How to replace Lorem Ipsum in Figma without breaking your layout
Short answer
Copy the Latin string out of the Figma text layer, paste it into TypeMatch, keep the same length target, and paste the returned English copy back into the same layer. Because the replacement matches the original word or character count and paragraph structure, auto layout does not reflow and your frame keeps the proportions you approved.
Lorem Ipsum is a layout tool that stops being useful the moment anyone has to judge the screen. Stakeholders cannot read it, engineers cannot estimate from it, and it hides the one thing a mockup should expose: whether real language fits. The reason it survives is that swapping it out usually breaks the design, because the replacement is a different length.
Why the frame moves when you paste real copy
A Figma frame with auto layout sizes itself to its content. A text layer that grows by four words can push a card onto a second line, change the height of every sibling in a hug-contents stack, and cascade through a component instance you have already handed to engineering. Nothing is wrong with the layout — it is doing what it was told. The fix is to change the words without changing the length.
Unmatched replacement
Card grows two lines taller. Every sibling below it shifts.
Length-matched replacement
Same six words, same line count. The frame does not move.
The clipboard workflow, step by step
- 1
Select the text layer, not the frame
Double-click into the text layer so you copy the string itself. Copying the frame brings styles with it and pastes back as a node, which is what causes duplicated layers later.
- 2
Copy the Latin string
Select all the text inside the layer and copy. If the layer has several paragraphs, copy all of them — TypeMatch keeps paragraph breaks, so they will come back in the same shape.
- 3
Paste into TypeMatch and keep the detected target
TypeMatch measures what you pasted and locks the target to that length. Leave it alone unless you deliberately want a longer or shorter test.
- 4
Describe what the copy is for
One short line — "empty state for an invoicing dashboard", "pricing card body" — is enough to shift the output from generic filler to something that reads like the product.
- 5
Match, compare the variants, copy the best fit
You get three versions with their actual counts against the target. Take the one that hits exactly, or refine it shorter or more direct.
- 6
Paste back into the same layer
Select the Latin text in Figma and paste over it. Because the length matches, auto layout resizes to the same dimensions and nothing downstream reflows.
Doing a whole screen at once
Text layers rarely arrive one at a time. Paste a heading, a body paragraph and a button label as separate blocks, each on its own line or separated by a blank line, and each is matched independently — the button label comes back as a button label, not as a shortened sentence. That makes a full screen a single round trip rather than one per layer.
For a screen you intend to stress-test rather than finalise, raise the target instead of matching it. A body block generated at 130% of its current length shows you the truncation and overflow behaviour before a content author finds it.
There is no plugin yet
TypeMatch runs in the browser and works with Figma through the clipboard. There is no TypeMatch Figma plugin today, and this guide describes the workflow that exists rather than one that might. If a plugin ships, it will be announced on the TypeMatch for Figma designers page, where you can register interest.
To start with Latin filler already loaded, open the Lorem Ipsum to real text converter, and if you are unsure whether to match by words or characters, read word count vs character count.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a TypeMatch Figma plugin?
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Not today. TypeMatch works alongside Figma through the clipboard. If a plugin is released it will be announced on the Figma designers page, where you can register interest.
Why does my frame shift when I paste real copy in?
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Auto layout resizes to its content, so a replacement that is even a few words longer can push a card onto a second line. Matching the original length is what keeps the frame stable.
Can I replace several text layers at once?
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Yes, by pasting the strings as separate lines or paragraphs. TypeMatch matches each block separately, so short labels stay short and long paragraphs stay long.
About this guide
The TypeMatch team · Product and design, TypeMatch
Written and maintained by the people who build TypeMatch. Corrections are welcome.
Last updated