Is it possible to activate an animated gif on scroll using Webflow?

Yes, it’s possible to trigger an animated GIF on scroll in Webflow by using a visibility technique, since GIFs inherently play when loaded into the browser.

1. Understand How GIFs Work in Webflow

• GIFs start animating when they load into the browser viewport. Unlike video files, you can’t programmatically “play” or “pause” them natively.
• To simulate activation on scroll, you must reload or reinsert the GIF when the user scrolls to it.

2. Use Scroll Interaction to Replace the GIF

• Upload the GIF to Webflow and add it as an Image element on the canvas.
• Place the GIF inside a div wrapper and set its initial display to None using Webflow's Interactions panel.
• Create a Scroll Into View animation (using Interactions):
• Select the GIF wrapper.
• Go to the Interactions panel.
• Add a Scroll Into View trigger.
• As the action, set the wrapper’s Display to Block and its Opacity to 100% with 0ms transition.
• This forces the GIF to be removed and reinserted into the DOM, thereby restarting the animation.

3. Optional: Use Multiple GIFs for Control

• If you want even more control, such as playing once only or resetting later:
• Create two versions of the same GIF in separate wrappers.
• Hide both by default.
• Use interactions to swap in the playing version when scrolled into view.

Summary

To activate a GIF on scroll in Webflow, use scroll-triggered interactions to hide and then re-display the GIF element. This reloads the GIF in the browser, effectively starting the animation at the desired scroll position.