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• Sketch on the canvas with the pencil tool

  Use the pencil tool to sketch on the canvas or other objects. It's a great way to call attention to something on the canvas or draw something fun.

  Use the pencil

  By default, the pencil tool sketches with a round 3px stroke weight in black, unless you're sketching on a dark canvas or frame. These properties can be adjusted before or after you start sketching.

  To start drawing:

  1. Click pencil in the top toolbar or press ⇧ P.
  2. Pick a color fill, stroke weight, and end point style from the Stroke section of the right sidebar.
  3. Click and drag on the canvas to sketch.

  The pencil tool stays active until you select another tool or press Esc.

  Want to draw in a straight line? Hold Shift while drawing, or try the pen tool.

  Edit pencil sketches

  Color and stroke properties

  You can change a pencil sketch's colors, add a color style, end point style, and stroke weight at any time.

  1. Select the sketch on the canvas.
  2. Edit the color fill, stroke weight, and end point style from the Stroke section of the right sidebar. You can also click to change the line style to dashes, or created a custom style.

  Learn more about applying paints with the color picker →

  Dimension

  To change the dimension of a pencil sketch:

  1. Select the layers you want to adjust.
  2. Drag the side or corner of a sketch's bounding box to resize its dimensions.

  You can resize proportionally by pressing ⇧ Shift while dragging.

  Learn more about editing vector networks →

  Delete pencil sketches

  To delete a pencil sketch:

  1. Select any sketches you want to remove from the canvas or Layers panel.
  2. Press Delete.
• Vector networks

  Before you start

  Who can use this feature

  Supported on any team or plan.

  Anyone with can edit access to a file can create and edit vector networks.

  Vector networks are one of the most unique features in Figma. Most pen tools draw paths in a loop with a defined direction, always wanting to reconnect to their original point. Vector networks do not have a direction and can fork off in different directions without requiring a separate path object to be created. Complex objects can then be created within the same object and with the same properties much faster than they could be drawn using traditional vector path tools.

  Create vector networks

  You can use the Pen tool, or any of the Shape tools, to create a new vector layer.

  When using Shape tools, you can hold modifier keys to draw them in specific ways:

  • Hold ⇧ Shift while creating a shape to lock the shape’s aspect ratio to 1:1.
  • Hold ⌥ Option / Alt while creating a shape to make it scale relative to its center instead of its top-left corner.
  • As you click and drag to create a shape, hold Space to move the shape around the canvas before releasing your mouse click.

  Edit vector networks

  Vector edit mode lets you can select, adjust, or change properties of individual points, lines, or entire shapes. When you're editing an object, you can interact with the existing points and the lines between them. You can also use the Pen tool to plot additional points and manipulate those as well.

  To enter vector edit mode:

  • Select a path and press Return / Enter
  • Or, select a path and click  from the toolbar

  To exit vector edit mode, press Return / Enter again, or click Done in the toolbar.

  Fills

  Add fills to closed regions of a vector network.

  1. Select a vector network.
  2. Click in the toolbar or press Return / Enter to enter edit mode.
  3. Click in the toolbar or press B to select the paint bucket tool.
  4. Click the area of a closed vector network to add the fill.

  You can add different fills to separate regions of a vector network as long as they are separate closed regions.

  Bézier Curves

  To access a point’s Bézier handles:

  1. Select a vector network.
  2. Click in the toolbar or press Return / Enter to enter edit mode.
  3. If it is a curve, the handles will already be showing. If it is a corner with no handles, press in the toolbar or hold ⌘ Command / Control and click the point to show the handles and create a mirrored curve.
  4. Click and drag the handles to adjust the path's curve.

  Rounded Corners

  Any intermediate point on a path can be rounded via the corner radius property in the right sidebar. If you select the entire path, it rounds all corners to the same degree. If you go into edit mode, you can select individual points and round them separately.

  Terminal points on an open path can only be rounded via end caps.

  Caps

  Add styling to the end point of any open paths. Figma displays the cap property differently depending upon the type of vector path you have selected.

  Vector paths with two endpoints

  Figma will display cap properties in the right sidebar if a vector path with only two endpoints is selected. You are able to set each end cap independently of the other.

