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SVG Tutorial

Summary

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export const Page = () => (
  <html>
    <h1>Hi there</h1>
    <svg width="100" height="100" viewBox="0 0 100 100">
      <circle cx="50" cy="50" r="25" fill="red" />
    </svg>
  </html>
);
SVG is an XML-based markup language for vector graphics.
Since HTML5, you can inline an SVG in HTML.

This means you can generate an SVG from React or any other frontend library.

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0, 0
100, 100 100, 100
200, 200 
<svg
  width="100"
  height="100"
  viewBox="0 0 200 200"
>
  <circle cx="100" cy="100" r="50" />
</svg>
0, 0
100, 100 100, 100
200, 200 
<svg
  width="200"
  height="200"
  viewBox="0 0 200 200"
>
  <circle cx="100" cy="100" r="50" />
</svg>
-100, -100
0, 0 0, 0
200, 200 
<svg
  width="200"
  height="200"
  viewBox="-100 -100 200 200"
>
  <circle r="50" />
</svg>
You can define an SVG by setting its size with the width and height attributes and its coordinate system with the viewBox attribute.
The coordinate system can also start at a negative coordinate. This way, the center of the second image is at 0,0.
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0, 0
100, 100 100, 100 100, 100 100, 100 100, 100 100, 100
200, 200 
<svg
  width="200"
  height="200"
  viewBox="0 0 200 200"
>
  <circle
    cx="100"
    cy="100"
    r="50"
    fill="red"
    fill="none"
    stroke="red"
    stroke-width="5"
    class="red-circle"
  />
</svg>

.red-circle {
    fill: none;
    stroke: red;
    stroke-width: 2;
}
Now, let’s talk about this circle.

We can define a circle by setting its center coordinates, cx and cy, and its radius, r.

To change its color, we can set the fill attribute. We can use any value that’s valid in CSS.

To set the border color and width, we can use the stroke and stroke-width attributes.

We can also move the styling properties to CSS.
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0, 0
25, 50 25, 50
200, 200 
<svg
  width="200"
  height="200"
  viewBox="0 0 200 200"
>
  <rect
    x="25"
    y="50"
    width="150"
    height="100"
  />
</svg>
Of course, we can also draw a rectangle.
Here, we have to set the top-left coordinates, x and y, and the size with width and height.
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function Diagram() {
  const dataPoints = [3, 4, 7, 5, 3, 6];

  return (
    <svg width="200" height="200">
      {dataPoints.map((dataPoint, index) => (
        <rect
          key={index}
          x={42.5 + index * 20}
          y={150 - dataPoint * 10}
          width="15"
          height={dataPoint * 10}
          fill="#CD803D"
        />
      ))}
    </svg>
  );
}
With this knowledge, we can draw a diagram.
Here, we map some data points in React to rectangles.
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<path d=". . ." />
To draw more complex shapes, we can use the path element.
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0, 0
50, 40 150, 40 50, 100 150, 100 50, 160 150, 160 50, 100 150, 100 50, 40 150, 40 50, 100 150, 100 50, 160 150, 160 50, 100 150, 100
200, 200 
<svg width="100" height="100" viewBox="0 0 100 100">
  <path
    class="line"
    d="M 50, 100 L 150, 100"
    d="
      M 50, 40 L 150, 40
      M 50, 100 L 150, 100
      M 50, 160 L 150, 160"
  />
</svg>

.line {
    stroke: #333333;
    stroke-width: 24;
    stroke-linecap: round;
}
The d attribute of a path consists of segments. Here, we have a Move-to and a Line-to segment. We set a coordinate for both.
A path doesn’t have to be continuous. We can use multiple move-to and line-to segments in the same path.
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We can already create basic icons this way.
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-15, -15
0, 0 0, 11 0, 14 0, 0 0, 11 0, 14
30, 30 
<svg width="200" height="200" viewBox="-15 -15 30 30">
  <circle r="6" />
  <path id="ray" d="M 0, 11 L 0, 14" />
  <use href="#ray" transform="rotate(45)" />
  <use href="#ray" transform="rotate(90)" />
  <use href="#ray" transform="rotate(135)" />
  <use href="#ray" transform="rotate(180)" />
  <use href="#ray" transform="rotate(225)" />
  <use href="#ray" transform="rotate(270)" />
  <use href="#ray" transform="rotate(315)" />
</svg>

#ray {
  stroke: black;
  stroke-width: 2;
  stroke-linecap: round;
}
Now, let’s look into this sun icon.
Here, we center the coordinate system with the viewBox property.
Then, we draw a straight line with a path.
We can set an id to this path, reuse it with the use element, and rotate it into position.
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<svg width="200" height="400">
  <g id="windmill-head">
    <circle r="8" />
    <path
      id="arm"
      d="
        M -7 -20
        C -7 -10 7 -10 7 -20
        L 2 -80
        L -2 -80" />
    <use href="#arm" transform="rotate(+120)" />
    <use href="#arm" transform="rotate(-120)" />
  </g>
  <path d="M 93 300 L 107 300 L 103 165 L 97 165" />
</svg>

#windmill-head {
  translate: 100, 150;
  animation: 4s linear infinite rotate;
}

@keyframes rotate {
  from {
    rotate: 0deg;
  }
  to {
    rotate: 360deg;
  }
}
We can also animate an SVG with CSS.
Here, we wrap the moving part of this windmill into a group with the g element.
Then, set a keyframe animation for this group in CSS.
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We can also set transformations dynamically with JavaScript.
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The quadratic bezier curve has one control point that defines how to bend the line. Drag the coordinates to see how the code changes.

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A cubic bezier curve has two control points, giving you much greater flexibility.

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-100, -100
-90, 0 -30, -30 30, -60 60, -30 30, 30 0, 90 -90, 0 -30, -30 30, -60 60, -30 30, 30 0, 90
200, 200
-100, -100
-30, 70 30, 0 90, -70 -80, -30 -20, 10 40, 50 -30, 70 30, 0 90, -70 -80, -30 -20, 10 40, 50
200, 200
Cubic bezier curves are great for creating smooth transitions between line segments. Hover over the paths to see how they connect two straight line segment.
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Arcs are one of the most complicated path segments. Click here to read more about them.

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Learn more at SVG-Tutorial.com

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