Echo Trail Text Effect: CSS Text Animation

Echo Trail Text Effect

The word slides across and back while four fading copies trail behind it, spreading out at full speed and catching up when it stops. The copies share one keyframe with small delays.

Also known as: motion trail text css, ghost trail text, text afterimage animation.

ECHO

Color Font size 40px Dark background

HTML

<div class="txt-echo-trail-text"><span class="txt-echo-trail-text-word">ECHO</span><span class="txt-echo-trail-text-echoes" aria-hidden="true"><span style="--i: 1">ECHO</span><span style="--i: 2">ECHO</span><span style="--i: 3">ECHO</span><span style="--i: 4">ECHO</span></span></div>

CSS

.txt-echo-trail-text {
  --c: var(--txt-color, #3b82f6);
  font-size: calc(var(--txt-size, 32px) * 1.5);
  font-family: system-ui, sans-serif;
  font-weight: 900;
  line-height: 1.2;
  display: inline-grid;
  color: var(--c);
  letter-spacing: 0.04em;}
.txt-echo-trail-text-word,
.txt-echo-trail-text-echoes {
  grid-area: 1 / 1;
}
.txt-echo-trail-text-word {
  position: relative;
  z-index: 1;
  animation: txt-echo-trail-text-slide 2.8s cubic-bezier(0.76, 0, 0.24, 1) infinite;
}
.txt-echo-trail-text-echoes {
  display: grid;
}
/* each copy runs the same path a little later and a little fainter */
.txt-echo-trail-text-echoes span {
  grid-area: 1 / 1;
  opacity: calc(0.55 - var(--i) * 0.11);
  animation: txt-echo-trail-text-slide 2.8s cubic-bezier(0.76, 0, 0.24, 1) infinite backwards;
  animation-delay: calc(var(--i) * 70ms);
}
@keyframes txt-echo-trail-text-slide {
  0%, 12%  { transform: translateX(-1.6em); }
  50%, 62% { transform: translateX(1.6em); }
  100%     { transform: translateX(-1.6em); }
}

@media (prefers-reduced-motion: reduce) {
  .txt-echo-trail-text, .txt-echo-trail-text *, .txt-echo-trail-text::before, .txt-echo-trail-text::after, .txt-echo-trail-text *::before, .txt-echo-trail-text *::after {
    animation-duration: 0.01ms !important;
    animation-iteration-count: 1 !important;
    transition-duration: 0.01ms !important;
  }
}

Customizing this snippet

Color: set --txt-color on the element or a parent. Currently previewing #3b82f6.
Font size: set --txt-size. Every other dimension is in em, so the whole thing scales together. Currently previewing 40px.
Speed: change the duration on the transition or animation shorthand. Staggered delays are relative, so they keep their rhythm.
Reduced motion: the rule at the end of the CSS turns the motion off for people who asked their OS for less of it. Keep it.

Echo Trail Text Effect

HTML

CSS

Customizing this snippet

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