In the fast pace of modern interface design, users are looking not only for aesthetics, they want clarity and understanding. This is exactly where UX animation comes in. It shapes interface behavior, provides cues, reduces cognitive load, and creates an emotional connection with the product. At Excited, this is precisely how we use it.
In this article, we'll talk about what makes good animation and how it impacts product experience.
Why animation is a functional tool, not a visual extra
Animation is often seen as a purely aesthetic layer, i.e. something that's nice to have, but ultimately optional. In reality, it plays a critical role in creating clear communication between the system and the user.
Animation helps to:
- Explain relationships between interface elements, such as when a card collapses into a preview or expands into a full-screen view;
- Show that the system is processing an action through loaders, progress indicators, or button state changes;
- Confirm or reject user actions using motion, color changes, or haptic feedback;
- Make complex navigation easier to understand with smooth transitions between sections, sliders, and modal windows.
These use cases are by no means comprehensive. However, these 4 usage scenarios should be enough to get you the idea of what animation is capable of.
When motion provides direction, not just decoration
Imagine tapping a Pay button and nothing happens. No visual response, no feedback. That moment of uncertainty is frustrating. But when a spinner appears, the button fades, or a subtle vibration is triggered, the user immediately understands that the system is working.
This is where micro-animations show their real value. They reduce tension, build trust, and gently guide users toward the next step. Let's break down the utility of animation further:
Clear visual feedback for user actions
Button presses enhanced with micro-animation — a slight shift, color change, or shadow — create immediate and expected feedback. This reassures users that their action has been registered. Even minimal vibration, glow, or click effects reinforce the cause-and-effect relationship between action and result.
Less cognitive load, clearer logic
Animation helps users orient themselves. When an element enters from the left, we intuitively understand that it comes from a previous step. When a new screen slides up from the bottom, it signals deeper navigation into details.
This principle is known in interaction design as spatial logic — the idea that motion explains how different parts of the interface relate to each other.
Natural motion through easing
Abrupt movements or elements appearing instantly can feel jarring and unnatural. That’s why easing is essential in UX animation. Gradual acceleration or deceleration at the start or end of motion mirrors real-world physics, making transitions feel smooth and intentional.
Easing adds psychological comfort. Instead of distracting users, well-timed motion subtly calms them, even if they don’t consciously notice it.
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Increasing engagement and improving user experience
Even the most functional interface can feel dull if it appears static or lifeless. Animation brings interactions to life, making them more intuitive and emotionally engaging. As a result, it increases user engagement, improves overall UX, and can directly influence product metrics such as conversion, retention, and time on page.
You can explore this in more detail in our article “UX Metrics: What to Measure and Why.”
Micro-animations create micro-emotions
Micro-interactions are small but meaningful moments when users feel that the system understands them.
- A button gently bounces after being tapped
- A hover state triggers a subtle color shift or rotation
- A progress indicator moves smoothly as a form is being completed
These details go beyond visual polish. They help build trust, strengthen the emotional bond with the product, and increase overall satisfaction. Additionally, this concept dovetails nicely with gamification, which is also a surefire way to boost engagement.
Dynamic states keep attention focused
When an interface responds to user actions — a price updates, a filter changes, or a notification appears — animation makes these changes easier to notice. Even simple transitions, such as smooth color changes or subtle movement, attract attention more effectively than instant content updates.
Animation supports higher conversion
Research shows that users navigate interfaces more confidently when motion highlights key actions. This reduces friction, lowers bounce rates, and increases the number of completed actions, such as purchases or sign-ups. Well-designed animation improves the overall user flow.
Predictive UX through motion
Animation doesn’t just help users feel the interface, it helps them anticipate what comes next and guide users to an aha moment. When menus open clearly, elements move with intent, or tabs transition smoothly, users follow the logic of the design instead of feeling lost. This creates confidence and a stronger sense of control throughout the experience.
The 12 principles of animation in UX
Back in 1981, Disney animators introduced 12 core animation principles that made motion in cartoons feel natural and expressive. Today, these same principles translate surprisingly well to UI and UX design. They help create interfaces that feel alive — where interactions are logical, pleasant, and intuitive.
Below is how these principles apply in interface design:
Animation in mobile and web design
In mobile UX, overly aggressive animations can feel like delays or unnecessarily drain battery life. That’s why fluid motion matters — smooth, predictable movement that supports the experience without slowing users down.
A good example is the new Liquid Glass UI in iOS. Elements don’t simply appear on screen; they respond to light, context, and device motion, creating the illusion of real glass. This is a glimpse of the future of UX, i.e. motion that feels intuitive rather than decorative.
