# Finding animations
The Explore tab makes the LottieFiles public library searchable inside After Effects. This page covers how to search, what surfaces in Featured, and how to switch between the Free and Premium tabs.

## How to access this

1. Open the LottieFiles plugin in After Effects.
2. Click **Explore** in the top tab bar.

You'll land on the Free tab by default. The page shows Featured animations at the top, followed by the public library grid.

## Searching

The search bar at the top of the Explore panel filters animations across the active tab (Free or Premium).

- **Free tab search** — searches the public library.
- **Premium tab search** — searches curated Premium collections.

Switching tabs while a query is active re-runs the search in the new tab's scope. The query persists across tab switches.

<Image src="https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/8e2b614840-640.webp" alt="Explore panel showing the Free tab, source menu, and public animation grid" caption="Use the Free tab to browse community animations by Featured, Popular, or Recent" zoom variant="default" srcSet="https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/8e2b614840-640.webp 640w, https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/8e2b614840-1024.webp 1024w, https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/8e2b614840-1920.webp 1920w" width="1920" height="1080" loading="lazy" data-blur="data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAgAAAAFCAYAAAB4ka1VAAAACXBIWXMAAAPoAAAD6AG1e1JrAAAAkElEQVR4nGPwjUj5b+cR8F/b0Oy/pr7xf3U9o/82/uH/QeK+ESn/GEAME9/I/4oWTv+ljaz+Sxla/tcNTvpvmdf83ysm+z9YgYVz8H9jVYf/aXmT/sspKP7X84kEK3BIq4Qq8Aj+r6Nt89/bPuq/uo7Wf3P3IJgVEAWmHkH/VQ2M/5dX1/2PCfD8b+sTAncDAHzASqpEufDVAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC" />

{/* [needs review] confirm whether search also covers tags, creator name, or only title */}

## Browsing without a query (Featured)

With no search query, the Free tab surfaces:

- **Featured collection** — curated by the LottieFiles team, refreshed periodically.
- **Public Animations** — paginated grid of the broader public library.

{
  // TEMP_IMAGE_HIDDEN: Hidden for interim release. Restore this image in this same source location during visual QA.
  false ? (

  <Image
        src="/images/screenshots/ae-explore-featured-strip.webp"
        alt="Explore panel showing the source dropdown and animation grid"
        caption="Use the source menu to browse Featured, Popular, or Recent animations"
        zoom
        variant="default"
      />
  ) : null
}

Featured is a good entry point when you're not sure what you need yet. Public Animations gives you the wider sample. {/* [needs review] confirm whether sort options exist or it's recency-ordered */}

## Switching to Premium

Click the **Premium** tab to switch into the Premium library. Premium content is licensed differently from the free public library — see [Premium animations](/en/integrations/after-effects/02_explore/premium-animations) for the licensing model and what's included.

## Tips for motion/product designers

- **Search by motion intent**, not just by topic — "spinner", "checkmark success", "loading dots" tend to surface useful results faster than "animation".
- **When you find a useful animation, save it to your workspace first** before customising — it gives you a place to return to.
- **Featured rotates** — bookmark anything you want to keep handy via your workspace.

## Related

- [Premium animations](/en/integrations/after-effects/02_explore/premium-animations) — licensing and what Premium offers.
- [Previewing and importing](/en/integrations/after-effects/02_explore/previewing-and-importing) — once you've found something.
- [Explore panel controls](/en/integrations/after-effects/02_explore/explore-panel-controls) — UI reference.