Figma Groups or Frames

In a previous post, we discovered the functionality of Smart Selections in Figma. These allow for implicit grouping and are a quick way of dealing with multiple objects.

When working with many layers and objects however, we need a more formal way of bundling these. Usually, you would use a group for this, but Figma throws another option in the mix: Frames.

At first sight, Frames looks very similar to Groups, so let’s have a deep dive and discover their individual qualities.

Groups

The Basics

Let’s start with the basics. Every graphics app has grouping functionality by now: you select some objects, press ⌘G (Ctrl-G on Windows) and voilà: your layer list will now look cleaner by having a collapsible group.

Groups are defined by their contents. The boundaries of your group are the outside edges of whatever is inside it. So, whenever you change the position or dimensions of an object, the bounds of the group will modify accordingly.