SVG <path>

SVG Path - <path>

The <path> element is used to define a path.

The following commands are available for path data:

• M = moveto
• L = lineto
• H = horizontal lineto
• V = vertical lineto
• C = curveto
• S = smooth curveto
• Q = quadratic Bézier curve
• T = smooth quadratic Bézier curveto
• A = elliptical Arc
• Z = closepath

Note: All the commands above can also be expressed with lower case letters. Upper case indicates absolute positioning, lower case indicates relative positioning.

Example 1

The example above defines a path that starts at position 150 0, goes to position 75 200, and then from there to 225 200, finally closing the path at 150 0.

Here is the SVG code:

Example

<svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" version="1.1">
    <path d="M150 0 L75 200 L225 200 Z" />
</svg>

For Opera users: View SVG file (right-click on SVG graphic to view source).

Example 2

The following example creates a quadratic Bézier curve, where A and C are the start and end points, respectively, and B is the control point:

Here is the SVG code:

Example

<svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" version="1.1">
  <path id="lineAB" d="M 100 350 l 150 -300" stroke="red"
  stroke-width="3" fill="none" />
  <path id="lineBC" d="M 250 50 l 150 300" stroke="red"
  stroke-width="3" fill="none" />
  <path d="M 175 200 l 150 0" stroke="green" stroke-width="3"
  fill="none" />
  <path d="M 100 350 q 150 -300 300 0" stroke="blue"
  stroke-width="5" fill="none" />
  <!-- Mark relevant points -->
  <g stroke="black" stroke-width="3" fill="black">
    <circle id="pointA" cx="100" cy="350" r="3" />
    <circle id="pointB" cx="250" cy="50" r="3" />
    <circle id="pointC" cx="400" cy="350" r="3" />
  </g>
  <!-- Label the points -->
  <g font-size="30" font="sans-serif" fill="black" stroke="none"
  text-anchor="middle">
    <text x="100" y="350" dx="-30">A</text>
    <text x="250" y="50" dy="-10">B</text>
    <text x="400" y="350" dx="30">C</text>
  </g>
</svg>

For Opera users: View SVG file (right-click on SVG graphic to view source).

Is it complex? Yes!! Due to the complexity of drawing paths, it is strongly recommended to use an SVG editor for creating complex graphics.