  Vector paths with more than two endpoints

  Figma will display cap properties in the advanced stroke menu ↓ if a vector path with more than two endpoints is selected.

  You cannot edit end caps independently when the entire vector path selected. To edit end caps independently, select a single vector point while in vector edit mode →.

  Cap types

  Choose from:

  • None: Adds no cap to the end of the path. The end of the path are squared off, without adding any length to the path.
  • Line arrow: Adds two 45-degree lines to either side of the end point(s). This uses the same stroke weight as the path itself. You cannot change the length of the arrow head lines.
  • Triangle arrow: Add a triangle arrowhead to both end points. You'll need to enter vector edit mode → to apply an arrow to only one end of the path.
  • Reverse triangle: A reversed or flipped version of the triangle arrow, with the arrow point facing inward toward the path.
  • Diamond arrow: A solid diamond cap.
  • Round (default): Adds a cap half the stroke weight, as well as rounding the end point of the path to 50% the width.
  • Square: Adds a cap half the stroke weight, while squaring the end point of the path.

  Check out this Vector networks video tutorial to see them in action. And be sure to read “Introducing Vector Networks” on our Medium page.

• Basic shape tools in Figma design

  Who can use this feature

  Supported on any team or plan.

  Anyone with can edit access to a design file can use basic shape tools.

  Shapes make up the majority of your layers in any given design. Figma has some basic shapes you can use as your building blocks.

  • Rectangle
  • Line
  • Arrow
  • Ellipse
  • Polygon
  • Star

  You can access these basic shapes from the Shape tools menu in the toolbar. Click the arrow next to the Rectangle to open the shape tools menu

  For designs that require unique or complex shapes, you can build your own vector networks using Figma's one-of-a-kind Pen tool.

  

  Shape shortcuts

  • Hold down Shift when dragging to create perfect squares, circles and polygons.
  • Hold down Option / Alt to create and resize shapes from their center.
  • Hold down Shift and Option / Alt at the same time to do both actions.

  Rectangles

  Use the rectangle tool to create both rectangles and squares.

  1. Select the Rectangle tool from the toolbar, or press R for the keyboard shortcut.
  2. Click on a spot in the canvas and drag to create the rectangle. You’ll see the rectangle’s dimensions underneath the bottom edge:
     

     

  3. There will be a handle in each corner of the shape, this allows you to resize the shape as you see fit.

  Adjust corner radius

  In addition to the regular handles, rectangles also have four circle handles on the inside of every corner. These handles allow you to adjust the corner to round the corners of the rectangle. Learn more in our Adjust corner radius and smoothing article.

  Lines

  The Line tool allows you to create lines in any direction. Lines are an effective way of breaking up content within a design, or simulating CSS borders.

  1. Select the Line tool from the shape tools or press the L key.

     

  2. Click on a spot in the canvas and drag in any direction to create the line:
     

     

  3. You can make any changes to its appearance in the Stroke section of the right sidebar. This includes the color, position, weight, style, and end point tips or caps. Stroke properties →

  Create dashed lines

  You can specify both the length the Dash and the distance or Gap between them.

  1. Draw or select the line.
  2. In the Stroke section of the right sidebar, select to open the Advanced stroke menu.
  3. Enter the length you want for the Dash and the Gap.

  Arrows

  The Arrow tool allows you to draw one-sided and two-sided arrows. You can customize the tips or caps of the arrow’s end points.

  1. Select the Arrow tool from the shape tools menu, or use the shortcut ⇧ Shift L.
  2. Click on a spot in the canvas and drag in any direction to create the arrow.
  3. Like the line tool, you can make adjustments to the Stroke properties.
  4. Update both the start and end points independently in the Stroke section.
  5. Hover over the space between the two fields and click the two arrows to Swap start and end points. Stroke properties →

  Ellipses and circles

  Use the Ellipse tool to draw both ovals and circles. These can be used as they are, or manipulated to create custom shapes with curved lines.

  1. Select the Ellipse tool from the shape tools menu, or press the O key.

     

  2. Select a spot in the canvas and drag in any direction to create the ellips. The shape's dimensions will be shown in blue underneath the layer:
     

     

  3. There will be a blue bounding box around the ellipse, with a handle in each corner. This allows you to resize the shape.

