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ClassyUX
ClassyUX
New Participant
June 11, 2024

Figma needs baseline shift functionality

  • June 11, 2024
  • 15 replies
  • 1759 views

People have been complaining about this for years. I have to add ® and ™ to strings of text in my artboards. The superscript version of the character must be the same size as the rest of the text string, or it will not be vertically aligned properly with the rest of the text.

The ®™ symbols are much too large, especially in headlines, but if you reduce the font size of that character, it drops down too low and is no longer in the superscript position.

In Sketch or any other proper app, you can adjust the baseline of the specific character (baseline shift) so that you can re-align it properly.

You can EASILY accomplish this in CSS and create specific styling for the “sup” tag which handles this in code.

Why is it nearly impossible to replicate what is easy in any other app in Figma? I’ve seen people complaining about this since 2018, so I take that as an assumption that Figma will never fix this issue?

The only way to get a properly aligned and sized ® or ™ in a line of text is to create a separate text block and align it manually. And across an entire prototype that is a ridiculous solution.

    15 replies

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    Lucyames
    Lucyames
    New Member
    December 23, 2025

    Hey @ClassyUX, thank you for your feedback.
    I do understand your frustration! I am going to forward this to the teams.

    When you apply superscript/subscript to text, Figma tries to use any superscript/subscript glyphs provided by the font. If it isn’t provided, Figma draws a synthesized version by using the font’s standard version of the character, shrinking it, and positioning it accordingly.

    I’be changed the category from “Ask the community” to “Share an idea” to other community members can leave their feedback Bitlife unblocked and vote for it. This helps us roadmap future updates.

    Thanks,
    Gayani

    Figma needs baseline shift functionality to give designers finer control over typography, especially when working with mixed font sizes, superscripts, subscripts, icons, or inline symbols. Without a native baseline shift option, designers are forced to rely on workarounds like adjusting line height, creating separate text layers, or converting text to outlines, which slows down workflows and reduces consistency.

      Kristen Waite
      Kristen Waite
      New Member
      March 11, 2026

      YES! Please, we need this feature to be able to edit the baseline especially when we have superscripts in a link that is underlined, we have to show coding what it “should” look like so we have to not underline the superscript and fake it with a drawn line, which floats and moves the second the text is edited, leaving us open to mistakes. It’s a simple thing, really. Also the superscript is so hella buried in the menus. 

      Barclay Missen
      Barclay Missen
      New Member
      May 28, 2026

      This is why I can’t use Figma. I work in medical communications. It’s just simply impossible to spend so much time wrestling with the superscript and subscript characters. It’s a regulated industry so it has to be right. Hacks and workarounds erode any confidence that the characters will appear consistently, and to spend time manually adjusting 20 or 30 or more of them in a piece is just not plausible. Without this, it’s a non-starter. I keep coming back every year or so, re-signing up, just to be disappointed again. We need to be able to adjust the size and the placement – the way we can in Sketch, XD, InDesign, Affinity, etc… every other app that deals with type.

        seec1111
        seec1111
        New Member
        June 16, 2026

        2 years thread but no improvement. Frustrated. 

        Hey @ClassyUX, thank you for your feedback.
        I do understand your frustration! I am going to forward this to the teams.

        When you apply superscript/subscript to text, Figma tries to use any superscript/subscript glyphs provided by the font. If it isn’t provided, Figma draws a synthesized version by using the font’s standard version of the character, shrinking it, and positioning it accordingly.

        I’ve changed the category from “Ask the community” to “Share an idea” to other community members can leave their feedback and vote for it. This helps us roadmap future updates.

        Thanks,
        Gayani

         

        WiMB
        WiMB
        New Member
        July 29, 2026

        It’s the middle of 2026, and Figma still does not have a baseline shift feature. This request was raised years ago, and a Figma representative said it would be shared with the team, yet there has been no meaningful update or visible progress.

        I switched from Sketch a few months ago and have been genuinely surprised by how limited and cumbersome Figma’s typography controls are. Most professional design applications provide a clear character panel where users can quickly adjust basic settings such as baseline shift, underline, superscript, subscript, kerning, tracking, line height, capitalization, and strikethrough.

        These are not niche or advanced features. They are fundamental typography controls that designers rely on every day. For a platform with Figma’s reputation and market position, it is disappointing that such basic functionality remains absent after years of user requests.

        Could someone from Figma please provide a substantive update on whether baseline shift and broader typography improvements are actually on the roadmap?

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