Style organization and naming conventions in Figma - Step-by-Step Guide

Introduction

Organizing styles and using clear naming helps keep your design files neat and easy to update. This makes it simple to find and reuse colors, text, and effects across your project without confusion.

When you want to quickly apply consistent colors and fonts across multiple charts or dashboards

When your BI project grows and you need to avoid duplicate or conflicting styles

When collaborating with others who need to understand and use your design system

When you want to update a style once and have it reflect everywhere in your report

When preparing your design for handoff to developers or other team members

Steps

Step 1: Open the Assets panel

- Left sidebar in Figma

You see all your current styles and components listed

💡 If the Assets panel is not visible, click the 'Assets' tab next to 'Layers'

Step 2: Click the 'Styles' icon at the top of the Assets panel

- Assets panel header

All your color, text, and effect styles appear grouped by type

Step 3: Right-click a style and select 'Rename'

- Style list in the Assets panel

The style name becomes editable

💡 Use clear, descriptive names like 'Color/Primary/Blue' or 'Text/Heading/H1' to organize styles

Step 4: Create new styles with organized names

- Select an object, then click the '+' icon next to the style type in the right sidebar

A new style is saved with the name you provide

💡 Use slashes '/' in names to create folders and group related styles

Step 5: Use consistent naming patterns for all styles

- When naming or renaming styles

Styles are grouped logically and easy to find

💡 Decide on a naming convention before starting, like 'Category/Type/Variant'

Before vs After

Before

Styles panel shows many styles with unclear names like 'Blue', 'Heading', 'Text1', mixed without grouping

After

Styles panel shows styles grouped and named clearly like 'Color/Primary/Blue', 'Text/Heading/H1', making it easy to find and apply

Settings Reference

Style Naming

📍 Assets panel > Styles list > Right-click style > Rename

To give styles clear, organized names for easy reuse and management

Default: Untitled style

Create New Style

📍 Right sidebar > Fill/Text/Effect section > '+' icon

To save a selected color, text, or effect as a reusable style

Default: No default name, user must enter

Common Mistakes

Using vague or duplicate style names like 'Blue' or 'Text'

It causes confusion and makes it hard to know which style to use or update

Use descriptive names with categories and variants, e.g., 'Color/Primary/Blue' or 'Text/Body/Regular'

Not grouping styles with slashes '/' in names

Styles appear in a long flat list, making it difficult to navigate

Use slashes to create folders, e.g., 'Color/Secondary/Green' groups all secondary colors together

Summary

Organize styles with clear, consistent naming to keep your BI designs tidy and easy to update

Use slashes '/' in style names to group related styles into folders

Good naming helps you and your team quickly find and reuse styles across dashboards and reports

Practice

1. Why is it important to use clear and consistent naming conventions for styles in Figma?

easy

A. It changes the colors of the styles.

B. It makes the file size smaller.

C. It automatically fixes design errors.

D. It helps find and reuse styles quickly, saving time and keeping designs consistent.

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the purpose of naming conventions

   Clear and consistent names help users quickly identify and reuse styles without confusion.

2. Step 2: Connect naming to design consistency

   Using good names ensures styles are reused properly, keeping the design uniform across the project.

3. Final Answer:

   It helps find and reuse styles quickly, saving time and keeping designs consistent. -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Clear naming = easy reuse [OK]

Hint: Good names save time and keep designs uniform [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking naming affects file size
• Believing naming fixes design errors
• Assuming naming changes style colors

2. Which of the following is the correct way to organize styles using categories and subcategories in Figma?

easy

A. Button-Primary-Active

B. Button/Primary/Active

C. Button Primary Active

D. Button.Primary.Active

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify the correct separator for categories

   Figma uses slashes (/) to separate categories and subcategories in style names.

2. Step 2: Compare options with Figma naming rules

   Only Button/Primary/Active uses slashes correctly to organize styles hierarchically.

3. Final Answer:

   Button/Primary/Active -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Use slashes (/) for style categories [OK]

Hint: Use slashes (/) to separate style categories [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using dashes or dots instead of slashes
• Using spaces without separators
• Mixing separators inconsistently

3. Given these style names in Figma: Text/Heading/H1, Text/Heading/H2, Button/Primary/Default, which style will appear first in the style list when sorted alphabetically?

medium

A. Button/Primary/Default

B. Text/Heading/H1

C. Text/Heading/H2

D. They all appear at the same time

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand alphabetical sorting in Figma

   Styles are sorted alphabetically from left to right, starting with the first category.

2. Step 2: Compare the first parts of each style name

   "Button" comes before "Text" alphabetically, so any style starting with "Button" appears before "Text" styles.

3. Final Answer:

   Button/Primary/Default -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Alphabetical order starts with first word [OK]

Hint: Alphabetical order sorts by first word first [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Assuming H1 comes before Button
• Thinking subcategories affect order first
• Believing all styles appear simultaneously

4. You notice your Figma styles are named inconsistently: some use spaces, others use slashes, and some use dashes. What is the best way to fix this?

medium

A. Rename all styles to use slashes consistently for categories and subcategories.

B. Leave them as is because Figma accepts all formats.

C. Use spaces only because they look cleaner.

D. Use dashes only because they are shorter.

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify the recommended naming convention

   Figma recommends using slashes (/) to organize styles into categories and subcategories clearly.

2. Step 2: Apply consistent naming across all styles

   Renaming all styles to use slashes ensures easy navigation and reuse, avoiding confusion.

3. Final Answer:

   Rename all styles to use slashes consistently for categories and subcategories. -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Consistent slashes improve style organization [OK]

Hint: Fix inconsistent names by using slashes everywhere [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Ignoring inconsistent naming
• Using spaces or dashes inconsistently
• Thinking Figma accepts all naming equally

5. You have these styles in Figma: Color/Primary/Light, Color/Primary/Dark, Color/Secondary/Light, Color/Secondary/Dark. You want to create a new style for a medium shade between light and dark for Primary colors only. What is the best naming convention to keep your styles organized?

hard

A. Primary/Color/Medium

B. Color/PrimaryMedium

C. Color/Primary/Medium

D. Color-Medium-Primary

Solution

1. Step 1: Follow existing naming pattern

   Current styles use the pattern Category/Subcategory/Variant with slashes.

2. Step 2: Insert new variant in the same subcategory

   Adding "Medium" as a variant under "Primary" keeps the naming consistent and organized.

3. Final Answer:

   Color/Primary/Medium -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Match existing pattern for new styles [OK]

Hint: Match existing slash pattern for new style names [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Combining words without slashes
• Changing category order
• Using dashes instead of slashes