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What is the difference between hardware-accelerated and non-hardware-accelerated animations?
What is the difference between hardware-accelerated and non-hardware-accelerated animations?
Jun 24, 2025 am 12:41 AM
Hardware-accelerated animations use the GPU for smoother performance, while non-hardware-accelerated ones rely on the CPU. 1. Hardware acceleration offloads visual tasks to the GPU via properties like transform and opacity. 2. GPU animations run smoother, especially during complex or frequent updates. 3. CPU animations are simpler but may stutter under heavy page activity. 4. Triggers like translateZ(0) promote elements to GPU layers. 5. Overuse of layers can cause memory issues, especially on mobile devices. Choosing the right properties improves performance where it matters most.
When it comes to animations on the web or in apps, hardware-accelerated and non-hardware-accelerated animations behave differently in terms of performance and smoothness. The main difference is where the work happens: hardware-accelerated animations use the GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), while non-hardware-accelerated ones rely solely on the CPU (Central Processing Unit). This affects how smoothly animations run, especially on lower-end devices or when multiple effects are happening at once.
What Hardware Acceleration Actually Means
Hardware acceleration means that instead of the CPU doing all the drawing and rendering, some tasks get offloaded to the GPU. The GPU is specialized for handling visuals — like moving pixels, transformations, and layer compositing — which makes it much more efficient for animation tasks.
- It’s not always automatic; certain CSS properties or code patterns trigger it
- Common triggers include using
transform,opacity, orwill-change - Browsers often create a separate "layer" for elements that are accelerated
This doesn’t mean every animation should be hardware accelerated — sometimes it can cause memory issues or unnecessary overhead if overused.
Performance Impact: CPU vs GPU
Animations that use the CPU tend to be more prone to stuttering or lag because the CPU is handling many other tasks at the same time — JavaScript execution, layout calculations, painting, etc.
GPU-based animations:
- Run smoother, especially complex or frequent updates
- Are less likely to block the main thread
- Can handle things like 3D transforms and filters better
CPU-based animations:
- Often simpler to implement
- May affect performance during heavy page activity
- Don’t always require special setup
A good rule of thumb: if you're animating something frequently (like scrolling effects or transitions), go with GPU-friendly techniques. If it's a one-time fade or slide, the CPU might be just fine.
How to Trigger Hardware Acceleration (and When To Avoid It)
You don’t always have to force hardware acceleration, but knowing how browsers decide to promote an element to its own layer helps.
Common ways to encourage hardware acceleration:
- Use
transform: translateZ(0)ortranslate3d(0,0,0) - Apply
opacitychanges - Use
will-changeortransform-style: preserve-3d
?? But don’t overdo it:
- Too many layers can eat up memory
- Some older mobile devices struggle with many accelerated elements
- Animating layout properties like
widthortopwon’t benefit much from acceleration anyway
If you notice flickering, slow rendering, or high memory usage, check how many composited layers you’re creating — it might be time to dial back the hardware tricks.
Practical Examples in Web Development
In practice, this shows up most clearly in CSS animations:
/* Likely to be hardware accelerated */
.element {
transform: translateX(100px);
transition: transform 0.3s;
}
/* Less likely to be accelerated */
.element {
left: 100px;
transition: left 0.3s;
}JavaScript libraries like GSAP or Framer Motion also optimize for this under the hood, but if you're writing your own animations, choosing the right properties matters.
Also, on mobile devices, where performance headroom is smaller, using hardware acceleration properly can make a big difference in perceived responsiveness.
That’s the core of the difference — it’s really about who does the work and how efficiently it gets done. Not every animation needs the GPU, but knowing when and how to use it gives you more control over performance.
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