The Tenor API is dying
On June 30, 2026, Google shuts down the public Tenor GIF API. For years it quietly answered the GIF searches inside Discord, WhatsApp, Twitter, Bluesky, Telegram, and a pile of apps that never told you they were using it.
time remaining until shutdown
until the Tenor API shuts down
what happened
Google announced the shutdown on January 13, 2026. New API sign-ups stopped that day. On June 30, 2026 the keys that still work go dark too, and calls to the API start returning errors instead of GIFs.
Tenor's own website and app keep running. The part that let every other app pull from its GIF library does not.
why
Google's stated reason is that it wants to focus on its core products. We all know what those core products are. (AI servers)
I mean think about it, why would they drop the most used part of the service for no reason?
what will happen next
For apps that used Tenor, the GIF picker either gets pointed at a new source or it stops working. Giphy is the usual fallback, but Meta owns it now and it comes with its own keys and rate limits, so you're really just picking a different company to depend on.
It won't break everywhere at once. Some apps switched months ago and you'll never know the difference. Others will keep hitting a dead endpoint until someone notices the GIF button does nothing. The smaller ones that can't justify a paid plan may just drop GIF search and say nothing about it.
further reading