How to Create Easy Glitch Text Effects

Are you ready to dive into the world of digital design and learn how to create one of the most popular and striking text effects out there? Say hello to the glitch text effect! This effect has taken the design world by storm, and the best part? You don’t need to be a design wizard to pull it off. In this guide, I'll walk you through the steps to create your very own glitch text using some straightforward techniques. Let’s get started!

What is Glitch Text?

Before we get into the nitty-gritty of how to make glitch text, let’s talk about what it actually is. The glitch text effect simulates the look of a digital glitch, often associated with y2k design. It appears like something you'd see on a scrambled TV screen or a corrupted file.

Glitch effects gives your text a cool, distorted vibe that can add a futuristic, edgy feel to your designs. Whether you're creating content for social media, a website, or a digital art project, this effect is a trending style choice that will grab attention. 

With the rising popularity of y2k design, glitch art is a must-have in your marketing and graphic design toolbox of skills.

How to Make Glitch Text: Step-by-Step

Creating a glitch text effect might sound complex, but it’s actually pretty simple once you get the hang of it. Here’s how you can do it:

1. Choose Your Text

First things first - pick the text you want to glitch. It could be anything from a title to a single word. The effect works best with bold fonts that have strong lines and shapes, but feel free to experiment with different styles to see what you like best.

Set your text to white - go into text effects and turn on the blur effect. Turn the offset all the way down and add a blur effect.

2. Copy Your Text

Now, the key to how to do glitch text lies in duplicating your text. Create several copies of the same text layer - three is a good starting point. Each layer will play a role in creating the final glitchy look.

Apply the same blur effects to your new layers that you applied to your original text.

3. Change the Colours

For each of your text layers, change the colour. Typically, the glitch effect uses red, green, and blue - these colours mimic the look of a screen glitch. Apply a different colour to each text layer to start building that distorted effect.

Make sure to apply each colour to your blur effects as well.

4. Offset the Layers

Here’s where the magic happens. Use the "distort" tool to lightly offset each text layer from the original position. This small shift creates the illusion of a glitch as the colours begin to overlap and misalign. Play around with the direction and amount of offset until you achieve the desired look. This attention to detail can be crucial in digital design, much like optimizing ecommerce conversion rates to ensure every element works in harmony to attract and retain customers.

5. Texture and Grain

Adding a bit of texture or grain can take your glitch text to the next level. A subtle grainy overlay will give your text a more authentic, distressed look. You can either apply a grain texture directly to the text or use a separate texture layer on top.

Glitch Text for Different Uses

Once you've mastered how to write glitch text, you can use it for a variety of projects. Need an attention-grabbing title for your YouTube banner? Want to create a cyberpunk style T-shirt? You now know how to get glitch text just right for these bigger design projects!

Use your new design superpower to create eye-catching, cyberpunk and futuristic posters, t-shirts, and more. See the final design from our glitch text below on a sweatshirt mockup!

Glitch Text Effect: Key Takeaway

Use this quick and easy guide to create an amazing glitch text effect! By following these steps, you'll be able to transform any ordinary text into something eye-catching and dynamic. 

The more you experiment, the better your glitch text will look. So, we recommend you dive straight into Kittl and play around with colours, distortions, and textures. Practice makes perfect! 

Whether you're learning how to type glitch text for the first time or you're looking to add a new trick to your design toolkit, this effect is a must-try. Don’t forget to share your creations with us @kittl on Instagram and inspire others to dive into glitchy effects!

Watch the Video Tutorial on How to Make Glitch Effects