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CSS Transitions

CSS Transitions​

CSS transitions allows you to change property values smoothly, over a given duration.

CSS Transition Properties​

PropertyDescription
transitionA shorthand property for setting the four transition properties into a single property
transition-delaySpecifies a delay (in seconds) for the transition effect
transition-durationSpecifies how many seconds or milliseconds a transition effect takes to complete
transition-propertySpecifies the name of the CSS property the transition effect is for
transition-timing-functionSpecifies the speed curve of the transition effect

How to Use CSS Transitions?​

To create a transition effect, you must specify two things:

  • the CSS property you want to add an effect to
  • the duration of the effect
note

If the duration part is not specified, the transition will have no effect, because the default value is 0.

For example, a <div> element with a transition effect for the width property with a duration of 2 seconds.

div {  
    width:  100px;  
    height:  100px;  
    background:  red;  
    transition:  width 2s;  
}

The transition effect will start when the specified CSS property (width) changes value.

Now, let us specify a new value for the width property when a user mouses over the <div> element:

div:hover {  
    width:  300px;  
}

Common cases​

Change Several Property Values​

Example: add a transition effect for both the width and height property, with a duration of 2 seconds for the width and 4 seconds for the height

div {  
    transition:  width 2s, height 4s;  
}

Specify the Speed Curve of the Transition​

The transition-timing-function property specifies the speed curve of the transition effect.

The transition-timing-function property can have the following values:

  • ease - specifies a transition effect with a slow start, then fast, then end slowly (this is default)
  • linear - specifies a transition effect with the same speed from start to end
  • ease-in - specifies a transition effect with a slow start
  • ease-out - specifies a transition effect with a slow end
  • ease-in-out - specifies a transition effect with a slow start and end
  • cubic-bezier(n,n,n,n) - lets you define your own values in a cubic-bezier function

The following example shows some of the different speed curves that can be used:

#div1 {transition-timing-function:  linear;}  
#div2 {transition-timing-function:  ease;}  
#div3 {transition-timing-function:  ease-in;}  
#div4 {transition-timing-function:  ease-out;}  
#div5 {transition-timing-function:  ease-in-out;}

Delay the Transition Effect​

The transition-delay property specifies a delay (in seconds) for the transition effect.

The following example has a 1 second delay before starting:

div {  
    transition-delay:  1s;  
}

Transition + Transformation​

The following example adds a transition effect to the transformation:

div {  
    transition:  width 2s, height 2s, transform 2s;  
}

More Transition Examples​

The CSS transition properties can be specified one by one, like this:

div {  
    transition-property:  width;  
    transition-duration:  2s;  
    transition-timing-function:  linear;  
    transition-delay:  1s;  
}

or by using the shorthand property transition:

div {  
    transition:  width 2s linear 1s;  
}

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