framer-motion vs popmotion vs gsap vs react-spring
Animation Libraries for Web Development Comparison
3 Years
framer-motionpopmotiongsapreact-springSimilar Packages:
What's Animation Libraries for Web Development?

Animation libraries for web development provide developers with tools to create dynamic and visually engaging animations on websites and applications. These libraries offer a range of features, including tweening (smoothly transitioning between values), keyframe animations, physics-based animations, and more. They help enhance user experience by adding movement and interactivity to elements, making interfaces more lively and intuitive. Popular animation libraries include framer-motion, gsap, popmotion, and react-spring, each with its unique strengths and use cases.

Package Weekly Downloads Trend
Github Stars Ranking
Stat Detail
Package
Downloads
Stars
Size
Issues
Publish
License
framer-motion11,020,514
29,5482.32 MB29621 days agoMIT
popmotion1,412,499
-304 kB--MIT
gsap842,897
22,7086.11 MB114 months agoStandard 'no charge' license: https://gsap.com/standard-license.
react-spring794,781
28,8508.36 kB1283 months agoMIT
Feature Comparison: framer-motion vs popmotion vs gsap vs react-spring

Animation Type

  • framer-motion:

    framer-motion specializes in component-based animations, transitions, and gestures within React applications. It provides a simple API for animating elements based on their state, making it easy to create interactive and dynamic UIs.

  • popmotion:

    popmotion offers a variety of animation types, including tweening, physics-based animations, and keyframe animations. It is particularly known for its modularity, allowing developers to use only the parts they need, such as tweening, spring, or physics animations.

  • gsap:

    gsap is a versatile animation library that supports a wide range of animation types, including tweening, keyframe animations, and timeline-based animations. It is highly flexible and can animate any property of any DOM element, SVG, canvas, or JavaScript object.

  • react-spring:

    react-spring focuses on spring-based animations, providing a more natural and fluid motion compared to traditional tweening. It uses physics to create smooth transitions, making it ideal for animating React components in a way that feels more organic.

Performance

  • framer-motion:

    framer-motion is optimized for performance, especially in React environments. It uses the requestAnimationFrame method for smooth animations and minimizes layout thrashing by calculating styles efficiently.

  • popmotion:

    popmotion is lightweight and performs well for most animation tasks. Its modular nature allows developers to include only the features they need, which helps keep the bundle size small and improves performance.

  • gsap:

    gsap is known for its high performance and efficiency, even with complex animations and large numbers of animated elements. It is designed to handle heavy animations without causing jank or slowdowns, making it a reliable choice for professional-grade projects.

  • react-spring:

    react-spring provides good performance for spring-based animations, but the performance can vary depending on how the animations are implemented. It is generally efficient, but developers need to be mindful of how they structure their animations to avoid performance bottlenecks.

Ease of Use

  • framer-motion:

    framer-motion offers a user-friendly API that is easy to learn and use, especially for React developers. Its declarative approach makes it simple to integrate animations into components without much boilerplate code.

  • popmotion:

    popmotion is relatively easy to use, especially for developers who appreciate its modular design. The documentation is clear, and the library encourages a hands-on approach to animation, allowing for creativity and experimentation.

  • gsap:

    gsap has a steeper learning curve due to its extensive feature set and more complex API. However, it is well-documented, and once developers become familiar with it, they can leverage its full power for creating intricate animations.

  • react-spring:

    react-spring provides a simple and intuitive API for creating spring-based animations. Its declarative nature aligns well with React's design philosophy, making it easy for React developers to implement animations quickly.

Integration with React

  • popmotion:

    popmotion is also not React-specific, but it can be integrated into React applications. Like GSAP, it requires some manual handling of animations within the React component lifecycle.

  • gsap:

    gsap can be used with React, but it is not React-specific. Developers need to manage the integration manually, which can involve using refs and lifecycle methods to control animations within React components.

  • react-spring:

    react-spring is designed for React and provides a declarative way to create animations that work well with React's component model. It offers hooks and components that make it easy to implement animations in a React-friendly way.

