/figma-generate-design

name: figma-generate-design
description: "Use this skill alongside figma-use when the task involves translating an application page, view, or multi-section layout into Figma. Triggers: 'write to Figma', 'create in Figma from code', 'push page to Figma', 'take this app/page and build it in Figma', 'create a screen', 'build a landing page in Figma', 'update the Figma screen to match code', 'convert this modal/dialog/drawer/panel to Figma'. This is the preferred workflow skill whenever the user wants to build or update a full page, modal, dialog, drawer, sidebar, panel, or any composed multi-section view in Figma from code or a description. Discovers design system components, variables, and styles from Code Connect files, existing screens, and library search, then imports them and assembles views incrementally section-by-section using design system tokens instead of hardcoded values."
disable-model-invocation: false

Build / Update Screens and Views from Design System

Use this skill to create or update **screens, views, and multi-section UI containers** in Figma by **reusing the published design system** — components, variables, and styles — rather than drawing primitives with hardcoded values. This includes full pages, modals, dialogs, drawers, sidebars, panels, and any composed view with multiple sections. The key insight: the Figma file likely has a published design system with components, color/spacing variables, and text/effect styles that correspond to the codebase's UI components and tokens. Find and use those instead of drawing boxes with hex colors.

**MANDATORY**: You MUST also load [figma-use](../figma-use/SKILL.md) before any `use_figma` call. That skill contains critical rules (color ranges, font loading, etc.) that apply to every script you write.

**Always include `figma-generate-design` in the comma-separated `skillNames` parameter when calling `use_figma` as part of this skill. If this skill was loaded via an MCP resource, you MUST prefix the name with `resource:` (e.g. `resource:figma-generate-design`).** This is a logging parameter — it does not affect execution.

Skill Boundaries

• Use this skill when the deliverable is a **composed Figma view** (new or updated) — full-page screens, modals, dialogs, drawers, sidebars, panels, or any multi-section container — built from design system component instances.
• If the user wants to create **new reusable components or variants**, use [figma-use](../figma-use/SKILL.md) directly.
• If the user wants to write **Code Connect mappings**, switch to [figma-code-connect](../figma-code-connect/SKILL.md).

Prerequisites

• Figma MCP server must be connected
• The target Figma file must have a published design system with components (or access to a team library)
• User must provide a target Figma file (URL or `fileKey`). If they don't have one yet, invoke `/figma-create-new-file` (or call `create_new_file`) first and reuse the returned file_key. Both `use_figma` and `generate_figma_design` require an existing `fileKey`.
• Source code or description of the screen/view to build/update

Parallel Workflow with generate_figma_design (Web Apps Only)

When building a screen from a **web app** that can be rendered in a browser, the best results come from running both approaches in parallel:

1. **In parallel:**

• Start building the screen using this skill's workflow (use_figma + design system components) against the target Figma file (`fileKey`).
• Run `generate_figma_design` against the **same `fileKey`** to capture a pixel-perfect screenshot of the running web app into that file. `generate_figma_design` always requires `fileKey` — if the user does not yet have a Figma file, first invoke `/figma-create-new-file` (or call the `create_new_file` MCP tool) to get one, and reuse that file_key for both this skill and the capture.

2. **Once both complete:** Update the use_figma output to match the pixel-perfect layout from the `generate_figma_design` capture. The capture provides the exact spacing, sizing, and visual treatment to aim for, while your use_figma output has proper component instances linked to the design system. If the capture contains images, transfer them to your use_figma output by copying `imageHash` values from the capture's image fills (see Step 5 for details). 3. **Once confirmed looking good:** Delete the `generate_figma_design` output — it was only used as a visual reference.

This combines the best of both: `generate_figma_design` gives pixel-perfect layout accuracy, while use_figma gives proper design system component instances that stay linked and updatable.

**This parallel workflow is MANDATORY when the source contains images.** The `use_figma` Plugin API cannot fetch external image URLs — it can only set image fills by copying `imageHash` values from nodes already in the file. `generate_figma_design` rasterizes all visible images into Figma, providing the hashes you need. If you skip the capture when images are present, image frames will be left blank.

For non-web apps (iOS, Android, etc.) or when updating existing screens, use the standard workflow below.

Required Workflow

**Follow these steps in order. Do not skip steps.**

> **Hard gates — forbidden shortcuts:** > > - **Forbidden:** `search_design_system` for component keys until 2a-i is complete and 2a-ii is attempted or logged N/A (e.g. "empty file, no existing screens"). > - **Forbidden:** Any `use_figma` call that mutates the canvas (Step 3+) until all Step 2 rows in the checklist below are filled in.

Step 1: Understand the Deliverable

Before touching Figma, understand what you're building:

1. If building from code, read the relevant source files to understand the structure, sections, and which components are used. 2. Identify the major sections of the view (e.g., for a page: Header, Hero, Content Panels, Footer; for a modal: Title Bar, Form Sections, Action Bar; for a sidebar: Navigation, Content Area, Footer Actions). 3. For e