Creating a CSS loading spinner requires only a div element as the HTML structure. 2. Use CSS to set width, height, border, rounded corners and animation properties, and achieve rotation effect by changing the border color and applying 360-degree rotation animation. 3. Customize size, speed, color and border thickness to match design requirements. 4. Center the rotator in the container or center of the screen through the flex layout. In the end, a lightweight, modern browser-compatible loading indicator can be achieved with just a small amount of code, which is suitable for AJAX loading, page transition and other scenarios.
Creating a loading spinner with CSS is simple and doesn't require any images or JavaScript. You can build a smooth, animated spinner using just HTML and CSS. Here's how to make a basic circular spinner that you can customize and reuse.

1. Basic HTML Structure
Start with a simple div
element that will act as the spinner:
<div class="spinner"></div>
That's all the HTML you need — one element to style and animate.

2. Style the Spinner with CSS
Here's a clean, modern spinner using a border and CSS animation:
.spinner { width: 40px; height: 40px; border: 4px solid #f3f3f3; /* Light gray */ border-top: 4px solid #3498db; /* Blue top for spin effect */ border-radius: 50%; /* Makes it a circle */ animation: spin 1s linear infinite; /* Spin animation */ } @keyframes spin { 0% { transform: rotate(0deg); } 100% { transform: rotate(360deg); } }
How it works:
- The
border
creates a circular outline. - Only the
border-top
is colored, so as it rotates, it looks like a spinner. - The
border-radius: 50%
ensures it's a perfect circle. - The
animation
rotates the element 360 degrees continuously.
3. Customize the Spinner
You can easily tweak the spinner to match your design:

- Size : Change
width
andheight
. - Speed : Adjust the animation duration (eg,
0.5s
for faster). - Colors : Modify
border
andborder-top
colors. - Thickness : Change the
border-width
.
Example of a smaller, faster spinner:
.spinner { width: 20px; height: 20px; border: 3px solid #eee; border-top: 3px solid #666; border-radius: 50%; animation: spin 0.6s linear infinite; }
4. Centering the Spinner (Optional)
To display the spinner in the center of the screen or container:
.loader-container { display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; height: 100vh; /* Full viewport height */ }
And wrap the spinner:
<div class="spinner"></div>
Final Notes
- This spinner works in all modern browsers.
- It's lightweight and great for AJAX loading states, page transitions, or button loading indicators.
- You can reuse the
.spinner
class anywhere in your app.
Basically, just two elements (one div and a few CSS lines), and you've got a professional-looking loading spinner.
The above is the detailed content of How to create a loading spinner with CSS?. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!

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