The early versions of Figma were notably simple and fast. File navigation was smooth, the interface was clean, and core functionality worked seamlessly. This simplicity was one of the platform's key selling points.
However, as Figma expanded its wings and added features, some aspects have become more complex than necessary, particularly around file management. God, I hate the file management.
File management: our biggest pain point
Figma file management remains one of Figma's most significant challenges. Many designers report spending excessive time trying to organize files in Figma rather than focusing on actual design work. If I didn't know better, I might even call it a growth strategy, gouging users out of money for inviting people to view their work... But that would be cynical.
Navigating through projects sometimes feels cumbersome, especially when working on multiple projects simultaneously. The current Figma folder system lacks robust structures and intuitive ways to group related work.
Given Figma's strength in other areas of the design experience, there's significant potential for improvement in file management. This is an area where better tooling could dramatically improve designer productivity—something the community has consistently raised through Figma feature feedback channels.
UI3: modern design with accessibility trade-offs
The UI3 update introduces a fresh visual approach with floating panels that appear modern and clean. The design direction shows clear aesthetic improvements.
However, some frequently-used tools now require additional clicks to access. This creates friction for designers who rely on quick access to core functionality. The most egregious being the scale panel hiding the export buttons.
While UI updates typically involve learning curves, the increased steps to reach essential tools can impact workflow efficiency. The original interface's immediacy was particularly valuable for rapid wireframing and iterative design work. That being said, the new UI does look cool.
Feature expansion vs. core experience
Figma has significantly expanded its feature set, demonstrating ambition to serve broader use cases. Having multiple tools in one platform offers clear advantages for workflow consolidation.
However, the core design experience can feel cluttered with features that many designers don't use regularly. For example, the "copy to Figma slides" button appears prominently despite limited relevance to typical design workflows.
More customization options allow users to prioritize features most relevant to their work. The challenge with expanding functionality lies in maintaining the clean, focused experience that originally differentiated Figma from competitors. Many designers have submitted Figma feature requests asking for better customization controls.
Performance optimization needed
Figma's responsiveness has declined compared to earlier versions. Users report increased lag and slower load times despite unchanged hardware specifications.
File opening and interactions can take longer than expected, interrupting design flow and reducing productivity. As features are added, performance optimization becomes increasingly complex, requiring dedicated engineering resources.
Performance issues are typically addressable with focused engineering effort. With proper optimization, Figma could maintain its expanding feature set while delivering the speed that made it initially attractive to designers. If you're dealing with slow load times in your CMS too, it might not just be your design tool-cleaning up your GROQ queries give your content layer a serious speed boost.
AI implementation: strategic wins and losses
Figma has introduced several genuinely useful AI features that improve designer workflows. The standout implementations include:
- Auto-renaming layers: Eliminates the tedious task of manually naming dozens of elements
- Intelligent interaction suggestions: Automatically adds interactions like back buttons across frames
- Content replacement: Helps maintain design consistency when swapping similar elements
- Background removal: Performs reliably for quick image editing
These micro-features solve real daily frustrations. You no longer need to think about naming every layer or manually adding common interactions—Figma's AI handles these repetitive tasks seamlessly.
The Figma community has developed several Figma AI plugins that sometimes handle these tasks more effectively than native features. A greater focus on AI features that genuinely streamline design work would be more valuable than attempting to incorporate AI into every possible function.
Talking of AI, check out how we used generative AI to build a playful design feature for Synacti. For details, refer to our case study.
We are still curious to see what they do with the AI first draft builder that got cut, but we're not holding our breath after the first roll out.
Text style management: missing batch operations
A common workflow issue highlights gaps in Figma's text style management. When updating properties like line height across multiple text styles organized in groups (xs, lg, xl), designers must edit each style individually.
The absence of batch editing capabilities for text styles creates time-consuming, repetitive tasks. For example, updating line height across 60 text styles requires 60 individual edits rather than group-level changes.
