More Reddit users will have the option to add GIFs directly in comments starting today. Until now, the feature was only available for Powerups subscribers. But with Reddit winding down Powerups, it’s making some of the previously paywalled features available to everyone. Inline GIFs in comments is one of those.
If the feature is enabled on a subreddit you want to comment on, you’ll be able to select a GIF from a curated library from Giphy. Moderators of safe-for-work subreddits and those that aren’t quarantined will be able to opt in if they want members of their communities to use GIFs in comments. GIF comments will be automatically available on new subreddits, though mods can switch them off in the community settings. Redditors can include text in their comment alongside a GIF as well.
For those who didn’t use Powerups, the only way to include a GIF in a comment was to link to one on a third-party site. Now, users can make GIFs appear directly in threads, which could make conversations a bit more lively. There is a downside, though. Scrolling through a thread full of large GIFs could drain your data allowance fairly quickly.