Discord GIF Size Optimizer
Create perfect GIFs for Discord emoji, stickers, and uploads. Automatically optimize for Discord's 8MB limit and ideal dimensions. All processing happens privately in your browser—no uploads, no data retention.
Discord has become one of the most popular platforms for communities, gaming, and communication—and GIFs are a core part of Discord culture. Whether you're creating custom animated emoji for your server, sharing reaction GIFs in chat, or uploading stickers, understanding Discord's GIF requirements is essential.
Discord enforces different file size limits depending on the context: regular uploads have an 8MB limit for standard accounts (10MB for Nitro Classic, 500MB for Nitro), animated emoji are restricted to 256KB and must be exactly 128x128 pixels, and stickers can be up to 500KB with a maximum size of 320x320 pixels. Exceeding these limits results in upload failures or quality degradation.
Our Discord GIF optimizer uses advanced techniques to meet these requirements while preserving quality. We employ Lanczos scaling for sharp resizing, palettegen + paletteuse for color optimization (typically reducing to 64-128 colors), and intelligent frame rate adjustment. The result: GIFs that look great on Discord while staying well under the file size limits.
Resize GIF
Instantly resize GIFs for Discord, WhatsApp, Reddit, and more—private, watermark-free, and fully in your browser.
Drag & drop your GIF here
Max size 50MB • Only .gif files supported
Resize options
Platform presets
One-click sizing for popular social platforms.
Preview
Compare the original GIF with the resized output before downloading.
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Save the resized GIF or start over with a new file.
Discord GIF Use Cases
Animated Emoji
- • Exactly 128x128 pixels
- • Under 256KB file size
- • Requires Discord Nitro
- • GIF or APNG format
- • 64-96 colors
- • 15-20 FPS
- • 2-4 second loops
- • High contrast designs
Custom Stickers
- • Up to 320x320 pixels
- • Under 500KB file size
- • Available to all users
- • GIF, PNG, or APNG
- • 96-128 colors
- • 20-24 FPS
- • 3-5 second animations
- • Expressive movements
Media Uploads
- • 8MB limit (standard)
- • 10MB (Nitro Classic)
- • 500MB (Nitro)
- • Any reasonable dimensions
- • 720x405 or 640x360px
- • 128-256 colors
- • 24-30 FPS
- • Consider MP4 for long clips
How Discord GIF Optimization Works
Dimension Analysis & Resizing
Our tool first analyzes your GIF dimensions and compares them to Discord's requirements. For emoji, we enforce exact 128x128 pixel dimensions. For stickers, we scale to fit within 320x320 while maintaining aspect ratio. For regular uploads, we recommend 720p or 640x360 for optimal quality and file size balance. We use Lanczos resampling, which preserves edge sharpness better than bilinear or bicubic methods—critical for small emoji that need to remain recognizable.
Color Palette Optimization
Discord GIFs benefit enormously from palette optimization. We use FFmpeg's palettegen filter withstats_mode=diff to analyze your GIF and generate an optimized color palette. For emoji (256KB limit), we typically use 64-96 colors. For stickers (500KB), 96-128 colors. For regular uploads, 128-256 colors. This palette is then applied with the paletteuse filter using advanced dithering (Floyd-Steinberg or Bayer) to maintain perceived image quality despite fewer colors. The result is 35-50% file size reduction with minimal visible quality loss.
Frame Rate & Temporal Optimization
Discord displays GIFs at varying frame rates depending on the client (desktop, web, mobile). We optimize frame rates based on use case: emoji work well at 15-20 FPS (smooth enough for recognition, minimal file size), stickers at 20-24 FPS (expressive animations), and uploads at 24-30 FPS (full quality). If your GIF is still over the limit after palette optimization, we intelligently drop frames while preserving animation smoothness. We also analyze temporal redundancy—consecutive frames with minimal changes—and optimize accordingly.
LZW Compression & Final Encoding
GIF files use LZW (Lempel-Ziv-Welch) compression, a lossless algorithm that finds repeating patterns in the data. We apply the -gifflags +transdiffoption which only stores the differences between frames rather than full frames, dramatically reducing file size for animations with static backgrounds. We also ensure proper loop settings (infinite loops for emoji/stickers) and preserve frame delays for consistent playback speed across all Discord clients.
🔒 Privacy-First Processing
All GIF processing happens entirely in your browser using WebAssembly (ffmpeg.wasm). Your GIF files are never uploaded to any server. Everything runs locally on your device, ensuring complete privacy. No data retention, no analytics on your files, no cloud storage. When you close the page, all processing data is immediately cleared from browser memory.
Discord Optimization Strategies
Strategy 1: Creating Discord Emoji (256KB Limit)
Step-by-Step Process:
- 1. Resize to exactly 128x128 pixels (enforced by Discord)
- 2. Reduce color palette to 64-96 colors with Floyd-Steinberg dithering
- 3. Limit frame rate to 15-20 FPS
- 4. Keep animations short (2-4 seconds, looping)
- 5. Use high-contrast designs for visibility at small size
- 6. Test final file size—target 220-250KB for safety margin
Common Issues:
- • Too many colors: Reduce palette to 64-80 colors
- • Too many frames: Limit animation to 3 seconds max
- • High frame rate: 15 FPS is enough for emoji
- • Complex gradients: Simplify colors or use dithering
- • Large dimensions: Must be exactly 128x128px
Strategy 2: Optimizing Regular Uploads (8MB Limit)
Recommended Settings:
- • Dimensions: 720x405px (720p) or 640x360px
- • Colors: 128-256 color palette
- • Frame rate: 24-30 FPS for smooth playback
- • Duration: Under 10 seconds for GIF (use MP4 for longer)
- • Target size: 6-7MB (safety margin under 8MB limit)
When to Use MP4 Instead:
- • Animations longer than 10 seconds
- • Photographic or realistic content
- • High-resolution source material (>1080p)
- • File size approaching 8MB limit
- • Need for better quality at same file size
- • Video content (not illustrations/graphics)
Best Practices for Discord GIFs
✓ Do
- •Test before uploading: Preview your GIF to ensure it meets Discord requirements
- •Use presets: Our Discord preset automatically applies optimal settings
- •Keep safety margin: Target 7MB for uploads, 250KB for emoji (not the exact limit)
- •Optimize colors: Reduce palette to 64-128 colors for significant size reduction
- •Use appropriate FPS: 15-20 FPS for emoji, 24-30 FPS for uploads
- •Consider MP4: For clips >10 seconds, MP4 is more efficient
- •Use high contrast: Especially for small emoji (128x128px)
✗ Don't
- •Upload at exact limit: Files exactly at 8MB may fail due to metadata overhead
- •Use wrong dimensions for emoji: Must be exactly 128x128px, not 127x127 or 129x129
- •Ignore aspect ratio: Distorted GIFs look unprofessional—maintain proportions
- •Use excessive colors: Full 256-color palette wastes file size without visible benefit
- •Create long GIFs: Animations >10s should be MP4 for quality and size
- •Skip testing: Always verify your GIF works in Discord before sharing widely
- •Forget mobile users: Large files load slowly on mobile—optimize for all platforms