Does Figma Work in China?

Is Figma blocked in China?

Not completely, but access is unreliable. GreatFire runs checks on websites from inside mainland China, and its pages for both figma.com and www.figma.com give the verdict “Sometimes”. It last checked them on October 18 and October 10, 2026.

Figma’s help center describes what blocked network traffic looks like, in an article written for company networks. When Figma’s whole domain is blocked, the homepage stays blank or never finishes loading, sign-in included. When only Figma’s live connections, called WebSockets, are blocked, the homepage loads but Recent, Drafts and your file lists stay empty. Figma says it needs “a reliable and stable internet connection”.

Can I use Figma in China?

Yes, people use it there, but plan for dropouts. These Reddit reports are individual accounts, not tests:

• No VPN, November 2025. Writing from China, a user on r/FigmaDesign said Figma doesn’t require a VPN.
• Working as normal, November 2025. In the same thread, a user just back from China said Figma was working as normal, but warned that signing in with Google needs a VPN.
• Smoother with a VPN, March 2025. A user on the same subreddit said Figma definitely works in China but might run more smoothly through a VPN.
• Travel eSIM, November 2025. A traveler on r/travelchina said a Trip.com eSIM let them work and use online apps like Figma during a month in China, without ever joining Wi-Fi.

Logging in with Google is the weak spot, because UK travel advice says Google is permanently blocked in China. Figma lets you swap Google sign-in for a password: log out, choose Reset password on the login page and follow the link in the email. From then on, you sign in with your email address and the new password. Company accounts can work differently. An organization admin can make Google sign-in compulsory for members, and with SAML single sign-on your employer’s identity provider runs the login, so check with IT before you travel.

Offline, Figma only goes so far. Pages already loaded stay open when the connection drops, Figma says, and your edits are kept in the browser until it can sync them. You can’t open other files, insert components from libraries or view version history until you’re back online.

Is Figma available in China?

Yes. You can download Figma’s app from Apple’s App Store in mainland China, and nothing in Figma’s terms singles out China. The terms bar use in places under a US embargo, and by anyone on a US list of prohibited or restricted parties.

US restricted-party rules have already hit a Chinese company. On March 12, 2022, Figma emailed staff at DJI, the drone maker, that DJI “has been named in US sanctions” and that Figma could no longer provide access, Yicai Global reported. DJI’s account was frozen. The US had put DJI on its Entity List in December 2020. TMTPost, a Chinese tech site, reported that personal accounts weren’t affected at the time. Figma’s terms say it may suspend access or block content to comply with US export and sanctions rules.

Figma’s interface doesn’t come in Chinese. Its apps support English, Japanese, Korean, French, German, Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese.

How to use Figma in China

Give Figma a way out of China’s networks: a roaming eSIM whose data exits abroad, a VPN, or both, sorted out before you go. For how the two options differ, see eSIM or VPN for China?

On a roaming eSIM. Airalo, an eSIM company, says every one of its plans that covers China routes data through gateways outside the mainland. Hotel Wi-Fi doesn’t get that routing; only the eSIM’s mobile data does. The r/travelchina traveler above used Figma on a Trip.com eSIM. In July 2026, the Bega District News quoted UNSW cybersecurity researcher Salil Kanhere: a Chinese SIM, or an eSIM sold only for China, usually stays behind the filter. Our eSIM page lists the plans we track for China.

With a VPN. For a laptop with no SIM slot, MyChinaGuide, a travel site with its own China app, points to a VPN. VPNs are under pressure in 2026. ABC News reported in June on a crackdown that began in April, and censorship analyst Eric Liu told it that carriers in some parts of China had been told to search their networks for VPNs and block them. Our monthly tracker, which VPN works in China now, sorts the newest reports by provider.

Figma’s own troubleshooting checklist says it isn’t possible to reach Figma through a VPN or proxy service, yet adds that you can put Figma on your safe list to use one. Its help pages tie these errors to company networks: behind a firewall, proxy or VPN, the desktop app shows Connection Error (407), and Figma suggests using it in a browser instead. None of the Reddit reports above mention a VPN stopping Figma.

Legality is a separate question. UK travel advice for China says Chinese cybersecurity law requires a government licence for online products such as VPNs, and is using a VPN legal in China? goes through what that means for visitors.

Figma alternatives in China

Chinese design tools responded to the DJI case with Figma import features. MasterGo and Pixso both launched Figma import in March 2022, TechNode reported.

• MasterGo: An online design tool from Lanhu, launched in October 2021. TMTPost said it imports Figma files and supports editing them afterwards.
• Pixso: From a Shenzhen developer. It said its Figma import comes with migration help, Yicai Global reported.
• JsDesign (即时设计): From a Beijing company. 36Kr Japan reported that it released Figma file import in March 2022. Its app in the China App Store lets you preview, comment on and share designs.

Designers who also use Photoshop or Illustrator can check Adobe in China. For shared notes, see Notion in China, and for other work apps, read our guide to working remotely from China.