UI Components Medium

3D Tilt Card with Glare

Pointer-driven 3D tilt cards that rotate toward the cursor with a moving specular glare, layered parallax depth, and a smooth spring-back on leave — pure CSS transforms and vanilla JS.

Open in Lab

vanilla-js css

Targets: JS HTML

Code

:root {
  --bg: #0c0d10;
  --surface: #15161b;
  --surface-2: #1d1f27;
  --ink: #e9eaf0;
  --muted: #9a9cab;
  --accent: #8b5cf6;
  --accent-2: #22d3ee;
  --ok: #34d399;
  --warn: #fbbf24;
  --danger: #f87171;
  --line: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.1);
  --line-2: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.18);
  --r-sm: 8px;
  --r-md: 12px;
  --r-lg: 16px;
}

*,
*::before,
*::after {
  box-sizing: border-box;
}

html {
  -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;
  -moz-osx-font-smoothing: grayscale;
}

body {
  margin: 0;
  min-height: 100vh;
  background:
    radial-gradient(1100px 600px at 15% -10%, rgba(139, 92, 246, 0.16), transparent 60%),
    radial-gradient(900px 600px at 100% 0%, rgba(34, 211, 238, 0.12), transparent 55%),
    var(--bg);
  color: var(--ink);
  font-family: "Inter", system-ui, sans-serif;
  line-height: 1.5;
}

.page {
  max-width: 1080px;
  margin: 0 auto;
  padding: clamp(24px, 5vw, 64px) clamp(16px, 4vw, 40px) 48px;
}

/* ---------- Masthead ---------- */
.masthead {
  margin-bottom: clamp(32px, 6vw, 56px);
}

.eyebrow {
  margin: 0 0 10px;
  font-size: 12px;
  font-weight: 600;
  letter-spacing: 0.14em;
  text-transform: uppercase;
  color: var(--accent-2);
}

.masthead h1 {
  margin: 0 0 12px;
  font-size: clamp(28px, 5vw, 42px);
  font-weight: 700;
  letter-spacing: -0.02em;
}

.lede {
  margin: 0;
  max-width: 60ch;
  color: var(--muted);
  font-size: 15px;
}

/* ---------- Controls ---------- */
.controls {
  display: flex;
  flex-wrap: wrap;
  gap: 14px 22px;
  align-items: center;
  margin-top: 22px;
  padding: 14px 18px;
  background: var(--surface);
  border: 1px solid var(--line);
  border-radius: var(--r-md);
}

.control {
  display: inline-flex;
  align-items: center;
  gap: 10px;
  font-size: 13px;
  color: var(--muted);
}

.control__label {
  font-weight: 500;
  color: var(--ink);
  white-space: nowrap;
}

.control__val {
  min-width: 34px;
  font-family: "JetBrains Mono", monospace;
  font-size: 12px;
  color: var(--accent-2);
}

input[type="range"] {
  -webkit-appearance: none;
  appearance: none;
  width: 140px;
  height: 4px;
  border-radius: 999px;
  background: linear-gradient(90deg, var(--accent), var(--accent-2));
  outline: none;
  cursor: pointer;
}

input[type="range"]::-webkit-slider-thumb {
  -webkit-appearance: none;
  appearance: none;
  width: 16px;
  height: 16px;
  border-radius: 50%;
  background: var(--ink);
  border: 2px solid var(--accent);
  box-shadow: 0 2px 6px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.4);
}

input[type="range"]::-moz-range-thumb {
  width: 16px;
  height: 16px;
  border-radius: 50%;
  background: var(--ink);
  border: 2px solid var(--accent);
}

.control--switch {
  cursor: pointer;
}

.control--switch input {
  width: 16px;
  height: 16px;
  accent-color: var(--accent);
  cursor: pointer;
}

:focus-visible {
  outline: 2px solid var(--accent-2);
  outline-offset: 3px;
}

/* ---------- Deck ---------- */
.deck {
  display: grid;
  grid-template-columns: repeat(auto-fit, minmax(260px, 1fr));
  gap: clamp(24px, 4vw, 40px);
  perspective: 1000px;
}

