How to turn a GIF into a Live Photo
iPhone’s own apps can’t turn a GIF into a Live Photo, so you need a converter app: save the GIF to Photos, open it in a GIF-to-Live-Photo app and save the result as a Live Photo. Then you can set it as a moving Lock Screen.
Save the GIF
If someone sent you the GIF in Messages, touch and hold it and tap Save; it goes to Photos. You can find GIFs in Messages too: tap the Add button in a conversation, then #images. From a website or a GIF app, use that app’s save or share option.
A saved GIF still animates, but it isn’t a Live Photo. Apple’s moving-wallpaper steps start from a Live Photo, so the GIF needs converting first.
Convert it with an app
Some GIF and wallpaper apps in the App Store can save a GIF as a Live Photo. The steps differ from app to app, but usually you open the GIF in the app and choose to save it as a Live Photo; some let you choose how it fits the screen. Check that the App Store page says it saves Live Photos before you download.
Then make sure it worked: open Photos, tap Collections, scroll to Media Types and tap Live Photos. Touch and hold the new one to play it.
Set it as your wallpaper
- Open Settings and tap Wallpaper.
- Tap Add New Wallpaper, then Photos, then Live Photo.
- Tap the Live Photo you made. Make sure its Live Photo button is on, so it plays when you wake your iPhone. Pinch to zoom and drag with two fingers to fit it.
- Tap Add, then Set as Wallpaper Pair.
You can also start from the Lock Screen: touch and hold it to open the wallpaper gallery and add a new wallpaper from there.
More detail, and what to try if it won’t move, in how to set a Live Photo wallpaper. Starting from a video instead? See video to Live Photo.
Your own photo instead of a GIF
Tada makes Live Photos from photos, not from GIFs, so it can’t convert one. If what you really want is a moving Lock Screen of your own cat, friend or view, start from the photo: open Tada, tap Make it Live, pick it and tap Save. It goes to Photos as a real Live Photo, ready for the wallpaper steps above. Breathe and Puff are free.
Questions
Can iPhone convert a GIF to a Live Photo without an app?
No. You can save a GIF to Photos, but there’s no option to turn it into a Live Photo. A GIF-to-Live-Photo converter app does it.
Why isn’t my GIF wallpaper moving?
Apple says Lock Screen motion works with Live Photos that can be translated into slow motion, so some converted GIFs won’t move. Check that the Live Photo button is on, or try another.
Can Tada turn a GIF into a Live Photo?
No. Tada starts from a photo, never a GIF or a video. It can make any photo in your camera roll into a Live Photo.
Sources: Apple Support: Send and save GIFs on your iPhone or iPad · Apple Support: Set a Live Photo as your Lock Screen wallpaper on your iPhone · iPhone User Guide: Create a custom iPhone Lock Screen · iPhone User Guide: Locate photos and videos by media type · Apple Support: Take and edit Live Photos