Progressive Blur Skill

Implement layered CSS progressive blur overlays at the top or bottom of the viewport using multiple masked backdrop-filter layers.

Views

Uses

Updated

February 3, 2026

Author

MengTo

Skill creator

Source

MengTo/Skills

Added by Meng To

web-design ui-design css layout responsive best-practices

Property	Value
name	progressive-blur
description	Create a layered CSS progressive blur (top or bottom) using multiple backdrop-filter masks for depth and softness. Use when asked for “progressive blur”, “gradient blur overlay”, or stepped blur masks that fade from an edge of the viewport.
keywords	web-design, ui-design, css, layout, responsive, best-practices

Progressive Blur Skill

Workflow

Confirm placement (top or bottom), height, and z-index relative to UI.
Provide the matching snippet and a short usage checklist.
Offer only targeted tweaks (height, blur steps, direction, opacity stops).

Usage checklist

Insert the HTML inside <body>.
Keep the .gradient-blur element near the top of the DOM.
Ensure the background behind it exists (backdrop-filter blurs what is behind).
Adjust z-index to sit above content but below modals.

Top blur (from top)

<div class="gradient-blur">
  <div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div>
</div>
<style>
  .gradient-blur {
    position: fixed;
    z-index: 5;
    inset: 0 0 auto 0;
    height: 12%;
    pointer-events: none;
  }

  .gradient-blur > div,
  .gradient-blur::before,
  .gradient-blur::after {
    position: absolute;
    inset: 0;
  }

  .gradient-blur::before {
    content: "";
    z-index: 1;
    backdrop-filter: blur(0.5px);
    mask: linear-gradient(to top,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 0%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 12.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 25%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 37.5%);
  }

  .gradient-blur > div:nth-of-type(1) {
    z-index: 2;
    backdrop-filter: blur(1px);
    mask: linear-gradient(to top,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 12.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 25%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 37.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 50%);
  }

  .gradient-blur > div:nth-of-type(2) {
    z-index: 3;
    backdrop-filter: blur(2px);
    mask: linear-gradient(to top,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 25%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 37.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 50%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 62.5%);
  }

  .gradient-blur > div:nth-of-type(3) {
    z-index: 4;
    backdrop-filter: blur(4px);
    mask: linear-gradient(to top,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 37.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 50%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 62.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 75%);
  }

  .gradient-blur > div:nth-of-type(4) {
    z-index: 5;
    backdrop-filter: blur(8px);
    mask: linear-gradient(to top,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 50%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 62.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 75%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 87.5%);
  }

  .gradient-blur > div:nth-of-type(5) {
    z-index: 6;
    backdrop-filter: blur(16px);
    mask: linear-gradient(to top,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 62.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 75%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 87.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 100%);
  }

  .gradient-blur > div:nth-of-type(6) {
    z-index: 7;
    backdrop-filter: blur(32px);
    mask: linear-gradient(to top,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 75%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 87.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 100%);
  }

  .gradient-blur::after {
    content: "";
    z-index: 8;
    backdrop-filter: blur(64px);
    mask: linear-gradient(to top,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 87.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 100%);
  }
</style>

Bottom blur (from bottom)

<div class="gradient-blur">
  <div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div>
</div>
<style>
  .gradient-blur {
    position: fixed;
    z-index: 5;
    inset: auto 0 0 0;
    height: 65%;
    pointer-events: none;
  }

  .gradient-blur > div,
  .gradient-blur::before,
  .gradient-blur::after {
    position: absolute;
    inset: 0;
  }

  .gradient-blur::before {
    content: "";
    z-index: 1;
    backdrop-filter: blur(0.5px);
    mask: linear-gradient(to bottom,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 0%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 12.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 25%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 37.5%);
  }

  .gradient-blur > div:nth-of-type(1) {
    z-index: 2;
    backdrop-filter: blur(1px);
    mask: linear-gradient(to bottom,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 12.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 25%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 37.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 50%);
  }

  .gradient-blur > div:nth-of-type(2) {
    z-index: 3;
    backdrop-filter: blur(2px);
    mask: linear-gradient(to bottom,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 25%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 37.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 50%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 62.5%);
  }

  .gradient-blur > div:nth-of-type(3) {
    z-index: 4;
    backdrop-filter: blur(4px);
    mask: linear-gradient(to bottom,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 37.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 50%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 62.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 75%);
  }

  .gradient-blur > div:nth-of-type(4) {
    z-index: 5;
    backdrop-filter: blur(8px);
    mask: linear-gradient(to bottom,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 50%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 62.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 75%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 87.5%);
  }

  .gradient-blur > div:nth-of-type(5) {
    z-index: 6;
    backdrop-filter: blur(16px);
    mask: linear-gradient(to bottom,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 62.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 75%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 87.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 100%);
  }

  .gradient-blur > div:nth-of-type(6) {
    z-index: 7;
    backdrop-filter: blur(32px);
    mask: linear-gradient(to bottom,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 75%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 87.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 100%);
  }

  .gradient-blur::after {
    content: "";
    z-index: 8;
    backdrop-filter: blur(64px);
    mask: linear-gradient(to bottom,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) 87.5%,
      rgba(0, 0, 0, 1) 100%);
  }
</style>

Customization knobs

Direction: flip to top ↔ to bottom.
Height: adjust .gradient-blur height percentage.
Strength: change blur values (0.5px → 64px).
Steps: add/remove layers to control smoothness.

Common pitfalls

backdrop-filter needs content behind it; it will not blur a flat background.
High blur values are GPU-heavy; reduce steps on low-end devices.
Ensure pointer-events: none stays to avoid blocking clicks.

Questions to ask when specs are missing

Should the blur start from the top or bottom?
How tall should the blur area be?
Is performance a concern on lower-end devices?