GSAP vs anime.js
GSAP and anime.js are both framework-agnostic JavaScript animation libraries. anime.js is the lean, focused option; GSAP is the deep, plugin-rich one. This compares them honestly for developers shipping production motion, from a team that builds on GSAP daily.
Updated June 2, 2026
Where it lands
Pick anime.js when bundle size is the hard constraint and your motion is a handful of self-contained tweens, its v4 modular build stays small and the API is quick to learn. Pick GSAP when scroll choreography, deep timelines, or text and SVG effects are in scope, ScrollTrigger and the now-free plugins go further than anime.js's lighter scroll observer.
By dimension
- Bundle size
Winner: anime.js
anime.js v4 is roughly 17kb minified+gzipped. GSAP core is roughly 25kb, and grows as you add plugins like ScrollTrigger. For a site with a few isolated animations, anime.js keeps the bundle leaner.
- Scroll-driven animation
Winner: GSAP
anime.js v4 added a first-party ScrollObserver (enter-view triggers, scrub sync modes, thresholds), so basic scroll-linked work no longer means wiring it yourself. GSAP's ScrollTrigger still goes deeper on pinning, complex scrub, and years of production-hardened scroll choreography.
- Timeline choreography
Winner: GSAP
gsap.timeline() with the position parameter expresses overlapping, gapped, and labeled sequences cleanly. anime.js has timelines too, but GSAP's positional control and nesting go deeper for complex multi-element sequences.
- Plugin ecosystem
Winner: GSAP
GSAP ships SplitText, MorphSVG, Flip, Draggable, ScrambleText, and more, all free since 3.13. anime.js covers core tweening, keyframes, stagger, and spring physics, but the surrounding ecosystem is smaller.
- API simplicity
Winner: anime.js
anime.js has a smaller, more approachable surface area. For straightforward DOM and SVG tweening, the code is concise and the learning curve is short. GSAP's power comes with more to learn.
- Performance at scale
Winner: GSAP
anime.js v4 closed much of the gap, but GSAP still tends to win benchmarks with many simultaneous animated elements thanks to deeper internal optimization.
- Licensing
Winner: Tie
Both are free for commercial use. anime.js is MIT. GSAP became 100% free including all plugins in 3.13 (mid-2024). Neither has a paywall.
How they actually differ
anime.js is a focused tweening library. It does DOM, SVG, and object animation with keyframes, stagger, and spring physics, and it does them in a small package. GSAP is a full animation platform: the core is comparable to anime.js, but the plugins (ScrollTrigger, SplitText, Flip, MorphSVG) extend it into scroll, text, layout, and SVG morphing territory anime.js doesn't cover first-party.
anime.js's strength is staying small and readable for sites that need a handful of clean animations without a scroll engine.
GSAP's strength is depth: when you need pinned scroll scenes, line-by-line text reveals, or shared-element morphs, GSAP already has the plugin and it's free.
When to choose anime.js
- A site with a few isolated, self-contained animations
- Bundle size is a hard constraint and you won't need scroll orchestration
- You want the smallest possible API surface for the team to learn
- SVG and DOM tweening with stagger covers everything you need
When to choose GSAP
- Scroll-driven animation (pinning, scrub, parallax) is in scope
- You need timeline choreography across many elements
- Text effects (SplitText), layout morphs (Flip), or SVG morphing (MorphSVG) are part of the design
- Motion is central to the product's identity and you want room to grow
Annnimate position
Annnimate is built entirely on GSAP. Every component uses GSAP's core plus the relevant plugins (ScrollTrigger, SplitText, Flip), and ships in React, Vue, and HTML/CSS/JS. If you've chosen GSAP, Annnimate gives you production-tuned components on top of it.
If you've chosen anime.js for its size, Annnimate isn't the right fit, its components assume GSAP. The honest call is library-first: pick the engine, then pick components that match it.
Common questions
- Is anime.js or GSAP better for beginners?
- anime.js has a smaller API, so it's quicker to learn for simple tweening. GSAP has more surface area but also more documentation and a larger community. If you'll only ever do basic DOM animation, anime.js is simpler. If you expect to grow into scroll and timeline work, learning GSAP up front saves a migration later.
- Can anime.js do scroll-triggered animations?
- Not with a first-party engine the way GSAP's ScrollTrigger does. You can wire anime.js to an IntersectionObserver or scroll listener yourself, but you're rebuilding what ScrollTrigger gives you out of the box: pinning, scrub, and reliable start/end position math. For serious scroll work, GSAP is the stronger choice.
- Is GSAP still paid?
- No. As of GSAP 3.13 (mid-2024, sponsored by Webflow) GSAP is 100% free for commercial use, including every plugin that used to be Club GreenSock only. Both GSAP and anime.js are free to use in commercial projects today.
- Which has the smaller bundle?
- anime.js, at roughly 17kb gzipped for v4. GSAP core is around 25kb, and adding ScrollTrigger or other plugins increases it. If you only need basic tweening, anime.js is leaner. If you'll use the plugins, the per-feature weight is comparable to building the same thing yourself.
