Designing a website in Figma makes sense – it’s intuitive, precise, and perfect for crafting a pixel-perfect user experience. Once your design is ready, the next step is translating that vision into a fully functional WordPress website.
WordPress is incredibly flexible, and the best way to ensure your Figma design is faithfully replicated is by creating a custom WordPress theme. This approach gives you full control over the design and functionality, but it’s a technical process that requires coding skills.
We’ll guide you through the steps, but if you’d rather focus on designing and leave the heavy lifting to experts, Codeable can help. We’ll also explore other methods for Figma-to-WordPress conversion, but these often involve compromises.
If your goal is to bring your Figma design to life without sacrificing quality, a custom theme is the way to go, but we’ll let you decide for yourself.
Exporting and organizing your Figma assets for WordPress conversion
Since Figma is a visual design tool, assets are everything, and exporting them is the first step in bringing your creative vision to life.
Start by organizing your Figma file: rename layers clearly and group related elements. This reduces confusion and ensures developers can quickly identify and work with the correct assets.
Export your assets in the right format for their purpose. For icons or scalable elements, choose SVG. Set dimensions carefully to avoid resizing issues – especially if your site will be viewed on high-resolution displays like Retinas. Export at 2x or 3x for sharp visuals on these screens.
To export an asset, select it, then click on the Figma logo at the top right, then go to File > Export. To export multiple items at once, select them altogether using Ctrl or Cmd.
To streamline the process, use Figma’s export presets. Set consistent output settings for similar assets, like all icons as SVGs, and apply them in bulk. This eliminates repetitive work and reduces the risk of inconsistencies during implementation.
Precision during export directly impacts the WordPress build. Correctly formatted and properly scaled assets save developers time and ensure the final site stays true to your design. Missteps here can lead to mismatched elements and unnecessary revisions later.
Take the time to prep and export assets carefully. It’s the easiest way to avoid development issues and achieve a smooth, accurate Figma-to-WordPress conversion.
Optimizing images and graphics for web performance
Optimizing images and graphics is how you get a fast, high-performing website. Large files slow down loading times, frustrate users, and hurt your SEO. To avoid this, focus on three key steps: choosing the right format, compressing files, and resizing assets.
Select the right format based on the image type. Consider using:
- JPEG for photos to balance quality and file size.
- PNG for images with transparency but has larger file sizes, so use it sparingly.
- WebP for modern browsers, offering smaller file sizes without compromising quality.
- SVG for logos and icons since it’s lightweight and scales perfectly.
Once you’ve chosen the format, compress your images. Use tools like TinyPNG, Squoosh, or ImageOptim to reduce file size without noticeable quality loss. If you’re exporting directly from Figma, adjust the export quality settings for web use.
Always resize images to the exact dimensions required for your site. Uploading oversized images and relying on CSS to shrink them wastes bandwidth and slows down your site.
Convert your assets into code for WordPress compatibility
Converting Figma designs into a WordPress site involves breaking your design into code components and integrating them into a functional WordPress theme. Here’s how to approach it step by step:
Step 1: Convert Figma to HTML
Start by inspecting your Figma design.
Identify the key components (headers, footers, sections, buttons) and assets like SVG icons or images. Use these as references to write semantic, well-structured HTML.
Begin with a basic layout: use div for sections and semantic tags like header, main, and footer to maintain readable code.
Tools like Figma’s Code panel or plugins like Anima can generate basic HTML, but manual coding ensures accuracy and a leaner structure.
Step 2: Integrate HTML into a WordPress theme with PHP
Once your HTML is ready, convert it into a WordPress theme.
Break the HTML into parts like header.php, footer.php, and index.php. Replace static content with dynamic WordPress functions, such as <?php bloginfo('name'); ?> for site titles or <?php the_content(); ?> for post content.
Create a functions.php file to enqueue styles and scripts, and a style.css file for theme information. WordPress template hierarchy allows you to customize specific pages like page.php or single.php.
Step 3: Add interactivity with JavaScript
If your Figma design includes interactive elements like carousels, accordions, or modal pop-ups, implement these using JavaScript.
Use vanilla JavaScript or libraries like jQuery for simpler interactions. For complex functionality, consider integrating modern frameworks like React, Svelte, or Vue, which can coexist with WordPress.
Step 4: Apply styling with CSS
Ensure your WordPress site matches your Figma design by carefully replicating styles.
Use custom CSS for typography, spacing, and layout. For efficient styling, use a CSS preprocessor like Sass or Less and organize your styles into components.
Add media queries to make your site fully responsive, ensuring it looks good on all devices.
Create a WordPress theme using your Figma assets
Once your Figma design is converted into HTML and integrated with PHP for WordPress functionality, the next step is turning those assets into a fully functional custom WordPress theme.
This involves organizing your code and assets systematically and leveraging WordPress’s template hierarchy to ensure flexibility and scalability.
Here’s how to do it:
Step 1: Set up the theme folder
To start, navigate to the wp-content/themes directory in your WordPress installation. Create a new folder named after your theme, e.g., my-custom-theme. This folder will house all the necessary files for your theme, such as index.php, style.css, and functions.php.
WordPress requires this folder structure to detect and load your theme properly. Without it, your theme won’t appear in the admin dashboard.
Step 2: Define your theme
Copy the style.css file you created into your theme folder and add the following metadata at the top of the file to define your theme:
/*Theme Name: Your Theme NameTheme URI: https://example.comAuthor: Your NameAuthor URI: https://yourwebsite.comDescription: A custom WordPress theme built from a Figma designVersion: 1.0License: GNU General Public License v2 or laterLicense URI: http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-2.0.html*/
This information ensures WordPress recognizes your theme, displaying its name and details in the Themes section.
