Anime.js v4 Skill
Anime.js is a lightweight JavaScript animation library with a simple yet powerful API. It works with CSS properties, SVG, DOM attributes, and JavaScript Objects.
Installation
NPM
bashnpm install animejs
ES Modules Import
javascriptimport { animate } from 'animejs';
CDN (ES Modules)
javascriptimport { animate } from 'https://esm.sh/animejs';
CDN (UMD)
html<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/animejs/dist/bundles/anime.umd.min.js"></script> <script> const { animate } = anime; </script>
Core Concepts
Anime.js v4 is modular and tree-shakeable. Import only what you need:
javascript// Full import import { animate, createTimeline, stagger, createDraggable } from 'animejs'; // Standalone modules for smaller bundles import { animate } from 'animejs/animation'; import { createTimeline } from 'animejs/timeline'; import { createTimer } from 'animejs/timer';
Documentation Sitemap
The complete anime.js v4 documentation structure:
Getting Started
- Installation (NPM, CDN, Direct download)
- Module imports (ES Modules, CommonJS, UMD)
- Using with vanilla JS
- Using with React
Timer (createTimer)
- Playback Settings: delay, duration, loop, loopDelay, alternate, reversed, autoplay, frameRate, playbackRate
- Callbacks: onBegin, onComplete, onUpdate, onLoop, onPause, then()
- Methods: play(), reverse(), pause(), restart(), alternate(), resume(), complete(), reset(), cancel(), revert(), seek(), stretch()
- Properties: currentTime, progress, paused, completed, etc.
Animation (animate)
- Targets: CSS Selector, DOM Elements, JavaScript Objects, Array of targets
- Animatable Properties: CSS Properties, CSS transforms, CSS Variables, JS Object properties, HTML Attributes, SVG Attributes
- Tween Value Types: Numerical, Unit conversion, Relative (+=, -=, *=), Color, Color function, CSS variable, Function based
- Tween Parameters: to, from, delay, duration, ease, composition, modifier
- Keyframes: Tween values, Tween parameters, Duration based, Percentage based
- Playback Settings: delay, duration, loop, loopDelay, alternate, reversed, autoplay, frameRate, playbackRate, playbackEase, persist
- Callbacks: onBegin, onComplete, onBeforeUpdate, onUpdate, onRender, onLoop, onPause, then()
- Methods: play(), reverse(), pause(), restart(), alternate(), resume(), complete(), cancel(), revert(), reset(), seek(), stretch(), refresh()
Timeline (createTimeline)
- Add timers, Add animations, Sync WAAPI animations, Sync timelines, Call functions
- Time Position: Absolute (ms), Relative (<, >, +=, -=), Labels
- Playback Settings: defaults, delay, loop, loopDelay, alternate, reversed, autoplay, frameRate, playbackRate, playbackEase
- Callbacks: onBegin, onComplete, onBeforeUpdate, onUpdate, onRender, onLoop, onPause, then()
- Methods: add(), set(), sync(), label(), remove(), call(), init(), play(), reset(), reverse(), pause(), restart(), alternate(), resume(), complete(), cancel(), revert(), seek(), stretch(), refresh()
Animatable (createAnimatable)
- Settings: unit, duration, ease, modifier
- Methods: Getters, Setters, revert()
Draggable (createDraggable)
- Axes Parameters: x, y, snap, modifier, mapTo
- Settings: trigger, container, containerPadding, containerFriction, releaseContainerFriction, releaseMass, releaseStiffness, releaseDamping, velocityMultiplier, minVelocity, maxVelocity, releaseEase, dragSpeed, dragThreshold, scrollThreshold, scrollSpeed, cursor
- Callbacks: onGrab, onDrag, onUpdate, onRelease, onSnap, onSettle, onResize, onAfterResize
- Methods: disable(), enable(), setX(), setY(), animateInView(), scrollInView(), stop(), reset(), revert(), refresh()
Layout (createLayout) - NEW
- Usage: Specifying a root, CSS display animation, Staggered layout, DOM order animation, Enter/Exit layout animation, Swap parent animation, Modal dialog animation
- Settings: children, delay, duration, ease, properties
- States: enterFrom, leaveTo, swapAt
- Methods: record(), animate(), update(), revert()
- Layout id attribute, Callbacks, Properties, Common gotchas
Scope (createScope)
- Add constructor function, Register method function
- Parameters: root, defaults, mediaQueries
- Methods: add(), addOnce(), keepTime(), revert(), refresh()
Events / Scroll (onScroll)
- Settings: container, target, debug, axis, repeat
- Thresholds: Numeric values, Positions shorthands, Relative position values, Min max
