Direction (horizontal, vertical) in Figma - Dashboard Guide

Dashboard Mode - Direction (horizontal, vertical)

Dashboard Goal

Understand how to arrange dashboard elements horizontally and vertically for clear data presentation.

Sample Data

Month	Sales	Profit
January	100	30
February	150	50
March	200	70
April	180	60
May	220	80

Dashboard Components

• KPI Card - Total Sales: Shows total sales for all months.
  Formula: SUM(Sales) = 100 + 150 + 200 + 180 + 220 = 850
• KPI Card - Total Profit: Shows total profit for all months.
  Formula: SUM(Profit) = 30 + 50 + 70 + 60 + 80 = 290
• Bar Chart - Sales by Month (Horizontal): Bars run horizontally showing sales values for each month.
• Column Chart - Profit by Month (Vertical): Columns run vertically showing profit values for each month.
• Data Table: Displays raw sales and profit data for reference.

Dashboard Layout (ASCII Art)

+----------------+----------------+
| Total Sales    | Total Profit   |
| (KPI Card)     | (KPI Card)     |
+----------------+----------------+
|                Bar Chart (Sales Horizontal)           |
+-------------------------------------------------------+
|                Column Chart (Profit Vertical)         |
+-------------------------------------------------------+
|                      Data Table                        |
+-------------------------------------------------------+
    

Interactivity

Adding a month filter updates all components: KPI cards, bar chart, column chart, and data table to show data only for the selected month(s).

Self Check

If you add a filter for Month = "March", which components update?

• KPI Cards show sales = 200 and profit = 70.
• Bar chart shows a single horizontal bar for March sales = 200.
• Column chart shows a single vertical column for March profit = 70.
• Data table shows only the row for March.

Key Result

A dashboard demonstrating horizontal and vertical direction layouts with KPI cards, bar and column charts, and a data table using sales and profit data.

Practice

1.

In Figma, what does setting the direction to horizontal do to the layout of items?

easy

A. Arranges items side by side from left to right

B. Stacks items from top to bottom

C. Overlaps items on top of each other

D. Randomly places items on the canvas

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand horizontal direction meaning

   Horizontal direction means arranging items side by side, moving left to right.

2. Step 2: Apply to Figma layout

   Setting direction to horizontal in Figma aligns items next to each other horizontally.

3. Final Answer:

   Arranges items side by side from left to right -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Horizontal = side by side [OK]

Hint: Horizontal means left to right arrangement [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing horizontal with vertical stacking
• Thinking horizontal overlaps items
• Assuming random placement

2.

Which of the following is the correct way to set a vertical direction for a frame in Figma?

frame.layoutMode = ?

easy

A. "horizontal"

B. "stack"

C. "vertical"

D. "inline"

Solution

1. Step 1: Recall Figma layoutMode property

   Figma uses layoutMode to set direction, accepting "horizontal" or "vertical".

2. Step 2: Choose vertical direction value

   To stack items top to bottom, set layoutMode = "vertical".

3. Final Answer:

   "vertical" -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Vertical direction = "vertical" string [OK]

Hint: Use exact string "vertical" for vertical layoutMode [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using "horizontal" instead of "vertical"
• Using invalid strings like "stack" or "inline"
• Omitting quotes around the string

3.

Given this Figma code snippet, what will be the visual arrangement of the child items?

frame.layoutMode = "horizontal";
frame.children = [item1, item2, item3];

medium

A. Items arranged side by side horizontally

B. Items arranged randomly inside the frame

C. Items overlapped in the same position

D. Items stacked vertically, one below another

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify layoutMode setting

   The code sets layoutMode to "horizontal", meaning items align left to right.

2. Step 2: Understand children arrangement

   Children in a horizontal layout appear side by side in the order listed.

3. Final Answer:

   Items arranged side by side horizontally -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   layoutMode "horizontal" = side by side [OK]

Hint: layoutMode "horizontal" means side by side [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Assuming vertical stacking despite horizontal setting
• Thinking items overlap
• Ignoring the order of children

4.

What is wrong with this Figma code if the intention is to stack items vertically?

frame.layoutMode = "horizontal";
frame.children = [itemA, itemB];

medium

A. The children must be wrapped in a group to stack vertically

B. Children array must be empty to stack vertically

C. The frame must have a fixed width to stack vertically

D. The layoutMode should be set to "vertical" instead of "horizontal"

Solution

1. Step 1: Analyze layoutMode setting

   The code sets layoutMode to "horizontal", which arranges items side by side.

2. Step 2: Correct direction for vertical stacking

   To stack items vertically, layoutMode must be "vertical".

3. Final Answer:

   The layoutMode should be set to "vertical" instead of "horizontal" -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Vertical stacking requires layoutMode = "vertical" [OK]

Hint: Use "vertical" layoutMode to stack items top to bottom [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Leaving layoutMode as "horizontal"
• Thinking children array affects stacking
• Assuming grouping is required

5.

You want to create a dashboard in Figma where KPI cards are arranged in two rows, each row showing cards side by side. Which direction settings should you use?

hard

A. Set both main frame and row frames to horizontal

B. Set the main frame to vertical and each row frame to horizontal

C. Set the main frame to horizontal and each row frame to vertical

D. Set both main frame and row frames to vertical

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand dashboard layout requirement

   The dashboard has two rows stacked vertically, so the main frame stacks rows top to bottom.

2. Step 2: Arrange cards side by side in each row

   Each row should arrange cards horizontally side by side.

3. Step 3: Apply direction settings

   Set main frame layoutMode to "vertical" to stack rows, and each row frame layoutMode to "horizontal" for side-by-side cards.

4. Final Answer:

   Set the main frame to vertical and each row frame to horizontal -> Option B

5. Quick Check:

   Main vertical + rows horizontal = 2 rows with side-by-side cards [OK]

Hint: Main vertical stacks rows; rows horizontal arrange cards side by side [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Setting main frame horizontal causing one row only
• Setting rows vertical stacking cards instead of side by side
• Using same direction for both frames