PDF export needs some work
The PDF export functionality could use improvement. While it's not the most essential feature, many of us rely on it for sharing design documents and presentations, so better quality and reliability would be appreciated. Or at least some way to be able to optimise the images inside of a PDF.
What's actually working well in Figma
Despite the challenges and our saltiness, Figma excels in several key areas that keep designers using the platform daily.
The plugin ecosystem: Figma's greatest strength
The Figma plugins community represents one of the platform's most valuable assets. The ecosystem thrives with designers building tools for other designers, consistently delivering high-quality solutions.
Many designers rely on the best Figma plugins daily, integrating them into core workflows. Notably, numerous Figma native features originated as community plugins. This demonstrates effective user-driven innovation—the Figma community identifies needs, builds solutions, and successful ideas become part of the core product.
Collaboration that just works
Figma's real-time collaboration capabilities remain top-tier. The effortless way multiple designers can work simultaneously on the same file, leave comments, and iterate together is genuinely impressive. This feature alone has transformed how design teams operate.
UI Design and Visual Innovation
Figma changed how creative software can look and feel without compromising functionality. Unlike Adobe's traditionally boring interfaces, Figma brought fresh visual design to professional tools. UI3 represents their take on modern design trends. Features like dividing tools into logical sections initially felt awkward, but they became intuitive with use—that's typical with rapid UI updates.
Keyboard Shortcuts and Speed
Figma's shortcut system enables remarkably fast workflows. Creating shapes, frames, images, or text through keyboard shortcuts becomes second nature. This speed advantage is particularly valuable during rapid wireframing sessions.
Practical Design Tools
Several built-in features significantly improve daily workflows:
- Rulers: Essential for precise layouts without relying on grid systems for every design
- Text contrast checker: A recent but valuable addition for accessibility
- Smart selection and alignment: Makes organizing elements intuitive
Developer handoff through dev mode
What is figma dev mode? It's a feature that effectively bridges the designer-developer gap. Figma dev mode allows developers to inspect designs and extract specifications in formats they prefer (like CSS), eliminating guesswork and reducing back-and-forth communication.
While designers may not use dev mode Figma directly, it significantly improves collaboration with development teams. However, Figma dev mode pricing can be a consideration for smaller teams, as it requires a paid plan to access all features.
What Designers Actually Need
- Offline mode: Even with limited functionality, offline access would significantly improve workflow flexibility
- Relative sizing and units: Percentage-based sizing would enhance responsive design capabilities
- Improved folder structures: Better file organization tools are essential for project management
- Interactive form fields: Enhanced prototyping capabilities for realistic user interactions
- Advanced prototyping controls: Current options limit complex interaction design
- Contextual AI assistance: AI focused on design-specific questions rather than broad feature integration
- Native animation support: Basic animation tools would reduce dependency on external software
- Batch editing for text styles: Group-level changes instead of editing 50+ text styles individually
- Better PDF export quality: More reliable output for design documentation and presentations
If you’re using Sanity and looking to turn your designs into structured, editable content, our visual builder guide is a great place to start.
The Evolving Design Tool Ecosystem
Figma remains a solid platform with significant strengths; however, increased competition in the design space drives innovation and improves user experiences across all tools.
Emerging tools like Unicorn.studio, paper.design, Rive, Subframe, and v0.dev bring different approaches to design tooling. Some focus on specific use cases while others attempt to reimagine entire workflows.
This diversity benefits the entire ecosystem. Competition pushes all platforms to improve and innovate, creating better options for designers regardless of their primary tool choice. It also encourages platforms to listen more closely to Figma feature feedback and implement new feature requests that users actually need.
Looking to improve your design flow?
We've had countless hours in UI design tools over the years, and as you can probably guess, fairly strong opinions. We can help with design systems, UI prototyping, and all of the bits and pieces that make up a first-class user experience.
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