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Components from Assets panel don't inherit "Fill" sizing - but dragging from canvas does. Any workaround?

  • April 16, 2026
  • 1 reply
  • 25 views
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Hi everyone - hoping someone can help or confirm whether this is expected behaviour.

I have a parent component with children (radio option, list item) all set to Fill for horizontal resizing. The parent frame uses auto-layout.


What I expect: When I insert an instance from the Assets panel into a frame set to auto-layout, the instance should fill the container — matching the resizing properties I set in the parent component.

What actually happens: Instances inserted from the Assets panel come in at a fixed width. I have to manually set each one to "Fill container" every time.                                                                                        

The confusing part: If I drag the same component directly from the canvas into the frame, it does fill correctly. So  the behaviour exists — it just doesn't carry over when inserting from Assets.

My questions:   

  1. Is this expected behaviour, or a bug?

  2. Has anyone found a workaround to make instances from the Assets panel default to Fill when placed inside an  auto-layout frame?

  3. Is there a way to "bake in" the fill behaviour so I don't have to manually override every  time?           

Thanks!

 

 

    1 reply

    djv
    Figmate
    • djv
    • Community Support
    • April 23, 2026

    Hi ​@Naomi_A, thanks for reaching out! 

    I completely understand why this feels inconsistent, but what you’re seeing is actually expected behavior, not a bug. When you drag from the Assets panel, Figma creates a fresh instance that respects the component’s defined (fixed) size. It doesn’t yet consider the auto layout context it’s being dropped into. By contrast, dragging from the canvas can “inherit” layout context more naturally, which is why you see it default to Fill.
     

    Here are some best practices to keep in mind:

    • Set up the base component with Auto Layout and use Fill Container where appropriate, because this gives instances a better starting point.
    • Make sure the parent frame already has Auto Layout applied before placing the instance.
    • For quick fixes, you can Option/Alt + double-click the edge of the instance to switch it to Fill.

    And to answer your last question, can you “bake this in”? Not fully. There isn’t currently a way to force all instances from the Assets panel to default to Fill based on their drop context. The closest temporary solution is structuring your base component with Auto Layout + flexible sizing so it behaves more predictably when inserted. Hope this helped!

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