How to Import a Pinterest Board into Figma

Pinterest is good at discovery; Figma is better once the references need comments, hierarchy and a place beside the actual design. The awkward part is moving from one to the other. Saving every image manually, renaming it and dragging it onto the canvas works, but it turns a creative task into file administration.

There are two ways to close that gap. The PinBoardSaver plugin places a whole board on the canvas without a single file leaving your computer, and the Chrome extension can still export the board as an organized set of images when you need them elsewhere too.

Prepare the board before importing

Do a quick edit in Pinterest first. Remove references that no longer fit and move different directions into separate sections. Figma will give you more control over layout, but it cannot decide which idea the project is pursuing.

If the collection is still broad, define the purpose of the Figma page: client moodboard, visual audit, competitor research, UI reference library or team workshop. That decision affects how much material is useful.

For guidance on turning research into a focused selection, read how to create a Pinterest moodboard.

Method 1: paste the board straight into Figma

Install the PinBoardSaver plugin from Figma Community; it then sits under Plugins in any file. Open the board in Chrome, run the PinBoardSaver extension and click Copy for Figma, which puts the pin data on your clipboard.

In Figma, run the plugin, paste into its field and pick a layout: grid for tidy equal columns, masonry for mixed heights, or a single row or column for a sequence. Set the number of columns, the image width and the spacing, then click Import.

Every image lands inside one named frame, centred in your viewport and ready to rearrange. Aspect ratios are read from each file rather than guessed, links are upgraded to the original size where Pinterest has one, and an image that fails to load is skipped instead of stopping the run.

For a handful of references you do not even need the extension: right-click a pin, copy the image address and paste the links into the plugin one per line.

Method 2: download the files, then place them

Use this route when the same images are going to a client folder, an InDesign document or an archive, not only onto the canvas. Install the PinBoardSaver Chrome extension, open the board and scan it, then download the selection as a ZIP and extract the archive.

In Figma, create a dedicated page and frame for the references and use Place image, or drag the files in from the folder. Importing a manageable batch is safer than dropping hundreds of full-resolution images at once, especially in a shared file.

The full board-download process is explained in how to download a Pinterest board.

When a flat reference is enough

Sometimes you do not need separate editable images. If the board is only background context, export it as one image and place that on the canvas. It stays visually compact and is less likely to slow the file down.

A PDF is useful as a separate presentation or approval artifact, but Figma may treat imported PDF content differently from a set of normal image fills. Read the Pinterest-to-PDF guide when the final output is meant to be shared as a document.

Keep the Figma file responsive

Original-quality Pinterest images can be much larger than their displayed size. A wall of hundreds of them may increase memory use and loading time. Import the shortlist, not the entire research archive, and create a second batch only when the team genuinely needs more options.

Use thumbnails or compressed working copies when a reference will remain small on the canvas. Preserve the original downloads separately so you can return to the best available quality without making every collaborator load it.

Create hierarchy instead of a grid dump

An import gives you a tidy grid, which is a starting point rather than a finished moodboard. Choose one large anchor image for the overall direction, place supporting references around it and leave visible gaps between themes.

Add concise annotations that explain what should be borrowed from each group. Not “copy this,” but “muted warm palette,” “asymmetric product crop” or “generous vertical rhythm.” A simple reference-card component with an image, source link and note keeps repeated research consistent without making it look over-designed.

Preserve sources and rights information

Moving an image into Figma separates it from its Pinterest description and source unless you deliberately keep that context. For important references, add the original pin or creator URL in the card note. This makes later attribution, licensing research and fact-checking possible.

Pinterest images should generally be treated as references unless their usage rights are clear. Do not allow a temporary moodboard image to drift silently into production artwork.

A workflow your team can repeat

Keep three layers: the raw material, a curated selection on the moodboard page and a small group of approved direction references near the working design. Each layer has a different purpose and can change at a different pace.

When the board is ready, copy it into Figma with the plugin, or download the selected Pinterest images when you need the files themselves. Either way the time goes into explaining the direction rather than managing browser downloads.