React Framer Motion (Getting Started With Animations In React)

Creating an immersive website takes a lot of work. You need to nail the design, ensure responsive functionality, and incorporate animations that add to the user experience instead of distracting from it. If you’ve been using Framer to build your website, you might find yourself in an endless loop of previewing your site to test how the animations look before getting too far into your project. If any of this sounds familiar, this article is for you. Here, we’ll share the basics of React Framer to help you better understand how it works and its value in building interactive websites.  

NUMI’s Framer design is valuable for achieving goals like learning about Framer Motion for React.

Framer's Integration With React

Framer's integration with React is one reason it's such a powerful tool for building modern, interactive web applications. React has become one of the most popular tools for creating the contemporary web, powering over 14.4 million websites worldwide. Its widespread adoption among software engineers highlights the trust it’s earned and the high-quality developer experience it delivers. 

Framer Turns Visual Designs Into React Components

One key benefit is how Framer turns visual designs into React components. This means that designers can work in Framer's interface to create stunning layouts and interactive elements while the platform automatically generates clean, reusable React code. 

This bridges the gap between design and development, allowing teams to focus on building the product rather than reinventing standard functionalities or worrying about handoff issues. This saves developers time and ensures the design matches the final implementation perfectly.

Framer Follows React’s Principles

Another strength of this integration lies in how Framer follows React’s principles, like immutability. This means when you manage the state of a component, you do not alter the original object, which leads to more reliable and predictable behavior in your app. This makes managing complex interfaces smoother without performance issues from modifying objects directly.

Framer Motion Makes Adding Animations Easy

Framer also has its motion library, Framer Motion, which was explicitly built for React. Adding engaging animations and transitions is easy without writing much custom code. Whether you're designing a simple hover effect or a complex interactive experience, Framer Motion makes it accessible to both designers and developers, ensuring that the final product feels polished and dynamic.  

Framer and React Together Are Powerhouse

Framer and React are mighty together. Framer’s visual design tools empower designers to create stunning interfaces, and React ensures those designs are scalable and maintainable in production. This integration is a game-changer for teams that want to focus on aesthetics and performance without getting bogged down in repetitive coding tasks.

What Is Framer Motion?

‍

Framer motion is an animation library built on the React framework. As a production-ready, open-sourced library, it helps developers create smooth animations for React applications without the tedious coding typically involved. 

Framer motion powers the fantastic animations and interactions in Framer, the web builder for creative pros. It also serves as:

• Open-sourced
• Production-ready

React animation library that provides users with a non-complex API to easily:

• Create animations
• Manage animation properties
• Handle user gestures such as clicks and drag

A Powerful Animation Library

With the Framer motion library, developers can create eye-catching animations with few CSS styles. Nevertheless, they can only use the library with JavaScript. Framer motion removes the complexities involved in building animations. 

Simplifying Animation Creation

Animations can be made without writing numerous lines of CSS, allowing users to replicate their choice of animations with a few lines of code. As an animation library, it excels at creating remarkable animations and interactions. 

Below are reasons why Framer Motions works great:

• Framer Motion is simple and easy to integrate: It doesn’t make your code bulky, as it can easily be added to elements with the motion prefix, and animation properties can be specified. 
• Framer Motion is an animation library provided by Framer: It can be used alongside the Framer X design tool to quickly build and animate smoother user interfaces. With this tool, developers can test how animations behave during prototyping and apply the same animations when developing their applications. 
• Framer Motions has rich documentation and a developer community: You can easily find solutions to whatever issues you encounter.

Related Reading

• Framer Websites
• Framer Templates
• Framer Website
• Framer Vs Webflow
• Figma To Framer

Features of Framer Motion

Animations: Create Smooth Animations Without Breaking a Sweat

With Framer Motion, creating animations is as easy as declaring an animated prop. When values in the prop change, the corresponding motion component automatically transitions to the new state. 

This makes it easy to create smooth animations without breaking a sweat. For example, you can create a fade-in effect by declaring the opacity value in the animate prop and setting it to zero in the initial prop. As the component mounts, Framer Motion automatically animates the opacity to the new state of one.

javascript
<motion.div animate={{ opacity: 1, scale: 1 }} />

Gestures: Make Animations Respond to User Input

Framer Motion supports various gestures, including:

• Hover
• Tap
• Pan
• Drag

These gestures can trigger animations that respond dynamically to user interactions. For instance, you can use props like:

• whileHover
• whileTap
• whileDrag
  
  

javascript
<motion.button whileHover={{ scale: 1.1 }} whileTap={{ scale: 0.9 }} />


Variants: Define Multiple Animation States for Components

Variants allow you to define multiple animation states for components and orchestrate animations across entire sub-trees with a single animate prop. This declarative approach makes managing complex animations and transitions between different states easy.

javascript
const variants = {
  open: { opacity: 1, x: 0 },
  closed: { opacity: 0, x: "-100%" },
};

<motion.nav animate={isOpen ? "open" : "closed"} variants={variants} />


Server-Side Rendering: Prevent Flash of Unstyled Content

Framer Motion supports server-side rendering (SSR), ensuring that the animated state of components is rendered on the server side. This prevents flashes of re-styled content after JavaScript loads, providing a smoother user experience. 

