Anime.js

Lightweight JavaScript animation library with powerful timeline and stagger capabilities for web animations.

Overview

Anime.js (pronounced "Anime JS") is a versatile animation engine that works with DOM elements, CSS properties, SVG attributes, and JavaScript objects. Unlike React-specific libraries, Anime.js works with vanilla JavaScript and any framework.

When to use this skill:

• Timeline-based animation sequences with precise choreography
• Staggered animations across multiple elements
• SVG path morphing and drawing animations
• Keyframe animations with percentage-based timing
• Framework-agnostic animation (works with React, Vue, vanilla JS)
• Complex easing functions (spring, steps, cubic-bezier)

Core features:

• Timeline sequencing with relative positioning
• Powerful stagger utilities (grid, from center, easing)
• SVG morphing and path animations
• Built-in spring physics easing
• Keyframe support with flexible timing
• Small bundle size (~9KB gzipped)

Core Concepts

Basic Animation

The anime() function creates animations:

import anime from 'animejs'

anime({
  targets: '.element',
  translateX: 250,
  rotate: '1turn',
  duration: 800,
  easing: 'easeInOutQuad'
})

Targets

Multiple ways to specify animation targets:

// CSS selector
anime({ targets: '.box' })

// DOM elements
anime({ targets: document.querySelectorAll('.box') })

// Array of elements
anime({ targets: [el1, el2, el3] })

// JavaScript object
const obj = { x: 0 }
anime({ targets: obj, x: 100 })

Animatable Properties

CSS Properties:

anime({
  targets: '.element',
  translateX: 250,
  scale: 2,
  opacity: 0.5,
  backgroundColor: '#FFF'
})

CSS Transforms (Individual):

anime({
  targets: '.element',
  translateX: 250,   // Individual transform
  rotate: '1turn',   // Not 'transform: rotate()'
  scale: 2
})