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Question

Emoji not rendering in file name (sidebar) on Figma Desktop — browser works

  • January 22, 2026
  • 2 replies
  • 57 views
Júlia Gomes

Hi Figma team,

I’m facing an issue with emoji rendering specifically in file names shown in the Figma Desktop app sidebar.

Context:

  • I use emojis in file names as category codes (this is part of our workflow).

  • On Figma Web (browser), the emoji renders correctly.

  • On another iMac with the same macOS version, the emoji also renders correctly in the Desktop app.

  • On this specific iMac, the emoji does not render in the file name UI (it becomes invisible), although it works normally inside the canvas text.

What I’ve already tried:

  • Full clean reinstall of Figma Desktop

  • Clearing all Figma caches and application support files

  • Logging out and back in

  • Disabling hardware acceleration

  • Resetting macOS font caches

None of the above resolved the issue.

Since the emoji renders correctly in the browser and on another identical machine, this seems to be a Figma Desktop (Electron UI) rendering issue specific to this environment, affecting sidebar labels / file name rendering.

Could you please advise if this is a known issue or if there’s any recommended workaround or fix?

Thank you in advance!

    2 replies

    Mostafa Gaber

    I have same issue and tried all this solutions nothing works, macbook m1 

    michalshawn
    • michalshawn
    • New Member
    • May 11, 2026

    Hi Figma team,

    I’m facing an issue with emoji rendering specifically in file names shown in the Figma Desktop app sidebar.

    Context:

    • I use emojis in file names as category codes (this is part of our workflow).

    • On Figma Web (browser), the emoji renders correctly.

    • On another iMac with the same macOS version, the emoji also renders correctly in the Desktop app.

    • On this specific iMac, the emoji does not render in the file name UI (it becomes invisible), although it works normally inside the canvas text. I have to use it for my project that is related to brick tinting Stonemasonry London 

    What I’ve already tried:

    • Full clean reinstall of Figma Desktop

    • Clearing all Figma caches and application support files

    • Logging out and back in

    • Disabling hardware acceleration

    • Resetting macOS font caches

    None of the above resolved the issue.

    Since the emoji renders correctly in the browser and on another identical machine, this seems to be a Figma Desktop (Electron UI) rendering issue specific to this environment, affecting sidebar labels / file name rendering.

    Could you please advise if this is a known issue or if there’s any recommended workaround or fix?

    Thank you in advance!

    Hi there,

    Thanks for the detailed explanation and for already trying a thorough set of troubleshooting steps — that really helps narrow things down.

    From what you’ve described, especially the fact that:

    Emojis work correctly in Figma Web
    They render fine on another identical iMac
    And they still appear inside the canvas text on the affected machine

    …it does sound like this is isolated to the Desktop app’s sidebar rendering on that specific system rather than a general Figma issue.

    At this point, it’s likely related to a local system-level rendering or font fallback behavior within the Electron shell used by the Desktop app, even though you’ve already reset caches and fonts (which are usually the main fixes).

    A couple of additional things you could try, just in case:

    Check if there are any custom font management tools or profiles installed on that iMac that differ from the working machine
    Compare system font settings between both Macs (especially emoji-related fallback fonts like Apple Color Emoji)
    Try creating a new macOS user profile and running Figma there to see if the issue persists (this helps confirm whether it’s system-wide or user-specific)

    If none of these change the behavior, then it’s very likely a deeper Electron rendering inconsistency tied to that specific environment. In that case, it would be worth flagging it directly to Figma support with a side-by-side comparison of both machines, as it may help them reproduce the issue.

    Hope this helps, and happy to share more ideas if you want to dig further into it.

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