Common types of mobile animations
- Page transitions
Communicate changes in context, such as swiping right to go back. - Feedback animations
Visual or haptic responses to user actions, like subtle vibration or icon changes during payment. - Button and tap effects
Reinforce the feeling of touch through slight scaling or glow effects. - Progress indicators and loaders
Explain what’s happening in the system, such as a progress bar during an upgrade. - Contextual hints
Subtle animations that suggest interaction paths, for example a card lifting slightly to hint at a swipe. - Accent animations and background motion
Often used during first-time experiences, such as animated arrows or step-by-step visual guidance.
In web design, animation serves even more purposes. Scroll navigation, section transitions, hover states, and skeleton loaders not only improve perceived performance but also help maintain attention. Well-designed web animation makes the structure of a site easier to understand.
Common types of web animations
- Loading animations
Indicate that the system is active — skeleton screens, spinners, or logo animations. For example, loaders before transactions or skeletons while feeds load. - Welcoming animations
Create a positive first impression when an app or website launches, such as animated logos or gentle element entrances. - Tap and hold effects
The mobile equivalent of hover states, visually reinforcing interaction through compression or glow. - Scroll-based animations
Content appears gradually during scrolling, using fades, vertical motion, or offsets to guide attention. - Whole-page motion
Large blocks move together, creating depth and immersion — for example, swipe-driven transitions between major sections. - Accent animations and background motion
Subtle movement in backgrounds or UI elements that adds atmosphere without distracting from content.
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Motion UI tools
Animation for interfaces has become far more accessible. You no longer need to be a dedicated motion designer to create functional, visually pleasing animations. At Excited, we usually combine lightweight tools with more advanced workflows: we rely on Figma for basic prototype animations and bring in motion designers with After Effects and Lottie for more complex cases.
Choosing the right tool to bring interfaces to life
After Effects + Lottie
Best suited for complex illustrative animations and micro-interactions — such as animated icons, reaction states, empty states, or illustrative onboarding flows.
Using Lottie’s JSON format makes these animations easy to integrate into mobile apps and websites with minimal file size and no loss of quality.
Figma Smart Animate
An excellent solution for rapid prototyping directly in Figma. Smart Animate allows designers to add simple transitions between screens — fades, slides, and scaling — and test interaction logic without writing code.
Rive
Designed for real-time interactive animation. Rive enables designers and developers to define multiple states — for example, pressed, disabled, or inactive buttons — and switch between them dynamically in code without re-exporting animations.
Principle / Framer Motion
Well suited for prototyping complex interface scenarios, including transitions, tab systems, multi-screen flows, and hover or scroll-based interactions.
Future trends: where motion design is heading in 2026
Animation continues to evolve alongside technology, context, and even user expectations around ethics and accessibility. These trends are already shaping the future of motion design:
Hyper-realistic 3D animation
Photorealistic 3D motion with rich depth and texture is becoming more common in storytelling and promotional experiences. Real-time rendering is making this approach increasingly accessible.
AI-driven personalized animation
Motion that adapts to user behavior. Animations may become simpler when users skip steps, or smoother and more detailed when engagement is high.
Hybrid 2D and 3D styles
Combining flat graphics with dimensional effects creates visual depth and dynamic contrast.
Kinetic typography
Animated text becomes part of navigation and emphasis. It sets rhythm, tone, and emotion — for example, large headlines on landing pages that subtly move or appear with intentional delay.
Cinematic scroll and parallax
Scrolling becomes narrative-driven, using horizontal movement, layered depth, and multi-level parallax to tell a story through motion.
Ultra-fast micro-interactions
Users value speed. Single-frame animations, instant tap reactions, and near-invisible loaders create a sense of control and responsiveness.
Dark-mode-first motion design
Animations designed specifically for dark interfaces use softer easing, muted gradients, and gentle motion blur to reduce eye strain.
Stylized minimalism
Content-driven animations with a restrained, minimalist aesthetic help explain ideas clearly without visual noise.
Animation is more than just movement
UI animation in 2026 is adaptive by default. It is personalized, fast, emotionally expressive, and grounded in technology. Motion no longer exists for decoration alone — it supports UX, shapes atmosphere, and builds a connection with users at every stage of interaction.
At Excited, we treat animation as a functional design tool, not an extra layer of polish. When used intentionally, even the smallest micro-animation can change how a product feels — making interactions clearer, calmer, and more human.