Best Ways to Rotate GIF on PC, Phone, and Online - Complete Tutorial

A GIF that plays sideways or upside down can easily disrupt your presentation or social media post, which is why knowing how to rotate GIFs properly is essential. Whether you are polishing a short animation, fixing orientation issues, or simply experimenting with visuals, rotating a GIF can instantly improve its appeal. This guide explores reliable desktop, mobile, and online tools to help you rotate and enhance GIFs effortlessly across any platform.

Part 1. How to Rotate GIF on Windows and Mac

Changing the orientation of a GIF on your computer can resolve the issue of an animation being angled awkwardly, or it can enhance a presentation intended for social media or websites. With suitable computer applications, you can perform tasks such as rotating or flipping a GIF, changing resolution, modifying playback speed, and improving quality.

1. AVAide Video Converter (Highly Recommended)

For novices and professionals alike, AVAide Video Converter fulfills the purpose of a simple desktop application for GIF and video conversion, editing, and enhancement. It provides the functionality to perform quality-preserving rotations, flips, and crops on a GIF. In addition to a GIF Maker, the software Toolbox also provides additional editing options such as compression, enhancement, watermark removal, and a full suite of video utilities. The software boasts outputs of your choice for personal or professional use at very reasonable prices.

Step 1Download and Install

Visit the AVAide official page and click on Free Download for Windows or Mac. After your download is complete, launch the application from your desktop.

Step 2Upload the GIF

On the main screen, select Add Files and browse for the GIF you want to edit.

Step 3Access the Edit Window

Once the file is loaded, hit the Edit button to open the editing windows and proceed to the video editing panel.

Step 4Rotating and Flipping the GIF

In the Rotate and Crop window, use the rotation options to Left Rotate, Right Rotate, Horizontal Flip, and Vertical Flip. Before applying any changes, you can see them in the previewer.

Step 5Exporting the Rotated GIF

Once done editing, and you hit the OK button and return to the main screen, you can now open the Output Format drop-down, select GIF for your format and hit Convert All. All done, the rotated GIF will be saved to the folder you had selected.

2. Adobe Photoshop

Adobe Photoshop is one of the most reliable desktop applications for image and GIF manipulation. Unlike static photos, Photoshop gives you the ability to control rotation, flipping, and editing of GIFs frame by frame, and animated controls. Photoshop is also designed for people who want to orient their GIFs in any way they like or convert other image formats effortlessly, such as PNG to GIF.

Step 1Install and open Adobe Photoshop on your computer.

Step 2Click File > Open, and select the GIF you want to edit. You will see frames in the Timeline panel.

Step 3To adjust an image, select the top menu, then click on Image > Image Rotation. Depending on how you want the image rotated, select the appropriate option of the following: Rotate 180°, Rotate 90° Clockwise, Rotate 90° Counterclockwise, Flip Horizontal, or Flip Vertical.

Step 4You can rotate the image preview using the Timeline playback control.

Step 5Select File > Export > Save for Web (Legacy)…, choose your preferred settings for the exported Rotation GIF in the settings. Choose the GIF format, then hit Save to export the rotated GIF.

3. GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program)

GIMP stands for GNU Image Manipulation Program, a free, open-source, and powerful image editor that can also edit animated GIFs. GIMP offers the same powerful professional tools that Photoshop has, and is more user-friendly to novice users. Even with GIMP being a lightweight program compared to other professional editors, it is an excellent free professional image editor that can also convert GIF to MP4 with ease.

Step 1Download GIMP from its official site and open it.

Step 2Click File > Open and select your GIF to open it. Select Open as Animation when prompted.

Step 3Click View > Flip and Rotate either 90°, 180°, or 270° or flip it horizontally or vertically.

Step 4To review the rotated animation in real-time, go to Filters > Animation > Playback.

Step 5Go to File > Save or Save As, choose GIF, and ensure As animation is checked. Click Export to save your rotated GIF.

Part 2. How to Rotate GIF on Android and iPhone

Mobile users have the option of using CapCut, a powerful editing application, for GIF manipulation. CapCut is accessible on both Android and iPhone and allows editing features such as importing and exporting GIF files. Users can adjust orientation, animation direction, flow, and timing with great precision. The user-friendly interface allows even the most novice users to perform alterations and enhancements of a GIF with ease.

Step 1Download the application from the Google Play Store or App Store and launch the application after the download is complete.

Step 2Select New project and pick the GIF from your image files. If your GIF does not come up, you can import it after converting it to a short MP4.

Step 3Choose the clip located on the timeline and use two fingers to adjust its direction on the preview screen. You can also edit and rotate for a precise angle of your choice.

Step 4Click the Export button on the top-right, select GIF, and store it on your device.

Part 3. How to Rotate GIF Free Online

With Ezgif, users are allowed to make direct and instant GIF edits on the browser. Ezgif is an online tool, and users enjoy its editing speed and simplicity. Without original quality loss, users can make directional edits, cropping, flipping, and trimming of frames, which makes it suitable for instant edits.

Step 1Use any browser on your device and search for Ezgif.

Step 2Click Choose File, select the GIF you wish to edit, and click Upload.

Step 3Choose Rotate 90°, Rotate 180°, Rotate 270°, Flip Horizontal, or Flip Vertical. The result will be shown in the preview.

Step 4Click Save or Convert to GIF to save the edited file.

By Jane Pineda on Nov 11, 2025