Step 3. Break the HTML down into template parts
Divide your HTML into logical sections and create corresponding PHP files in your theme folder:
- Move the <head> section and navigation menu to header.php.
- Place the footer in footer.php.
- Keep the main content in index.php.
Here’s an example of a simple header.php file:
<!DOCTYPE html><html <?php language_attributes(); ?>><head><meta charset="<?php bloginfo('charset'); ?>"><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0"><?php wp_head(); ?></head><body <?php body_class(); ?>><header><nav><?php wp_nav_menu(array('theme_location' => 'main-menu')); ?></nav></header>
Step 4: Integrate dynamic content with PHP
Replace hardcoded content with WordPress functions to make your site dynamic. For example, replace static post content in index.php with:
<?php if (have_posts()) : while (have_posts()) : the_post(); ?><h1><?php the_title(); ?></h1><div><?php the_content(); ?></div><?php endwhile; endif; ?>
This pulls the post title and content dynamically from the WordPress database.
Step 5: Enqueue scripts and styles
Grab your functions.php file and add the following code to load your CSS and JavaScript files properly:
function my_custom_theme_assets() {wp_enqueue_style('main-style', get_template_directory_uri() . '/style.css');wp_enqueue_script('main-script', get_template_directory_uri() . '/js/script.js', array('jquery'), null, true);}add_action('wp_enqueue_scripts', 'my_custom_theme_assets');
This loads your assets properly and prevents conflicts with plugins or other themes.
Why you need specialized WordPress developers for Figma conversions
If you think converting a Figma design into a functional website is just about copying assets over, you’re practically begging to fail. Building a powerful, functional website that reflects your vision and works perfectly almost certainly requires you to invest in a WordPress developer.
Here are some missteps even a general developer might take but a WordPress expert definitely wouldn’t:
- Inconsistent design translation undermines your brand and professionalism. A developer ensures your Figma design is replicated with pixel-perfect accuracy.
- Bloated, unoptimized code slows your site and hurts SEO, driving users away. Experts write lean, efficient code for fast load times and better search rankings.
- Broken mobile and cross-browser layouts alienate users and ruin the experience on smaller screens or less common browsers. Developers create responsive, universally compatible designs.
- Improper plugin use can crash your site or disable key features. Professionals test and configure plugins to ensure seamless functionality.
- Weak site security leaves your site open to hacks and data breaches. Developers implement secure coding practices to protect your site and users.
- Slow file loading frustrates users and increases bounce rates. Experts optimize assets for fast performance and smooth user experiences.
- No custom theme structure makes updates and scaling difficult. Developers build modular, maintainable themes to ensure long-term flexibility and easy growth.
Finding a skilled developer is tough; Sifting through endless job applications or scrolling freelance platforms filled with generalists wastes time. You need someone who knows WordPress inside and out, not just a jack-of-all-trades.
That’s why you should consider going through Codeable, where developers are vetted specifically for WordPress expertise. No guesswork, no compromises – just reliable, expert help to breathe life into your design.
Other methods for converting Figma designs to WordPress
WordPress’ flexibility means you have options for converting from Figma other than by using a specialized or even generalist developer. These methods might work in a pinch, but they’re far from perfect. If you care about performance, usability, and future-proofing your site, a custom WordPress built by an expert is the way to go.
Either way, here are two alternatives:
Using plugins and automated tools
Plugins like UiChemy and tools like Yotako promise to take your Figma design straight into WordPress with the click of a button. The reality is bloated code that’s neither optimized for speed nor easy to maintain.
These tools lack the precision required to perfectly translate complex design elements, leaving you with a site that looks “off” compared to your Figma vision.
Worse, they usually lock you into rigid templates that make future customizations a nightmare. If you’re aiming for performance, manageable code, and flexibility, these tools simply don’t cut it.
Using page builders and prebuilt themes
Page builders like Elementor and Divi are popular for creating WordPress sites without coding, and they seem appealing for Figma-to-WordPress conversions. However, trying to match a Figma design 1:1 using a page builder is an exercise in frustration.
Page builders come with inherent limitations. They rely on prebuilt blocks and layouts that rarely align perfectly with a custom Figma design. You’ll spend hours tweaking padding, margins, and typography, only to end up with a “close enough” result that still feels off.
Complex design elements, like custom animations or unique grid layouts, often need workarounds, which lead to messy, inefficient code.
Premade themes like Astra and Kadence are even more restrictive. They’re built to serve a wide audience, not to fit your specific design. Customizing them to match your Figma file often means fighting against the theme’s structure, resulting in a bloated, slow-loading site.
If your goal is a pixel-perfect 1:1 conversion that performs well and is easy to maintain, page builders and premade themes won’t cut it.
Transform your Figma design into a WordPress site with Codeable’s vetted experts
Converting a Figma design to WordPress is all about precision. Shortcuts like plugins or page builders might get you close, but they come with compromises: inefficient code, slower load times, and a design that never fully aligns with your vision.
For a site that’s fast, scalable, and pixel-perfect, a custom WordPress theme is the only real option.
That’s where Codeable delivers. The platform connects you with vetted WordPress specialists who know how to turn your design into a high-performing site. From neat code to responsive layouts, they handle the technical complexities so your site works exactly as intended.
If you’re serious about quality and want your Figma design translated right the first time, Codeable is the solution. Submit your project and get matched to an expert today!
20 000+ businesses of every shape and size have already trusted us to hire WordPress developers and scale their growth.
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