Creating a number counter in After Effects just got a lot easier

The first version of the Numero script was designed to take a lot of the legwork out of creating a sliding number counter in After Effects: you could select the number of columns you needed, hit go, and the script would take care of all the boring duplication and layout tasks needed to create the counter.

This was a great first iteration, I used the script on a project not long after making it and it saved a massive amount of time, however, I couldn’t help but feel the script could be improved further.

The problem was that even though the columns and basic animation were taken care of by the script, you still then needed to keyframe the column animation manually in order to count to a specific number. Another issue was that the columns were completely independent of each other, so to create a counter animation that goes from 0 - 152 for example, in reality, the end column would loop through 0-9 around 14 times and the other digits would increase accordingly. The first version of the script only allowed you to scroll from 0 to the number you wanted.

With these limitations of the current script in mind, I set to work creating a new version from the ground up. I wanted to retain the sliding aspect of each column but create a much more realistic effect of counting up rather than just sliding to the number required.

After trying several different approaches, I’m pleased to announce that version 2 is now live (available as a free update to anyone who bought version 1). With version 2 you can now just select the number you want to count from, the number you want to count to, and hit go - the script does its thing and takes care of everything for you, like so:

creating a sliding number counter in After Effects

odometer in After Effects

When I started reworking the script I didn’t think it was going to be possible to create the desired effect, everything I tried just didn't work, or didn't produce the desired effect I was after. As with most of my coding projects it was only after a decent night's sleep that I had an epiphany of how to solve it. I’m so happy I stuck with it and focused on the task because the end result is something that will save people a lot of time when creating the effect, and it's definitely something I'll be using in my own projects.

Check out Numero over on

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Rewilding the planet with animation and motion design

We've only got one planet, and right now it needs all the help it can get. Climate change and biodiversity loss are massive challenges that we need to tackle head on.

That's why, for every animation project over £1000 a donation of 2% of the total budget will be made to the World Land Trust, on your behalf.

The money will go towards WLT's "buy an acre" programme; buying up and protecting vital habitats around the world, and helping fight against climate change.

Any projects under £1000 will have a tree planted on your behalf.

Acres saved so far:

Thanks to my wonderful clients and the animations we've produced, enough money has been donated to save around 12 Acres of vital habitats around the world.