Pixel Swap
Two images swap through a grid of two-sided blocks that flip over in a diagonal wave, corner to corner, and flip back when the pointer leaves.
- Category: Image
- Licence: Charcoal UI Pro
- Built with: React 19, Tailwind CSS 4, Motion
- Dependencies: motion, clsx, tailwind-merge
Examples
Pixel Swap
API reference
| Prop | Type | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
src | string | — | |
alt | string | — | The second image. |
srcLabel | string | — | Accessible description of the first image. |
altLabel | string | — | |
grid | number | 10 | Cells per side. |
duration | number | 0.9 | |
trigger | "hover" | "click" | "hover" | |
className | string | — |
About Pixel Swap
Pixel Swap flips two images through a grid of two-sided blocks in a diagonal wave, corner to corner, and back when the pointer leaves.
Pixel Swap is an image effect for React 19, styled with Tailwind CSS 4 and animated with Motion. It drops into Next.js, Vite, Remix or Astro through the shadcn CLI as a single file you own.
When to use Pixel Swap
- Before and after images.
- Product colourways.
- Day and night photos.
- Portfolio tiles.
How it works
Each block is a CSS 3D card showing its slice of either image, with delays along the diagonal.
Images keep their alt text, controls are keyboard operable, and the effect never hides the content it decorates. With prefers-reduced-motion on, it holds still or settles instantly instead of animating.
Customizing Pixel Swap
Every prop is documented in the API reference above with its type and default. The ones you will reach for first are listed here.
The Customize panel next to the preview lets you change grid, duration, trigger live, and the Code tab updates to match, so the snippet you copy already carries your values.
- src (string).
- alt (string): The second image.
- srcLabel (string): Accessible description of the first image.
- altLabel (string).
- grid (number, default 10): Cells per side.
- duration (number, default 0.9).
Goes well with Pixel Swap
These image pieces share its tokens and motion language, so they sit together on one page without clashing.
- Parallax Image: A React parallax image that drifts slower than the page as you scroll
- Pixelate Reveal: A React pixelate reveal: images resolve from chunky pixels to full detail
- Image Reveal: A React image reveal: a clip-path wipe uncovers the image as it settles
- Zoom Lens: A React zoom lens: a magnifier follows the pointer over product images
- Ken Burns: A React Ken Burns slideshow: slow pan and zoom crossfading through images
Install Pixel Swap
npx shadcn@latest add @charcoal/pixel-swapPixel Swap is part of Charcoal UI Pro. One seat unlocks all 300 Pro components, 107 landing-page sections and 100 full templates, for every personal and client project, with updates included. Add the @charcoal registry once with your access token, then the command above copies pixel-swap.tsx into components/ui and installs clsx, tailwind-merge.
You own the file you install: no runtime package, no lock-in, nothing to keep in sync. Change it however your product needs.
See Charcoal UI Pro pricing · Pro setup
Frequently asked questions
- Do both images need the same size?
- They should share an aspect ratio. Each block shows its slice of either image as a background, so matching ratios keep the two pictures aligned through the flip.
- How do I install Pixel Swap?
- Pixel Swap is part of Charcoal UI Pro. Add the @charcoal registry to components.json with your access token, then run npx shadcn@latest add @charcoal/pixel-swap. It copies pixel-swap.tsx into components/ui and installs motion, clsx, tailwind-merge.
- Is Pixel Swap free for commercial use?
- Pixel Swap needs a Charcoal UI Pro seat, monthly or a one-time lifetime price. A seat covers unlimited personal and commercial projects, including client work, and every future Pro component.
- Does Pixel Swap work with Next.js?
- Yes. It is a client component for React 19 styled with Tailwind CSS 4, so it works in the Next.js App Router and Pages Router, Vite, Remix and Astro.
- Can an AI coding agent install Pixel Swap?
- Yes. Connect the Charcoal UI MCP server (https://charcoalui.com/mcp) to Claude Code, Cursor or any MCP client; get_component returns Pixel Swap's props and get_install_command returns the exact command.