Variable Proximity `<mv-variable-proximity>`

Letters swell along variable font axes (weight, width, any custom axis) as a mouse or pen approaches, with a radius in em and a linear, exponential or gaussian falloff; letter positions are cached at rest so the field never jitters, and static fonts fall back to a scale effect.

Category	Animated text
Type	Web Component (`<mv-variable-proximity>`)
Status	stable
Keywords	safe-rewrite, variable-font, proximity, pointer, cursor, weight, typography, pressure

When to use

A heading or text line should swell in weight or width as the cursor approaches
An editorial, typography-driven page wants a subtle pointer effect using variable font axes

Avoid when

A big standalone headline or 404 needs stronger effects or must also animate on touch → use Cursor Type instead
Long body text; letters changing weight under the pointer disturb reading

Install

node scripts/add.mjs variable-proximity --out ./src/marvelous

AI agent with the Marvelous UI MCP server: install_components({ slugs: ["variable-proximity"], target_dir: "<absolute path>/src/marvelous", framework: "react" }).

Files copied (dependencies included): tokens/tokens.css, core/base.css, core/dom.js, core/element.js, core/motion.js, core/observe.js, components/variable-proximity/variable-proximity.js, components/variable-proximity/variable-proximity.css.

Usage

Canonical markup, to start from and customize with attributes, data-* and CSS variables:

<div style="display:grid;gap:1.25rem;justify-items:center;text-align:center;padding:2rem 1rem;width:100%;min-height:300px;align-content:center;box-sizing:border-box;font-family:'Inter var','Segoe UI Variable Display',system-ui,sans-serif">
  <p style="margin:0;font-size:clamp(2.6rem,7vw,4.6rem);line-height:1;letter-spacing:-.02em">
    <mv-variable-proximity from="'wght' 300" to="'wght' 800" radius="2.4" falloff="gaussian">Move your cursor closer</mv-variable-proximity>
  </p>
  <p style="margin:0;font-size:1.35rem;color:var(--mv-fg-muted)">
    <mv-variable-proximity from="'wght' 350" to="'wght' 700" radius="4" style="--mv-variable-proximity-color:var(--mv-accent)">Living typography, driven by distance.</mv-variable-proximity>
  </p>
  <p style="margin:.5rem 0 0;font-size:.8rem;color:var(--mv-fg-subtle)">Font without variable axes? It automatically falls back to a scale effect.</p>
</div>

API

Attributes

Name	Type	Default	Description
`from`	font-variation-settings	`'wght' 400`	Axes at rest (e.g. "'wght' 300, 'wdth' 75"). wght → font-weight and wdth → font-stretch (also works with system variable fonts); other axes go through font-variation-settings.
`to`	font-variation-settings	`'wght' 900`	Axes under the cursor.
`radius`	number	`3`	Influence radius, in em (the element's font size), measured from the pointer to each letter's resting center.
`falloff`	linear \| exponential \| gaussian	`linear`	Falloff curve over distance: linear, exponential (sharp peak, long tail) or gaussian (soft plateau under the pointer).

CSS variables

Name	Default	Description
`--mv-variable-proximity-color`		Color that nearby letters tint toward (none by default).
`--mv-variable-proximity-scale`	`0.35`	Max scale-up in fallback mode (non-variable font).
`--mv-t`		Exposed on each letter (0 → 1) for your own styles.

Accessibility

The text is exposed once through a visually hidden copy; the split letters are aria-hidden. A decorative effect for mouse and pen, with no keyboard impact (touch leaves the text at rest). The rAF loop only runs while the pointer moves or letters settle, and is off with reduced motion. Forced colors: the tint is dropped. If the font doesn't interpolate the requested axes (static font), it automatically falls back to a scale effect.