Learn about SVG Interactivity types, check out the pros and cons of interactive SVG animations, and discover use cases when interactivity excels.

SVG interactivity is a feature of the Scalable Vector Graphic (SVG) format that makes it possible to add interactive trigger events to SVG files that respond to user-initiated actions. We’ll be exploring the topic of SVG interactivity in the context of interactive SVG animation.

The goal of this blog post is for you to walk away knowing what SVG animations are, the main types of SVG interactivity, the advantages and disadvantages of SVG interactivity, and exactly which use cases can benefit from the implementation of interactive SVG elements.

SVG interactivity gives animated SVG graphics even more versatility and increases their potential to improve a website’s user experience (UX). It’s no surprise that most advantages of SVG interactivity are user-centric, as it essentially elevates usability and prioritizes immersive design.

Designers and developers use interactive SVG animations to create engaging user journeys on the web and on mobile devices. Here’s everything you need to know about SVG interactivity in order to do the same:

Table of Contents

What Are Interactive SVG Animations?

Interactive SVG animations are dynamic scalable vector graphics that allow users to interact with the animations by triggering actions in response to user input. These SVG animations can respond to user input like mouse clicks, touch events (tap on mobile), mouse hovers (mouse over/mouse out), scrolling, and many other interactive event triggers.

Who uses Interactive SVG elements?

Designers and developers alike use interactive SVG elements to create an immersive user experience. Dynamic vector graphics have the advantage of encouraging user engagement without compromising on all the performance advantages of the animated SVG format.

Why use SVG Interactivity?

SVG interactivity retains the features that make SVG format so valuable in the digital world: lightweight file size, compatibility with responsive design, infinite scalability, and resolution independence, with a crisp look on any display, including ultra-high resolution displays. Unlike dynamic raster graphics (like GIFs), interactive web animations are much less likely to slow down your page load speed or negatively impact a mobile app’s performance.

How to use SVG Interactivity?

SVG interactivity can be implemented in a number of ways, each method with its own level of complexity. To create interactive scalable vector graphics, you can code them from scratch, use JavaScript libraries (like GSAP), or take the easiest route of creating interactive SVG animations from scratch with SVGator.

Why is SVGator the easiest route for implementing SVG interactivity into your web graphics?

SVGator makes implementing SVG interactivity a completely no-code process. The tool generates the code automatically, giving users the possibility to export interactive animations that are ready for dev handoff as is. All the settings needed to turn SVG animations into interactive assets are available in SVGator’s export panel.

4 Main Types of SVG Interactivity

These are the four main types of SVG interactivity:

In the context of interactive SVG animations, these four main types of SVG interactivity are used to create engaging web content, user-friendly interfaces, immersive web designs with intuitive navigation, and outstanding user experiences. In this section, you will discover what each type of SVG interactivity entails, which use cases it’s ideal for, and which common misuses to avoid.

1. SVG Interactivity Triggered on Click / on Tap

SVG interactivity triggered on click (or on tap for mobile interfaces) refers to an SVG animation that is triggered to play, pause, restart, reverse, etc., with a mouse click or a tap on a mobile UI.

On-click interactivity can easily address user experience pain points, so it’s important to implement it after mapping out the customer journey. The goal is to make the UI easier to navigate and lessen the cognitive load of interacting with a web page/mobile app.

After all, a clickable button that doesn’t display immediate feedback once clicked can cause confusion. A quick fix in this case would be to use an animated button that animates on click. Anything from a color change of the button to a button that morphs into a hand that gives users a high-five should work. As basic or as elaborate as you want it to be, an animation triggered on click will mimic the familiar response of real-life two-way communication.

With SVGator, this type of interactive SVG animation is easy to create, and you can also decide how the interactive element reacts on a user’s second click. Depending on your particular use case, the animation can be set to pause, restart, reverse, or continue on a second click. You can preview the interactivity settings you’ve selected in the export panel. That’s the beauty of WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) animation software, like SVGator.

Try the interactive animation below! Click on the image to start the animation:

2. SVG Interactivity Triggered on Hover (Mouse Over)

SVG interactivity triggered on hover (or hover effects) refers to an SVG animation that is triggered to play on mouse-over, pause, reset, reverse, or continue on mouse-out.

Hover animation interactivity expands the creative possibilities in any viewport you’re designing/animating for. While it’s recommended that you keep click animation practical and focused on usability, hover effects can be used on a broader scale, all the while keeping the customer success journey in focus, of course.

Hover effects created with SVGator’s no-code workaround are significantly less time-consuming and effort intensive than coding on-hover animation responses from scratch. You simply have to set your animated SVG to start on mouse over (hover) when exporting. No code writing, no extra workload for developers, just ready-to-use code!

3. SVG Interactivity Triggered on Scroll

SVG interactivity triggered on scroll refers to an SVG animation that is triggered as the user scrolls through the website. When you create this type of interactive animation with SVGator, you can customize the view percentage, which gives you control over how much of the animation should be visible in the viewport before the animation gets triggered. By default, we recommend a 25% view, but feel free to adjust it as you see fit.

The major benefit when you animate an SVG on scroll is that you can create an immersive user experience with ease. The animations become stand-ins that help capture a customer’s attention, paving the way for remarkable visual storytelling (also referred to as “scrollytelling” in this case). For instance, having SVG characters convey your brand story feels more personal and authentic, rather than having users read an “About Us” block of text.

View Entire Post