Sticker Generator – Make Stickers From Photos and Videos

From Photo to Sticker: What the Browser Exports and What Chat Apps Expect

A sticker made in a browser leaves as a PNG, a GIF or a WebM. The chat app you want to use it in may ask for something else. WhatsApp sticker packs need WebP files, and Telegram video stickers must be VP9 WebM, no longer than 3 seconds and no bigger than 256 KB.

A Sticker Generator handles the creative part of that chain, which is framing, shape, outline and text. This guide explains what the KromoTools tool does, where the file formats stop short, and how to bridge the gap.

What the Tool Does, and What It Does Not

Think of this sticker maker as a framing and styling tool. You add an image, GIF or short video, zoom, rotate and drag it into place, then choose a shape (square, circle, rounded, star, hexagon or heart), a background (transparent, solid or gradient), an outline, a shadow, a sparkle effect and a text caption. Twelve presets give you one-click starting styles. If you are looking for a way to make a sticker from a photo, a few points are worth knowing first:

• There is no background removal. The outline follows the shape you choose, not the edge of the person or object in the picture. To turn a photo into a sticker cut around a subject, start with a PNG whose background is already transparent, then use the Square shape with a Transparent background. The Square shape has no outline or shadow.
• The outline eats into the picture. For a circle at 512 px with the shadow on, a 10 px outline leaves a picture area about 444 px across, and a 40 px outline leaves about 384 px.
• Emojis are not separate layers. Clicking one adds it to the caption text, so it uses part of the 40-character limit and moves with the text.
• A preset replaces your caption along with its colors, shape and outline. Choose a preset first, then type your text.
• The text is drawn on top and is not clipped by the shape. It shrinks automatically when it is too wide for the picture area.
• The default background is a gradient, so the PNG comes out filled unless you choose Transparent.

In the provided implementation, files are processed in your browser and are not uploaded. The GIF export downloads its encoder from a public code library when you use it, so it needs an internet connection. If your goal is a profile picture rather than a sticker, the Avatar Generator frames a photo in a circle or other shape and exports a PNG sized for profiles.

What the Chat Apps Expect

As a digital sticker maker, the tool exports three formats, and each lands differently:

• PNG at 256, 512 or 1024 px, with a transparent area outside the shape when the background is set to Transparent. Chat apps place stickers on white, dark and patterned backgrounds, so an outline helps them stay readable, which is why the default outline is white.
• GIF at 256, 384 or 512 px, 1 to 4 seconds long, at 10 or 15 frames per second (12 if you do not choose). The GIF format allows a pixel to be either fully transparent or fully opaque, so with a transparent background the tool removes pixels that are less than half opaque, and soft edges and shadows come out jagged. Turn the shadow off for transparent GIFs.
• WebM recorded in real time at the same sizes, so a 3-second clip takes 3 seconds to record.

Telegram's own documentation says video stickers must be WebM encoded with VP9, up to 30 frames per second, with no audio, one side exactly 512 pixels, at most 3 seconds long and at most 256 KB. Compare that with the tool. Only the 512 px size meets the side rule, the length slider goes up to 4 seconds, and the recorder targets about 1.5 megabits per second, roughly 187 KB for every second. At that rate a clip longer than about 1.4 seconds can pass 256 KB, though simple clips may come out smaller, so always check the file. The tool asks for VP9 when your browser supports it and otherwise falls back to plain WebM, which may not meet the VP9 rule. The page does not say whether transparency survives in the WebM, and browsers differ, so test it.

WhatsApp's sticker documentation requires WebP, with static stickers at 100 KB or less and animated ones at 500 KB or less. Packs hold 3 to 30 stickers, cannot mix static and animated, and need a 96 by 96 pixel tray icon. The tool does not export WebP, so you would convert the PNG or GIF with a sticker-pack app. One guide notes that photographic or highly detailed stickers tend to exceed the 100 KB limit, so a simple design with flat colors converts more easily.

Common Mistakes With Sticker Tools

• Expecting a cut-out from a busy photo. The shape cuts the frame, not the subject. Use a transparent PNG if you want the sticker shaped like the subject.
• Typing text before choosing a preset. The preset overwrites your caption. Pick the preset first.
• Exporting a long WebM for Telegram. Keep the clip to 3 seconds or less, choose 512 px and check the size afterward.
• Leaving the shadow on for a transparent GIF. The soft shadow becomes a rough edge, so switch it off.
• Using the Start slider with a GIF. It applies to videos only. For a GIF, the tool captures frames in real time from wherever the animation currently is.

Questions the Tool Page Does Not Answer

What should I write on a sticker?

Keep it short enough to read at thumbnail size. A few words work better than a sentence. The Short style in the Caption Generator produces brief lines you can trim further.

Can I make a whole sticker pack?

The tool makes one sticker at a time. For WhatsApp you need at least 3 finished stickers in a pack, up to 30, and a pack must be all static or all animated. Telegram's official route is its @Stickers bot, which accepts PNG, WebP and WebM files.

Does the sticker keep the sound from my video?

No. The video is muted and the recorded WebM has no audio, which matches Telegram's no-audio rule for video stickers.

Can I print these stickers?

The tool is built for chat stickers, not print. It has no bleed, cut line or print-resolution settings, and the largest export is 1024 px. For printed vinyl stickers, follow the file guidelines of the print service you choose.

Is there a ready-made option if I do not want to design one?

Yes. Emoji Kitchen lets you pick two emojis and copy Google's mashup sticker if one exists for that pair.

Test It in a Real Chat Before You Build a Pack

Make one sticker, convert it if the app requires another format, and send it to yourself on both a light and a dark chat background. If it reads clearly on both, the rest of the pack can follow the same style.

Reviewed by Kromo Tools Team

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