Code Example

  • framer-motion:

    Simple Animation with framer-motion

    import { motion } from 'framer-motion';
    
    function Example() {
      return (
        <motion.div
          animate={{ x: 100 }}
          transition={{ duration: 0.5 }}
        >
          Animate Me
        </motion.div>
      );
    }
    
  • popmotion:

    Simple Animation with popmotion

    import { motion } from 'popmotion';
    
    function Example() {
      const boxRef = useRef(null);
    
      useEffect(() => {
        motion.to(boxRef.current, { x: 100, duration: 0.5 });
      }, []);
    
      return <div ref={boxRef}>Animate Me</div>;
    }
    
  • gsap:

    Simple Animation with gsap

    import { useEffect, useRef } from 'react';
    import { gsap } from 'gsap';
    
    function Example() {
      const boxRef = useRef(null);
    
      useEffect(() => {
        gsap.to(boxRef.current, { x: 100, duration: 0.5 });
      }, []);
    
      return <div ref={boxRef}>Animate Me</div>;
    }
    
  • react-spring:

    Simple Animation with react-spring

    import { useSpring, animated } from 'react-spring';
    
    function Example() {
      const props = useSpring({ to: { x: 100 }, from: { x: 0 }, config: { duration: 500 } });
    
      return <animated.div style={props}>Animate Me</animated.div>;
    }
    
How to Choose: framer-motion vs popmotion vs gsap vs react-spring
  • framer-motion:

    Choose framer-motion if you are working on a React project and need a library that provides simple yet powerful animations with a focus on performance and ease of use. It is particularly well-suited for animating components, transitions, and gestures, making it ideal for modern web applications.

  • popmotion:

    Opt for popmotion if you are looking for a lightweight, modular animation library that offers a mix of tweening, physics, and keyframe animations. It is highly customizable and allows for fine-grained control over animations, making it suitable for projects that require a more hands-on approach to animation design.

  • gsap:

    Select gsap (GreenSock Animation Platform) if you require a high-performance, feature-rich animation library that works across all JavaScript environments. It is excellent for complex animations, timelines, and precise control over animations, making it a favorite among professional animators and developers for its robustness and flexibility.

  • react-spring:

    Choose react-spring if you prefer a physics-based animation library for React that focuses on natural motion and fluidity. It is great for creating smooth, spring-like animations and transitions, and it integrates well with React's declarative nature, making it easy to use for component-based animations.

README for framer-motion

Motion logo
Motion for React

An open source animation library
for React

npm version npm downloads per month jsDelivr hits (npm) NPM License

npm install motion

Table of Contents

  1. Why Motion?
  2. 🍦 Flavours
  3. 🎓 Examples
  4. 🎨 Studio
  5. ⚡️ Motion+
  6. 👩🏻‍⚖️ License
  7. 💎 Contribute
  8. ✨ Sponsors

Why Motion?

Motion is an animation library for making beautiful animations.

  • The only library with first‑class APIs for React, JavaScript, and Vue.
  • Powered by a hybrid engine that blends JavaScript flexibility with native browser APIs for 120fps GPU‑accelerated motion.
  • Tiny footprint, tree‑shakable, and fully TypeScript‑typed.

🍦 Flavours

Motion is available for React, JavaScript and Vue.

React ⬇
import { motion } from "motion/react"

function Component() {
    return <motion.div animate={{ x: 100 }} />
}

Get started with Motion for React.

JavaScript ⬇
import { animate } from "motion"

animate("#box", { x: 100 })

Get started with JavaScript.

Vue ⬇
<script>
    import { motion } from "motion-v"
</script>

<template> <motion.div :animate={{ x: 100 }} /> </template>

Get started with Motion for Vue.

🎓 Examples

Motion Examples offers 100s of free and Motion+ examples for beginners and advanced users alike. Easy copy/paste code to kick‑start your next project.

⚡️ Motion+

Learn, Design, Build. Motion+ is a one-time fee, lifetime update membership that provides:

  • 160+ premium Motion Examples
  • Motion UI features like Cursor and Ticker
  • Motion Studio animation editing for VS Code alpha
  • Early access content
  • Private Discord

Get Motion+

🎨 Studio

Video of bezier curve editing

Motion Studio is a versatile suite of developer tools allowing you to:

  • Visually edit CSS and Motion easing curves in VS Code
  • Generate CSS springs with LLMs
  • Load Motion docs into your LLM

Get started with Motion Studio.

👩🏻‍⚖️ License

  • Motion is MIT licensed.

💎 Contribute

✨ Sponsors

Motion is sustainable thanks to the kind support of its sponsors.

Partners

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Motion powers Framer animations, the web builder for creative pros. Design and ship your dream site. Zero code, maximum speed.

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Platinum

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Gold

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