Is Figma Free? What the Starter Plan Includes in 2026

Figma started as a tool for product designers, but plenty of marketers, founders and creators now use it for social graphics, slides and website mock-ups. The free plan is enough for a lot of that work, as long as you know where it stops.

What Figma's Starter plan includes

• Figma Design for designing screens and graphics.
• FigJam for brainstorming and whiteboarding.
• Figma Slides, Draw, Sites, Buzz and Make, with limited features in each.
• Unlimited drafts and access to UI kits and templates.
• AI credits: 150 a day, with a monthly cap of 500.

Figma Starter at a glance

Feature	Starter (free)
Figma Design, FigJam, Slides, Draw, Sites, Buzz, Make	Yes, with limits
Drafts	Unlimited
Version history	30 days
Team libraries	No
Dev Mode	No
Publishing in Figma Sites	No
Folders for file organisation	One
AI image tools	No

How Figma's free plan works

Figma's help centre says Starter might be right for you if you're working on personal projects, need basic design, presentation and brainstorming tools, or want to try Figma's products. You get the full set of Figma products, but with limited features inside each one.

AI is metered. Figma says AI credits are used to access its AI features, the number used varies by request, and the included credits are subject to change. On Starter, the plans page lists 150 AI credits a day, with a monthly cap of 500.

The Figma free plan catch

Here's what to check before you build a brand system in it. Starter has no team libraries, so you can't publish shared components and styles for a team to reuse. You also get only one folder for organising files, which gets messy quickly once you have several projects.

The version history limit matters too. Figma lists only 30 days of version history on Starter. If you need to go back to a design from three months ago, you'll need to have saved a copy yourself.

If you plan to hand designs to a developer, note that Dev Mode isn't available on Starter. And if you want to build and publish a website in Figma Sites, publishing isn't included either.

The free option most people miss

Figma's help centre says that if you're a student or educator, you may be eligible for a free Education team. That's worth checking before you settle for Starter, because the Education route is aimed at people learning and teaching rather than a cut-down personal plan.

How to get started with Figma for free

1. Sign up for Figma and choose the Starter plan.
2. Start in drafts, which are unlimited, while you learn the tools.
3. Use the free UI kits and templates instead of designing everything from scratch.
4. Save copies of important versions, since history only goes back 30 days.
5. If you're a student or educator, check whether you qualify for a free Education team.

Figma or Canva?

If you mostly make social posts and simple marketing graphics, you may not need Figma at all. My comparison of Figma vs Canva explains which suits which kind of work, and if Canva wins, my Canva tutorial gets you going fast.

Who Figma Starter suits best

It's a good fit for solo designers, marketers mocking up landing pages, founders sketching an app idea and anyone running a brainstorm in FigJam. It's a weaker fit for teams that need shared libraries, developer handoff or published websites, which is exactly where the higher plans come in.

Getting more from FigJam and Slides on the free plan

FigJam is often the most useful part of Figma for small businesses. It's a whiteboard for brainstorming campaigns, mapping a customer journey or planning a website with a client on a call. Starter includes it, so you can run those sessions without signing up for a separate whiteboard tool.

Figma Slides is worth a look too if you already design in Figma, because your brand colours and fonts are right there. Note that template publishing in Slides and Buzz isn't included on Starter, so you can use templates but can't publish your own for others.

Keeping a free Figma account tidy

With only one folder for organising files, naming matters. Put the client or project name at the start of every file name, and add a date to anything that gets revised often. Duplicate a file before major changes, and you'll have your own backup that doesn't depend on the 30 day history.

If you're using AI features, keep an eye on your daily allowance. Figma says the credits each request uses vary, so a few heavy requests can use more of the day's 150 than you'd expect.

And if you collaborate with a designer on a higher plan, you can still work together. Figma says that on its higher plans you can let others view and comment on your files without adding seats, so a client or colleague on Starter can still leave feedback on designs shared with them. That makes Starter a perfectly good way to take part in a design project even when you're not the one leading it.

My verdict: Figma's free plan is good enough to design real work on your own. Once a team needs shared components, longer history or developer handoff, that's your signal to upgrade.

Frequently asked questions

Is Figma free?

Yes. Figma's Starter plan is a free plan with access to Figma Design, FigJam, Figma Slides and its other products, with limited features.

What are the limits on Figma's free plan?

Figma lists no team libraries, only 30 days of version history, no publishing in Figma Sites, only one folder and no AI image tools on Starter.

Does Figma Starter include Dev Mode?

No. Figma says Dev Mode isn't available on the Starter plan.

How many AI credits do you get on Figma Starter?

Figma's plans page lists 150 AI credits a day, with a monthly cap of 500, on Starter.

Is Figma free for students?

Figma says students and educators may be eligible for a free Education team.