[!CRITICAL] ⚠️ IMPORTANT - Parameter Passing:

Use function-call syntax (NOT flag syntax). Parameters go inside the function call, not as flags:
mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.get_design_context(nodeId: "123:456", clientLanguages: "typescript", clientFrameworks: "react")'
Key Rules:

Parameters are camelCase inside the function call

String values use double quotes: "value"

Boolean values use bare notation: true or false

Environment variables are interpolated outside quotes: "'$VAR'"

NO --flag syntax, NO JSON string escaping needed

Prerequisites

Verify Figma Desktop Connection

mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.get_metadata'

Should return metadata for the currently selected node. If it fails, ensure:

Figma Desktop is running
The figma-desktop MCP server is configured in mcporter

Quick Setup

Get Design Context (One-Shot)

The fastest way to get design information and generated code:

mise x node@20 -- ./scripts/get_design_context.sh "123:456"

Or use the currently selected node:

mise x node@20 -- ./scripts/get_design_context.sh

With framework context:

mise x node@20 -- ./scripts/get_design_context.sh "123:456" --languages "typescript" --frameworks "react"

Extract Node ID from URL

If you have a Figma URL like https://figma.com/design/:fileKey/:fileName?node-id=1-2:

The nodeId is 1:2 (replace - with :)

For branch URLs like https://figma.com/design/:fileKey/branch/:branchKey/:fileName:

Use branchKey as the fileKey

Core Operations

Get Design Context (Generate Code)

Primary tool for generating UI code from Figma designs:

mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.get_design_context(nodeId: "123:456")'

With technology context (recommended):

mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.get_design_context(nodeId: "123:456", clientLanguages: "typescript,css", clientFrameworks: "react")'

For currently selected node:

mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.get_design_context()'

Force code output (for large designs):

mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.get_design_context(nodeId: "123:456", forceCode: true)'

With artifact type context:

mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.get_design_context(nodeId: "123:456", artifactType: "REUSABLE_COMPONENT", taskType: "CREATE_ARTIFACT")'

Valid artifactType values:

WEB_PAGE_OR_APP_SCREEN
COMPONENT_WITHIN_A_WEB_PAGE_OR_APP_SCREEN
REUSABLE_COMPONENT
DESIGN_SYSTEM

Valid taskType values:

CREATE_ARTIFACT
CHANGE_ARTIFACT
DELETE_ARTIFACT

Get Screenshot

Capture a visual screenshot of a Figma node:

mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.get_screenshot(nodeId: "123:456")'

For currently selected node:

mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.get_screenshot()'

Get Metadata (Structure Overview)

Get XML structure overview of a node (node IDs, layer types, names, positions, sizes):

mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.get_metadata(nodeId: "123:456")'

Note: Prefer get_design_context for most use cases. Use get_metadata only for structure overview.

Get Variable Definitions

Get design tokens/variables for a node (colors, fonts, sizes, spacings):

mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.get_variable_defs(nodeId: "123:456")'

Returns mappings like: {'icon/default/secondary': '#949494'}

Get FigJam Content

For FigJam files (whiteboards, diagrams):

mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.get_figjam(nodeId: "123:456")'

With node images:

mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.get_figjam(nodeId: "123:456", includeImagesOfNodes: true)'

Note: Only works for FigJam files, not standard Figma design files.

Code Connect

Code Connect maps Figma components to code components in your codebase.

Get Code Connect Mappings

Check existing mappings for a node:

mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.get_code_connect_map(nodeId: "123:456")'

Returns mappings like:

{
  "1:2": {
    "codeConnectSrc": "https://github.com/foo/components/Button.tsx",
    "codeConnectName": "Button"
  }
}

Add Code Connect Mapping

Map a Figma component to a code component:

mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.add_code_connect_map(nodeId: "123:456", source: "src/components/Button.tsx", componentName: "Button", label: "React")'

Required parameters:

source: Path to component in codebase
componentName: Name of the component
label: Framework/language label

Valid label values:

React, Web Components, Vue, Svelte, Storybook, Javascript
Swift UIKit, Objective-C UIKit, SwiftUI
Compose, Java, Kotlin, Android XML Layout
Flutter, Markdown

Create Design System Rules

Generate design system rules for your repository:

mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.create_design_system_rules(clientLanguages: "typescript", clientFrameworks: "react")'

