GIF87 to WEBP Converter
FileFlip converts GIF87 to WEBP entirely inside your browser, using ImageMagick compiled to WebAssembly. The file is never uploaded to a server: it is read off your disk, converted on your own machine, and saved back by the browser. That means no file-size limit, no queue and no account.
How do I convert a GIF87 file to WEBP?#
- Drop your GIF87 file onto the converter at the top of this page, or click it to pick one from your computer. You can add as many as you like.
- Leave the target set to WEBP and the conversion starts on its own. FileFlip downloads 14.1 MB of WebAssembly the first time and nothing after that, then runs ImageMagick on your own machine.
- Save the WEBP file. Your browser writes it straight to your downloads folder, because there was never a server holding it.
Does converting GIF87 to WEBP lose quality?#
Yes, once. GIF87 keeps everything and WEBP does not, so this is the first time the file meets a lossy encoder. At high quality the difference is hard to see, and it is worth keeping the GIF87 original, because every later re-save of the WEBP loses a little more.
Is it safe to convert GIF87 files online?#
Yes, because nothing is uploaded. FileFlip converts GIF87 files inside the browser tab you already have open, using WebAssembly builds of the same engines a desktop converter would install. Your file is read from your own disk into the page's memory, and no request carrying it is ever made.
You do not have to take that on trust. Open your browser's network panel, run a conversion, and you will see the engine come down and your file go nowhere. There is no upload, no server-side copy, no retention window, and no account tied to what you converted.
How FileFlip works lists every engine, its version and its download size, and shows how to check for yourself that nothing leaves your machine.
What GIF87 to WEBP actually does to the file#
Converting GIF87 to WEBP runs on ImageMagick, downloads 14.1 MB of WebAssembly the first time and nothing after that, encodes a lossless source with a lossy encoder for the first time, and drops extra images.
| Engine | ImageMagick |
|---|---|
| Conversion path | One step: GIF87 → WEBP |
| Downloaded to your browser | 14.1 MB, once, then cached by your browser |
| Quality | Lossy, first generation |
| You get back | One file |
| Where it runs | In a background worker, so the page stays responsive |
What survives the conversion
| What is in the file | This conversion | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Extra images | Dropped | The target format has nowhere to put it. |
Worth knowing before you start:
- ImageMagick is asked for a single image, so only the first frame, page, or icon size is read
What is a GIF87 file?#
A GIF87 file follows the original 1987 Graphics Interchange Format specification that CompuServe published two years before GIF89a added transparency and animation, so it stores a single, fully opaque image using the same LZW compression and 256-color palette as any other GIF.
There's essentially no reason to target GIF87 today; write a plain GIF, which is GIF89a, instead unless a specific tool or test needs the older header.
Convert to GIF89a or PNG when the image needs transparency or animation, since GIF87 supports neither.
What is a WEBP file?#
A WebP file holds a still or animated image compressed with Google's WebP codec, built as a single format to undercut JPEG, PNG, and GIF on file size at comparable quality.
Use WebP for images on the web: it's the general-purpose replacement for JPEG, PNG, and GIF now that every major browser renders it natively.
Convert WebP to JPEG or PNG when the file needs to open in older software, a print workflow, or an app that still doesn't recognize the .webp extension.
GIF87 to WEBP questions people ask#
What is a GIF87 file?
A GIF87 file follows the original 1987 Graphics Interchange Format specification that CompuServe published before adding transparency and animation in 1989's GIF89a. It stores a single, fully opaque static image.
What's the difference between GIF87 and GIF89a?
GIF89a, released in 1989, added the features people now associate with GIF: transparent backgrounds, multi-frame animation, and comment or application metadata blocks. GIF87, the original 1987 version, has none of those and can only hold one static, opaque image.
Do modern browsers still support GIF87 files?
Yes. GIF89a was designed as a backward-compatible extension of GIF87, so every GIF reader that handles modern animated GIFs also reads a plain GIF87 file without any issue.
What is a WebP file?
A WebP file is an image saved with Google's WebP codec, which can encode a picture either losslessly or lossily and supports both transparency and animation in the same format. Google introduced it in 2010 to replace JPEG, PNG, and GIF with one format that produces smaller files at comparable quality.