Lopsy

Make a Neon Glow Text Effect

Create glowing neon sign text for free in your browser. Build a radial gradient backdrop, type your words, then add outer and inner glows in Lopsy.

  • Beginner
  • 5 min
  • 8 steps

Published

Neon signs are just bright text with light bleeding out around the edges. You can get the same effect in a few minutes with a gradient, the Text tool and two layer effects. The text stays fully editable, so you can change the words or the color later without starting over.

  1. Create a square document

    Open Lopsy. The New Document dialog appears on its own. You can also open it any time from File → New.

    Choose the Instagram Post preset for a 1080 × 1080 px square, then click Create.

    The New Document dialog in Lopsy with the Instagram Post preset (1080 × 1080 px) selected

  2. Pick dark gradient colors

    Neon needs darkness to glow against. Select the Gradient tool in the toolbox and set Type to Radial in the options bar along the top.

    Click the gradient swatch next to it to open the Gradient Editor. Select the left stop and enter #3B1463 as its hex value, then select the right stop and enter #07040F. Click Done.

    The Gradient Editor with a deep purple stop on the left and a near-black stop on the right

  3. Paint the background

    Make sure Layer 1 is selected in the Layers panel. Then drag from just above the middle of the canvas out to a corner.

    The lighter center gives the sign something to sit in front of, and the dark corners make the glow stand out.

    A 1080 pixel square canvas filled with a radial gradient, glowing purple in the middle and fading to almost black at the corners

  4. Type your text

    In the Color panel, set the hex value to #FFE6FB, a very pale pink. Real neon tubes look almost white at their core, and the glow will add the color.

    Press T for the Text tool and set Size to 240 in the options bar. Click near the left side of the canvas and type NEON. Then click the green check mark to commit the text.

    The word NEON being typed in pale pink 240 px text, with the Text options bar showing size 240

  5. Center it on the canvas

    Press V for the Move tool. With the text layer selected, click Align center horizontally and then Align center vertically in the options bar. The text snaps to the exact middle of the canvas.

    The Move tool options bar with the align buttons, and the NEON text centered on the canvas

  6. Add an outer glow

    In the Layers panel, click the sparkle icon on the NEON layer to open Layer Effects. Tick Outer Glow and set:

    • Color: #FF2BD6 (hot pink)
    • Size: 60
    • Spread: 10
    • Opacity: 100

    This is the light spilling out into the air around the tube.

    The Layer Effects panel with Outer Glow turned on: color hot pink, size 60, spread 10, opacity 100

  7. Add an inner glow

    Tick Inner Glow in the same panel and set Color to #FF5CE1, Size to 14 and Opacity to 100.

    The inner glow tints the edges of each letter while the center stays pale. That's what gives the letters the rounded look of a real glass tube.

    Inner Glow enabled in the Layer Effects panel with a pink color, size 14 and opacity 100, giving the letters a bright core and saturated edges

  8. Export your image

    Choose File → Export…, pick PNG, give the file a name and click Export.

    Want to keep editing later? Use File → Save Project instead. That keeps the text and effects editable.

    The Export dialog showing a preview of the finished neon sign with PNG format selected