perspective-origin

The perspective-origin CSS property determines the position at which the viewer is looking. It is used as the vanishing point by the perspective property.

The source for this interactive example is stored in a GitHub repository. If you'd like to contribute to the interactive examples project, please clone https://github.com/mdn/interactive-examples and send us a pull request.

The perspective-origin and perspective properties are attached to the parent of a child transformed in 3-dimensional space, unlike the perspective() transform function which is placed on the element being transformed.

Syntax

/* One-value syntax */
perspective-origin: x-position;

/* Two-value syntax */
perspective-origin: x-position y-position;

/* When both x-position and y-position are keywords,
   the following is also valid */
perspective-origin: y-position x-position;

/* Global values */
perspective-origin: inherit;
perspective-origin: initial;
perspective-origin: unset;

Values

x-position

Indicates the position of the abscissa of the vanishing point. It can have one of the following values:

• <length-percentage> indicating the position as an absolute length value or relative to the width of the element. The value may be negative.
• left, a keyword being a shortcut for the 0 length value.
• center, a keyword being a shortcut for the 50% percentage value.
• right, a keyword being a shortcut for the 100% percentage value.

y-position

Indicates the position of the ordinate of the vanishing point. It can have one of the following values:

• <length-percentage> indicating the position as an absolute length value or relative to the height of the element. The value may be negative.
• top, a keyword being a shortcut for the 0 length value.
• center, a keyword being a shortcut for the 50% percentage value.
• bottom, a keyword being a shortcut for the 100% percentage value.

Formal definition

Formal syntax

<position>
where 
<position> = [ [ left | center | right ] || [ top | center | bottom ] | [ left | center | right | <length-percentage> ] [ top | center | bottom | <length-percentage> ]? | [ [ left | right ] <length-percentage> ] && [ [ top | bottom ] <length-percentage> ] ]
where 
<length-percentage> = <length> | <percentage>

Examples

Changing the perspective origin

This example shows cubes with popular perspective-origin values.

HTML

<section>

<figure>
  <figcaption><code>perspective-origin: top left;</code></figcaption>
    <div class="container">
     <div class="cube potl">
      <div class="face front">1</div>
      <div class="face back">2</div>
      <div class="face right">3</div>
      <div class="face left">4</div>
      <div class="face top">5</div>
      <div class="face bottom">6</div>
     </div>
    </div>
</figure>

<figure>
  <figcaption><code>perspective-origin: top;</code></figcaption>
   <div class="container">
    <div class="cube potm">
      <div class="face front">1</div>
      <div class="face back">2</div>
      <div class="face right">3</div>
      <div class="face left">4</div>
      <div class="face top">5</div>
      <div class="face bottom">6</div>
    </div>
  </div>
</figure>

<figure>
  <figcaption><code>perspective-origin: top right;</code></figcaption>
  <div class="container">
    <div class="cube potr">
      <div class="face front">1</div>
      <div class="face back">2</div>
      <div class="face right">3</div>
      <div class="face left">4</div>
      <div class="face top">5</div>
      <div class="face bottom">6</div>
    </div>
  </div>
</figure>

<figure>
  <figcaption><code>perspective-origin: left;</code></figcaption>
  <div class="container">
    <div class="cube poml">
      <div class="face front">1</div>
      <div class="face back">2</div>
      <div class="face right">3</div>
      <div class="face left">4</div>
      <div class="face top">5</div>
      <div class="face bottom">6</div>
    </div>
  </div>
</figure>

<figure>
  <figcaption><code>perspective-origin: 50% 50%;</code></figcaption>
  <div class="container">
    <div class="cube pomm">
      <div class="face front">1</div>
      <div class="face back">2</div>
      <div class="face right">3</div>
      <div class="face left">4</div>
      <div class="face top">5</div>
      <div class="face bottom">6</div>
    </div>
  </div>
</figure>

<figure>
  <figcaption><code>perspective-origin: right;</code></figcaption>
  <div class="container">
    <div class="cube pomr">
      <div class="face front">1</div>
      <div class="face back">2</div>
      <div class="face right">3</div>
      <div class="face left">4</div>
      <div class="face top">5</div>
      <div class="face bottom">6</div>
    </div>
  </div>
</figure>

<figure>
  <figcaption><code>perspective-origin: bottom left;</code></figcaption>
  <div class="container">
    <div class="cube pobl">
      <div class="face front">1</div>
      <div class="face back">2</div>
      <div class="face right">3</div>
      <div class="face left">4</div>
      <div class="face top">5</div>
      <div class="face bottom">6</div>
    </div>
  </div>
</figure>

