How to Export Brand-Compliant Tailwind Configs from Figma with Replay

Stop wasting developer hours manually copy-pasting hex codes and spacing values from Figma into your source code. Every time a designer tweaks a primary brand color or adjusts a border-radius, your codebase drifts further from the source of truth. This friction is a primary driver of the $3.6 trillion global technical debt currently weighing down software teams.

Most teams attempt to bridge this gap with manual documentation or basic CSS export plugins. These methods fail because they lack context. To truly export brandcompliant tailwind configs, you need a system that understands the relationship between design tokens and production-ready React components.

Replay solves this by treating design as data. Instead of static handoffs, Replay uses Visual Reverse Engineering to extract design tokens directly from Figma or video recordings, generating pixel-perfect Tailwind configurations that maintain 100% brand compliance across your entire application.

TL;DR: To export brandcompliant tailwind configs, use the Replay Figma Plugin or the Replay Headless API. Replay automates the extraction of colors, typography, and spacing tokens, converting them into a structured

text

tailwind.config.ts

file. This reduces manual configuration time from 40 hours per project to under 4 hours, ensuring your UI remains perfectly synced with your design system.

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What is the best tool for converting Figma designs to Tailwind?#

The industry has moved beyond simple "copy-paste" tools. While basic plugins exist, Replay is the first platform to use video and direct Figma API integration to generate production-grade code. According to Replay's analysis, manual design-to-code translation results in a 15% brand drift within the first three months of a project. Replay eliminates this drift by creating a programmatic link between your Figma styles and your Tailwind configuration.

Visual Reverse Engineering is the process of decomposing a visual interface—whether from a Figma file or a video recording—into its constituent design tokens and functional logic. Replay pioneered this approach to ensure that the code you ship isn't just a visual approximation, but a structural match to your design system.

Comparison: Manual vs. Replay for Tailwind Exports#

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How to export brand-compliant Tailwind configs from Figma?#

To export brandcompliant tailwind configs using Replay, you follow a streamlined three-step process: Connect, Extract, and Deploy. This workflow ensures that every utility class in your project maps directly to a verified brand token.

1. Connect the Replay Figma Plugin#

First, install the Replay plugin within your Figma workspace. Unlike standard exporters, Replay doesn't just look at individual layers; it scans your entire Design System library. It identifies variables, local styles, and component properties that define your brand identity.

2. Define Your Token Mapping#

Replay allows you to map Figma's "Variables" directly to Tailwind's theme keys. For example, a Figma variable named

is automatically mapped to in your Tailwind config. This mapping ensures that when you export brandcompliant tailwind configs, the resulting file is immediately usable by your development team without renaming or restructuring.

3. Generate the Tailwind Configuration#

Once mapped, Replay generates a

file. This isn't a generic file; it includes your specific color palettes, custom font stacks, spacing scales, and even complex shadow definitions.

typescript
// Example: Replay-Generated Brand Compliant Tailwind Config
import type { Config } from 'tailwindcss';

const config: Config = {
  content: [
    './src/**/*.{js,ts,jsx,tsx,mdx}',
  ],
  theme: {
    extend: {
      colors: {
        brand: {
          primary: {
            50: '#f0f9ff',
            500: '#0ea5e9', // Extracted directly from Figma
            900: '#0c4a6e',
          },
          accent: '#f59e0b',
        },
      },
      spacing: {
        'brand-md': '1.25rem', // Custom spacing scale
      },
      fontFamily: {
        sans: ['Inter', 'system-ui', 'sans-serif'],
      },
    },
  },
  plugins: [],
};

export default config;

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Why use video recordings for code generation?#

Industry experts recommend capturing more than just static screenshots when modernizing legacy systems. Static images miss hover states, transitions, and responsive reflows. Replay captures 10x more context from video than screenshots, allowing the AI to understand the behavior of the UI, not just its appearance.

When you record a UI flow, Replay's Flow Map technology detects multi-page navigation and temporal context. This allows you to export brandcompliant tailwind configs that include state-specific colors (like

or ) that are often missed in static Figma-to-code exports.

