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Lottie vs Rive vs interactive SVG: which should you use on a website?
Lottie and Rive are the two names that come up whenever someone wants motion on a website. They are not the only options, and for many illustrations they are more than you need. Here is how they compare with plain SVG, CSS and WebGL, and how to choose.
By Abdullah NomanOctober 16, 20264 min read
If you search for "Lottie or Rive", most of what you find is written by LottieFiles or by Rive. Both are useful, and both naturally make the case for their own tool. This guide steps back: what are the actual options for motion and interaction in a website illustration, and which one fits which job?
The five options in one table
| How you make it | What ships | Interactivity | Best for | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CSS on SVG | Code, by hand | The SVG and a few lines of CSS | Hover, focus, scroll triggers | Draw-on reveals, floats, simple hovers |
| SVG + JavaScript | Code, or a ready-made library | SVG and a script | Anything: pointer-following, drag, state | Illustrations that react to the pointer |
| Lottie | After Effects, Figma plugin or Lottie Creator | A JSON or .lottie file and a player | Playback control; state machines in dotLottie | Designer-made motion, icons, loaders |
| Rive | The Rive editor | A .riv file and the Rive runtime | State machines with inputs | Characters and rich interactive scenes |
| WebGL / 3D (Three.js, Spline) | 3D tools or code | A runtime, models and textures | Full 3D, camera, physics | Product renders, immersive heroes |
Lottie
Lottie started as a way to play After Effects animations in apps and on the web. The animation is exported as data and played by a runtime, so it stays sharp at any size. LottieFiles now also has the dotLottie format (.lottie), which bundles the animation, its assets and interaction logic in one compressed file. In its own comparison with Rive, LottieFiles describes dotLottie state machines as a no-code way to define how animations respond to interactions, and says .lottie files can be up to 80% smaller than the JSON.
Pick Lottie when a motion designer is already working in After Effects or Figma and you need their animation reproduced exactly: loaders, icon animations, success moments.
Rive
Rive is an editor and a runtime built around interactivity. You design states (idle, hover, pressed) and the rules between them in the editor, and your code feeds inputs such as "pointer is over the button". Rive's own Lottie comparison says .riv files are typically 10 to 15 times smaller than equivalent uncompressed Lottie JSON. Treat those numbers as vendor claims and test with your own files.
Pick Rive when you want a character or a scene with several states that a designer controls, and you are willing to learn the editor.
Plain SVG with CSS
For line illustrations, CSS can do a lot without any library: lines that draw themselves, a slow float, a hover lift. It is the lightest option and needs no runtime at all. The limit is interactivity: CSS knows whether the pointer is over an element, not where it is. We cover the technique in Animated SVG illustrations.
SVG with JavaScript
When an illustration should respond to where the pointer is, not just whether it is there, you need a little JavaScript: read the pointer position, convert it to the drawing's coordinates and move parts of the SVG. Because the drawing is real SVG in the page, it inherits your CSS colours and stays crisp. This tutorial builds one from scratch.
WebGL and 3D
Three.js, Spline and similar tools give you real 3D: lighting, camera moves, materials. They are also the heaviest choice by far, with a runtime plus models and textures. If you use one, load it only when it comes near the screen. One team's write-up of lazy-loading Spline scenes reports their Lighthouse score going from 30 to 90 without changing the scenes themselves.
How to choose
- Does it need to react to the visitor? If not, use CSS on SVG, or Lottie if a motion designer made it.
- Does it react only to hover on or off? CSS is enough.
- Does it react to where the pointer is, or to drag? SVG with JavaScript, or Rive.
- Does it have many designed states, like a character? Rive, or dotLottie state machines.
- Does it need real 3D? WebGL, loaded lazily.
Also ask who will maintain it. A Rive file needs someone who knows Rive; a Lottie file needs whoever has the After Effects project. Plain SVG and CSS can be edited by any front-end developer.
Where Liniqo Live fits
Liniqo Live is in the "SVG with JavaScript" row, packaged so you do not write the JavaScript. Each of the 500 figures is drawn as SVG in your page and reacts to the pointer. There is no editor to learn and no animation file to export: you pick a figure in the library, choose colours and paste the embed code.
- The shared script is about 35 KB, roughly 12 KB gzipped, and loads
async. - Each figure is a separate file of 4 to 6 KB that loads only when it comes within about 300 pixels of the screen.
- Colours come from data attributes (
data-accent,data-line,data-bg,data-theme), so a figure matches your brand without re-exporting anything.
It is not a replacement for Rive or Lottie when you need custom character animation. It is a quicker route when you want an illustration that responds, in a consistent style, today. 23 figures are free; see pricing for the rest.
Questions
Is Rive better than Lottie?
For interactive scenes with many states, Rive was built for it. For designer-made animation from After Effects or Figma, Lottie fits existing workflows better. LottieFiles has also added state machines to the dotLottie format.
What is a lightweight alternative to Lottie?
For line illustrations, CSS animation on inline SVG needs no library at all. For pointer-driven interaction, a small SVG and JavaScript solution is usually lighter than an animation runtime.
Can CSS make an illustration follow the mouse?
Not on its own. CSS can react to hover, but it does not know where the pointer is. You need a few lines of JavaScript to read the position and move parts of the SVG.
Do I need After Effects for web animation?
No. CSS, SVG with JavaScript and ready-made interactive figures need no animation tool. After Effects matters only if you use Lottie and start from an AE project.
