first bytes, not its name.
- Frames are combined as a browser would show them, with disposal methods applied in order. A restore to previous on the first frame gives a blank canvas.
- The delay stored for each frame is shown in milliseconds, in units of 10 ms as GIF stores it. Players may treat very short delays differently.
- Looping and the frame delays are not written into the PNG files, since a PNG holds one still picture.
Frequently asked questions
How do I get the frames out of a GIF?
Choose the GIF, press Split into PNG frames, then download the frames one by one or all together as a ZIP file.
Why does each PNG look complete when the GIF stores only changes?
The tool rebuilds the full picture for each frame by applying the changes in order, so each PNG shows what the viewer sees at that moment.
Are transparent areas kept?
Yes. Transparent pixels in the GIF become transparent pixels in the PNG files.
Can I keep only some of the frames?
Yes. Use the keep every setting to skip frames, for example every 5th frame. Frame numbers in the file names stay the original numbers.