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    Bodymovin / Lottie reviews

    After Effects plugin that exports shape-layer animations to the open Lottie JSON format for web and mobile.

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    ToolTrim verdict3.6/ 5Average

    The plugin itself costs as little as $0 for individuals; the real cost is the underlying After Effects subscription needed to create the animation.

    Bodymovin / Lottie, preview 1
    About

    In practice. What you can do with Bodymovin / Lottie.

    Bodymovin is the After Effects plugin that exports shape-layer animations to Lottie JSON, an open format that plays natively on the web through the Lottie JS player and on iOS and Android through Lottie's native mobile libraries. It turns a motion design file into a lightweight animation a developer can drop into a product without shipping a video.

    Individuals can download and use the full plugin at any price, including $0, while businesses are asked to pay the suggested price for a license, a request the software itself does not enforce. It requires an existing After Effects subscription to author the source animation, and works best for shape-layer based motion rather than effect-heavy compositions.

    Practical uses

    • Web animation deliveryExport a shape-layer animation from After Effects to Lottie JSON so a developer can play it natively in the browser without a video file.
    • Mobile app animationReuse the same exported JSON file in an iOS or Android app through Lottie's native libraries instead of re-animating for each platform.

    Features & use cases

    Animation
    Animation mobile
    Animation web
    Workflow ae
    Motion design

    Pros and cons. What Bodymovin / Lottie does well, and what to expect.

    Pros

    • Effectively free for individual use, with no technical restriction on the price paid.
    • Exports to an open format usable across web, iOS and Android from the same file.

    Cons

    • Requires a paid After Effects subscription just to create the source animation.
    • Not all After Effects effects and expressions convert to Lottie JSON, which can force manual rework.

    When it makes sense. Keep Bodymovin / Lottie, or challenge it?

    Keep if

    • You already animate in After Effects with shape layers and need to ship that animation natively on web or mobile.

    Challenge if

    • Your animations rely heavily on effects or expressions that don't translate to Lottie JSON.

    Our verdict. What to know about Bodymovin / Lottie.

    Why this verdict

    Average

    Added value

    Individuals can download and use the full plugin at any price including $0, so there is effectively no cost barrier to exporting animations for personal or freelance use.

    Simplicity

    Neutral score: setup time and ease of a first export are not covered by the collected sources.

    Fit for purpose

    Exports shape-layer animations to Lottie JSON as promised, but not all After Effects features (some effects, expressions) translate, so complex animations may need workarounds.

    Performance

    Limited to shape-layer animations and requires a separate paid After Effects subscription to author anything, a narrower ceiling than a standalone animation tool.

    Reversibility

    Output is the open, widely supported Lottie JSON format, playable through open-source libraries on web, iOS and Android, giving strong portability away from any single vendor.

    Bodymovin / LottieFree
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