  Tip! Use the ellipse tool to create other shapes, like semi-circles, pie charts, rings, donuts and semi-circular rings. Use the arc tool →

  

  Polygons

  The Polygon tool allows you to draw an enclosed shape that is made up of any number of straight lines.

  The default shape for the polygon tool is a triangle, but you can add extra points to the object to create your own custom polygons.

  1. Select the Polygon tool from the shape menu.
     

     

  2. Select a location in the canvas and drag to create the Polygon. The shape's dimensions will be shown in blue underneath the object.
  3. The blue bounding box around the shape has a handle in each corner. This allows you to resize the shape as you see fit.
  4. Enter >Edit object mode by double-clicking on the polygon layer. This allows you to add additional points to the polygon and manipulate each point individually:
     

     

  5. You can round the corners of a polygon too. Hover over the handle in the corner until the Radius is shown. Click and drag the handle towards the center of the object to round the corners.

  Polygons and bounding boxes

  You may have noticed that when we drew our polygon, in this case a triangle, the blue bounding box around the shape is below the bottom of the shape.

  This allows the bounding box to remain a consistent shape or size, when additional points are added to the polygon. To snap the bounding box to the shape's true boundary, you can flatten the shape.

  Right-click on the shape and choose Flatten, or use the keyboard shortcut:

  • Mac: Command</kbd E
  • Windows: Ctrl + E

  Stars

  The star tool creates polygons that are arranged in a star shape. When you create a star layer, the default will be a five pointed star with ten sides.

  1. Select the Star tool from the shape tools menu.
     

     

  2. Select a position in the canvas and drag in any direction to create the star.
     

     

  3. You’ll now have three handles you can use to manipulate the star:
     
     • Count: how many points there are to the star. The minimum is three and the maximum is 60.
     • Ratio: the distance of the inner points of the star from the center. This is represented as percentage of the star's diameter.
     • Radius: allows you to round the point, similar to how corner radius works on a rectangle.

  Tip! Select Edit object mode in to toolbar to adjust the radius of each point independently.

• Organize your canvas with sections

  Before you start

  Who can use this feature

  Supported on any team or plan.

  Anyone with can edit access can create sections in a file.

  Organize your canvas with labeled sections to group related ideas and guide collaborators through your file.

  Sections let you:

  • Designate areas of the canvas for collaboration or ideation
  • Organize files for easier navigation
  • Link to a grouping of designs
  • Add clarity on what’s ready for implementation during developer handoff

  A section in Figma design:

  • Is a default top-level element on the canvas and its own layer type
  • Can contain other sections
  • Cannot be contained within frames or groups
  • Can contain any other layer type

  Create a section

  There are a few ways to create a section:

  Toolbar and shortcut

  

  1. Click in the top toolbar or use the keyboard shortcut ⇧ ShiftS.
  2. Click and drag the location of the canvas where you’d like the section to go.

  You can also click and drag a section over the objects you want to add to it.

  Selection

  1. Click and drag objects on the canvas you’d like to add to a section.
  2. Right-click the selection.
  3. Click Create section from the menu.

  Tip! Double-click a section's icon in the Layers panel to navigate to it.

  Add objects to section

  There are a few ways to add objects to a section:

  • Move a section over an object
  • Resize a section over an object
  • Select and move an object into a section using your mouse or keyboard arrows

  

  Edit section

  Title

  1. Double-click the section title on the canvas or Layers panel.
  2. Edit the title.
  3. Press Return / Enter.

  Fill and stroke

  Change the background and border color for a section using the Fill and Stroke sections of the right sidebar.

  Learn how to add fills →

  Learn how to apply and adjust stroke properties →

  Share section

  You can direct collaborators to a specific section in your canvas by copying the link to that section.

  1. Select the section you want to share.
  2. Click Share in the top toolbar.
  3. Check the box to Link to selected section.

  Delete section

  To delete a section:

  1. Select the section.

  2. Press Delete / Backspace.

  Deleting a section also deletes its contents. To delete a section without deleting its contents, select everything in the section and drag it to another place on the canvas.