- Synchronisation Modes: Method names, Playback progress, Smooth scroll, Eased scroll
- Callbacks: onEnter, onEnterForward, onEnterBackward, onLeave, onLeaveForward, onLeaveBackward, onUpdate, onSyncComplete, onResize
- Methods: link(), refresh(), revert()
SVG Utilities
morphTo()- SVG shape morphingcreateDrawable()- SVG line drawing animationcreateMotionPath()- Motion path animation
Text Utilities (splitText)
- Settings: lines, words, chars, debug, includeSpaces, accessible
- Split Parameters: class, wrap, clone
- HTML template support
- Methods: addEffect(), revert(), refresh()
Utilities
stagger()- Time/values/timeline staggering with grid support$()- Query selector utilityget()/set()- Get/set CSS property valuescleanInlineStyles()- Remove inline stylesremove()- Remove animations from targetssync()- Synchronize animationskeepTime()- Time keeper utilityrandom()/createSeededRandom()/randomPick()/shuffle()- Random utilitiesround()/clamp()/snap()/wrap()- Math utilitiesmapRange()/lerp()/damp()- Interpolation utilitiesroundPad()/padStart()/padEnd()- String paddingdegToRad()/radToDeg()- Angle conversion- Chain-able utilities
Easings
- Built-in: linear, easeIn, easeOut, easeInOut (with Quad, Cubic, Quart, Quint, Sine, Expo, Circ, Back, Elastic, Bounce variants)
- Custom: Cubic Bezier, Linear (multi-point), Steps, Irregular
- Spring:
createSpring({ stiffness, damping, mass, velocity })
WAAPI (Web Animation API)
- When to use WAAPI vs JS animation
- Hardware-accelerated animations
- Improvements to native WAAPI
- API differences (iterations, direction, easing, finished)
waapi.convertEase()
Engine Configuration
- Parameters: timeUnit (ms/s), speed, fps, precision, pauseOnDocumentHidden
- Methods: update(), pause(), resume()
- Engine defaults
Quick Reference
Basic Animation
javascriptimport { animate } from 'animejs'; animate('.element', { translateX: 250, rotate: '1turn', duration: 800, ease: 'outExpo' });
Timeline
javascriptimport { createTimeline } from 'animejs'; const tl = createTimeline({ defaults: { duration: 500 } }); tl.add('.box1', { x: 100 }) .add('.box2', { x: 100 }, '<') // Start with previous .add('.box3', { x: 100 }, '-=200'); // 200ms before end
Stagger
javascriptimport { animate, stagger } from 'animejs'; animate('.item', { translateY: [-20, 0], opacity: [0, 1], delay: stagger(100, { from: 'center' }), duration: 600 });
Scroll Animation
javascriptimport { animate, onScroll } from 'animejs'; animate('.element', { translateX: [0, 500], autoplay: onScroll({ target: '.element', sync: true }) });
SVG Line Drawing
javascriptimport { animate, createDrawable } from 'animejs'; animate(createDrawable('path'), { draw: ['0 0', '0 1'], duration: 2000, ease: 'inOutQuad' });
Draggable
javascriptimport { createDraggable, createSpring } from 'animejs'; createDraggable('.draggable', { container: '.container', releaseEase: createSpring({ stiffness: 200, damping: 20 }) });
Function-Based Values
javascriptanimate('.element', { translateX: (el, i, total) => i * 50, rotate: (el, i) => anime.random(-180, 180), delay: (el, i) => i * 100 });
Keyframes
javascriptanimate('.element', { translateX: [ { to: 100, duration: 500 }, { to: 0, duration: 500, delay: 200 } ], rotate: ['0turn', '1turn', '0turn'] });
React Integration
jsximport { useRef, useEffect } from 'react'; import { animate, createScope } from 'animejs'; function AnimatedComponent() { const root = useRef(null); const scope = useRef(null); useEffect(() => { scope.current = createScope({ root: root.current }).add(() => { animate('.box', { rotate: 360 }); }); return () => scope.current.revert(); }, []); return ( <div ref={root}> <div className="box" /> </div> ); }
Bundle Sizes (Minified + Gzipped)
| Module | Size |
|---|---|
| Full Bundle | ~24.5 KB |
| Timer | ~5.6 KB |
| Animation | +5.2 KB |
| Timeline | +0.55 KB |
| Animatable | +0.4 KB |
| Draggable | +6.4 KB |
| Scroll | +4.3 KB |
| Scope | +0.22 KB |
| SVG | ~0.35 KB |
| Stagger | +0.48 KB |
| Spring | ~0.52 KB |
| WAAPI | ~3.5 KB |
Additional Resources
- Official Documentation: https://animejs.com/documentation
- Easing Editor: https://animejs.com/easing-editor
- CodePen Examples: https://codepen.io/collection/Poerqa
- GitHub: https://github.com/juliangarnier/anime
For detailed API parameters, code examples, and advanced patterns, see the references files:
references/api-reference.md- Complete API documentationreferences/examples.md- Common animation patterns and recipes


