How Do I Insert An Animated .gif Into An Email Message?

Once you have selected or created a GIF file is relatively simple to insert it into an email message. Most email providers will insert GIF files in the same way but the example below shows you how to do the process in Microsoft Outlook. If you are using a different email provider and are finding it difficult to follow the steps then try using the help function within your email. This should provide you with a step by step guide of how to insert the file. GIF files are a good way to send smaller file sized images or short animations via email. They can be sent much quicker than full colour photos or videos and run less of a risk of being rejected by the email provider at either end.

Find your selected GIF file that you want to send and make a note of its folder directory location. Ensure that it is saved as a GIF file and is a reasonable size to send. If the file is too large the receiver email provider may not be able to display it or you may not be able to send the message at all. Compose a new email by selecting ‘Compose Message’ or ‘New’ (whichever your email provider displays). Then click into the body of the email and write in the message that you want to send. Once you have finished your message select ‘Insert’, then ‘Picture’ and finally ‘From file’. Remembering where the image was saved, locate it and double click it to load the image into the body of your email. Be aware that if you have chosen to send an animated GIF file, it will not move during the sending process. If you want to be sure that your GIF file is working it may be worth first emailing the message to yourself and seeing how it displays, before sending it on to another recipient.

Everyone above is correct on how to send an animated GIF.  The reason it does not appear animated when the e-mail is opened in Outlook 2007 has to do with security in the HTML preview window.  In order to view the animation, the user must choose Other Actions > View in Browser.

Well I figured it out on my own, because that answer is of no help.  I had the same problem and if you follow this guy's answer you still just get one frame of the animation in your email. Thanks for nothing.

This is how you do it:

You have to change the email from rich text format (or plain text) to 'edit in HTML'. Then post your gif  to a photo hosting site like www.photobucket.com (for free) then put the HTML tags for that gif in the body of your email. DO NOT put the email / I'm tags in your email, use the HTML tags. This works for me in HOTMAIL. You can then add text anywhere you want. Behind, in front of, in between any pix you have. As long as it's not porn. Those photo hosting sites don't like that.

I have been somewhat of an "expert" on using animated gifs for years now, and ever since getting Outlook 2007 you cannot send animated gifs in e-mail. I have tried everything....the usual Insert Picture' (sends it as a still pic as the original question said), copy and pasting...all the things mentioned above and none of them work. Anybody got any other suggestions? If you have an older version of Outlook it is no problem to send animated gifs, but not with the latest version for some reason...and it's really annoying me as I love to send animated gifs and have an EXTENSIVE collection of them that I can no longer use! Any help would be appreciated! Thanks!

You have to attach them, but the recipient will still be able to see the files embedded in the e-mail they receive. However, if what you want to do is send them an e-mail, where you can add some text in between pictures, say a title or description, that's not going to work from the Hotmail website, because Hotmail will display all pictures at the bottom of your message. To be able to add text and pictures in whatever position you want them to be, you need an e-mail application, such as Outlook Express or Microsoft Outlook for Windows, Mail or Microsoft Entourage for Apple.

I am using Outlook 2003 and none of the above suggestions work. Tried them all - so someone who actually knows what they are doing please reply.

When I selected the file on my hard drive, do a copy and paste, only the name of the file is pasted. I'm on a MAC OS X system

I thought I was seeing the same problem, using Eudora ver 7, but
I tested it - mailing it from one personality to another (Eudora allows
multiple 'personalities' - addresses); and, sure enough, when I
opened the email, it was, in fact, animated.

I don't know how to get around the security issue with Outlook 2007. My only recommendation would be to view the gif as a webpage; you can always switch to a different email program as well.

It worked for me. Just copy the gif file first to your HD and them recopy from the HD and paste it to your email. When the receiver opens the mail, it will move as animated gif.

Get an account with a program like photobucket. Upload the gif to your account, then copy and paste the html into your email message.

It works if you use menu 'insert', 'picture', 'from file'... The animated gif will be pasted into the body of the email, not as an attachment.

Call a person Who knows how to do it and make him do , wait for sometime till he finishes his job and sent the mail. Simple and Easy...

Insert the gif file into your e-mail as a picture file Click in the body of the e-mail where you want the gif file to be and insert it as a picture.