  Prototype with sections

  Sections allow you to group and organize prototypes. You can create connections to sections to connect flows across different portions of the prototype. When presenting a prototype, Figma will remember which frame was last viewed in a section, and when the user returns, it’ll show that frame first.

• Boolean operations

  Before you Start

  Who can use this feature

  Users on any plan

  Users with edit access to a Figma design file can use boolean operations

  Video tutorial

  Types of boolean operations

  Boolean operations combine any set of shape layers through one of four formulas: union, subtract, intersect, and exclude. 

  

  Boolean groups are treated as a single shape layer and share fill and stroke properties and can be combined with other boolean groups through subsequent boolean operations.

  • Union: Union combines the selected shapes into a boolean group. If the objects overlap, the new shape’s outer path consists of the composite of its sublayers’ paths minus any segments that overlap. The stroke would then be applied to that outer path ignoring any path segments which overlap each other.
  • Subtract: Subtract is the opposite of union. Subtract removes the area of a shape or set of shapes from a base shape. Only the bottom shape layer is solid, the rest are subtracted from it.
  • Intersect: Intersect creates a boolean group whose shape consists only of the overlapping parts of its sublayers.
  • Exclude: Exclude is the opposite of intersect. Exclude shows only the areas of its sublayers that do not overlap.
• Frames and Groups

  Before you Start

  Who can use this feature

  Users on Any Plan

  Users with Edit access to a File can create, edit, and remove Groups and Frames.

  Groups and Frames allow you to combine layers together so that they can be treated like a single layer.

  Groups

  By default, groups take on the combined dimensions of their children.

  • To make a group, select some layers and choose “Group”, or use:
    • macOS: Command-G
    • Windows: Control + G
  • The first time you click on a layer in this group, the entire group will be selected.
  • To select a single layer within this group, double-click the item, or choose it from the layers panel.
  • As the layers within a group are moved around, the bounds of the group will adjust to fit the layers within.
  • You can move things into and out of this group by dragging layers within the layers panel.
  • You are allowed to nest groups inside other groups.
  • To un-group, select the group and choose “Ungroup”, or use:
    • macOS: Shift-Command-G
    • Windows: Shift + Control + G

  Frames

  Sometimes, it is useful to have a layer whose size is explicitly set by you. These are called Frames.

  • To make a frame, choose the Frame Tool F and drag out an area of the screen, or use:
    • macOS: Command-Option-G
    • Windows: Control + Alt + G
  • To add layers to this group, just drag them in.
  • To remove layers from this group, just drag them out.
  • Selecting and moving items within a Frame works exactly the same way as groups.
  • To un-group, select the group and choose “Ungroup”, or use:
    • macOS: Shift-Command-G
    • Windows: Shift + Control + G

  Frames are drawn directly on the canvas and we draw them in a special way to make them easier to see and work with.

• Edit Object

   

  Before you Start

  Who can use this feature

  Users on Any Plan

  Users with Edit access to a File can Edit Objects.

  About Edit Mode

  You can create shapes using the Pen Tool, or you can use the shape tool to drag out an image on the canvas.

  Once you've drawn a shape, use the Edit Object button in the toolbar to quickly enter vector edit mode. You can also double-click, or use  Enter .

  

   

  The Pen Tool

  When you're editing an object, you can interact with the existing points and the lines between them. You can also use the Pen Tool to plot additional points and manipulate those as well. 

  Paths between the points can be straight lines, or you can curve them using the Bend Tool to activate Beziers.

  To turn the handle controls on, while clicking, use the modifier key:

  • macOS: Command
  • Windows: Control

  

  Tip! If you haven't already, check out  The Bezier Game and read our Vector Networks article to learn how to master the Pen Tool.

• Masks

  Before you start

  Who can use this feature

  Anyone on any team or plan

  Anyone with edit access to a Figma design file can use masks

  Use masks to show specific areas of objects while concealing the rest.

  It's like placing a photograph inside a picture frame with a small opening. You'll see a portion of the photograph peeking through the opening, while the rest is concealed without the need to trim it down to size.

  Since no portion of masked layers are modified or deleted in this process, masks are a non-destructive action. This allows you to preserve the concealed areas without the need to trim them down to fit.

