The Easy Guide to Add Parallax Effect in WordPress (2022)

The parallax effect in WordPress has gained immense popularity as a design feature. The website owners widely use this Parallax feature in their WordPress-powered websites. In addition, Parallax has added special effects to the gaming world for many years.

Are you inclined to know more about the Parallax effect, what it is, and how it works? Why should you consider incorporating it on your website etc.? First, let’s start knowing the Parallax effect and how to add Parallax effects on your WordPress website with a theme or premium plugin.

What Does Parallax Effect Mean?

Parallax effects work on the background image, making it move slower than the images in the foreground. So while you scroll, the background images move slower than the foreground elements of your webpage. That creates what we call the depth of field in photography. It creates depth on the screen, or you can say a 3-Dimensional (3D) effect, as the user scrolls down and creates an illusion of depth.

That is why most WordPress popular themes incorporate a built-in Parallax effect on their homepage. Even the free default theme of WordPress twenty seventeen includes Parallax’s built-in parallax scrolling features.

The web page builders also include the Parallax effect tool. This Parallax effect tool empowers you to add the Parallax effect on any WordPress Website Page or Post. You can even install the WordPress simple Parallax image plugins to add the Parallax effect in WordPress.

How Can a Parallax Effect Benefit You?

You can reap many benefits by adding the Parallax visual effect to your website. First, applying the parallax effect enhances the aesthetics of your website. The parallax effect is visually soothing and aesthetically pleasing as It offers a stylish, elegant, refreshingly modern look. Second, your website feels good to the visitors because of Parallax’s wow effect. Your content pops an exciting browsing experience that intrigues the users. Third, the parallax effect helps break up a page into readable chunks. It works well on your home page in particular. You can use this to highlight important sections and content highlights you want to showcase to your visitors.

The Parallax effect promotes various website elements illuminating the features. You can guide your users to navigate the content and encourage them to go deeper into the content chosen by you.

The Parallax can work on any page of your website, but the website designers often use it on the homepage or landing page, one-page website, or one-page site.

It creates stunning and attractive visual effects that glue your users to the website with a positive user experience. As a result, it motivates users to spend more time on your website. In addition, it helps you with your lead conversion rate and Google SERP ranking.

What Do You Need To Consider When Using Parallax?

When using or adding Parallax effects to the web pages of your business site, you need to consider a few points. First, you must know how to select the right background images and how the implements of Parallax will look on mobile and accessibility.

What Are The Various Parallax Types of Effects?

You need to deliberate the images you will use as the background image and align the background images to your branding. The images should carry relevance to child themes on your website, and the chosen images in the background should not appear out of sync.

You may strategically display headers or content over the top of your background image. Decide if you want to use a block color or a subtle pattern. Avoid using an imposing graphic vibrant photograph as your background image that will draw all the attention.

Ensures that the image in the foreground works in sync with the image in the background. The background and foreground images must not distract your audience. Carefully juxtaposing the images helps promote your main content and achieve your goal.

These stunning and eye-catching visuals leave a lasting and lingering impression on the minds of your audience. This way, your website will see more returning customers and lead conversion. In addition, people will like your website and talk about it in their communities about their experiences and the visual impact of your design.

Process To Add Parallax Effects In WordPress Themes

Below, we have illustrated two methods to add the Parallax effect in WordPress.

Leveraging The WordPress Plugin To Achieve the Parallax Scrolling Effect On Website

WordPress presents advanced backgrounds that enable you to apply YouTube, Vimeo, videos, and images as Parallax backgrounds. In addition, you can use the easy-to-use WordPress Parallax plugin that has the support of Gutenberg and WPBakery page builder.

The plugin comes with many features. The features are not heavy on your webpage and do not affect the page loading time. Below are the features you can use on WordPress Advanced Backgrounds to add the Parallax effect.

