Convert WMF to GIF — Free Online Converter
Convert Windows Metafile (.wmf) to Graphics Interchange Format (.gif) online for free. Fast, secure image conversion with no watermarks or registratio...
Secure Transfer
HTTPS encrypted uploads
Privacy First
Files auto-deleted after processing
No Registration
Start converting instantly
Works Everywhere
Any browser, any device
How to Convert
Upload your .wmf file by dragging it into the upload area or clicking to browse.
Choose your output settings. The default settings work great for most files.
Click Convert and download your .gif file when it's ready.
About WMF to GIF Conversion
WMF (Windows Metafile) is Microsoft's legacy vector format from 1990, containing GDI drawing commands for lines, shapes, text, and embedded bitmaps. WMF files are found in legacy Windows clip art collections, old Word documents, and 1990s-era desktop publishing. GIF (Graphics Interchange Format) is the universal 256-color web image format compatible with every browser and messaging platform.
Converting WMF to GIF rasterizes the legacy vector graphics at a specified resolution and saves the result as a compact, web-friendly image. This conversion is ideal for WMF clip art with limited color palettes — the type of simple, flat-colored graphics that WMF files typically contain. GIF's 256-color palette handles this type of content well, producing small files that load quickly on any platform.
Why Convert WMF to GIF?
WMF clip art from the Windows 95/98 era needs to be converted to a web-viewable format for inclusion in modern web content, email newsletters, and social media. GIF provides universal compatibility — the output displays in every browser, email client, and messaging app. For the simple, flat-colored clip art that WMF files typically contain, GIF's 256-color palette is sufficient for faithful reproduction.
Legacy document digitization projects recover WMF graphics from old Word, Publisher, and PowerPoint files. Converting these to GIF creates compact, web-ready images that can be cataloged, searched, and reused in modern web-based document management systems and content management platforms.
Common Use Cases
- Convert legacy Windows clip art from WMF to web-viewable GIF for online archives and galleries
- Rasterize WMF diagrams from old documents as GIF for inclusion in web-based knowledge bases
- Create animated GIF sequences from multiple WMF frames for retro-styled web content
- Extract WMF graphics from old Publisher newsletters and convert to GIF for web republishing
- Produce compact GIF icons from WMF clip art for use in email templates and web interfaces
How It Works
The WMF GDI records are interpreted and rendered onto a raster canvas at the specified resolution (default 96 DPI for screen use). The rendered image is then quantized to a maximum 256-color GIF palette using adaptive palette selection. For WMF clip art with fewer than 256 unique colors (very common), the quantization is lossless — every color maps directly. GIF's LZW compression produces compact files, especially for the large areas of solid color typical in clip art. Optional transparency can be set by designating a specific color as the transparent GIF color.
Quality & Performance
For typical WMF clip art with flat colors and clean lines (the vast majority of WMF content), GIF reproduces the visual output perfectly. The simple color palettes fit well within GIF's 256-color limit. WMF files containing photographic embedded bitmaps or complex gradients will show visible color banding in GIF output. The rendering resolution determines the spatial quality — 96 DPI for web, 150 DPI for higher quality viewing.
Device Compatibility
| Device | WMF | GIF |
|---|---|---|
| Windows PC | Partial | Native |
| macOS | Partial | Partial |
| iPhone/iPad | Partial | Partial |
| Android | Partial | Native |
| Linux | Partial | Partial |
| Web Browser | No | Native |
Tips for Best Results
- 1Most WMF clip art has fewer than 256 colors — GIF reproduces it perfectly with tiny file sizes
- 2Set the background color as transparent for clean integration on web pages
- 3PNG is generally better than GIF for static clip art — use GIF only for animation or legacy compatibility
- 496 DPI is sufficient for web display — avoid unnecessarily high resolutions
- 5Batch convert entire WMF clip art libraries to GIF for organized web-ready image archives
WMF to GIF conversion produces compact, universally viewable images from legacy Windows clip art and diagrams. The 256-color format is well-suited to the simple, flat-colored graphics that WMF files typically contain.