How do I install Pixel Trail?

Pixel Trail 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-trail. It copies pixel-trail.tsx into components/ui and installs motion, clsx, tailwind-merge.

Is Pixel Trail free for commercial use?

Pixel Trail 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 Trail 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 Trail?

Yes. Connect the Charcoal UI MCP server (https://charcoalui.com/mcp) to Claude Code, Cursor or any MCP client; get_component returns Pixel Trail's props and get_install_command returns the exact command.

Pixel Trail

Square pixels light up wherever the pointer passes and fade in four discrete steps, so the trail reads as a low-resolution display rather than a blur.

Category: Cursor
Licence: Charcoal UI Pro
Built with: React 19, Tailwind CSS 4, Motion
Dependencies: motion, clsx, tailwind-merge

Examples

Pixel Trail

Turn on jitter for a rougher, hand-drawn edge.

API reference

Prop	Type	Default	Description
`children`	`ReactNode`	—
`cell`	`number`	`16`	Pixel size in px.
`fade`	`number`	`700`	Milliseconds a pixel takes to go dark.
`color`	`string`	`"var(--ember)"`
`jitter`	`boolean`	`false`	Also light a random neighbour of each pixel.
`className`	`string`	—

About Pixel Trail

Pixel Trail lights square pixels wherever the pointer passes and fades them in four discrete steps, so the trail reads as a low-resolution display.

Pixel Trail is a cursor 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 Trail

Retro and gaming brands.
Developer tools.
Interactive heroes.
8-bit themed pages.

How it works

Cells are snapped to a grid and stepped through four brightness levels. It only reacts to a mouse, keeps the real cursor visible unless you choose otherwise, and does nothing on touch screens or under reduced motion.

It only reacts to a mouse, never hides the real cursor unless you ask it to, and does nothing on touch screens. With prefers-reduced-motion on, it holds still or settles instantly instead of animating.

Customizing Pixel Trail

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 cell, fade, jitter, color live, and the Code tab updates to match, so the snippet you copy already carries your values.

cell (number, default 16): Pixel size in px.
fade (number, default 700): Milliseconds a pixel takes to go dark.
color (string, default "var(--ember)").
jitter (boolean, default false): Also light a random neighbour of each pixel.

The example on this page

Pixel Trail: Turn on jitter for a rougher, hand-drawn edge.

Goes well with Pixel Trail

These cursor pieces share its tokens and motion language, so they sit together on one page without clashing.

Cursor Trail: A React cursor trail: sparks fly off the pointer, drift down and cool
Blob Cursor: A React blob cursor that trails the pointer and swells over links
Spotlight Reveal: A React spotlight reveal: the pointer cuts a circle to show hidden content
Image Trail: A React image trail: photos drop along the pointer path and fade
Cursor Label: A React cursor label: a pill that follows the pointer and says View or Play

Install Pixel Trail

npx shadcn@latest add @charcoal/pixel-trail

Pixel Trail 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-trail.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

How do I install Pixel Trail?: Pixel Trail 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-trail. It copies pixel-trail.tsx into components/ui and installs motion, clsx, tailwind-merge.
Is Pixel Trail free for commercial use?: Pixel Trail 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 Trail 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 Trail?: Yes. Connect the Charcoal UI MCP server (https://charcoalui.com/mcp) to Claude Code, Cursor or any MCP client; get_component returns Pixel Trail's props and get_install_command returns the exact command.

Pixel Trail as Markdown · llms.txt