figma · HeyBraza shows you
how to detach an instance in figma
HeyBraza points at the buried 'detach instance' menu item so you stop hunting for it.
an instance is a linked copy of a component, so some edits are locked to keep it in sync with the main. detaching breaks that link and turns it into plain, fully-editable layers. the option exists - it's just hidden a right-click deep.
short answer
select the instance and press ctrl/cmd+alt+b, or right-click > 'detach instance'. it becomes a normal editable frame - and stops receiving updates from the main component, which is the trade-off.
or do it yourself
- 1click the instance once to select it (a purple diamond shows it's an instance).
- 2right-click it to open the context menu.
- 3choose 'detach instance' near the bottom of the menu.
- 4or just press ctrl/cmd + alt + b with it selected.
- 5it's now a normal frame of layers you can edit freely - but it no longer updates with the main component.
steps last checked
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downloadcommon questions
what does detaching an instance do?
it breaks the link to the main component so you can edit anything - but the copy stops receiving updates when the main changes.
what's the shortcut to detach an instance?
select it and press ctrl + alt + b on windows, or cmd + option + b on mac.