Convert video to GIF via CLI

ffmpeg: build a palette, then encode a looping animated GIF.

Packages to install

Only ffmpeg is required. palettegen and paletteuse keep GIF colors closer to the source.

ffmpeg

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install -y ffmpeg

How to run the command

Trim with -ss start and -to end before -i. Use -vf with fps, scale, palettegen, and paletteuse. -loop 0 repeats forever; -loop -1 plays once.

ffmpeg -y -i input.mp4 -vf "fps=10,scale=480:-1:flags=lanczos,split[s0][s1];[s0]palettegen[p];[s1][p]paletteuse" -loop 0 output.gif

Dockerfile example

Build a minimal Ubuntu image with the required packages and run the conversion inside the container.

FROM ubuntu:24.04

RUN apt-get update && \
    apt-get install -y --no-install-recommends \
        ffmpeg && \
    rm -rf /var/lib/apt/lists/*

WORKDIR /work

docker build -t video-to-gif .
docker run --rm -v "$PWD:/work" -w /work video-to-gif \
  ffmpeg -y -i input.mp4 -vf "fps=10,scale=480:-1:flags=lanczos,split[s0][s1];[s0]palettegen[p];[s1][p]paletteuse" -loop 0 output.gif

Example commands

Run these locally after installing the packages, or inside the container from the Dockerfile.

ffmpeg -y -i input.mp4 -vf "fps=10,scale=480:-1:flags=lanczos,split[s0][s1];[s0]palettegen[p];[s1][p]paletteuse" -loop 0 output.gif

ffmpeg -y -ss 1.5 -to 4 -i input.mp4 -vf "fps=10,scale=480:-1:flags=lanczos,split[s0][s1];[s0]palettegen[p];[s1][p]paletteuse" -loop 0 clip.gif

ffmpeg -y -i input.webm -vf "fps=15,scale=480:-1:flags=lanczos,split[s0][s1];[s0]palettegen[p];[s1][p]paletteuse" -loop 0 output.gif

ffmpeg -y -i input.avi -vf "fps=10,scale=320:-1:flags=lanczos,split[s0][s1];[s0]palettegen[p];[s1][p]paletteuse" -loop -1 output.gif