  How masks work

  Any layer can be used as a mask, including vector shapes, text layers, images with transparency channels, groups, and more.

  

  When you use a layer as a mask, a mask object is created, which includes the mask and any layers it is masking. A mask object can be identified in the Layers panel by a at the base denoting the mask, and an upward-facing arrow along the layers being masked.

  

  Masks are positioned below masked layers on the z-axis. The mask applies to all siblings above it until it reaches:

  • Another mask or mask object
  • The mask's parent frame or group
  • A frame or component with clip content on

  Learn more about parent, sibling, and child relationships →

  In the example below, the purple ellipse is acting as the mask. If the mask sits below the image of the person on the z-axis, it'll successfully mask that image. If the mask sits above the image, it won't be masked.

  

  Mask types

  Alpha

  All masks in Figma support alpha channels. Alpha channels represent the degree of transparency, or opacity, in a color, image, or object.

  When working with alpha masks, masks are applied based on the opacity of the mask. The higher the opacity, the more that is revealed. Zero percent opacity reveals nothing.

  This means we can utilize blurs and opacity in our masks:

  • Import existing PNGs, GIFs, and WebP files with transparency (alpha channels)
  • Use layer blur effects to replicate feathering
  • Apply drop and inner shadows to create depth
  • Add fills, strokes, and gradients with varying opacity

  In the example below, we've used an ellipse with an outside stroke as our mask. The opacity of the ellipse's fill is 100% and the opacity of the stroke is 30%. More is revealed in the center of the image, because the mask's opacity is higher (100%).

  

  Vector

  Vector masks, or using shape outlines as masks, ignore the translucency—or opacity value of more than zero percent—of a mask's fill or stroke. If a mask contains any area with an opacity of more than zero percent, then its outlines are used as the mask and the entire mask assumes 100% opacity.

  In the example below, an image of a heart with a completely transparent background is being used as a mask. The object on the bottom-left is using an alpha mask, so we see the outline of the heart. The object on the bottom-right is using a vector mask, and uses the outline of the entire image as the mask.

  

  Luminance

  Luminance allows you to use brightness to determine a mask. The brighter the area of a mask, the more that is revealed, or in other words, the higher the opacity of the layers being masked.

  The darker the area, the less that is revealed. If a mask has a black fill, or #000000, this will reveal nothing and masked layers render at zero percent opacity.

  

  Create and edit masks

  Create a mask

  1. Choose an object you want to use as your mask, and place it behind all objects that'll be masked on the z-axis.
  2. Select all layers that will be a part of the mask object.
  3. Create the mask object by clicking  in the top toolbar, or press:
     
     • Mac: ⌃ Control ⌘ Command M
     • Windows: Ctrl Alt M
  4. By default, the mask type is set to Alpha. To change it, select the layer being used as a mask and open the dropdown in the Mask section of the right sidebar. Hover over any option to preview it on the canvas. Learn about mask types ↑

  

  To add layers to an existing mask object, use the Layers panel to click and drag them into the mask object.

  Learn more about reordering layers →

  Resize and move

  Masks and masked layers move and resize independently from one another. This means that when you move or resize a mask, any masked layers will be unaffected, and vice versa.

  

  This is because they are siblings of one another, so masks don’t have any parenting behavior that a frame, group, or component might have.

  Learn more about parent, sibling, and child relationships →

  Remove a mask

  To stop using an object as a mask, use any of the following methods to toggle it off:

  • Select the mask and click in the top toolbar
  • Right-click the mask and select Use as mask
  • Select the mask and use the keyboard shortcut:
    • Mac: ⌃ Control ⌘ Command M
    • Windows: Ctrl Alt M

  Any portions hidden by the mask will reappear.

  Reveal mask outlines

  By default, Figma does not show the boundaries of a mask. Use mask outlines when working with complex masks or to check for unintended empty spaces.

  To toggle mask outlines:

  1. Open the Figma menu.
  2. Go to View > Mask outlines.

  Once the setting on, masks in your file are outlined in green.

  

  Note: If all layers being masked are hidden or have zero percent opacity, then the object's mask outlines won't appear.