Direction (horizontal, vertical) in Figma - Real Business Scenario

Scenario Mode

👤 Your Role: You are a business analyst creating a sales performance dashboard.

📋 Request: Your manager wants a clear visual layout showing monthly sales data arranged both horizontally and vertically for easy comparison.

📊 Data: You have monthly sales figures for three products over four months.

🎯 Deliverable: Create a dashboard in Figma that uses horizontal and vertical directions to organize charts and data tables for clear comparison.

Sample Data

Month	Product A	Product B	Product C
January	1200	900	700
February	1500	1100	800
March	1700	1300	900
April	1600	1200	850

1

Step 1: Create a new Figma frame sized 1200x800 pixels to hold the dashboard.

In Figma, select Frame tool (F), draw a frame 1200px wide and 800px tall.

Expected Result

A blank frame of 1200x800 pixels appears on the canvas.

2

Step 2: Add a horizontal bar chart for monthly sales of Product A across the four months.

Use rectangles to represent sales bars arranged left to right horizontally. Label Y-axis with months and X-axis with sales values.

Expected Result

A horizontal bar chart showing January to April sales for Product A arranged left to right.

3

Step 3: Add a vertical bar chart for monthly sales of Product B below the horizontal chart.

Use rectangles to represent sales bars arranged bottom to top vertically. Label X-axis with months and Y-axis with sales values.

Expected Result

A vertical bar chart showing January to April sales for Product B arranged bottom to top.

4

Step 4: Place a data table to the right side of the charts showing all products' sales by month.

Create a grid with months as rows and products as columns, fill cells with sales numbers from sample data.

Expected Result

A clear data table aligned vertically with months and horizontally with products, showing sales figures.

5

Step 5: Add titles above each chart and the table to clarify content.

Use text tool to add 'Product A Sales (Horizontal)', 'Product B Sales (Vertical)', and 'Monthly Sales Data Table'.

Expected Result

Each section has a clear title describing the data and direction.

6

Step 6: Use consistent spacing and alignment to visually separate horizontal and vertical elements.

Apply 40px vertical spacing between charts and 30px horizontal spacing between charts and table.

Expected Result

Dashboard looks balanced and easy to read with clear horizontal and vertical layout.

Final Result

------------------------------------------------------------
| Product A Sales (Horizontal)                              |
|  Jan |■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■ 1200 |
|  Feb |■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■ 1500 |
|  Mar |■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■ 1700 |
|  Apr |■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■ 1600 |
------------------------------------------------------------
| Product B Sales (Vertical)                                |
| 900  ■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■ |
| 1100 ■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■ |
| 1300 ■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■ |
| 1200 ■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■ |
| Months: Jan Feb Mar Apr                                   |
------------------------------------------------------------
| Monthly Sales Data Table                                  |
| Month   | Product A | Product B | Product C               |
| January | 1200      | 900       | 700                    |
| February| 1500      | 1100      | 800                    |
| March   | 1700      | 1300      | 900                    |
| April   | 1600      | 1200      | 850                    |
------------------------------------------------------------

✓Product A sales trend is increasing from January to March, slight dip in April.

✓Product B sales also increase steadily, shown clearly in vertical chart.

✓Product C sales are lower but stable across months.

✓Horizontal and vertical directions help compare different products easily.

✓Data table complements charts by showing exact numbers.

Bonus Challenge

Add interactive hover effects in Figma to highlight bars and table rows for better user experience.

Show Hint

Use Figma's prototype mode to create hover overlays that change bar color and highlight corresponding table row.

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