Motion Values: Create a Declarative and Reactive Chain of Values

Motion Values create a declarative and reactive chain of values that can be used to update the results of animations or gestures. They allow fine-grained control over animations and can be used with other features like scroll-linked animations.

javascript
const { scrollYProgress } = useScroll();
<motion.div style={{ opacity: scrollYProgress }} />


Additional Features of Framer Motion

Beyond these core features, Framer Motion includes several additional capabilities, including:

• Hardware-Accelerated Animations: Framer Motion intelligently decides when to run animations on the GPU, ensuring smoother performance.
• Exit Animations: Components can have exit animations that play when removed from the DOM.
• Keyframes: Support for animating through various values over time.
• Scroll-Linked Animations: Scroll position to drive animations, creating effects like parallax scrolling.

Related Reading

• Framer App
• Framer Vs Squarespace
• Framer Vs Figma
• Framer SEO
• Framer Reviews
• Free Framer Templates
• Framer Expert
• Framer Landing Page

7 Great Benefits of Adding Animations To Your Application

1. Animation Is an Attention Grabber

Animation grabs attention. In a digital world where attention is gold, it can help your website stand out from competitors. You can use animation to distract users while pages load, mainly when working with large files or complex designs. 

Animation can also serve a purpose in your:

• Website’s menu
• Moving icons
• Hidden elements that users can reveal by clicking or hovering over a button
• More

Slide shows and galleries are other popular places to find animation on websites. This is a simple yet effective way to display content uniquely, ensuring it attracts and retains users' attention. Nevertheless, the type of animation you use notwithstanding, it should serve its purpose without distracting visitors from what’s important. 

2. Animation Makes Your Website Stand Out

Adding animation to your website can make it stand out from the crowd. Many websites still have static content; animation can give you a unique look. While there are different ways in which you might use animation to achieve your desired results, if you want your website to deliver, you also need excellent web design skills and innovative content. 

If you add animation, remember that the mobile-first approach has become the industry standard in web design and development. According to Statista, more than half of all global website traffic already comes from mobile devices, and you need to pay attention to mobile-friendliness when adding animated content and features to your website.

3. Animation Makes Your Message Easier to Convey

It’s common for consumers to look for different types of information before making a purchase. Nevertheless, researching your company and its products/services can be time-consuming for new customers who know little to nothing about your business.

Animation is an easy way to convey your message quickly while allowing you to include plenty of information. While your animated video can attract the attention of prospective customers, it can also help convince them to perform the desired action, be it making a purchase or subscribing to a service. 

4. Animation Can Achieve the Impossible

People often use animation on their websites to achieve something impossible by using real photos or videos. If there is something you find impossible to express using text or images, animation can do a great job of filling this gap. 

5. People Remember Animated Messages Longer

Any message you convey through visual and audio presentation will last longer in the minds of your audience. A short animated video introducing your brand or its products/services can significantly impact your website's traffic. 

The Impact of Animation on Information Retention

Various studies have indicated that people are more likely to remember information they got through audio-visual formats than through reading alone, and this is plain to see in the learning pyramid. From the web design perspective, animation can help you communicate better and sell more products and services through your website.

6. Animation Provides Great Flexibility

Animation is flexible and can help you introduce several products or present much information in a short and simple video. Some visitors do not have the time to browse entire websites looking for:

• Specific products
• Services
• Information

Using an animated video can help you introduce all the services at once.

7. Animation Is Good for SEO

Animation can positively affect search engine optimization (SEO) by improving user experience and increasing engagement time. For instance, the longer users spend on your website, the better its search engine ranking will be. 

Animation can:

• Help decrease bounce rates
• Make way for better backlink opportunities
• Increase social engagement
• Provide an enhanced experience for mobile users

Components of React Framer Motion

Motion Components are the core of the Framer Motion API. Every HTML and SVG element has a corresponding motion component. For example: <motion.div /> for a div element <motion.circle /> for an SVG circle. 

These motion components function like their counterparts but come with additional props that enable the following:

• Animations
• Gestures
• More
  

They allow developers to:

• Animate properties like position, scale, and opacity.
• Add gestures such as drag, pan, hover, and tap.
• Respond to viewport changes and deep animations through variants. 

