designtoken.md vs Figma Variables

Design tool variables vs agent context file

Figma Variables are a native feature for defining reusable values — colors, spacing, booleans — that power prototypes and design modes inside Figma. designtoken.md is a structured markdown file that sits in your repo and gives coding agents the complete design picture at generation time. One lives in your design tool, the other lives with your code.

The native feature

What are Figma Variables?

Figma Variables are Figma's built-in system for defining reusable design values. They support colors, numbers, strings, and booleans — organized into collections and modes (like light/dark themes). Variables power conditional prototyping, responsive design, and are the foundation of Figma's design token story. They're tightly integrated with Figma's component system and Dev Mode.

Figma native

The repo-first file

What is designtoken.md?

A designtoken.md is a structured markdown file that lives in your project root. Full color scales (50–900), typography hierarchies with sizes, weights, and line heights, spacing systems, elevation tokens, and component state definitions. Any coding agent — Claude Code, Cursor, Copilot — reads it directly. No design tool required, no export pipeline, no build step.

~150–200 lines

Details

Feature comparison

Feature	Figma Variables	designtoken.md
Lives in	Figma (native)	Your repo (markdown file)
Token types	Color, number, string, boolean	Colors, typography, spacing, elevation, components
Scales	Single values per variable	Full 50–900 scales
Typography	Individual values	Complete hierarchies (size, weight, leading, tracking)
Component states	Via variants	Explicit: default, hover, active, disabled
Modes/themes	Collections + modes	One file per brand/theme
Export	Dev Mode, REST API, plugins	Already in repo — no export needed
Agent access	Indirect (export → consume)	Direct (agent reads file)
Requires	Figma account (paid for variables)	Nothing — free, no signup
Works offline	No	Yes

Guidance

When to use each

Both have distinct purposes. Here's how to choose.

Figma Variables

Your design team works in Figma and needs variables for prototyping
You need visual theming and design-to-dev handoff inside Figma
Conditional prototyping with responsive design modes
Design team wants variables and modes native to their workflow

designtoken.md

You're building with coding agents and need structured design context
Full color scales and typography hierarchies for production code
Component state definitions (default, hover, active, disabled)
When agents need rich context without Figma dependency

FAQ

Common questions

Can I export Figma Variables to a designtoken.md?

Not natively, but Figma's REST API and Dev Mode expose variable values. You can use these to populate a designtoken.md with richer structure — full scales and relationships that individual variables can't capture.

Are Figma Variables the same as design tokens?

Figma Variables are Figma's implementation of design tokens. They cover a subset — individual values organized in collections. Design tokens as a concept (and as implemented in designtoken.md) are broader: they include scales, hierarchies, component relationships, and semantic intent.

Which is better for coding agents?

designtoken.md. Coding agents work in your repo, not in Figma. A markdown file with full token definitions is immediately accessible to any agent that reads project context — no API calls, no export steps, no Figma account needed.