Avoiding pitfalls when moving to Penpot in 2026

The Migration Process

I spent 37 minutes converting a single page from Figma to Penpot using the official plugin. This tool transfers basic shapes, vectors, frames, and components, but it fails to handle complex Auto Layout structures or content from third-party plugins. I noticed that uploading custom fonts requires manual work in the settings, and the tool sometimes fails to group font families because of author misconfiguration. Since you already know the basics of JSON, you should verify token syntax before importing files because incorrect shadow token syntax causes console errors. I also realized that applying a token to the wrong category, such as a spacing token to a font size, prevents the system from working. If you rely on the legacy styles system instead of the native W3C design tokens, you cannot use density variables to scale the UI. I found that a NodeJS script with a local LLM helped convert CSS properties into the DTCG spec for my tokens. The plugin can export colors, typography, effects, and variables, but it might take much longer to process large files. This plugin handles design (.fig) and slides (.deck) formats. It also handles properties like fills, visibility, strokes, corner radius, shadows, rotations, and effects. The tool was developed by Kaleidos and launched in public beta in 2020. While it offers feature parity with Figma, users must learn to use the Flex layout and grid tools to achieve the same results.

Layout and Prototyping

Penpot uses CSS Flexbox and Grid for all layouts, while Figma uses a proprietary Auto Layout system. This design choice forces you to rebuild your design systems with web standards to ensure the code stays usable for developers. I found that the tool slows down once a file reaches a level of complexity that is high or includes hundreds of components. The platform lacks a native whiteboard tool like FigJam, so teams will need an external app for brainstorming or planning wireframes. Because Penpot uses SVG-based rendering, the code inspection panel produces CSS that developers can use directly. I also noticed that Figma’s plugin ecosystem is much larger, which makes it harder to replace specialized workflows in Penpot. The 2024 release of the plugin allowed for the transfer of variables and slots, yet complex prototyping animations still require manual re-engineering. Penpot 2.0, which arrived in late 2024, brought a redesigned interface and improved component management to help bridge the gap with Figma. The conversion process for a single page containing many frames and elements can take up to forty minutes if the file contains a high amount of complex, highly nested, and multi-layered SVG assets that require intense and heavy computational design processing. Does the lack of a dedicated desktop application hinder your team’s speed?

Deployment and Pricing

Organizations requiring data sovereignty can deploy Penpot via Docker or Kubernetes to satisfy HIPAA or GDPR requirements. This self-hosting option works for organizations that cannot use third-party clouds like Figma for sensitive data. I found that the difference between the Professional and Unlimited tiers is the inclusion of enhanced support and team access controls. I compared the costs for a team of twenty editors and the difference was extreme. I can use Elestio if I prefer managed cloud hosting over manual setup.

The Professional plan allows up to 8 members and 10 GB of storage without any fees. For larger teams, the Unlimited plan has a monthly bill cap of $175, which prevents the costs from scaling linearly with every new user. Self-hosting via a local network provides protection against internet dependency. For organizations that need a direct relationship with a vendor, the Enterprise tier provides a flat monthly fee of $950 regardless of organization size. I recommend Penpot for engineering-led startups and privacy-focused enterprises that want to avoid high per-seat costs.