Did you know you can animate without @keyframes?
The new @starting-style makes it possible.
It lets you define an element’s initial state. CSS handles the transition from there.
- Simpler syntax
- Cleaner code
- Perfect for quick UI effects
But here’s the real magic: You can now animate elements as they enter the DOM. Think modals, tooltips, or anything that appears dynamically.
Before, CSS couldn’t animate them, it didn’t know their “before” state. @starting-style changes that.
No more hacks. No more JS for basic transitions. It’s supported in ~88% of browsers, so not production-ready yet.
Already tried it? I’d love to hear how you’d use it.
I’m working on an ebook called “You Don’t Need JavaScript”. To get notified when it launches 👉 see the ebook