AnimatePresence: Managing Exit Animations with Ease

AnimatePresence manages exit animations for conditionally rendered components. It detects when direct child components are removed from the React tree and animates them accordingly. This is particularly useful for smooth transitions when elements enter or leave the DOM.

LayoutGroup: Group Motion Components for Cohesive Layout Transitions

LayoutGroup allows you to group motion components that should perform layout animations together. When motion components with a layout prop are rendered, they automatically detect and animate layout changes, providing a cohesive transition effect across grouped elements.

LazyMotion: Optimize Performance with Asynchronous Loading

LazyMotion helps reduce bundle size by allowing asynchronous loading of motion features. This means that only the necessary parts of the library are loaded when needed, optimizing performance without sacrificing functionality. 

MotionConfig: Global Configuration Options for Motion Components

MotionConfig sets global configuration options for all child motion components. This can include default transition settings or other shared properties that apply to multiple components within a specific context. 

Reorder: Easily Create Drag-and-Drop Interfaces

The Reorder component facilitates drag-to-reorder functionality for lists or groups of items. This makes it easy to create interactive interfaces where users can rearrange elements, such as tabs or to-do items, through simple drag-and-drop interactions. 

Your One-Stop Shop for Startup Design Needs

NUMI is a framer web design agency that world-class framer developers and product designers power. Backed by Y Combinator, NUMI handles all of your startup's sourcing/vetting/hiring needs for design. 

Our fabuolous design team ensures all your design work is done well. NUMI helps with:

• Product design
• Web design
• Framer development
• Webflow development
• Mobile design
• Prototyping
• UX design
• All of your startup's design needs! 

Subscribe to a guild of world-class designers ready to embed on your team today. Schedule a call with us today to learn more! 

Getting Started With React Framer Motion

Install and Set Up React Framer Motion for Your Project

To use Framer Motion for animations in your React project, you must first install the Framer-motion package from npm. This requires a project using React version 16.8 or greater. Open your terminal and run:

bash
npm install framer-motion

### Importing Motion to Get Started Using Framer Motion

Once installed, you can import the motion component into your React components:

javascript
import { motion } from 'framer-motion';


Using Motion Components 

Framer Motion provides motion components that are enhanced versions of standard HTML and SVG elements. You can replace primitive DOM elements (like <div>, <svg>, etc.) with their motion counterparts, such as:

<motion.div>

<motion.svg>

These components come with additional props for adding animations and gestures. 

Example

To animate a div element, you can use the animate prop:

javascript
<motion.div animate={{ opacity: 1 }} initial={{ opacity: 0 }} />


Animating Elements with Framer Motion

You can animate elements using the animate prop, which accepts an object with CSS properties to animate. You can also use variant labels or imperative animation controls. 

Example

javascript
<motion.div
  animate={{ x: 100 }}
  transition={{ duration: 0.5 }}
/>

Adding Gestures to Your Animations 

Framer Motion supports various gestures like hover, tap, pan, and drag. You can:

• Use props such as whileHover, whileTap
• Drag to define how your components should respond to user interactions 

Example

javascript
<motion.button
  whileHover={{ scale: 1.1 }}
  whileTap={{ scale: 0.9 }}
/>

Variants for Coordinated Animations

You can define variants to manage animations across multiple components or sub-trees with a single animated prop, allowing for coordinated animations. 

Example

javascript
const variants = {
  hidden: { opacity: 0 },
  visible: { opacity: 1 },
};

<motion.div variants={variants} initial="hidden" animate="visible" />


Server-Side Rendering Capabilities

Framer Motion supports server-side rendering (SSR), ensuring that a component's animated state is rendered on the server to prevent flashes of re-styled content after JavaScript loads.

With these steps, you can quickly set up Framer Motion in your React project and create engaging animations and interactions. The library's powerful features, such as:

• Motion components
• Gesture recognition
• Variants for coordinated animations
• Support for server-side rendering

This makes it an excellent choice for enhancing user experiences in web applications.

8 Best Practices for Animating With Framer Motion in React

1. Feedback and Guidance Through Animation

Using animation for feedback is a best practice that enhances user experience. Subtle animations can signal users with real-time feedback about their input, such as a button press or form submission, to reduce uncertainty and to improve usability. 

Strategic use of motion can guide users through actions or highlight changes in application states, improving navigational flow. 

2. Purposeful Motion

Every design animation should have a clear purpose. Excessive or irrelevant motion can overwhelm users or detract from the user experience. Ensure animations are:

• Smooth
• Quick
• Cohesive

This enhances functionality without causing distractions.

3. Consistency Across the Board

Consistency in motion and animation ensures a coherent user experience across all aspects of a product. Uniformly using animation in design reinforces user familiarity and comfort with the interface, promoting a seamless interaction from start to finish.

