CSS Translate- Full guide 2022

Introduction

CSS translate and transform is where we can really have some fun with elements. We can distort them and make them zoom across the screen. Transforms allow us to move or change the appearance of an element on a 2D or even a 3D plane. We will want to use transforms with transitions in order to produce a smooth animation. They are triggered when an element changes state, such as on a hover. Transform-origin is separate from the transform property but can be used in conjunction with it to specify the location origin of the transform.

There are four different types of transforms: Rotate, Skew, Scale and Translate :

Rotate

The rotate transform rotates an element clockwise or counterclockwise by a specified number of degrees (deg). A positive value (90deg) will rotate the element clockwise. A negative value (-100deg) will rotate the element counterclockwise.

element {
  transition: transform 1s ease-in-out;
}
element:hover {
  transform: rotate(90deg);
  transform: rotate(-30deg);
}
Code language: CSS (css)

Skew

The skew transform tilts an element based on values provided on the X and Y axes. A positive X value tilts the element left. A negative X value tilts it right. A positive Y value tilts the element down, and a negative Y value tilts it up. If an axis isn’t specified and only skew is stated then that is equivalent to skewX. Also, you can include both X and Y axes to tilt the element’s angles.

element {
  transition: transform 0.3s ease;
}
  element:hover {
  transform: skew(90deg); 
  transform: skewX(90deg);
  transform: skewY(-50deg);
  transform: skew(90deg, -50deg);
}
Code language: CSS (css)

Scale

The scale transform increases or decreases the size of an element. A number larger than 1 will increase the size of the element. A decimal of less than 1 will decrease the size of the element. For example, 2 would make the element twice its original size, whereas 0.5 would make the element half its original size. The size of an element can be scaled by the X-axis, Y-axis, or both. The shorthand scale() will affect both axes at the same time.

element {
  transition: transform 1s ease;
}element:hover {
  transform: scaleX(0.5);
  transform: scaleY(2);
  transform: scale(0.5);
  transform: scale(0.5, 2);
}
Code language: CSS (css)

Translate

The translate() CSS function repositions an element in the horizontal and/or vertical directions. Its result is a <transform-function> data type. This transformation is characterized by a two-dimensional vector. Its coordinates define how much the element moves in each direction.

/* Single <length-percentage> values */
transform: translate(200px);
transform: translate(50%);

/* Double <length-percentage> values */
transform: translate(100px, 200px);
transform: translate(100px, 50%);
transform: translate(30%, 200px);
transform: translate(30%, 50%);
Code language: HTML, XML (xml)

Single  values

This value is a <length> or <percentage> representing the abscissa (horizontal, x-coordinate) of the translating vector. The ordinate (vertical, y-coordinate) of the translating vector will be set to 0. For example, translate(2px) is equivalent to translate(2px, 0). A percentage value refers to the width of the reference box defined by the transform-box property.

Double  values

This value describes two <length> or <percentage> values representing both the abscissa (x-coordinate) and the ordinate (y-coordinate) of the translating vector. A percentage as the first value refers to the width. The second part to the height of the reference box is defined by the transform-box property.
The translate transform moves an element right, left, up, or down. A positive X value moves the element to the right and a negative X value moves the element to the left. A positive Y value moves the element downwards and a negative Y value moves the element upwards.

element {
  transition: transform 0.5s linear;
}element:hover {
  transform: translateX(15px);
  transform: translateY(50px);
  transform: translate(15px, -40px);
}
Code language: CSS (css)

• The translate() method moves an element from its current position to the top/left/bottom/right (according to the parameters given for the X-axis and the Y-axis).
• These values would be any length value, like 10px or 2.4em

div {<br>transform: translate(50px, 100px);<br>}
Code language: CSS (css)

 <length-percentage> can either be a length value or a percentage value. When it comes to writing values, translate one can take one, two, or three values in a single declaration.

/* Keyword value */
translate: none;

/* Single value */
translate: 100px;
translate: 50%;

/* Two values */
translate: 100px 200px;
translate: 50% 105px;

/* Three values */
translate: 50% 105px 5rem;

/* Global values */
translate: inherit;
translate: initial;
translate: revert;
translate: unset;
Code language: CSS (css)

Declaring one value translates the element along both the X and Y axes by that value. (This behavior, however, is inconsistent in Safari at the time of writing. Instead of translating the element in both directions, it only translates along the X-axis) Declaring two values sets the X and Y axes independently. Declaring three values sets the X, Y, and Z axes, respectively.

Syntax

translate(<length-percentage> , 
<length-percentage>?)
Code language: HTML, XML (xml)

Values

• none: This is used to specify that no translation should be applied.
• <length-percentage>: This is a numerical value that determines how much an element is translated along an axis.

Single axis translation

<p>div {
<br>width: 60px;<br>height: 60px;
<br>background-color: skyblue;<br>}
</p>

<p>.moved {
<br>transform: translate(10px); 
/* Equal to: translateX(10px) or 
translate(10px, 0) */
<br>background-color: pink;<br>}</p>
Code language: HTML, XML (xml)

Result

X-axis and Y-axis translation

div {
  width: 60px;
  height: 60px;
  background-color: skyblue;
}

.moved {
  transform: translate(10px, 10px);
  background-color: pink;
}
Code language: CSS (css)

Result

Translation along Z-axis

The translate method basically moves an HTML element from its actual position without messing with any other sibling/parent element on the layout tree. To summarize, the translateX method moves the element left and right, whereas the translateY method moves it up and down.

To visualize how translate works along the Z-axis, imagine your div moving towards and away from you instead of top-bottom or left-right in the screen —

Browser Compatibility Of CSS Transforms

Let us take a look at the compatibility of the CSS Transform property across different browsers.

Conclusion

CSS transformations are extremely useful when you have to work with transitions and animations on the frontend of any website. Using the translate function users can include smooth movements in two or three dimensions to give a more realistic feel to the application being created.

Hope you learned something new today. Have a nice day!