Features Of WordPress Advanced Backgrounds

• Color & Image Background
• Pattern Images
• YouTube / Vimeo Videos
• Self-Hosted Video
• Custom Speed Option
• Enable or Disable for Mobile Devices
• Scroll, Opacity, & Scale Effect
• Overlay Color
• Visual Shortcode Maker

The WordPress Plug includes the tools to create Parallax WordPress. But, first, you need to install the plugin and set it up.

Step 1: Plugin Installation & Activations

The first step towards creating the WordPress Parallax effect is installing and activating the plugin. On the left Admin advanced theme options panel of WordPress, you can find the plugin. You need to click on that and select the Add New option.

Type AWB in the search box. It will bring up a list of additional plugins that you might find helpful.

Scroll down until you locate the Advanced WordPress Backgrounds plugin, then click on Install Now button to install and activate it.

AWB Installation

Search for AWB (Advanced WordPress Background) in the search box. It will pull up the plugins you may leverage. You need to scroll down to find the AWB plugin. Click on Install now to get it installed in your system. Once installed, activate the plugin.

Advanced Background Settings

Step 2: Go To Post or Page Of Your Choice

The best thing, you can access the AWB plugin on any post or page of your website since it does not have the main settings page.

Select the post or page where you want to add the Parallax effect. Then, select the AWB button and click on it on the toolbar on the toolbar.

Step 3: Parallax Pop-Up Box Configuration

You will see a pop-up window appearing on your screen. You can create various background effects and combinations in this window apart from the Parallax effect. But our purpose is to create a Parallax effect in this window.

Choose the option “Image” from the drop-down “Background Type’. Check the Stretch Checkbox next to the drop-down box. Then click on the “Select Image” button to select your background image.

Since this image will be your background image, ensure you select a large picture, and stretch will pixelate the image.

You may or may not want to use the next box, the overlay color. You need to scroll down to find the section for Parallax. By default, it is disabled. However, you can change it to one of the many available effects. The most widely used by designers is the scroll-down Parallax effect. But it is your discretion, which one you want to use.

You are free to experiment with each of them to find the one that suits your website requirement. Ensure that the scroll speed is mobile-friendly. Choose the scroll down speed accordingly.

Once you decide on the settings and are ready to test how it appears, click on the “Insert” button.

Step 4: Add The Content As Per Your Choice

You will notice some codes appearing on this page, as shown below.

[nk_awb awb_type="image" awb_image="34" awb_image_size="full" awb_image_background_size="cover" awb_image_background_position="50% 50%" awb_parallax="scroll" awb_parallax_speed="0.5"]

Your Content Here

[/nk_awb]

You need to replace “Your Content Here” with your actual content. It will do the job for you.

It will successfully add the Parallax effect you intend to on your website. In addition, you can use this plugin to add multiple implements, including Parallax, on different website pages.

There is no Parallax option to bulk add the effects on pages. Therefore, if you want to use the same Parallax effect on multiple pages on your website, you need to copy the shortcode and paste it on each page where you want the Parallax to be.

How To Use Gutenberg To Add The Parallax Scrolling Effect?

You can even use Gutenberg block editor to apply the same effect described above. AWB has its lock, and the process is cleaner.

You can use the Gutenberg block editor to access the post or the page to add the effect. First, open the editor and select the Add a ‘Block’ button. If you cannot find it, search using the term “Background (AWB).” When it appears on your screen, add the WordPress block and use the settings on the right to edit to give it the appearance you want.

Steps To Add Parallax Effect in WordPress Theme with CSS

Many of us are not that tech-savvy without HTML experience. If you do not have HTML experience, avoid using the code. You may end up placing the code in the wrong location. It may mess up your website.

There is an easy method for non-tech-savvy users to add the Parallax effect in WordPress. First, you need to select the image you want to use as the background image and upload it into your media library.

Once you have completed uploading, check the URL link by selecting the image. Copy the URL link for using it later. Now you need the knowledge of HTML. We mentioned the HTML Code below that you need to add to the page or post to see the Parallax effect in WordPress.