/* ---------- Card ---------- */
.tilt-card {
  --rx: 0deg;
  --ry: 0deg;
  --mx: 50%;
  --my: 50%;
  --glare: 0;
  --pop: 0;
  position: relative;
  border-radius: var(--r-lg);
  cursor: pointer;
  outline-offset: 6px;
  transform-style: preserve-3d;
}

.tilt-card__inner {
  position: relative;
  border-radius: inherit;
  background:
    linear-gradient(160deg, var(--surface-2), var(--surface));
  border: 1px solid var(--line-2);
  transform: rotateX(var(--rx)) rotateY(var(--ry));
  transform-style: preserve-3d;
  transition: transform 0.5s cubic-bezier(0.23, 1.2, 0.32, 1);
  box-shadow:
    0 10px 30px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.45),
    0 2px 6px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.3);
  overflow: hidden;
  will-change: transform;
}

.tilt-card:hover .tilt-card__inner,
.tilt-card:focus-visible .tilt-card__inner,
.tilt-card.is-active .tilt-card__inner {
  transition: transform 0.08s linear;
  box-shadow:
    0 24px 60px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.55),
    0 0 0 1px var(--line-2);
}

/* accent edge glow per card */
.tilt-card[data-accent="violet"] .tilt-card__inner {
  box-shadow:
    0 24px 60px rgba(139, 92, 246, 0.18),
    0 10px 30px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.45);
}

/* Glare */
.tilt-card__glare {
  position: absolute;
  inset: 0;
  border-radius: inherit;
  pointer-events: none;
  z-index: 3;
  opacity: var(--glare);
  transition: opacity 0.4s ease;
  background: radial-gradient(
    260px circle at var(--mx) var(--my),
    rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.42),
    rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.08) 30%,
    transparent 60%
  );
  mix-blend-mode: overlay;
}

/* Content + parallax */
.tilt-card__content {
  position: relative;
  z-index: 2;
  padding: 22px;
  transform-style: preserve-3d;
}

.badge {
  display: inline-block;
  padding: 5px 11px;
  font-size: 11px;
  font-weight: 600;
  letter-spacing: 0.04em;
  border-radius: 999px;
  color: var(--accent);
  background: rgba(139, 92, 246, 0.14);
  border: 1px solid rgba(139, 92, 246, 0.4);
  transform: translateZ(calc(var(--depth, 0) * var(--pop) * 1px));
}

.badge--warn {
  color: var(--warn);
  background: rgba(251, 191, 36, 0.13);
  border-color: rgba(251, 191, 36, 0.4);
}

.badge--ok {
  color: var(--ok);
  background: rgba(52, 211, 153, 0.13);
  border-color: rgba(52, 211, 153, 0.4);
}

.art {
  margin: 16px 0 18px;
  height: 150px;
  border-radius: var(--r-md);
  display: grid;
  place-items: center;
  border: 1px solid var(--line);
  transform: translateZ(calc(var(--depth, 0) * var(--pop) * 1px));
  box-shadow: 0 12px 24px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.35);
}

.art--aurora {
  background:
    radial-gradient(120px 80px at 30% 20%, rgba(139, 92, 246, 0.55), transparent 70%),
    linear-gradient(135deg, #2a1a4a, #101326);
}

.art--nimbus {
  background:
    radial-gradient(120px 80px at 70% 25%, rgba(34, 211, 238, 0.5), transparent 70%),
    linear-gradient(135deg, #0d2b33, #101326);
}

.art--meridian {
  background:
    radial-gradient(120px 80px at 50% 20%, rgba(52, 211, 153, 0.45), transparent 70%),
    linear-gradient(135deg, #10322a, #101326);
}

.art__glyph {
  font-size: 56px;
  line-height: 1;
  color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.9);
  text-shadow: 0 6px 18px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5);
}

.meta {
  transform-style: preserve-3d;
}

.meta__title {
  margin: 0;
  font-size: 20px;
  font-weight: 700;
  letter-spacing: -0.01em;
  transform: translateZ(calc(var(--depth, 0) * var(--pop) * 1px));
}

.meta__sub {
  margin: 4px 0 14px;
  font-size: 13px;
  color: var(--muted);
  transform: translateZ(calc(var(--depth, 0) * var(--pop) * 1px));
}

