Route Animation Video (MP4)

Your route as a shareable video

Instagram Reels, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts are the default way people share physical achievements today. An animated route video — your exact GPS track drawing in over a designed poster background, with stats counting up — fits naturally into that format and gives context that a static photo cannot.

The MP4 export from Route Posters is an H.264 video encoded from the same frame sequence used for the GIF export, but at full poster resolution and without the colour depth limitations of GIF. The result is a sharp, smooth video that holds up at any size from a phone screen to a TV display.

Because the video runs in your browser using the Web Codecs API, there is no server upload and no processing queue. Drop in your GPX, TCX, FIT or KML file, configure the animation in the Animate panel, and your MP4 downloads in seconds alongside an offline-generated poster.

From GPS file to Reels-ready video

1. 1

   Get your GPS file

   Export a GPX, TCX, FIT or KML file from Strava, Garmin Connect, Apple Fitness, Wahoo, Suunto, or any GPS platform. Any activity with a GPS track works — run, ride, hike, swim.

2. 2

   Open the Animate panel

   The Animate panel opens automatically when you arrive from this page. Drop your file in and your route appears. Choose a colour scheme, set the animation length, and preview the draw-in.

3. 3

   Export MP4 and post

   Select MP4 in the export settings, hit export, and the file downloads to your device. Upload directly to Instagram Reels, TikTok, YouTube Shorts, or import it into your video editor.

Frequently asked questions

Why export as MP4 instead of GIF for Instagram and TikTok?

Instagram and TikTok do not accept GIF uploads for Reels or Stories — they require a video file. MP4 also offers much better quality at smaller file sizes compared to GIF, which is important for platforms that re-compress uploads. For Twitter, Discord, and blogs a GIF still works well.

What aspect ratio does the MP4 export use?

The default export matches the poster canvas proportions (roughly 2:3 portrait). For Instagram Stories, Reels, and TikTok the recommended crop is 9:16 vertical — the editor lets you choose the export crop so you can get the right framing for each platform.

Can I add the MP4 to a YouTube video or presentation?

Yes. The MP4 is a standard H.264 video file compatible with video editing software (DaVinci Resolve, Premiere Pro, iMovie, CapCut) and presentation tools (Keynote, PowerPoint). You can drop it into a race recap video or embed it in a slide deck.