Understanding CSS Progress Bars

3 min readJul 5, 2024

In the world of web development, having a visually appealing and user-friendly interface is essential. The progress bar is a vital aspect of reaching this goal. Progress bars not only give users a sense of readiness and feedback, but they also enhance the overall user experience. Although there are various ways to implement progress bars, CSS offers a flexible and adaptable approach. In this post, we’ll look into CSS progress bars, including its capabilities, stylistic options, and recommended implementation methods.

Structure of a Circular CSS Progress Bar

At its core, a progress bar is a graphic representation of the completion status of a task or process. CSS allows developers to create progress bars using simple markup and stylistic techniques without relying on complicated JavaScript tools or frameworks. By employing CSS variables such as width, background-color, and border-radius, developers can adjust the appearance of progress bars to correspond with their design preferences and branding requirements.(Read More example of Progress bar )

How a circular Progress Bar Works

A circular progress bar is a visual indicator used in user interfaces to display the status of an operation or process. Circular progress bars fill clockwise around a circle rather than horizontally from left to right.

Amazing CSS Progress Bar Examples

Stylish CSS Circular Progress Bar with a Red-to-Black Gradient that Fills a Circular Area Over Time

This code creates a visually appealing progress indicator with a dynamic red-to-black gradient filling a circular area, accompanied by a text indicating the progress percentage.

Output:

Stylish CSS Circular Progress Bar with a Red-to-Black Gradient that Fills a Circular Area Over Time

Let’s break it down:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
<title>Progress Indicator with Red to Black Gradient</title>
<style>
  body
  {
    width: 500px;
    margin: 0 auto;
    margin-top: 200px;
  }
  .progress {
    width: 300px;
    height: 300px;
    border-radius: 50%;
    position: relative;
    background: #f3f3f3;
    overflow: hidden;
  }

  .progress::before {
    content: '';
    width: 100%;
    height: 100%;
    border-radius: 50%;
    background: conic-gradient(from -90deg, red, black);
    position: absolute;
    top: 0;
    left: 0;
    animation: animate 5s linear infinite;
  }

  .inner-circle {
    width: calc(100% - 30px);
    height: calc(100% - 30px);
    border-radius: 50%;
    position: absolute;
    top: 50%;
    left: 50%;
    transform: translate(-50%, -50%);
    background: #f3f3f3;
  }

  .progress-text {
    position: absolute;
    top: 50%;
    left: 50%;
    transform: translate(-50%, -50%);
    font-size: 24px;
    color: #0c0c0c; /* Text color */
  }

  @keyframes animate {
    0% {
      transform: rotate(0deg);
    }
    100% {
      transform: rotate(360deg);
    }
  }
</style>
</head>
<body>
<div class="progress">
  <div class="inner-circle"></div>
  <div class="progress-text">75%</div>
</div>
</body>
</html>

Circular Progress Indicator: The progress indicator is designed as a circular element using the .progress class with a specified width and height.
Red to Black Gradient Animation: The main attraction of this progress indicator is the red to black gradient animation achieved through the use of conic-gradient in the .progress::before pseudo-element. This creates a visually appealing effect resembling a loading bar.
Text Display: The percentage completion is displayed at the center of the progress indicator using the .progress-text class.
Animation: The animation is defined using keyframes (@keyframes animate) to rotate the gradient from 0 to 360 degrees, creating a seamless looping effect. (Read more example)

Conclusion

CSS progress bars are useful tools that help developers design visually appealing and functioning user experiences. Developers can customise the appearance and behaviour of progress bars to their design preferences, improving the overall user experience. By following best practices for implementation, developers may guarantee that progress bars are accessible, performant, and smoothly incorporated into their web apps. With this book, you’ll be well-prepared to grasp CSS progress bars and take your web development projects to new heights.