.meta__row {
  display: flex;
  align-items: center;
  justify-content: space-between;
  transform: translateZ(calc(var(--depth, 0) * var(--pop) * 1px));
}

.price {
  font-size: 18px;
  font-weight: 700;
}

.rating {
  font-size: 13px;
  font-weight: 600;
  color: var(--warn);
}

/* ---------- Readout ---------- */
.readout {
  display: flex;
  flex-wrap: wrap;
  align-items: center;
  gap: 8px 14px;
  margin-top: clamp(32px, 5vw, 48px);
  padding: 14px 18px;
  background: var(--surface);
  border: 1px solid var(--line);
  border-radius: var(--r-md);
  font-size: 13px;
}

.readout__key {
  color: var(--muted);
}

.readout__key::before {
  content: "";
}

.readout__val {
  font-weight: 600;
  padding-right: 6px;
}

.readout__val.mono {
  font-family: "JetBrains Mono", monospace;
  color: var(--accent-2);
}

/* ---------- Responsive ---------- */
@media (max-width: 520px) {
  .deck {
    grid-template-columns: 1fr;
    perspective: 800px;
  }
  input[type="range"] {
    width: 110px;
  }
  .art {
    height: 130px;
  }
}

@media (prefers-reduced-motion: reduce) {
  .tilt-card__inner {
    transform: none !important;
    transition: none;
  }
  .tilt-card__glare {
    opacity: 0 !important;
  }
  .badge,
  .art,
  .meta__title,
  .meta__sub,
  .meta__row {
    transform: none !important;
  }
}

// 3D Tilt Card with Glare
// Pointer Events drive rotateX/rotateY via CSS custom properties.
// requestAnimationFrame batches updates; a spring-back transition handles leave.

(() => {
  "use strict";

  const cards = Array.from(document.querySelectorAll("[data-tilt]"));
  const intensityInput = document.getElementById("intensity");
  const intensityVal = document.getElementById("intensity-val");
  const glareToggle = document.getElementById("glare");
  const parallaxToggle = document.getElementById("parallax");

  const roCard = document.getElementById("ro-card");
  const roX = document.getElementById("ro-x");
  const roY = document.getElementById("ro-y");

  const reduceMotion = window.matchMedia("(prefers-reduced-motion: reduce)");

  // Shared, live-tunable settings.
  const settings = {
    max: Number(intensityInput.value),
    glare: glareToggle.checked,
    parallax: parallaxToggle.checked,
  };

  // Per-card pending frame state so we only touch the DOM inside rAF.
  const frames = new WeakMap();

  function applyPop(card) {
    // How far inner layers pop toward the viewer (0 = flat).
    card.style.setProperty("--pop", settings.parallax ? "1" : "0");
  }

  function setDepths(card) {
    // Seed each layer's depth from its data-depth attribute (once).
    card.querySelectorAll("[data-depth]").forEach((el) => {
      el.style.setProperty("--depth", el.dataset.depth || "0");
    });
  }

  function updateReadout(card, rx, ry) {
    const label = card.getAttribute("aria-label") || "Card";
    roCard.textContent = label.replace(/ product card$/i, "");
    roX.textContent = `${rx.toFixed(1)}°`;
    roY.textContent = `${ry.toFixed(1)}°`;
  }

  function schedule(card, px, py, rect) {
    if (frames.get(card)) return; // already queued this frame
    const id = requestAnimationFrame(() => {
      frames.set(card, 0);
      render(card, px, py, rect);
    });
    frames.set(card, id);
  }

  function render(card, px, py, rect) {
    // Normalize pointer position to -0.5..0.5 across the card.
    const nx = (px - rect.left) / rect.width - 0.5;
    const ny = (py - rect.top) / rect.height - 0.5;

    // Tilt toward the pointer: vertical pointer -> rotateX, horizontal -> rotateY.
    const rotX = (-ny * settings.max).toFixed(2);
    const rotY = (nx * settings.max).toFixed(2);

    card.style.setProperty("--rx", `${rotX}deg`);
    card.style.setProperty("--ry", `${rotY}deg`);

