SVG Text Stroke Animation
Four colored dashes chase each other around every letter outline, forever. Four copies of the same SVG text share one dash pattern and keyframe, and negative delays space them a quarter apart.
Also known as: animated text stroke css, svg stroke dasharray text, colorful outline text loop.
HTML
<svg class="txt-svg-text-stroke-loop" viewBox="0 0 440 110" role="img" aria-label="Stroke"> <text x="220" y="86" text-anchor="middle" font-size="96" style="--i: 0">Stroke</text> <text x="220" y="86" text-anchor="middle" font-size="96" style="--i: 1">Stroke</text> <text x="220" y="86" text-anchor="middle" font-size="96" style="--i: 2">Stroke</text> <text x="220" y="86" text-anchor="middle" font-size="96" style="--i: 3">Stroke</text> </svg>
CSS
.txt-svg-text-stroke-loop {
--c: var(--txt-color, #3b82f6);
font-size: var(--txt-size, 32px);
font-family: system-ui, sans-serif;
font-weight: 700;
line-height: 1.2;
width: 10em;
height: auto;
overflow: visible;}
.txt-svg-text-stroke-loop text {
font-family: "Arial Black", "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif;
font-weight: 900;
fill: none;
stroke: var(--c);
stroke-width: 3.4;
stroke-linecap: round;
stroke-linejoin: round;
stroke-dasharray: 5% 30%;
animation: txt-svg-text-stroke-loop-chase 6s linear infinite;
animation-delay: calc(var(--i) * -1.5s);
}
.txt-svg-text-stroke-loop text:nth-child(1) { fill: color-mix(in srgb, var(--c) 14%, transparent); }
.txt-svg-text-stroke-loop text:nth-child(2) { stroke: color-mix(in srgb, var(--c) 45%, #ec4899); }
.txt-svg-text-stroke-loop text:nth-child(3) { stroke: color-mix(in srgb, var(--c) 45%, #22d3ee); }
.txt-svg-text-stroke-loop text:nth-child(4) { stroke: color-mix(in srgb, var(--c) 45%, #a855f7); }
/* 35% is one full dash + gap, so the loop lands where it began */
@keyframes txt-svg-text-stroke-loop-chase {
to { stroke-dashoffset: -35%; }
}
@media (prefers-reduced-motion: reduce) {
.txt-svg-text-stroke-loop, .txt-svg-text-stroke-loop *, .txt-svg-text-stroke-loop::before, .txt-svg-text-stroke-loop::after, .txt-svg-text-stroke-loop *::before, .txt-svg-text-stroke-loop *::after {
animation-duration: 0.01ms !important;
animation-iteration-count: 1 !important;
transition-duration: 0.01ms !important;
}
}Customizing this snippet
- Color: set
--txt-coloron the element or a parent. Currently previewing#3b82f6. - Font size: set
--txt-size. Every other dimension is inem, so the whole thing scales together. Currently previewing40px. - Speed: change the duration on the
transitionoranimationshorthand. 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.