Is Figma Down? Designer's Guide to Handling Outages and Staying Productive (2026)

TLDR: Check if Figma is down at apistatuscheck.com/api/figma. This guide covers how to verify Figma outages, access offline files, and keep design work moving during downtime.

TLDR: When Figma goes down, check status.figma.com and apistatuscheck.com/api/figma. Protect your work by exporting .fig files regularly, use Figma desktop app for offline access, and keep PDF/PNG exports of key designs for presentation continuity during outages.

You're mid-design review with stakeholders, live-editing a prototype, and Figma stops responding. The canvas won't load. Multiplayer cursors vanish. Auto-save stops working. The file you've been building for three days might as well not exist because Figma is a cloud-first tool — and the cloud just went dark.

Figma outages hit differently than most API outages. Designers don't have a "fallback Figma." Your entire workflow — files, components, design systems, prototypes, handoff specs — lives in one place. Here's how to check if it's actually down, protect your work, and stay productive until it's back.

Is Figma Actually Down Right Now?

Before you restart your browser for the fifth time:

1. API Status Check — Figma — Independent monitoring with response time history
2. Is Figma Down? — Quick status check with 24h timeline
3. Figma Official Status — Figma's own status page
4. Downdetector — Figma — Community-reported outages

Figma's Components (They Fail Independently)

Component	What It Does	If It Goes Down...
Web Application	The editor at figma.com	Can't open or edit files
Real-time Collaboration	Multiplayer editing, cursors	Solo editing may still work
APIs	REST API, plugin API, webhooks	Dev handoff, plugins break
AWS Infrastructure	Underlying cloud hosting	Full outage possible
File Syncing	Auto-save, version history	Risk of losing recent changes
Prototyping	Prototype viewer and sharing	Presentations fail

Key insight: Figma's real-time collaboration server can go down while the editor still works in a degraded "offline-ish" mode. You might be able to view and edit, but multiplayer and saving may be broken. This is the most confusing state — it looks like it's working until you try to save or share.

Common Figma Error Messages

Error	Meaning	What to Do
"Unable to load file"	Server/CDN issue	Wait, try different file
"Figma is having connection issues"	Network or server problem	Check your wifi AND status page
Infinite loading spinner	File failed to load	Refresh, clear cache, check status
"Could not save" / save icon stuck	Auto-save broken	Screenshot your work immediately
Multiplayer cursors disappear	Collab server down	Your edits may not be syncing
Plugins not loading	Plugin API down	Use built-in features instead
"Something went wrong"	Generic server error	Usually a full outage

Staying Productive During a Figma Outage

For Designers

If the canvas still loads (degraded mode):

• Continue working — your changes will sync when connection restores
• Avoid creating new files (they may not save)
• Export frequently as a safety net
• Don't invite new collaborators (sharing may be broken)

If Figma is completely down:

Task	Alternative
Wireframing	Pen and paper (seriously), Excalidraw, Whimsical
UI Design	Sketch (if Mac), Penpot (free, open source), Adobe XD
Prototyping	Framer, ProtoPie, or static HTML/CSS
Design tokens	Edit your tokens JSON directly
Component docs	Write specs in Notion or Google Docs
User flows	FigJam alternative: Miro, Mural, or Excalidraw

Pro tip: Use the downtime to do work that doesn't need Figma:

• Write design specs and documentation
• Review competitor products (screenshot and annotate)
• Organize your component naming conventions
• Plan information architecture in a text document
• Conduct design critiques from exported screenshots

For Developers (Handoff Blocked)

When Figma's API or web app is down, dev handoff breaks:

If you use Figma's Dev Mode:

• Check if you exported any specs recently (they may be cached)
• Look for design tokens in your repo (should be committed, not just in Figma)
• Reference Storybook or your component library for specs
• Ask your designer to share exported assets (PNGs, SVGs) via Slack

If you use the Figma API (automated workflows):

// Figma API health check
async function checkFigmaAPI() {
  try {
    const res = await fetch('https://api.figma.com/v1/me', {
      headers: { 'X-Figma-Token': process.env.FIGMA_TOKEN },
      signal: AbortSignal.timeout(5000),
    })
    return res.ok
  } catch {
    return false
  }
}

// In your design-to-code pipeline
async function syncDesignTokens() {
  if (!await checkFigmaAPI()) {
    console.warn('Figma API unavailable — using cached tokens')
    return loadCachedTokens()
  }
  
  const tokens = await fetchFigmaTokens()
  cacheTokens(tokens) // Always cache for outage resilience
  return tokens
}

For Design System Teams

Design system work is most impacted by Figma outages because everything lives there:

1. Keep a local copy of your design tokens — don't let Figma be the single source of truth
2. Export your component library as a .fig file monthly
3. Document components outside Figma — Storybook, Notion, or your own docs site
4. Use Figma's API to auto-export assets on a schedule (so you have recent cached versions)

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Preventing Figma Outage Impact

For Teams: The Figma Resilience Checklist

• Auto-export design tokens to your code repo (don't rely solely on Figma)
• Weekly .fig exports of critical files (design system, active projects)
• Status alerts via API Status Check to your design Slack channel
• Offline alternatives identified for each workflow (wireframing, prototyping, specs)
• Component documentation exists outside Figma (Storybook, Notion, etc.)
• Recent exports of handoff-critical assets (icons, illustrations) in a shared drive

Set Up Alerts

Get notified the moment Figma has issues:

1. API Status Check — Discord or Slack webhook for instant alerts
2. status.figma.com — Subscribe to SMS or email updates
3. RSS feed — https://status.figma.com/history.rss in your Slack channel

The 5-Minute Figma Backup Routine

Do this once a week (takes 5 minutes, saves hours during outages):

1. Open your critical Figma files
2. File → Export → Save as .fig locally
3. Export key frames as PNG/SVG to a shared drive
4. Commit design tokens to your code repo
5. Done — you have a recovery point

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Figma vs. Local-First Design Tools

When Figma goes down, many teams consider switching to tools that work offline:

Tool	Cloud/Local	Real-time Collab	Figma Import?
Figma	Cloud-first	✅ Best in class	—
Sketch	Local + cloud sync	✅ (limited)	✅ Via plugins
Penpot	Self-hostable	✅	⚠️ Partial
Adobe XD	Local + cloud	✅	⚠️ Limited
Framer	Cloud-first	✅	❌
Lunacy	Local (free)	❌	✅ Via Sketch import

The reality: Figma's collaboration is unmatched, and switching tools mid-project for occasional outages isn't practical. The better strategy: use Figma but maintain offline backups and have an alternative workflow documented for emergencies.

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Get Notified Before Your Team Panics

Designers finding out about a Figma outage from a broken canvas is a terrible experience. Set up monitoring so you know first:

1. Bookmark apistatuscheck.com/api/figma for real-time status
2. Set up Slack/Discord alerts via API Status Check integrations
3. Subscribe to status.figma.com for official updates
4. Export your critical files weekly — 5 minutes that saves hours

Figma outages are rare but disruptive precisely because designers rely on it for everything. The teams that handle them best aren't the ones with backup design tools — they're the ones who exported last week and have documentation that lives outside Figma.

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API Status Check monitors Figma and 100+ other APIs in real-time. Set up free alerts at apistatuscheck.com.