motion-patterns

Motion Patterns

Copy-paste patterns for the most common UI animation needs.

Every pattern here is built on motion-foundations tokens and springs.

Do not define new duration or easing values here — import them.

When to Activate

• Animating a button, card, modal, or toast notification
• Building list entrances with stagger
• Setting up page transitions in Next.js App Router
• Adding entrance or exit animations to conditional content
• Implementing scroll-reveal, scroll-linked progress, or sticky story sections
• Building expanding cards, accordions, or shared-element transitions

Outputs

This skill produces:

• Accessible, SSR-safe animation for all standard UI components
• AnimatePresence-wrapped conditional renders with correct exit behavior
• Page transition wrapper component for Next.js App Router
• Scroll-reveal and scroll-linked patterns using useScroll + useTransform
• Layout animation patterns (layout, layoutId) for expanding and crossfading elements

Principles

• Every pattern imports from motion-foundations. No raw numbers.
• Every conditional render is wrapped in AnimatePresence with a key.
• Exit animations are always defined alongside enter animations — never as an afterthought.
• layout is used only for small, isolated shifts. Large subtrees get explicit transforms.

Rules

1. Always wrap conditional renders in AnimatePresence with a key on the direct child. Without a key, exit animations never fire.
2. Always define exit when defining initial + animate. An animation without an exit is incomplete.
3. Use mode="wait" on page transitions. Enter must not start until exit completes.
4. Never use layout on subtrees with more than ~5 children or deeply nested DOM. Use explicit x/y transforms instead.
5. Stagger interval must stay between 0.05s and 0.10s. Below feels mechanical; above feels sluggish.
6. Modals must always include: focus trap, Escape-key close, scroll lock, role="dialog", aria-modal="true".
7. Scroll reveals use viewport={{ once: true }}. Repeating on scroll-out is distracting, not informative.
8. All token values are imported from motion-foundations. No inline numbers.

Decision Guidance

Choosing the right pattern

| Situation | Pattern |

| ---------------------------------------- | ---------------------- |

| Element appears / disappears | AnimatePresence |

| List of items loading in sequence | Stagger variants |

| Navigating between routes | Page transition wrapper|

| Element changes size in place | layout prop |

| Same element moves across page contexts | layoutId |

| Element enters when scrolled into view | whileInView |

| Value tied to scroll position | useScroll + useTransform |

When to use mode="wait" vs mode="sync"

| Mode | Use when |

| ------- | --------------------------------------- |

| wait | Page transitions, content swaps (one at a time) |

| sync | Stacked notifications, list items (overlap is fine) |

| popLayout | Items removed from a reflow list |

Core Concepts

AnimatePresence contract

Three things must always be true:

1. AnimatePresence wraps the conditional
2. The direct child has a key
3. The child has an exit prop

Miss any one of these and the exit animation silently fails.

layout vs layoutId

• layout — animates the element's own size/position change in place
• layoutId — links two separate elements, crossfading between them across renders

Use layout="position" on text inside an expanding container to prevent text reflow from animating.

Code Examples

Button feedback

"use client"
import { motion } from "motion/react"
import { springs, motionTokens } from "@/lib/motion-tokens"

<motion.button
  whileHover={{ scale: motionTokens.scale.pop }}
  whileTap={{ scale: motionTokens.scale.press }}
  transition={springs.snappy}
/>

Stagger list

"use client"
import { motion } from "motion/react"
import { motionTokens, springs } from "@/lib/motion-tokens"

const container = {
  hidden: {},
  visible: {
    transition: {
      staggerChildren: 0.08,   // within the 0.05–0.10 rule
      delayChildren: 0.1,
    },
  },
}

const item = {
  hidden:  { opacity: 0, y: motionTokens.distance.md },
  visible: { opacity: 1, y: 0, transition: springs.gentle },
}

<motion.ul variants={container} initial="hidden" animate="visible">
  {items.map((i) => (
    <motion.li key={i.id} variants={item} />
  ))}
</motion.ul>

Modal

"use client"
import { motion, AnimatePresence } from "motion/react"
import { motionTokens, springs } from "@/lib/motion-tokens"