Helper Scripts

Script	Purpose
`./scripts/get_design_context.sh`	One-shot design context - Get design info and generated code (with optional framework context)
`./scripts/get_screenshot.sh`	Capture screenshot - Save node screenshot to file
`./scripts/get_variables.sh`	Get design tokens - Extract variables (colors, fonts, sizes, spacings)
`./scripts/add_code_connect.sh`	Add Code Connect - Map Figma component to code component

Script help:

./scripts/get_design_context.sh --help
./scripts/get_screenshot.sh --help
./scripts/get_variables.sh --help
./scripts/add_code_connect.sh --help

Common Workflows

1. Implement a Design Component

# Get the node ID from Figma URL (node-id=1-2 → nodeId="1:2")
NODE_ID="1:2"

# Get design context with your tech stack
mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.get_design_context(nodeId: "'$NODE_ID'", clientLanguages: "typescript,css", clientFrameworks: "react")'

# Get variables/tokens for the component
mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.get_variable_defs(nodeId: "'$NODE_ID'")'

2. Document Component in Code Connect

# Check existing mappings
mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.get_code_connect_map(nodeId: "123:456")'

# Add mapping
mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.add_code_connect_map(nodeId: "123:456", source: "src/components/Button/Button.tsx", componentName: "Button", label: "React")'

3. Extract Design System Tokens

# Get all variables for a design system frame
mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.get_variable_defs(nodeId: "0:1")'

# Generate design system rules
mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.create_design_system_rules(clientLanguages: "typescript,css", clientFrameworks: "react")'

4. Screenshot for Documentation

# Get screenshot of a component
mise x node@20 -- mcporter call 'figma-desktop.get_screenshot(nodeId: "123:456")' > component.png

Common Issues & Solutions

Problem	Solution
Connection refused	Ensure Figma Desktop is running and figma-desktop MCP server is configured
Node not found	Verify nodeId format is `123:456` (colon separator). Check the node exists in the file.
No output for large design	Use `forceCode: true` parameter to force code generation
Wrong code language	Specify `clientLanguages` and `clientFrameworks` parameters
"Invalid arguments" or command fails	Use function-call syntax, NOT flag syntax. Parameters go inside `functionName(param: value)`
FigJam tool not working	`get_figjam` only works for FigJam files, not regular Figma design files
Code Connect not appearing	Ensure the node is a component instance, not a regular frame

Discovering Function Parameters with Schema Introspection

The mcporter CLI can introspect the MCP server schema to discover correct parameters and their types.

List All Available Tools

mise x node@20 -- mcporter list figma-desktop --json | jq -r ".tools[].name"

Returns:

get_design_context
get_variable_defs
get_screenshot
get_code_connect_map
add_code_connect_map
get_metadata
create_design_system_rules
get_figjam

Inspect a Specific Tool Schema

mise x node@20 -- mcporter list figma-desktop --json | jq '.tools[] | select(.name == "get_design_context")'

This returns the full JSON schema including:

inputSchema.properties - All available parameters with types and descriptions
inputSchema.required - Which parameters are mandatory

Filter for just required parameters:

mise x node@20 -- mcporter list figma-desktop --json | \
  jq '.tools[] | select(.name == "add_code_connect_map") | .inputSchema.required[]'

Get parameter descriptions:

mise x node@20 -- mcporter list figma-desktop --json | \
  jq '.tools[] | select(.name == "get_design_context") | .inputSchema.properties | to_entries[] | "\(.key): \(.value.description)"'

Tips

Node ID from URL: node-id=1-2 in URL becomes nodeId: "1:2" (replace - with :)
Branch URLs: For branch URLs, use branchKey as the fileKey
Currently selected: Omit nodeId to use the currently selected node in Figma Desktop
Technology context: Always specify clientLanguages and clientFrameworks for better code generation
Large designs: Use forceCode: true if output is truncated
Use jq for JSON parsing in shell scripts
Use schema introspection when unsure about parameters - mcporter list figma-desktop --json | jq is your friend

Available Tools Reference

Tool	Purpose	Required Params
`get_design_context`	Generate UI code from design	None (uses selection)
`get_screenshot`	Capture visual screenshot	None (uses selection)
`get_metadata`	Get XML structure overview	None (uses selection)
`get_variable_defs`	Get design tokens/variables	None (uses selection)
`get_code_connect_map`	Get existing code mappings	None (uses selection)
`add_code_connect_map`	Map design to code component	`source`, `componentName`, `label`
`create_design_system_rules`	Generate design system rules	None
`get_figjam`	Get FigJam content	None (uses selection)

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