Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Figmotion VS Principle

Compare Figmotion VS Principle and see what are their differences

Figmotion logo Figmotion

Animation tooling right in Figma

Principle logo Principle

Principle makes it easy to create animated and interactive user interface designs.
  • Figmotion Landing page
    Landing page //
    2020-02-24
  • Principle Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-04-19

Figmotion features and specs

  • Integration with Figma
    Figmotion is seamlessly integrated with Figma, allowing users to create animations directly within the Figma interface without needing to export designs to other software.
  • Ease of Use
    The plugin is user-friendly, particularly for designers familiar with Figma, and does not require extensive animation knowledge, making it accessible to a wide range of users.
  • Real-time Feedback
    Users can see animations in real time as they make adjustments, enabling a more iterative and responsive design process.
  • Cost-effective
    Figmotion is free to use, making it a cost-effective solution for designers looking to incorporate animation into their projects without additional software expenses.
  • Community Support
    As part of the Figma community, Figmotion benefits from active user forums and shared resources, contributing to continuous improvement and diverse use cases.

Possible disadvantages of Figmotion

  • Limited Advanced Features
    Figmotion may lack some advanced animation features found in specialized animation software, which can be limiting for users with complex animation requirements.
  • Performance Issues
    For more complex animations, Figmotion can be resource-intensive, potentially slowing down Figma or causing performance issues on less powerful machines.
  • Learning Curve for New Users
    While user-friendly, there is still a learning curve for those unfamiliar with animation principles, which might require time and effort to overcome.
  • Limited Export Options
    Figmotion offers limited options for exporting animations compared to dedicated animation tools, which might restrict how users can share and use their animations outside of Figma.
  • Lack of Standalone Functionality
    Since Figmotion is a Figma plugin, it cannot be used independently of Figma, which might be a constraint for those looking for a standalone animation tool.

Principle features and specs

  • User-Friendly Interface
    Principle offers a highly intuitive and easy-to-use interface, making it accessible for both beginners and experienced designers.
  • Powerful Animation Features
    The tool supports complex animations and interactive designs, enabling designers to create rich and engaging prototypes.
  • Responsive Preview
    Principle provides real-time previews of your designs on actual devices, allowing designers to see exactly how their work will look and behave.
  • Import from Sketch and Figma
    Users can easily import designs from popular design tools like Sketch and Figma, streamlining the workflow.
  • High-Fidelity Prototyping
    Capable of producing high-fidelity prototypes that closely resemble the final product, making it ideal for user testing and presentations.

Possible disadvantages of Principle

  • Mac-Only
    Principle is exclusively available for macOS, which limits its accessibility for designers using Windows or other operating systems.
  • Cost
    The software comes with a significant price tag, potentially making it less accessible for freelancers or small teams with limited budgets.
  • Lack of Collaboration Features
    Unlike some other tools, Principle lacks advanced collaboration features, making it difficult for teams to work simultaneously on a project.
  • Limited Cloud Integration
    Principle does not offer extensive cloud integration options, which can hinder version control and file sharing across teams.
  • Learning Curve for Advanced Features
    While the basic interface is user-friendly, mastering its more advanced animation and interaction features can take time.

Analysis of Principle

Overall verdict

  • Principle is generally regarded as a good tool for designers, especially those who need to prototype interactive and animated designs. Its robust feature set and user-friendly design make it a preferred choice among many UI/UX professionals.

Why this product is good

  • Principle is a popular prototyping tool for Mac users, known for its intuitive interface and powerful features. It allows designers to create animated and interactive user interface designs efficiently. Users often praise it for its ease of use and the ability to quickly bring design concepts to life. Offering features such as timeline animations, multi-screen interactions, and the ability to import designs from Sketch, it makes the design workflow more streamlined.

Recommended for

  • UI/UX designers looking for a Mac-compatible prototyping tool
  • Designers familiar with Sketch who want to easily import their designs
  • Professionals needing to create high-fidelity animations and interactions
  • Teams looking to demonstrate design concepts through interactive prototypes

Figmotion videos

How to use Figmotion Figma Plugin

More videos:

  • Demo - Using Quick Add in Figmotion - Figmotion 0.2.0 demo
  • Demo - Figma Plugin Demo - Figmotion

Principle videos

The Talos Principle (Review)

More videos:

  • Review - American Scandi Gerber Principle Knife
  • Review - The Talos Principle (Zero Punctuation)

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Figmotion and Principle)
Design Tools
28 28%
72% 72
Prototyping
13 13%
87% 87
Productivity
100 100%
0% 0
Developer Tools
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Figmotion and Principle

Figmotion Reviews

We have no reviews of Figmotion yet.
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Principle Reviews

11 Best Prototyping Tools For UI/UX Designers — How To Choose The Right One?
Principle is built for OS X and comes with an iOS app to mirror live prototypes. Whether you’re designing the flow of a multi-screen app, or new interactions and animations, Principle lets you create designs that look and feel amazing. The app appears very much like the UI of Sketch including other familiar aspects of alignment, art board creation, and screen connections,...

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Principle seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 8 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Figmotion mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of Figmotion yet. Tracking of Figmotion recommendations started around Mar 2021.

Principle mentions (8)

  • What app was used to design this animated image?
    Seeing how principle is on the list. I'm going to say principle. It's like after effect but for interface design. Source: about 2 years ago
  • A mobile shopping app we just finished
    However, I did manage to make a very simple animation with my very limited skills for another project using Principle. Source: over 2 years ago
  • How to use animations to increase conversion
    Your visitors will scan your hero image or graphic first. Take advantage of that. Create subtle animations that explain better your product or offer. How will the interface be used? How simple it is? Keep it simple. I use Principle or Figma smart animate feature. If it's too complicated for you it might be very easy for a designer. Hire one for a small gig. Source: almost 3 years ago
  • New prototype: What if Tesla had an App Store?
    I use Figma & Principle to design & prototype, usually. I show a bit of the process on my YouTube channel, if you're interested. Source: over 3 years ago
  • I made an eyes-free gesture prototype — thoughts?
    No engineering here, just smoke & mirrors! This is a set of mockups stitched together with Principle into a prototype that runs on my iPad. It uses simple keyframing for most animations and is configured to react to different touch targets. Not a single line of code was harmed in the making of this prototype ;). Source: over 3 years ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Figmotion and Principle, you can also consider the following products

LottieFiles for Figma - Insert Lottie animations as GIFs and SVG's into your designs

ProtoPie - ProtoPie is the easiest tool used to turn your UI/UX design ideas into highly interactive prototypes for mobile, desktop, web, all the way to IoT.

Animate in Principle - Prototyping course from Figma to Principle

Adobe XD - Adobe XD is an all-in-one UX/UI solution for designing websites, mobile apps and more. 

Jitter - A simple animation tool on the web

UXpin - Design is really about solving problems. UXPin is the UX Design Platform that gets that right.