    // Glare tracks the pointer as a percentage.
    if (settings.glare) {
      card.style.setProperty("--mx", `${((px - rect.left) / rect.width) * 100}%`);
      card.style.setProperty("--my", `${((py - rect.top) / rect.height) * 100}%`);
      card.style.setProperty("--glare", "1");
    } else {
      card.style.setProperty("--glare", "0");
    }

    updateReadout(card, Number(rotX), Number(rotY));
  }

  function reset(card) {
    card.classList.remove("is-active");
    card.style.setProperty("--rx", "0deg");
    card.style.setProperty("--ry", "0deg");
    card.style.setProperty("--glare", "0");
    // Center the glare so its fade-out looks natural.
    card.style.setProperty("--mx", "50%");
    card.style.setProperty("--my", "50%");
  }

  function bind(card) {
    setDepths(card);
    applyPop(card);

    let rect = null;

    const onEnter = (e) => {
      if (reduceMotion.matches) return;
      rect = card.getBoundingClientRect();
      card.classList.add("is-active");
      schedule(card, e.clientX, e.clientY, rect);
    };

    const onMove = (e) => {
      if (reduceMotion.matches) return;
      if (!rect) rect = card.getBoundingClientRect();
      schedule(card, e.clientX, e.clientY, rect);
    };

    const onLeave = () => {
      rect = null;
      reset(card);
    };

    // Pointer Events cover mouse, touch, and pen with one code path.
    card.addEventListener("pointerenter", onEnter);
    card.addEventListener("pointermove", onMove);
    card.addEventListener("pointerleave", onLeave);
    card.addEventListener("pointercancel", onLeave);

    // Keyboard focus gives a gentle preset tilt so it's clearly interactive.
    card.addEventListener("focus", () => {
      if (reduceMotion.matches) return;
      card.classList.add("is-active");
      const t = (settings.max * 0.5).toFixed(2);
      card.style.setProperty("--rx", `${t}deg`);
      card.style.setProperty("--ry", `${-t}deg`);
      if (settings.glare) card.style.setProperty("--glare", "1");
      updateReadout(card, Number(t), Number(-t));
    });
    card.addEventListener("blur", onLeave);
  }

  // Controls
  intensityInput.addEventListener("input", () => {
    settings.max = Number(intensityInput.value);
    intensityVal.textContent = `${settings.max}°`;
  });

  glareToggle.addEventListener("change", () => {
    settings.glare = glareToggle.checked;
    if (!settings.glare) cards.forEach((c) => c.style.setProperty("--glare", "0"));
  });

  parallaxToggle.addEventListener("change", () => {
    settings.parallax = parallaxToggle.checked;
    cards.forEach(applyPop);
  });

  cards.forEach(bind);

  // Honor a runtime change in the motion preference.
  reduceMotion.addEventListener("change", () => {
    if (reduceMotion.matches) cards.forEach(reset);
  });
})();

<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8" />
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1" />
  <title>3D Tilt Card with Glare</title>
  <link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.googleapis.com" />
  <link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.gstatic.com" crossorigin />
  <link
    href="https://fonts.googleapis.com/css2?family=Inter:wght@400;500;600;700&family=JetBrains+Mono:wght@400;500&display=swap"
    rel="stylesheet"
  />
  <link rel="stylesheet" href="style.css" />
</head>
<body>
  <main class="page">
    <header class="masthead">
      <p class="eyebrow">UI Components</p>
      <h1>3D Tilt Card with Glare</h1>
      <p class="lede">
        Move your pointer over a card. It leans toward the cursor in 3D, a specular
        glare sweeps across the surface, and inner layers float forward for real
        parallax depth. Everything springs back on leave.
      </p>

      <div class="controls" role="group" aria-label="Tilt controls">
        <label class="control">
          <span class="control__label">Max tilt</span>
          <input
            id="intensity"
            type="range"
            min="0"
            max="24"
            step="1"
            value="14"
            aria-describedby="intensity-val"
          />
          <output id="intensity-val" class="control__val">14°</output>
        </label>

        <label class="control control--switch">
          <input id="glare" type="checkbox" checked />
          <span class="control__label">Glare</span>
        </label>

        <label class="control control--switch">
          <input id="parallax" type="checkbox" checked />
          <span class="control__label">Parallax</span>
        </label>
      </div>
    </header>