4. Accessibility Considerations

Make animations accessible by providing options to reduce or remove motion for users who are sensitive to it. This inclusivity ensures the design is user-friendly for a broader audience, meeting individual user needs and preferences.

5. Empirical Validation

Observing fundamental interactions can reveal how effectively animations contribute, allowing for refinements that closely match user preferences and behaviors.

6. Adaptive Animations for Diverse Platforms

Update design animations to fit the specific characteristics of different platforms. Mobile interfaces, for instance, require animations responsive to touch interactions and optimized for smaller screens.

7. Early Integration in the Design Process

Integrate UX motion and animation design early in development to identify potential usability issues. Experimentation with various animation styles and speeds can help determine the most effective approach for the product’s target audience.

8. Stay Updated with Animation Design Trends

New trends and motion design technologies can inspire you to update animation applications. Advances in Framer enhance animations’ capabilities and open up new possibilities for creating engaging user experiences.

FAQs on Framer Animations

Is Framer Motion Free to Use?

Yes, Framer Motion is free to use. It is an open-source library licensed under the MIT License, allowing developers to implement animations in their projects without cost. You can start using it via npm with the command npm install framer-motion.

Is Framer Motion Only for React? 

Framer Motion is designed explicitly for React applications. It leverages React's component model to provide a declarative way to create animations and interactions. Although Framer itself can be used for various design purposes outside of React, the Framer Motion library is tailored exclusively for React development, meaning it cannot be directly used in non-React environments. 

Can I use React in Framer?

Yes, you can use React in Framer. Framer is designed to integrate seamlessly with React, allowing developers to create interactive prototypes using React components. This integration enables using React's component-based architecture, making building and managing complex user interfaces more accessible.

Is Framer better than Figma?

The comparison between Framer and Figma often depends on the user's specific needs. Framer excels in prototyping and offers intricate animation capabilities, making it ideal for projects that require detailed interactions and real UI design. 

In contrast, Figma is renowned for its:

• Collaborative features
• Real-time editing
• User-friendly interface is beneficial for design teams working together on projects. 

While Framer is more code-oriented and suited for developers and designers who want to create high-fidelity prototypes, Figma is better for general design tasks and collaboration.

Why is Framer so good? 

Framer stands out due to its code-based approach, which allows for high levels of customization and control over designs. This makes it particularly effective for creating complex animations and interactions that closely mimic real-world applications. 

Framer offers features like:

• Smart components
• Rapid review panel for validating designs
• Ability to transition designs directly into production

These capabilities make it a powerful tool for designers creating detailed prototypes 345.

What Can You Build With Framer?

With Framer, you can build various interactive web applications and prototypes, including: 

• Complex Marketing Websites: Create landing pages and promotional sites with detailed interactions.
• UI prototypes: Develop high-fidelity prototypes that simulate the user experience of applications.
• Interactive components: Innovative components like sliders, input fields, and animations enhance user engagement.
• Production-ready Designs: Transition designs from the canvas directly into production-ready code. 

Framer is beneficial for projects that require close adherence to specific platform guidelines (like iOS or Android) because it can create realistic prototypes.

Related Reading

• Framer Alternatives
• Framer Integrations
  
• How To Use Framer
• Framer Prototyping
• Framer Animations
• Framer Google Sitemap Could Not Fetch
• Framer CMS
  
• Framer Web Design
  
• Framer Tools
  
• Framer Motion Examples
• Framer Motion Examples
• Webflow vs Framer
• Framer Sites
• Framer Developer
• Framer Website Template
• Framer Site
  
• Framer Web Builder
• Framer Website Builder
• What is Framer
• Framer to Webflow
• Webflow or Framer
  
• Framer Webflow
• Framer Components
• Framer Tutorial
• Framer Resources
• Framer API

Subscribe To a Guild of World-Class Framer Developers With Our Framer Web Design Agency Today

NUMI is a framer web design agency that world-class framer developers and product designers power. Backed by Y Combinator, NUMI handles all of your startup's sourcing/vetting/hiring needs for design. 

Our fabuolous design team ensures all your design work is done well. NUMI helps with:

• Product design
• Web design
• Framer development
• Webflow development
• Mobile design
• Prototyping
• UX design
• All of your startup's design needs!

Subscribe to a guild of world-class designers ready to embed on your team today. Schedule a call with us today to learn more!

Creating an immersive website takes a lot of work. You need to nail the design, ensure responsive functionality, and incorporate animations that add to the user experience instead of distracting from it. If you’ve been using Framer to build your website, you might find yourself in an endless loop of previewing your site to test how the animations look before getting too far into your project. If any of this sounds familiar, this article is for you. Here, we’ll share the basics of React Framer to help you better understand how it works and its value in building interactive websites.  

NUMI’s Framer web design is valuable for achieving goals like learning about Framer Motion for React.