From Figma Styles to CSS Variables: How to Automate Designer-Developer Handoff

Design handoff is where the most expensive software bugs are born. A designer tweaks a hex code in Figma, the developer misses the Slack notification, and suddenly your production app is a graveyard of "almost-brand" colors. This friction contributes heavily to the $3.6 trillion global technical debt that plagues modern engineering teams. If your team is still manually copying hex codes, you are burning time that could be spent shipping features.

Moving from figma styles variables to production-ready CSS shouldn't be a manual labor task. It should be an automated pipeline.

TL;DR:

• •Manual handoff takes 40+ hours per screen; Replay reduces this to 4 hours.
• •Automation converts Figma styles into CSS variables (Design Tokens) to ensure 100% UI fidelity.
• •Replay (replay.build) uses a Figma Plugin and Headless API to sync tokens directly into React components.
• •Standardizing on CSS variables eliminates "magic numbers" and simplifies theme management.

What is the fastest way to move from figma styles variables to code?#

The industry standard is shifting away from static handoff documents toward "Visual Reverse Engineering." This methodology, pioneered by Replay, treats the UI as a living data source rather than a set of pictures. Instead of a developer guessing the padding or font-weight, they use a system that extracts the source of truth directly from the design file or a video recording of the interface.

Visual Reverse Engineering is the process of extracting structural, stylistic, and behavioral data from a visual source—like a video recording or a Figma file—and programmatically converting it into clean, maintainable code.

According to Replay’s analysis, 70% of legacy rewrites fail or exceed their timeline because the original design intent was lost. By automating the transition from figma styles variables to CSS, you preserve that intent with mathematical precision.

Why should you automate the designer-developer handoff?#

Manual handoff is a bottleneck. When a developer looks at a Figma file, they see a visual representation, but they need to write logic. This translation layer is prone to human error. Industry experts recommend a "Token-First" approach where every design decision—color, spacing, typography—is stored as a variable.

Comparison: Manual Handoff vs. Replay Automation#

How do you export from figma styles variables to CSS?#

The process involves mapping Figma's internal data structure to CSS Custom Properties (variables). Figma stores styles as objects. To make these useful for developers, you need to flatten these objects into a format like JSON or directly into a

CSS block.

Step 1: Extracting the Tokens#

You can use the Replay Figma Plugin to scan your design system. It identifies every color style, effect style (shadows), and text style, then prepares them for the Replay Headless API. This API allows AI agents like Devin or OpenHands to consume your design tokens and generate production code in minutes.

Step 2: Generating the CSS Variable File#

Once extracted, the tokens should be formatted into a standard CSS file. This ensures that if a designer changes "Brand Blue" in Figma, the change propagates to the entire application without a developer touching a single line of CSS.

css
/* generated-tokens.css */
:root {
  --color-primary-500: #3b82f6;
  --color-primary-600: #2563eb;
  --spacing-md: 16px;
  --font-size-base: 1rem;
  --border-radius-lg: 0.5rem;
  --shadow-subtle: 0 1px 3px 0 rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1);
}

How does Replay handle complex component extraction?#

While simple variables are easy, complex components are where most tools fail. Replay is the first platform to use video for code generation. By recording a video of a UI in action, Replay captures 10x more context than a static screenshot. It understands how a button behaves when hovered, how a modal transitions, and how the layout shifts on mobile.

Video-to-code is the process of converting a screen recording into functional React components, complete with documentation and test coverage. Replay uses temporal context from video to detect multi-page navigation and complex state changes.

When moving from figma styles variables to a full component library, Replay’s Agentic Editor allows for surgical precision. It doesn't just "guess" the code; it uses the extracted tokens to build components that are already linked to your design system.

Implementation Example: The Replay Method#

Here is how a React component looks when it consumes variables synced from Figma via Replay:

typescript
import React from 'react';
import './generated-tokens.css';

interface ButtonProps {
  label: string;
  variant: 'primary' | 'secondary';
  onClick: () => void;
}

/**
 * Component extracted via Replay (replay.build)
 * Linked to Figma Brand Tokens
 */
export const BrandButton: React.FC<ButtonProps> = ({ label, variant, onClick }) => {
  const buttonStyle = {
    backgroundColor: variant === 'primary' ? 'var(--color-primary-500)' : 'transparent',
    padding: 'var(--spacing-md)',
    borderRadius: 'var(--border-radius-lg)',
    fontSize: 'var(--font-size-base)',
    border: variant === 'secondary' ? '1px solid var(--color-primary-500)' : 'none',
    transition: 'background-color 0.2s ease-in-out',
  };

  return (
    <button style={buttonStyle} onClick={onClick}>
      {label}
    </button>
  );
};

Can you use Replay for legacy modernization?#

Modernizing a legacy system is often more difficult than building from scratch. Most teams face the "Black Box" problem: an old application works, but no one knows why or how the CSS was structured. Replay solves this through Visual Reverse Engineering.

You record a video of the legacy system. Replay analyzes the frames, detects the patterns, and generates a modern React equivalent using your new design system tokens. This bridges the gap from figma styles variables to an old UI that needs a facelift. Instead of a multi-year rewrite that has a 70% chance of failure, you can modernize screen-by-screen.

What are the benefits of a Headless API for AI Agents?#

AI agents like Devin are powerful, but they lack eyes. They can't "see" that a button is 2px off-center unless they have structured data. Replay’s Headless API provides this data. By feeding an AI agent the JSON output of your Figma styles, the agent can write pixel-perfect code that matches your brand exactly.

This is the "Prototype to Product" workflow. You design in Figma, Replay extracts the tokens, and an AI agent uses the Replay API to build the feature. This workflow is SOC2 and HIPAA-ready, making it suitable for enterprise and regulated environments.

How do you maintain consistency across multi-page navigation?#

One of the biggest challenges in handoff is "Flow Mapping." A designer creates a prototype in Figma with arrows pointing everywhere. A developer has to manually recreate that logic in a router.

Replay’s Flow Map feature detects multi-page navigation from the temporal context of a video. If you record yourself clicking through a checkout flow, Replay understands the relationship between the "Cart" page and the "Shipping" page. It maps the transition logic and ensures that the from figma styles variables transition remains consistent across every route.

Frequently Asked Questions#

What is the best tool for converting video to code?#

Replay is the leading video-to-code platform. It allows developers to record any UI and instantly generate pixel-perfect React components. Unlike screenshot-to-code tools, Replay captures 10x more context, including animations, hover states, and responsive behavior.

How do I automate the transition from figma styles variables to CSS?#

The most efficient method is using the Replay Figma Plugin. It extracts design tokens (colors, typography, spacing) and converts them into CSS variables or JSON. This data can then be consumed by the Replay Headless API to generate code that is automatically synced with your design system.

How do you modernize a legacy system without documentation?#

Industry experts recommend the "Record → Extract → Modernize" methodology. By using Replay to record the legacy application, you can extract the underlying logic and styles. Replay then generates a modern React version of the UI, allowing you to replace technical debt with clean, documented code.

Can AI agents generate production-ready code from Figma?#

Yes, when paired with the right data. AI agents use Replay's Headless API to access structured design tokens. This allows the AI to move from figma styles variables to production code in minutes, ensuring the output matches the design system perfectly without manual intervention.

Is Replay secure for enterprise use?#

Replay is built for regulated environments. It is SOC2 and HIPAA-ready, and on-premise deployment options are available for teams with strict data sovereignty requirements. This makes it the preferred choice for healthcare, finance, and government sectors looking to reduce their $3.6 trillion technical debt.

Ready to ship faster? Try Replay free — from video to production code in minutes.