Caption GIF Maker

How to add text to a GIF

The caption GIF maker puts your text on the video or photos as you make the GIF, and you see it on the preview while you edit.

1. Drop a video or photosStart with the clip you want to caption, and trim it first so the words line up with the moment.
2. Open Caption and typeEnter your text. One short line usually lands best.
3. Pick a style and positionChoose Outline, Shadow or Box, set Position to Top or Bottom, and tap a color swatch.
4. Export GIFTap Export GIF. The caption is part of every frame, so it looks the same wherever you post it.

Choosing a caption style

• Outline draws an edge around every letter, so the text holds up over light and dark parts of the clip. It's the classic meme look.
• Shadow adds a drop shadow behind the text. It's quieter than an outline and works best over darker or simpler footage.
• Box sets the text on a solid band, like a subtitle. Pick it when the background is busy or bright, or when you want the caption to read like a message.

Top or Bottom? Put the caption where it won't cover the action. Faces usually sit in the upper middle of a frame, so Bottom is the safer default. Top suits clips where the action is low in the frame, like a dog skidding across the kitchen floor.

Meme GIF tips

• Write in all caps. Bold capitals with an outline are the impact-style look people expect from a meme, and capitals stay legible when the GIF is small.
• Keep lines short. Aim for six words or fewer. If the joke needs a second sentence, it probably needs a different clip.
• Let the clip land. Trim so the reaction happens a beat after the caption is readable, not before.
• Use a color with contrast. White or yellow text with an outline reads on almost any footage.

For example: a cat staring at an empty food bowl, captioned “WHEN THE GROUP CHAT GOES QUIET”. Six words, all caps, Outline, Bottom. Done. Prefer a reaction bubble? The speech bubble template adds one to the top of your image.

Make captions readable at small sizes

Most chat apps show GIFs smaller than you made them, and many people see them on a phone. If you have to squint at the preview, the caption is too long or too low in contrast. Fewer words means bigger letters, and a 480 px export gives text more pixels than 320 px.

Before you post, the Where it fits strip shows whether the GIF fits Discord, X and Slack, and the result page previews it inside a mock Discord or iMessage chat so you can see how big the text really looks. Making a reaction for a server? The Discord GIF maker has more on sizing. Want text with no video at all? Try the text GIF maker.

Frequently asked questions