Ten effects you can launch here
Every effect below is drawn live in your browser. They are modeled on clips from a large Chinese evening gala and from a popular social media series that names consumer fireworks and their prices.
Peony
A round ball of colored stars with no tails.
Chrysanthemum
A sphere of stars, each dragging a glittering tail.
Willow
Long golden trails that hang and droop like willow branches.
Crackle
Stars that end in a burst of popping white flashes.
Jellyfish
A flat glowing ring with twinkling strands hanging below.
Swimming fish
Small stars that wiggle away like a school of fish.
Comet
Thick colored columns that shoot straight up from the ground.
Fan
Tails fired at angles from one cake so they spread like a fan.
Fountain
A ground device that sprays a steady shower of sparks upward.
Ribbon
Colorful snaking trails that weave across the low sky.
Types of fireworks at a glance
Fireworks are sold by device type. Knowing the type tells you how it is fired, how high it goes and where it is likely to be legal.
Aerial shells and mortars
An aerial shell is a ball or cylinder of stars with a lift charge underneath.
Cakes and repeaters
A cake is a block of many tubes joined by one fuse.
500-gram cakes
In the United States, consumer multi-shot aerial devices may contain at most 500 grams of pyrotechnic composition.
Roman candles
A Roman candle is a single long tube that fires stars one at a time, separated by layers of slow-burning delay composition.
Rockets
A rocket carries its own motor and a stick for stability, so it flies up on its own instead of being shot from a tube.
Fountains
A fountain sits on the ground and sprays a column of sparks for several seconds.
Sparklers
A sparkler is a metal wire coated with a slow-burning composition that throws off bright sparks.
Firecrackers
Firecrackers are paper tubes of explosive composition made for noise rather than light.
What Fireworks Index is building
Most fireworks you buy name a brand on the box, not the factory that made it. Retail sites list only what they sell, and import records are hard to read. Fireworks Index is building an open directory that links manufacturers, brands, products and their demo videos, with a link to each official website when there is one.
We are starting with the types and effects on this site and are now adding the first manufacturers and brands. Every fact will link to its source.
Where fireworks are made
- Liuyang, a county-level city in Hunan province, China, is home to 431 fireworks producers employing more than 300,000 people. 244 of them are registered with customs as export manufacturers. (Jiemian)
- Chinese-owned brands from Liuyang now make up more than 40% of the city's exports, and Chinese brands account for over half of consumer fireworks sales in the United States. (China Services Info, 2026-03)
- US consumer fireworks brought in about $2.3 billion in 2025, with display fireworks adding about $650 million, according to the American Pyrotechnics Association. (Altoona Mirror / APA, 2026-06)
Industry notes
After a deadly explosion at a fireworks plant in Liuyang on May 4, all fireworks producers in the city were ordered to halt production for safety checks. (Xinhua, 2026-05-05)
Hunan allowed its first five producers to resume work: two in Liuyang and three in Liling. (The Paper)
China's new national standard for fireworks safety and quality took effect on May 1, expanding product categories from 9 classes and 17 subclasses to 11 classes and 25 subclasses. (Jiemian)
Questions
Are these real fireworks videos?
No. The effects are simulated with code on an HTML canvas, so they load instantly and work on any phone. They are modeled on real footage, but they are illustrations, not recordings.
Can I use this as a fireworks simulator?
Yes. Pick an effect, then tap or click anywhere in the sky to launch it. Shells burst where you tap; ground effects such as fountains fire from the spot below.
Do you sell fireworks?
No. Fireworks Index is an independent guide and directory. We do not sell fireworks and are not paid to rank any brand.
Which fireworks are legal where I live?
It depends on your country, state and city. Fountains and sparklers are allowed in the most places; aerial fireworks are the most restricted. Check your local fire authority before you buy.