Your Gmail profile picture is the same picture as your Google Account picture, so you change it in your Google Account. First, make the picture with the free Animated Profile Picture Maker from Dataxad. It gives you two files: loop.gif, an animated GIF of up to 5 MB, and profile.jpg, a 512 by 512 pixel still image. Then sign in to your Google Account, click Personal info, and under Basic info click Profile picture. Upload loop.gif from your device, crop it, click Next, and click Save as profile picture. Google’s help pages do not say whether an animated picture plays. Test it with your own account: look at your picture in Gmail, Chat and Meet. If only one still frame shows, upload profile.jpg instead. Google says a new picture can take a few days to show in all its products. Work or school accounts follow your admin’s rules.
Steps
- Make the picture. Open the Animated Profile Picture Maker, add a photo, pick a template, and download loop.gif. Download profile.jpg too, in case you need a still image.
- Open your Google Account. Sign in to your Google Account on a computer and click Personal info.
- Choose Profile picture. Under Basic info, click Profile picture.
- Upload the GIF. Upload loop.gif from your device. Rotate and crop it if you need to, click Next, then click Save as profile picture.
- Check Gmail, Chat and Meet. Look at your picture in Gmail, in Google Chat and in Google Meet, and note whether it moves.
- Fall back to the JPEG if needed. If only one still frame shows, upload profile.jpg instead, so you choose the frame that people see.
Menu labels come from Google’s guide to changing your profile picture. Google can change them.
Does the animation play?
Google’s help pages do not say whether an animated picture plays. Test it with your own account. Until someone runs these tests, treat each of the points below as unknown:
- Open test: Google accepts an animated GIF as a personal profile picture.
- Open test: The animation plays in Gmail.
- Open test: The animation plays in Google Chat.
- Open test: The animation plays in Google Meet.
To test, upload loop.gif, then look at your picture in Gmail, Chat and Meet. If only one still frame shows, upload the profile.jpg download instead. That way you pick the frame people see, rather than leaving it to chance.
How long does a change take?
Google’s account help says “it sometimes takes a few days to update across all Google products.” If your old picture still shows in one place, give it time before you upload again.
Gmail and your Google Account share one picture
Google’s Gmail help page says your Gmail profile picture is your Google Account picture. Change it once, and it changes for Gmail too. The picture can also show in other Google services.
Work and school accounts
On a Google Workspace account, your admin is in charge of profile photos. Google’s admin help page says a photo that an admin sets must be a JPEG or PNG file of up to 5 MB and up to 20 million pixels. You can change your own photo only when your admin allows it. A GIF is neither JPEG nor PNG, so use profile.jpg for a work or school account. Read Google’s guide to adding or changing a user’s profile photo.
Google Meet
When a meeting host turns off participants’ cameras, Google Meet shows each person’s profile picture in place of their video. Whether an animated picture moves there is an open test.
What the tool makes
The Animated Profile Picture Maker makes loop.gif, a 256 by 256 pixel animated GIF of at most 5 MB, and profile.jpg, a 512 by 512 pixel JPEG. It is free, needs no account, and your photo stays in your browser.
Frequently asked questions
Is my Gmail picture the same as my Google Account picture?
Yes. Google’s Gmail help page says your Gmail profile picture is your Google Account picture. When you change one, you change the other.
Will my animated picture move in Gmail?
Google’s help pages do not say whether an animated picture plays. Test it with your own account: upload the GIF, then look in Gmail, Chat and Meet. If only one still frame shows, upload the JPEG download instead.
Why does my new picture not show everywhere yet?
Google says a profile picture change can take a few days to show in all Google products.
Can I use an animated GIF on a Google Workspace account?
Not for a photo that an admin sets. Google’s admin help page accepts JPEG or PNG only, up to 5 MB and 20 million pixels. Admins control user photos, and you can change your own photo only when your admin allows it. Use profile.jpg for a work or school account.
Where else does my profile picture appear?
In Google Meet, when a host turns off participants’ cameras, Meet shows their profile picture in place of video. Whether an animated picture moves there is still an open test.
Built by Dataxad. Founded by Sam Jacobson.