// Wrap at the call site:
// <AnimatePresence>{isOpen && <Modal key="modal" />}</AnimatePresence>

export function Modal({ onClose }: { onClose: () => void }) {
  return (
    <>
      {/* Overlay */}
      <motion.div
        className="fixed inset-0 bg-black/50"
        initial={{ opacity: 0 }}
        animate={{ opacity: 1 }}
        exit={{ opacity: 0 }}
        onClick={onClose}
      />

      {/* Panel — accessibility requirements: focus trap, Escape close,
          scroll lock, role="dialog", aria-modal="true" */}
      <motion.div
        role="dialog"
        aria-modal="true"
        className="fixed inset-x-4 top-1/2 -translate-y-1/2 rounded-xl bg-white p-6"
        initial={{
          opacity: 0,
          scale: motionTokens.scale.press,
          y: motionTokens.distance.sm,
        }}
        animate={{ opacity: 1, scale: 1, y: 0 }}
        exit={{
          opacity: 0,
          scale: motionTokens.scale.press,
          y: motionTokens.distance.sm,
        }}
        transition={springs.gentle}
      />
    </>
  )
}

Toast stack

"use client"
import { motion, AnimatePresence } from "motion/react"
import { motionTokens, springs } from "@/lib/motion-tokens"

<AnimatePresence mode="sync">
  {toasts.map((t) => (
    <motion.div
      key={t.id}
      layout
      initial={{
        opacity: 0,
        x: motionTokens.distance.xl,
        scale: motionTokens.scale.subtle,
      }}
      animate={{ opacity: 1, x: 0, scale: 1 }}
      exit={{
        opacity: 0,
        x: motionTokens.distance.xl,
        scale: motionTokens.scale.subtle,
      }}
      transition={springs.snappy}
    />
  ))}
</AnimatePresence>

Page transition (Next.js App Router)

// components/page-transition.tsx
"use client"
import { motion, AnimatePresence } from "motion/react"
import { usePathname } from "next/navigation"
import { motionTokens } from "@/lib/motion-tokens"

const variants = {
  initial: { opacity: 0, y: motionTokens.distance.sm },
  enter:   { opacity: 1, y: 0 },
  exit:    { opacity: 0, y: -motionTokens.distance.sm },
}

export function PageTransition({ children }: { children: React.ReactNode }) {
  const pathname = usePathname()
  return (
    <AnimatePresence mode="wait">
      <motion.div
        key={pathname}
        variants={variants}
        initial="initial"
        animate="enter"
        exit="exit"
        transition={{
          duration: motionTokens.duration.normal,
          ease: motionTokens.easing.smooth,
        }}
      >
        {children}
      </motion.div>
    </AnimatePresence>
  )
}

Scroll reveal

"use client"
import { motion } from "motion/react"
import { motionTokens, springs } from "@/lib/motion-tokens"

<motion.div
  initial={{ opacity: 0, y: motionTokens.distance.lg }}
  whileInView={{ opacity: 1, y: 0 }}
  viewport={{ once: true, margin: "-80px" }}   // once: true — rule 7
  transition={{ duration: motionTokens.duration.slow, ease: motionTokens.easing.smooth }}
/>

Scroll progress bar

"use client"
import { motion, useScroll } from "motion/react"

export function ScrollProgress() {
  const { scrollYProgress } = useScroll()
  return (
    <motion.div
      className="fixed top-0 left-0 h-1 bg-indigo-500 origin-left w-full"
      style={{ scaleX: scrollYProgress }}
    />
  )
}

Expanding card

"use client"
import { useState } from "react"
import { motion, AnimatePresence } from "motion/react"
import { springs, motionTokens } from "@/lib/motion-tokens"

export function ExpandingCard({ title, body }: { title: string; body: string }) {
  const [expanded, setExpanded] = useState(false)

  return (
    <motion.div layout onClick={() => setExpanded(!expanded)} className="cursor-pointer">
      {/* layout="position" prevents text reflow from animating */}
      <motion.h2 layout="position" className="font-semibold">
        {title}
      </motion.h2>