<div class="parallax">
<div class="parallax-content">
Insert Content here
</div>
</div>

You need to put your content in “Insert Your Content Here” in the above code. Then, you need to implement CSS to add the effect to the page or post. We have mentioned the below CSS that you need to add to your premium theme file.

.parallax {
background-image: url("IMAGE URL HERE");
height: 100%;
background-attachment: fixed;
background-position: center;
background-repeat: no-repeat;
background-size: cover;
margin-left:-410px;
margin-right:-410px;
}
.parallax-content {
width:50%;
margin:0 auto;
color:#FFF;
padding-top:50px;
}

Remember, you copied the URL link of the image earlier. Add the URL in the place of “IMAGE URL HERE.” You can change by editing the other settings as per your preference. If you change the Other Settings section, then save it. You will be happy to see the Parallax effect in WordPress on the page or the post of your WordPress website.

Also Read: Top 50 WordPress Themes for Artists.

How To Use Elementor To Add Parallax Effects?

The parallax effect on your website can be a visual treat to your users. Although the above methods will help you achieve an effect on your website, most of us want to edit the Parallax effect to see the impact. Elementor could be the best solution to accomplish this.

You can use the elementor parallax plugin in two different ways. The Parallax effect for web elements and the Parallax effect for the background.

Also Read: Best Elementor Templates and Themes.

How Can You Add Parallax Effect to Web Elements?

Step 1: First select the element and then Add Parallax

The first step to add the Parallax effect is to decide on the website element you want to add. A web element could be an image, video, text, or any item on your web page. You need to hit on the widget and go to the Advanced tab.

Step 2: Use the scrolling effect under the motion effect

Once you go to the advanced tab, hit the motion effect drop-down and choose to turn on the scrolling effect. You can now choose from the six animations to bring your website to life.

Step 3: Alter the Animation the way you want it

You can alter, tweak, change each effect to perfection. To do that, you need to press the pencil icon. You will see a window opening up with controls.

You can adjust the direction, viewpoint, and speed to control the animation from start to end. You can also define a viewpoint scale to decide where the scroll effect begins and ends.

Step 4: Apply multiple animations on each webpage element

You can add as many effects as you want for each element on the web page. However, selecting too many implements may spoil the aesthetics. If you have chosen too many, you can press the arrow button right next to the pencil button. It will undo the effect.

You are free to experiment with it until you get it right. You can adjust the X and Y anchor points to rotate and scale positions. The anchor points decide the axis around which the element scales up and spins.

Step 5: Consider adding mouse track and 3D Tilt.

Adding Mouse track creates a sense of depth. It makes the elements move with the mouse movement. 3D Tilt will apply to items according to the cursor movement.

Step 6: Use the Parallax on motion effect on different devices

This effect looks good on desktop and may not look good on mobile-responsive design. Elementor 2.5 allows you to pick any device to apply the implements.

Apply the Parallax Effect on a Background

Step 1

Visit the official website of Elementor, and click on one of the selections. You can add Parallax to the background to add depth to your website. For this, you need to start at the style tab.

Step 2

In the Background section, try to apply Parallax’s motion or mouse. Then, select between the two effects, scrolling or mouse effect, to apply to your background layer.

Step 3

Repeat the steps from 3 to 6 from the previous section. It will have the same effect as before, but now it will apply to the background and not to the elements.

Conclusion

Website designers change design trends to maintain a fresh look at their websites. Therefore, it is imperative to make your website stands out from the competition. Make a thumping first impression with a well-visualized and designed homepage, and You can achieve this using a parallax WordPress theme.

The parallax effect lets you add some stunning visual effects to your WordPress-powered website. This effect on your website can attract more users and keep people engaged on your site longer. In addition, it will add visual stimulus to manifest that you have a professional, well-designed website for your users.

We tried to simplify adding a parallax effect to any WordPress theme. The easier way, of course, is to use a builder plugin, but you can even use your code depending on how you prefer.