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To create neon text with CSS, give the text a bright foreground color and stack several text-shadow layers: tight, bright shadows keep the letter edges crisp, while wider, colored shadows create the glow. The example below makes a static pink neon heading, then shows how to add an optional pulse that respects reduced-motion preferences.
Build a static neon text effect
Start with real, readable text on a dark background. Use a bright text color for the letterforms, then layer centered shadows with increasingly large blur radii. In each text-shadow value, the first two numbers are horizontal and vertical offsets, followed by blur radius and color. Setting both offsets to zero creates a glow around the text rather than a directional shadow.
<h1 class="neon neon-pink">NEON</h1>.neon {
font-size: clamp(2.5rem, 10vw, 8rem);
font-weight: 700;
letter-spacing: 0.08em;
color: #fff;
text-align: center;
background: #080014;
}
.neon-pink {
text-shadow:
0 0 0.1em #fff,
0 0 0.2em #fff,
0 0 0.4em #ff2bd6,
0 0 0.8em #ff2bd6,
0 0 1.6em #ff2bd6;
}The first shadow in the comma-separated list is painted on top. The small white layers preserve a bright edge; the larger pink layers produce the surrounding bloom. The clamp() font size scales with the viewport while retaining minimum and maximum sizes. The background declaration here colors the element itself; if the heading sits over a different page background, test the glow against that actual background.
Tune the glow without losing legibility
- Glow radius: Smaller blur values create a tighter edge; larger values spread and soften the halo.
- Layer count: A few layers can build depth. Additional layers can make the effect more intense, but also add visual complexity.
- Color: A bright or nearly white core paired with a saturated outer hue separates the letterforms from the colored bloom. You can change
#ff2bd6to another saturated color. - Typography: A heavier font weight and moderate letter spacing help keep counters and joins distinct when the glow overlaps the letter edges.
- Background: A dark, relatively uniform surface tends to make the glow easier to see. Check contrast and readability in the real design rather than relying on the sample alone.
Keep the text itself opaque and readable: the glow is decoration, not a substitute for the letters or for meaning. MDN cautions that text shadows can make text difficult to read if contrast is insufficient. See the MDN text-shadow reference for the property’s syntax and browser support details.
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Add an optional, reduced-motion-aware pulse
A pulse can vary the glow by changing the shadow blur values. Keep it gentle, avoid rapid flashing or flicker, and leave the static style in place as the fallback.
@keyframes neon-pulse {
0%, 100% {
text-shadow:
0 0 0.1em #fff,
0 0 0.3em #ff2bd6,
0 0 1em #ff2bd6;
}
50% {
text-shadow:
0 0 0.1em #fff,
0 0 0.45em #ff2bd6,
0 0 1.5em #ff2bd6;
}
}
.neon-pink.is-animated {
animation: neon-pulse 2.2s ease-in-out infinite alternate;
}
@media (prefers-reduced-motion: reduce) {
.neon-pink.is-animated {
animation: none;
}
}Apply the animation only when the element has both neon-pink and is-animated. The media query disables the pulse for users whose operating-system setting requests reduced motion, while the static neon shadows remain. MDN explains the prefers-reduced-motion media query; W3C Technique C39 also describes using it to let users prevent motion animation.
Rank #2
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What to expect from text-shadow
MDN marks text-shadow Baseline widely available and documents browser support since July 2015. Shadow rendering does not change the CSS box model, layout dimensions, or scrollable overflow, so the glow may extend visually beyond the text without reserving extra layout space. Check your target browser matrix for other CSS used on the page, and make sure a glow extending beyond its element is not visually clipped by surrounding design choices.
Quick Recap
Best Value
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Rank #3
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