<figure>
  <figcaption><code>perspective-origin: bottom;</code></figcaption>
  <div class="container">
    <div class="cube pobm">
      <div class="face front">1</div>
      <div class="face back">2</div>
      <div class="face right">3</div>
      <div class="face left">4</div>
      <div class="face top">5</div>
      <div class="face bottom">6</div>
    </div>
  </div>
</figure>

<figure>
  <figcaption><code>perspective-origin: bottom right;</code></figcaption>
  <div class="container">
    <div class="cube pobr">
      <div class="face front">1</div>
      <div class="face back">2</div>
      <div class="face right">3</div>
      <div class="face left">4</div>
      <div class="face top">5</div>
      <div class="face bottom">6</div>
    </div>
  </div>
</figure>

<figure>
  <figcaption><code>perspective-origin: -200% -200%;</code></figcaption>
  <div class="container">
    <div class="cube po200200neg">
      <div class="face front">1</div>
      <div class="face back">2</div>
      <div class="face right">3</div>
      <div class="face left">4</div>
      <div class="face top">5</div>
      <div class="face bottom">6</div>
    </div>
  </div>
</figure>

<figure>
  <figcaption><code>perspective-origin: 200% 200%;</code></figcaption>
  <div class="container">
    <div class="cube po200200pos">
      <div class="face front">1</div>
      <div class="face back">2</div>
      <div class="face right">3</div>
      <div class="face left">4</div>
      <div class="face top">5</div>
      <div class="face bottom">6</div>
    </div>
  </div>
</figure>

<figure>
  <figcaption><code>perspective-origin: 200% -200%;</code></figcaption>
  <div class="container">
    <div class="cube po200200">
      <div class="face front">1</div>
      <div class="face back">2</div>
      <div class="face right">3</div>
      <div class="face left">4</div>
      <div class="face top">5</div>
      <div class="face bottom">6</div>
    </div>
  </div>
</figure>

</section>    

CSS

/* perspective-origin values (unique per example) */
.potl {
  perspective-origin: top left;
}
.potm {
  perspective-origin: top;
}
.potr {
  perspective-origin: top right;
}
.poml {
  perspective-origin: left;
}
.pomm {
  perspective-origin: 50% 50%;
}
.pomr {
  perspective-origin: right;
}
.pobl {
  perspective-origin: bottom left;
}
.pobm {
  perspective-origin: bottom;
}
.pobr {
  perspective-origin: bottom right;
}
.po200200neg {
  perspective-origin: -200% -200%;
}
.po200200pos {
  perspective-origin: 200% 200%;
}
.po200200 {
  perspective-origin: 200% -200%;
}

/* Define the container div, the cube div, and a generic face */
.container {
  width: 100px;
  height: 100px;
  margin: 24px;
  border: none;
}

.cube {
  width: 100%;
  height: 100%;
  backface-visibility: visible;
  perspective: 300px;
  transform-style: preserve-3d;
}

.face {
  display: block;
  position: absolute;
  width: 100px;
  height: 100px;
  border: none;
  line-height: 100px;
  font-family: sans-serif;
  font-size: 60px;
  color: white;
  text-align: center;
}

/* Define each face based on direction */
.front {
  background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.3);
  transform: translateZ(50px);
}
.back {
  background: rgba(0, 255, 0, 1);
  color: black;
  transform: rotateY(180deg) translateZ(50px);
}
.right {
  background: rgba(196, 0, 0, 0.7);
  transform: rotateY(90deg) translateZ(50px);
}
.left {
  background: rgba(0, 0, 196, 0.7);
  transform: rotateY(-90deg) translateZ(50px);
}
.top {
  background: rgba(196, 196, 0, 0.7);
  transform: rotateX(90deg) translateZ(50px);
}
.bottom {
  background: rgba(196, 0, 196, 0.7);
  transform: rotateX(-90deg) translateZ(50px);
}

/* Make the layout a little nicer */
section {
  background-color: #EEE;
  padding: 10px;
  font-family: sans-serif;
  text-align: left;
  display: grid;
  grid-template-columns: repeat(3, 1fr);
}

Result

Specifications

Browser compatibility

See also

• Using CSS Transforms
• transform-style
• <transform-function>
• perspective
• transform: perspective() function