    <section class="deck" aria-label="Tilt cards">
      <!-- Card 1 -->
      <article class="tilt-card" tabindex="0" data-tilt data-accent="violet"
        aria-label="Aurora Keyboard product card">
        <div class="tilt-card__inner">
          <div class="tilt-card__glare" aria-hidden="true"></div>
          <div class="tilt-card__content">
            <span class="badge" data-depth="60">In stock</span>
            <div class="art art--aurora" data-depth="40" aria-hidden="true">
              <span class="art__glyph">⌘</span>
            </div>
            <div class="meta">
              <h2 class="meta__title" data-depth="30">Aurora 65</h2>
              <p class="meta__sub" data-depth="22">Hot-swap mechanical keyboard</p>
              <div class="meta__row" data-depth="16">
                <span class="price">$149</span>
                <span class="rating" aria-label="Rated 4.9 out of 5">★ 4.9</span>
              </div>
            </div>
          </div>
        </div>
      </article>

      <!-- Card 2 -->
      <article class="tilt-card" tabindex="0" data-tilt data-accent="cyan"
        aria-label="Nimbus Headphones product card">
        <div class="tilt-card__inner">
          <div class="tilt-card__glare" aria-hidden="true"></div>
          <div class="tilt-card__content">
            <span class="badge badge--warn" data-depth="60">Low stock</span>
            <div class="art art--nimbus" data-depth="40" aria-hidden="true">
              <span class="art__glyph">◐</span>
            </div>
            <div class="meta">
              <h2 class="meta__title" data-depth="30">Nimbus Pro</h2>
              <p class="meta__sub" data-depth="22">Active-noise wireless headphones</p>
              <div class="meta__row" data-depth="16">
                <span class="price">$219</span>
                <span class="rating" aria-label="Rated 4.7 out of 5">★ 4.7</span>
              </div>
            </div>
          </div>
        </div>
      </article>

      <!-- Card 3 -->
      <article class="tilt-card" tabindex="0" data-tilt data-accent="emerald"
        aria-label="Meridian Watch product card">
        <div class="tilt-card__inner">
          <div class="tilt-card__glare" aria-hidden="true"></div>
          <div class="tilt-card__content">
            <span class="badge badge--ok" data-depth="60">New</span>
            <div class="art art--meridian" data-depth="40" aria-hidden="true">
              <span class="art__glyph">◷</span>
            </div>
            <div class="meta">
              <h2 class="meta__title" data-depth="30">Meridian S</h2>
              <p class="meta__sub" data-depth="22">Titanium smartwatch, 9-day battery</p>
              <div class="meta__row" data-depth="16">
                <span class="price">$329</span>
                <span class="rating" aria-label="Rated 5.0 out of 5">★ 5.0</span>
              </div>
            </div>
          </div>
        </div>
      </article>
    </section>

    <footer class="readout" aria-live="polite">
      <span class="readout__key">Active card</span>
      <span id="ro-card" class="readout__val">—</span>
      <span class="readout__key">rotateX</span>
      <span id="ro-x" class="readout__val mono">0.0°</span>
      <span class="readout__key">rotateY</span>
      <span id="ro-y" class="readout__val mono">0.0°</span>
    </footer>
  </main>

  <script src="script.js"></script>
</body>
</html>

A grid of interactive product cards that respond to pointer movement with realistic 3D perspective. As the cursor moves across a card, JavaScript maps its position to rotateX/rotateY values and writes them to CSS custom properties, so the card visually leans toward the pointer. A radial glare highlight tracks the same coordinates to simulate light glancing off a glossy surface, while inner layers (badge, artwork, title) are pushed forward along the Z axis with translateZ to create genuine parallax depth.

The interaction is built on the Pointer Events API, so a single set of handlers covers mouse, trackpad, touch and pen input. On pointer leave the card animates back to its resting state with a spring-like transition, and the glare fades out. A live readout shows the current rotation angles, and a control lets you tune the maximum tilt intensity in real time. Everything is keyboard-focusable with a visible focus ring, and prefers-reduced-motion is honored by disabling the tilt for users who opt out.

Under the hood the demo leans entirely on the web platform: CSS perspective and transform-style: preserve-3d for the 3D scene, custom properties as the bridge between JS and CSS, and requestAnimationFrame to keep pointer updates smooth and jank-free.