Figma Wireframe Kit vs GOV.UK Design System
Figma Wireframe Kit
figma.com
GOV.UK Design System
design-system.service.gov.ukSide by side
| Figure | Figma Wireframe Kit | GOV.UK Design System |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $3/mo | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | — |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| iOS | Yes | — |
| Android | Yes | — |
| API | Yes | — |
| Self-hosted | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 10 | 1 |
| Spec score · UI Kit Libraries | 9.2 (#1) | 7.9 (#9) |
| Installation | The wireframe templates run in the browser and do not require additional software downloads. | For production projects, GOV.UK Frontend can be installed with npm or used by including compiled stylesheets, JavaScript and asset files. |
| Purpose | The component-based wireframe kit is designed to help validate ideas and speed up website design. | The system helps teams make government services consistent with GOV.UK and learn from research and experience across service teams. |
| Support | Figma directs users to its Support Hub for product or account support. | The team focuses support on central UK government digital services and says it cannot reliably provide guidance for different contexts. |
Plans
Figma Wireframe Kit
- StarterFree
- Professional Collab seat$3 a month
- Enterprise Collab seat$5 a month
- Organization Collab seat$5 a month
- Professional Dev seat$12 a month
- Professional Full seat$16 a month
- Organization Dev seat$25 a month
- Enterprise Dev seat$35 a month
- Organization Full seat$55 a month
- Enterprise Full seat$90 a month
In their own words
Figma Wireframe Kit
Figma Wireframe Kit is a browser-based set of components for turning early ideas into website wireframes, mockups, and clickable prototypes. Drag-and-drop tools let users assemble screens from ready-made elements such as navigation bars, headers, features, and buttons. The kit can also be used to wireframe mobile apps. Wireframes can become interactive prototypes without code, and comments remain with the design files to keep feedback in context. Files can be shared by link and opened in a browser for collaboration. The templates run in the browser without additional software downloads. Figma lists integrations with Slack, Google Workspace, Microsoft Teams, Jira, Confluence, Zapier, and Notion. Starter costs nothing and includes limited access to Figma products, unlimited drafts, UI kits, and templates. Listed platforms include Android, extension, iOS, macOS, web, and Windows. Figma describes the software as approachable for people who are not designers.
GOV.UK Design System
The GOV.UK Design System helps government teams build services with shared styles, reusable components and patterns for user-focused tasks. Its guidance covers page structure, typography, colour and images; components include coded examples, and patterns address particular tasks and page types. Published guidance includes details about user-research testing. Teams can add GOV.UK Frontend through npm or include compiled files. In production projects, components can be used as HTML or as Nunjucks macros when Frontend is installed with npm and the application uses Node.js. Prototyping requires GOV.UK Prototype Kit version 7 or later. The code is public under the MIT License, and the listed plan is free. The system aims for WCAG level AA compliance, but its use alone does not make a service accessible; component accessibility checks combine tools, automated deployment tests and manual testing. The Government Digital Service maintains the system, with a focus on central UK government digital services. Support may be limited for other contexts. Compiled files include all Frontend CSS and JavaScript, without selective component assets or a customizable build.