Split a GIF into Image Frames
Original GIF Settings
ReadyGIF Frame Extractor: Choose the Images You Need
Open an animated GIF and export its frames as individual images. Extract the complete animation, choose an exact start and end frame, or keep every nth frame when you only need a sample. PNG preserves each frame without lossy compression, while JPG and WebP provide an adjustable quality setting for smaller images. The selected frames are packaged into one ZIP, which is useful for choosing a still, rebuilding an animation or preparing sprite and reference images.
Cost: Free to use. File size and usage limits apply.
- Input
- GIF with 100 frames
- Setting
- Extract every 5th frame as PNG
- Output
- 20 images in one ZIP
This is a worked example. The exported image count depends on the frames and selection in your own GIF.
How to split a GIF into frames
Add one GIF
Click Choose file or drop a GIF onto the preview. Animated and still GIFs up to 200 MB work. If Uploads already holds a GIF, including results from other GIF tools, the newest one is loaded automatically; pick a different one there.
Check the frame count
Below the preview you see the file name, the number of frames and the pixel size. The panel under it shows how many images your current selection will produce.
Choose which frames to export
In Settings, select All, Range or Interval. Range and Interval show their controls in the panel below the preview.
Pick the image format
Choose PNG, JPG or WebP under Output Format. Quality applies to JPG and WebP.
Split and download
Click Split GIF. When the job is done, Download saves one ZIP archive with all images. Adjust returns to the settings with the same GIF; New GIF opens the file picker.
Frame selection and output settings
Frame numbers start at 1 and follow the playback order of the GIF.
- All
- The default. Exports every frame, one image per frame, including frames that look the same as the one before. A GIF with 150 frames gives 150 images.
- Range: Start frame and End frame
- Exports every frame from Start frame to End frame, both included: 20 to 29 gives 10 images. Type the numbers or drag the two handles on the slider. End frame is set to the last frame when you load a GIF.
- Interval and Every Nth
- Keeps frame 1 and then every Nth frame: N = 3 gives frames 1, 4, 7 and so on, and N = 1 keeps every frame. Set N with the slider below the preview (up to 20) or type any value into Every Nth in Settings, which also switches the mode to Interval. Useful for contact sheets or GIFs with many near-identical frames.
- PNG
- The default and the best choice for most GIFs. PNG is lossless, so every pixel and all transparency are kept exactly. The images are saved as full-color PNGs with an alpha channel, not as 256-color palette images, so they can be large.
- JPG
- JPG is worth trying for photographic frames; compare the actual file sizes. It has no transparency: transparent areas become white. Set the compression with Quality. Hard edges and flat colors can show smudges, especially in text and pixel art.
- WebP
- Lossy WebP that keeps transparency. It stays lossy even at 100 %, so choose PNG when you need exact pixels.
- Quality
- 1 to 100 %, default 90 %. Used for JPG and WebP: lower values give smaller files and more visible artifacts.
What you get when you break a GIF into frames
Many GIFs are optimized: after the first frame, each frame stores only the pixels that changed, and the rest shows through from earlier frames. The tool rebuilds every frame the way it looks during playback, so each image is a complete picture at the GIF's full size in px, not a small patch.
Inside the ZIP, images are numbered in the order they were exported, starting at frame_0001 in every mode. With Range 20 to 29, frame_0001.png is frame 20 of the GIF and frame_0010.png is frame 29. With Interval N = 5 on a 60-frame GIF, you get 12 images, frames 1, 6, 11 up to 56, and frame_0002.png is frame 6.
The images carry no timing. A GIF stores a delay for each frame, in steps of 1/100 second, and usually a loop setting; still images have neither. If you edit the frames and want an animation again, add them to GIF Maker in the order of their numbers and set the frame delay there.
Formats and limits
- Input formats
- GIF, animated or still. A still GIF gives a ZIP with one image.
- Output
- One ZIP archive of PNG, JPG or WebP images
- Image size
- Same pixel dimensions as the GIF, no scaling
- Maximum file size
- 200 MB per GIF
- Files per job
- 1 GIF
- Processing
- On our servers with FFmpeg; no external or AI service is involved. A job can run for up to 15 minutes.
- Watermark
- None
- Storage
- Uploads and results are deleted automatically after 48 hours for guests and after 30 days for free accounts. Paid plans can keep files longer.
Frequently asked questions
Will an optimized GIF give me incomplete frames?
No. Each image shows the full frame as it appears during playback, including the parts carried over from earlier frames. Transparent areas stay transparent in PNG and WebP.
Why is the ZIP larger than my GIF?
A GIF uses a palette of up to 256 colors per frame and can store only the pixels that changed. Each exported image is a complete frame on its own. To get a smaller download, export fewer frames with Interval or Range, choose JPG or WebP with a lower Quality, or scale the GIF down first with Resize GIF.
Can I split a GIF into frames without losing quality?
Yes, with PNG. GIF frames are limited to a palette of at most 256 colors, and PNG stores them pixel for pixel. Exporting can't add detail the GIF never had, so a blurry or dithered GIF gives blurry or dithered frames. JPG and WebP are lossy.
Can I extract frames from a video instead?
This tool accepts GIF files only. For MP4, MOV, WebM and other videos, use Split Video, which offers the same choice between all frames, a range and every Nth frame.
Is my GIF kept private?
The GIF is processed on our servers and is not sent to any external or AI service. The upload and the ZIP are deleted automatically after 48 hours for guests and after 30 days for free accounts; paid plans can keep files longer.