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Use case

GIFs in email that load fast and survive Outlook

Video doesn’t play in email; GIFs mostly do. The exceptions are predictable, so design around them.

Open in the editorPreset: Email
Width
600px
Frame rate
10 fps
Target
≤ 0.9 MB
Open an empty project

How to · 3 steps

Step by step

  1. 1

    Cut it short

    Trim to the 3–6 seconds that make the point.

  2. 2

    Choose the frame Outlook shows

    Set Picture shown first under Canvas → Playback to a frame that works as a still.

  3. 3

    Export with the email preset

    Lazygif exports 600 px at 10 fps and fits about 1 MB.

Outlook shows only the first frame

Gmail, Apple Mail and most phones play GIFs. Desktop Outlook for Windows (2007–2016 builds) shows only the first frame, so a blank or fading first frame looks broken there.

600 px and about 1 MB

Most email templates are 600 px wide, so export at 600 and set width="600" on the image tag; Outlook ignores many CSS sizes. Keep the file near 1 MB so it loads on mobile data.

  • 10 fps saves a third of the frames versus 15 fps.
  • Flat colors compress far better than photos and gradients.
  • Give the GIF alt text, since some clients block images.

Size limits

Where this GIF is going

Limits for the destinations on this page. See every platform.

GIF size limits for Email (Gmail, Outlook, Apple Mail), Substack
PlatformMax GIF sizeLazygif preset
Email (Gmail, Outlook, Apple Mail)
No fixed limit
600px · 10 fps · ≤ 922 KB
Substack
Not published
600px · 10 fps · ≤ 922 KB

FAQ

Questions, answered

Do GIFs work in Outlook?
Partly. Desktop Outlook for Windows shows only the first frame; Outlook on the web, Mac and mobile animate them.
What size should an email GIF be?
600 px wide and under about 1 MB. The email preset does both.
Will a GIF make Gmail clip my email?
No. Gmail clips at about 102 KB of HTML; images don’t count.

Related

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