Ever tried theming an app for multiple platforms? It starts okay. But quickly, things get weird. Button colors don’t match. Fonts play hide and seek. And your brand identity? Slowly melting into chaos.
Enter design tokens—the unsung heroes of design systems. These small, structured pieces of code save the day. They keep your styles in check across platforms. Mobile, web, desktop—no problem. Everyone gets the same colors, sizes, and styles. Like magic, but real.
What Are Design Tokens Anyway?
Think of design tokens as the DNA of your design. They’re values like:
- Colors
- Font sizes
- Spacing
- Border radius
- Shadows
Each token has a name, value, and a purpose. For example:
{
"color-primary": {
"value": "#0070f3",
"type": "color"
}
}
This says, “Hey, when I say primary color, I mean this exact blue.” That way, no matter who or what is building your app—React, Swift, Flutter—they’ll all use that same blue.
Why the World Needs Design Tokens
Without tokens, styling gets messy. Developers guess. Designers cry. And the brand team? They’re shaking their heads.
But tokens bring order. Here’s how they help:
- Consistency: Everyone uses the same design values.
- Scalability: Update a token in one place—it updates everywhere!
- Collaboration: Designers and devs speak the same language.
- Theme support: Quick theme switch? Easy.
- Platform agnostic: Works for iOS, Android, Web, you name it.
How Design Tokens Work Their Magic
You don’t just make design tokens and hope. You build them with purpose. Usually, you define them in a format like JSON or YAML. Then, you let tools like Style Dictionary turn those tokens into platform-specific code.
So that primary color token?
It becomes a CSS variable on the web:
--color-primary: #0070f3;
Or a SwiftUI constant on iOS:
let colorPrimary = UIColor(hex: "#0070f3")
One source of truth. Infinite possibilities.
Token Types You Should Know
Tokens come in different flavors. Here are a few of the most common:
Color Tokens
These define the entire color palette—including text, backgrounds, borders, and accents.
Typography Tokens
Used for font size, line height, font weight, and letter spacing.
Spacing Tokens
These are for padding, margins, and grid gaps. Great spacing = great UI.
Size Tokens
Used for widths, heights, and component sizing.
Radius Tokens
How rounded are your buttons? Tokens define that too.
Shadow Tokens
Add depth and dimension, the tokenized way.
Think Global, Act Themed
One of the coolest things about design tokens is theming. Want a light mode and dark mode? Switch themes by changing your token values.
You might have:
"color-background": {
"light": "#ffffff",
"dark": "#000000"
}
And boom! Your design system supports themes—without refactoring your entire UI.
Tools That Make Tokens Awesome
You don’t have to do this manually (unless you really want to). There are amazing tools that help you manage, build, and export design tokens.
- Style Dictionary: The classic open-source option.
- Tokens Studio for Figma: Manage tokens right inside Figma.
- Figma’s built-in variables: Lightweight and easy for small projects.
- Specify and Supernova: More advanced token management systems.
These tools help convert tokens into platform-specific code. And they often let you automate themes too!
Creating Tokens the Smart Way
Here’s a simple step-by-step:
- Start with your core design decisions. What colors, sizes, fonts are non-negotiable?
- Name everything clearly—use meaningful, readable names.
- Use reference tokens. For example, “button-background” can point to “color-primary.”
- Organize your tokens in groups—like “color”, “spacing”, “typography”.
- Keep your tokens flexible and re-usable. Less hard-coding, more referencing.
And always document. Your future self—and your teammates—will thank you!
Token Pitfalls (and How to Avoid Them)
Tokens are powerful, but they can go wrong. Here’s what to watch for:
- Too many tokens: Don’t tokenize everything. Keep it focused.
- Vague naming: “Blue1” doesn’t help. Use names like “color-primary”.
- Hardcoded platform values: Tokens = platform-free. Keep them generic.
- No maintenance: Update tokens when your design changes. Don’t let them rot!
Real-Life Use Cases
Let’s say you’re building a product that lives in three places:
- iOS Mobile App
- Web Dashboard
- Android Companion App
Instead of giving each platform a design spec, you give them your token set.
Want to update the brand color? Change one value. Done. Every platform stays on-brand. And you didn’t even break a sweat.
The Future of Design Systems Is Tokenized
More and more, design tokens are becoming the foundation of modern design systems. They bridge the gap between design and development.
Big brands like Adobe, IBM, and Salesforce already use them. And the rest of us? We’re catching up fast.
The W3C is even working on a Design Tokens web standard. That’s how serious this is getting!
Wrap-Up
Design tokens are your shield against design chaos. They keep your brand consistent. They support theming. They make cross-platform development actually enjoyable.
They’re not just a developer thing. Not just a designer tool. They’re a bridge. A secret weapon. And honestly, they might just be the best thing to happen to design since the color wheel.
If you haven’t adopted them yet—what are you waiting for?