Patterns

Parameters#

parameter	description
patternUnits	the coordinate system of the pattern attributes either objectBoundingBox (default) or userSpaceOnUse
patternContentUnits	the coordinate system of the pattern contents either objectBoundingBox or userSpaceOnUse(default)
patternTransform	the transform to apply to the pattern contents
x	the x offset of the pattern (default is zero)
y	the y offset of the pattern (default is zero)
width	the width of the pattern (required)
height	the height of the pattern (required)
xlink:href	link to another pattern that provides some attributes or content
preserveAspectRatio	whether the aspect ratio of the pattern should be preserved

Remarks#

By default, the pattern will be tiled by setting the middle of the pattern unit at the top left corner of the shape.

Example pattern with objectBoundingBox units

<svg width="400" height="400">
<defs>
  <pattern id="pattern1" width="0.2" height="0.2" patternUnits="objectBoundingBox">
      <circle cx="10" cy="10" r="10" fill="#0000ff" />
  </pattern>
</defs>

<rect x="10" y="10" width="100" height="100" stroke="black" fill="url(#pattern1)"/>
</svg>

Pattern coverage with combinations of patternUnits and patternContentUnits

SVG Patterns behave significantly differently than CSS background images when filling equivalent shapes. This can lead to significant surprises for new-comers to SVG. Below are examples of a pattern defined in all possible combinations of patternUnits and patternContentUnits - showing how these settings affect fill behavior.

<svg width="800px" height="800px">
<defs>
<pattern id="pattern1" x="0" y="0" width="0.2" height="0.2"  patternUnits="objectBoundingBox" patternContentUnits="userSpaceOnUse">
      <circle cx="10" cy="10" r="10" fill="blue" />
  </pattern>
  
    <pattern id="pattern2" x="10" y="10" width="20" height="20"  patternUnits="userSpaceOnUse" patternContentUnits="objectBoundingBox">
      <circle cx=".1" cy=".1" r="0.1" fill="blue" />
  </pattern>
  
    <pattern id="pattern3" x="10" y="10" width="20" height="20"  patternUnits="userSpaceOnUse" patternContentUnits="userSpaceOnUse">
      <circle cx="10" cy="10" r="10" fill="blue" />
  </pattern>
  
    <pattern id="pattern4" x="0" y="0" width="0.2" height="0.2"  patternUnits="objectBoundingBox" patternContentUnits="objectBoundingBox">
      <circle cx=".1" cy=".1" r="0.1" fill="blue" />
  </pattern>
</defs>

<rect x="10" y="10" width="100" height="100" stroke="black" fill="url(#pattern1)"/>
<rect x="150" y="10" width="200" height="150" stroke="black" fill="url(#pattern1)"/>
  <text x="10" y="200">patternUnits="objectBoundingBox" (20% of shape)</text> 
  <text x="10" y="220">patternContentUnits="userSpaceOnUse" (20px circle) </text>
  <text x="10" y="240" stroke="blue" stroke-width="1">(Units used by default)</text>
  
<rect x="10" y="310" width="100" height="100" stroke="black" fill="url(#pattern3)"/>
<rect x="150" y="310" width="200" height="150" stroke="black" fill="url(#pattern3)"/>
  <text x="10" y="500">patternUnits="userSpaceOnUse" (10px square box)</text> 
  <text x="10" y="520">patternContentUnits="userSpaceOnUse" (20px circle) </text>
  
<rect x="410" y="10" width="100" height="100" stroke="black" fill="url(#pattern2)"/>
<rect x="550" y="10" width="200" height="150" stroke="black" fill="url(#pattern2)"/>
  <text x="410" y="200">patternUnits="userSpaceOnUse" (10px square box)</text> 
  <text x="410" y="220">patternContentUnits="objectBoundingBox"(radius="10%") </text>
  
<rect x="410" y="310" width="100" height="100" stroke="black" fill="url(#pattern4)"/>
<rect x="550" y="310" width="200" height="150" stroke="black" fill="url(#pattern4)"/>
  <text x="410" y="500">patternUnits="objectBoundingBox" (20% of shape)</text> 
  <text x="410" y="520">patternContentUnits="objectBoundingBox"(radius="10%")  </text>
  
</svg>

patternTransform examples

<svg width="800px" height="800px">
<defs>
<pattern id="pattern1" x="0" y="0" width="0.2" height="0.2" >
      <circle cx="10" cy="10" r="10" fill="blue" />
  </pattern>
  
  <pattern id="pattern2" x="0" y="0" width="0.2" height="0.2" patternTransform="scale(1.5)">
      <circle cx="10" cy="10" r="10" fill="blue" />
  </pattern>
  
  <pattern id="pattern3" x="0" y="0" width="0.2" height="0.2"   patternTransform="skewX(45)">
      <circle cx="10" cy="10" r="10" fill="blue" />
  </pattern>
  
  <pattern id="pattern4" x="0" y="0" width="0.2" height="0.2"  patternTransform="matrix(1.5,-.70,.10,1.1,-30,10)">
      <circle cx="10" cy="10" r="10" fill="blue" />
  </pattern>
  

</defs>

<rect x="10" y="10" width="100" height="100" stroke="black" fill="url(#pattern1)"/>
<rect x="150" y="10" width="200" height="150" stroke="black" fill="url(#pattern1)"/>
  <text x="10" y="200">Original</text> 
  
<rect x="410" y="10" width="100" height="100" stroke="black" fill="url(#pattern2)"/>
<rect x="550" y="10" width="200" height="150" stroke="black" fill="url(#pattern2)"/>
  <text x="410" y="200">patternTransform="scale(1.5)"</text> 
  
<rect x="10" y="310" width="100" height="100" stroke="black" fill="url(#pattern3)"/>
<rect x="150" y="310" width="200" height="150" stroke="black" fill="url(#pattern3)"/>
  <text x="10" y="500">patternTransform="skewX(45)"</text> 
  
<rect x="410" y="310" width="100" height="100" stroke="black" fill="url(#pattern4)"/>
<rect x="550" y="310" width="200" height="150" stroke="black" fill="url(#pattern4)"/>
  <text x="410" y="500">patternUnits="matrix(1.5,-.70,.10,1.1,-30,10)"</text> 
  
</svg>