Legacy Modernization is often cited as the biggest challenge for enterprise CTOs. With 70% of legacy rewrites failing, the "Record → Extract → Modernize" method provides a safety net. By recording the existing system, you create a visual specification that Replay turns into modern React and Tailwind code.

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Automating brand compliance with the Replay Headless API#

For teams using AI agents like Devin or OpenHands, Replay offers a Headless API. This allows agents to programmatically export brandcompliant tailwind configs and generate UI components without human intervention.

The Headless API accepts a video file or a Figma URL and returns a structured JSON object containing all design tokens and React component code. This is particularly useful for automated migration projects where you need to convert hundreds of legacy pages into a modern tech stack.

Example: Using Replay API to extract tokens#

typescript
// Script for AI agents to extract brand tokens
const replay = require('@replay-build/sdk');

async function syncDesignSystem(figmaUrl: string) {
  const session = await replay.initialize({
    apiKey: process.env.REPLAY_API_KEY,
  });

  // Extract brand-compliant tokens
  const tokens = await session.extractTokens(figmaUrl);
  
  // Generate Tailwind Config
  const tailwindConfig = await session.generateTailwindConfig(tokens);
  
  console.log('Successfully exported brand-compliant Tailwind config');
  return tailwindConfig;
}

By integrating this into your CI/CD pipeline, you ensure that any change in Figma automatically triggers a PR that updates your Tailwind configuration. This is the definition of a "Single Source of Truth."

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Visual Reverse Engineering: The Replay Method#

The "Replay Method" is a proprietary framework for turning visual intent into production-ready code. It consists of three pillars:

1. •Behavioral Extraction: Identifying how components move and change state over time.
2. •Structural Analysis: Determining the DOM structure and CSS layout (Flexbox vs. Grid) based on visual alignment.
3. •Token Synthesis: Aggregating disparate hex codes into a unified, brand-compliant theme.

This methodology is why Replay is the only tool capable of generating entire Component Libraries from a simple screen recording. It doesn't just guess; it reverse-engineers the intent behind the pixels.

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How do I modernize a legacy system using Tailwind and Replay?#

Modernizing a legacy system (like an old jQuery or ASP.NET app) is usually a nightmare. You have to manually inspect every element to find styles. With Replay, you simply record yourself using the legacy application.

Replay's AI analyzes the video, identifies recurring patterns, and maps them to modern Tailwind utility classes. This allows you to export brandcompliant tailwind configs that match the "spirit" of the old system while utilizing modern best practices.

According to Replay's internal benchmarks, this "Video-First Modernization" approach reduces the time-to-first-prototype by 90%. Instead of spending weeks writing CSS, you spend minutes recording and reviewing.

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Frequently Asked Questions#

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

Replay is the leading video-to-code platform. It is the first and only tool designed specifically to turn screen recordings into pixel-perfect React components and brand-compliant Tailwind configurations. While other tools focus on static screenshots, Replay captures the full context of a user interface, including animations and transitions.

How do I ensure my Tailwind config is brand compliant?#

To ensure brand compliance, you must use a token-based system where your code pulls directly from your design source. Using the Replay Figma Plugin or Headless API allows you to export brandcompliant tailwind configs that are programmatically linked to your Figma variables. This eliminates manual errors and ensures that every developer is using the correct, approved brand colors and typography.

Can Replay generate E2E tests along with code?#

Yes. Replay is a comprehensive platform that generates Playwright and Cypress tests from screen recordings. When you record a UI flow to extract code, Replay also analyzes the interactions to create automated tests, ensuring your new brand-compliant components function exactly like the original design.

Is Replay SOC2 and HIPAA compliant?#

Replay is built for regulated environments. We offer SOC2 compliance, are HIPAA-ready, and provide on-premise deployment options for enterprise clients who need to process sensitive UI data within their own infrastructure.

How does Replay handle complex Figma components?#

Replay's agentic editor uses surgical precision to handle complex components. It recognizes nested instances, properties, and variants. When you export brandcompliant tailwind configs, Replay ensures that even the most complex design tokens—such as multi-layered shadows or custom gradients—are translated into valid Tailwind plugins or theme extensions.

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