      <AnimatePresence>
        {expanded && (
          <motion.p
            key="body"
            initial={{ opacity: 0 }}
            animate={{ opacity: 1 }}
            exit={{ opacity: 0 }}
            transition={{ duration: motionTokens.duration.fast }}
          >
            {body}
          </motion.p>
        )}
      </AnimatePresence>
    </motion.div>
  )
}

Shared-element crossfade

// Source context
<motion.img layoutId="hero-image" src={src} className="w-16 h-16 rounded" />

// Destination context (same layoutId — motion handles the transition)
<motion.img layoutId="hero-image" src={src} className="w-full rounded-xl" />

Accordion

<motion.div
  initial={false}
  animate={{ opacity: open ? 1 : 0, scaleY: open ? 1 : 0 }}
  style={{ transformOrigin: "top", overflow: "hidden" }}
  transition={{
    duration: motionTokens.duration.normal,
    ease: motionTokens.easing.smooth,
  }}
> {children}
</motion.div>

End-to-End Example

A staggered list that enters on mount, handles conditional presence, and

respects reduced motion — combining tokens, springs, AnimatePresence, and

the accessibility hook from motion-foundations:

"use client"
import { useState } from "react"
import { motion, AnimatePresence } from "motion/react"
import { motionTokens, springs } from "@/lib/motion-tokens"
import { useSafeMotion } from "@/hooks/use-reduced-motion"

const containerVariants = {
  hidden: {},
  visible: {
    transition: { staggerChildren: 0.08, delayChildren: 0.1 },
  },
}

function ListItem({ label, onRemove }: { label: string; onRemove: () => void }) {
  const safe = useSafeMotion(motionTokens.distance.sm)
  return (
    <motion.li
      variants={{
        hidden:  safe.initial,
        visible: safe.animate,
      }}
      exit={safe.exit}
      transition={springs.gentle}
      className="flex items-center justify-between p-3 rounded-lg bg-white shadow-sm"
    >
      <span>{label}</span>
      <button onClick={onRemove}>Remove</button>
    </motion.li>
  )
}

export function AnimatedList({ items, onRemove }: {
  items: { id: string; label: string }[]
  onRemove: (id: string) => void
}) {
  return (
    <motion.ul
      variants={containerVariants}
      initial="hidden"
      animate="visible"
      className="space-y-2"
    >
      <AnimatePresence mode="popLayout">
        {items.map((item) => (
          <ListItem
            key={item.id}
            label={item.label}
            onRemove={() => onRemove(item.id)}
          />
        ))}
      </AnimatePresence>
    </motion.ul>
  )
}

Constraints / Non-Goals

This skill does not cover:

• Token and spring definitions → see motion-foundations
• Drag interactions, swipe gestures, reorderable lists → see motion-advanced
• Text animations (word/character reveal, counters) → see motion-advanced
• SVG path drawing or morphing → see motion-advanced
• Custom animation hooks → see motion-advanced
• CSS-only transitions not using motion/react

Anti-Patterns

| Anti-pattern | Rule violated | Fix |

| -------------------------------------------- | ------- | ------------------------------------------ |

| AnimatePresence child missing key | Rule 1 | Add stable key to the direct child |

| initial + animate without exit | Rule 2 | Always define all three together |

| Page transition without mode="wait" | Rule 3 | Add mode="wait" to AnimatePresence |

| layout on a 50-item list | Rule 4 | Use mode="popLayout" or explicit transforms |

| staggerChildren: 0.2 on a 10-item list | Rule 5 | Cap at 0.08–0.10 |

| Modal without focus trap | Rule 6 | Add focus-trap-react or Radix Dialog |

| whileInView without viewport={{ once: true }} | Rule 7 | Repeating entrances distract, not inform |

| transition={{ duration: 0.3 }} inline | Rule 8 | Use motionTokens.duration.normal |

Related Skills

• motion-foundations — defines all tokens, springs, the useSafeMotion hook, and SSR guards that every pattern here imports. Must be set up first.
• motion-advanced — extends these patterns with drag, gestures, SVG, text, custom hooks, and imperative sequencing. Does not redefine any patterns from this skill.