Layers are mandatory in any design software, woooh, that sounds rough, but it’s true. Layers are like separated sections where you work -little by little- and at the end, when you see the whole picture, it comes together. In this tutorial, you will learn How to Create Layers in Figma.
One main reason is Hierarchy. Every time you create an element, a Layer appears. The same will happen when you use other design software such as Photoshop and Illustrator.
Yet, the most significant difference between Figma and other software will be the Prototyping Phase, where layers will become interactive. The hierarchy will determine which element you give attention to first. So, once you make progress, there will be a lot of layers in your project, so it is better to be organized when creating Layers.
NOTE: If you feel lost about Prototyping, check What is Prototyping in Figma to learn more about it.
A Layer appears as long as you add elements to the canvas. For this process, then, we will create a Design File. (If you don’t know how to create one, don’t worry, just check How to Create a Design File in Figma first and then come back to this tutorial.)
Once you do this, a plain canvas will be available for you to create. You can choose whether to create a Frame or not. We suggest doing so as best practice. To create a frame, simply go to the top toolbar and select the Frame option by default or freely draw the frame on the canvas.
As you see, with the frame you created, a layer appeared. The Layer is not an object itself but what contains the object; objects can be shapes, groups, text, frames, and so on. Therefore, more layers will appear if you keep adding objects to the canvas.
NOTE: With more layers, more order is needed. So remember to rename your layers properly.
You can move layers, group layers, nest layers, stack layers, and so on! The world of possibilities is infinite using layers, as it is with using Figma, so better enjoy!
