Migration Guide

If you are moving a design system to Penpot, especially from Figma, start with the enterprise migration guide. It covers file and library migration, tokens, validation, dual-tool workflows, and how different roles can run a pilot.

What the guide covers

The document is written for teams that need to move more than a few mockups: libraries, tokens, variants, and the workflows around them. It focuses on Figma, but the same audit, pilot, and validation steps apply if you are coming from another tool.

• Before you export: audit critical files, component chains, token usage, and plugins that will not come along. Split oversized files and clean unused libraries while you are still in Figma.
• Static assets: export SVG, PNG, or JPG from Figma and place them in Penpot.
• Complex files and libraries: use the Penpot Exporter plugin for Figma (design files, slides, components, variants, auto layout, styles, variables, and libraries). Expect some layout cleanup, Figma Auto Layout becomes Flex and Grid in Penpot.
• Tokens: if you already use Tokens Studio, export JSON and import it in Penpot. Native Figma Variables can go through Tokens Studio, or through the Exporter plugin.
• Validate before you scale: migrate one representative file (or a sandbox library), write down recurring cleanup, then roll the same checklist out to the rest of the workspace.
• People and pilots: the second half of the guide has paths for designers, frontend developers, DesignOps, design-system leads, and product/engineering pilots, including how Penpot MCP can help with post-import cleanup.

The guide also covers running Figma and Penpot in parallel for a while. The exporter is for one-off migration, not continuous sync.

Questions and discussion

If you want to ask about a migration, or share how yours is going, use the Community post The Enterprise Guide to Migrating Design Systems to Penpot.