Figma is increasingly relying on paid artificial intelligence features and its proprietary AI model to improve profitability as demand for AI-powered design tools grows. The design software company is monetising AI through a credit-based system while shifting more tasks to its own model, which it says can deliver faster responses, better quality and lower operating costs.
The strategy is beginning to show stronger customer adoption. More than 80% of Figma’s large paid customers were consuming AI credits weekly through October 2026. However, the company’s shares fell around 8% in extended trading after its third-quarter gross margin came in slightly below analyst expectations, highlighting investor concerns about the cost of expanding AI services.
Figma Uses AI Credits to Generate More Revenue
Figma is turning its AI features into an additional source of revenue through a credit-based pricing system.
Customers use AI credits when accessing tools that automate design-related tasks, generate content, edit images or build interactive prototypes.
The company has adjusted its pricing structure to give customers more AI credits than they originally received. According to CFO Praveer Melwani, this change has encouraged greater usage and improved customer retention.
The utilisation rate of these additional credit packages increased by 40% following the pricing changes, Melwani told Reuters.
The adoption figures indicate that AI is becoming a more regular part of how customers use Figma rather than remaining an occasional experimental feature.
The company is particularly focused on monetising tools such as Figma Agent, its AI-powered design assistant, which helps users perform tasks through natural-language instructions.
How Figma’s AI Credit System Works
Figma has introduced AI credits across its platform, allowing customers to access different AI capabilities based on their subscription plans and additional purchases.
The credits are used for tasks such as image editing, generating designs, creating code layers and using agentic AI workflows.
Under Figma’s published credit structure, each seat receives a monthly allocation, with additional credits available through subscriptions or pay-as-you-go billing.
The published allocations include:
| Subscription plan | Monthly AI credits per full seat |
|---|---|
| Starter | 500 |
| Professional | 3,000 |
| Organization | 3,500 |
| Enterprise | 4,250 |
Credit consumption varies depending on the task, model and complexity of the request.
For example, simple image-editing operations may consume relatively few credits, while more complex agentic tasks can require substantially more.
This system gives Figma an opportunity to generate additional revenue as customers increase their use of AI tools.
It also creates a usage-based monetisation model in which revenue potential can grow alongside customer engagement.
Figma’s In-House AI Model Could Reduce Operating Costs
The second part of Figma’s strategy involves increasing the use of its proprietary AI model.
Running AI features through external models and infrastructure can create significant costs, particularly when customers perform complex tasks that require repeated model inference.
As AI usage increases, these expenses can put pressure on software companies’ gross margins.
Figma is attempting to address this challenge by shifting more workloads to its own post-trained design model.
The company has more than doubled the share of work powered by this proprietary model.
Melwani said the model allows Figma to serve customers with lower latency, higher quality and a more efficient price point.
The potential benefits include:
- Lower inference costs: Greater control over model execution could reduce the cost of serving AI requests.
- Faster responses: A model optimised for design-related tasks can improve response times.
- Better product integration: Figma can tailor its model to its own design workflows.
- Improved margins: Lower costs per AI task could support profitability as usage increases.
However, developing and maintaining an in-house model also requires investment in research, engineering and computing infrastructure. The financial benefit will depend on whether these savings exceed the costs of operating the model.
Figma Agent Is Central to Its AI Expansion
Figma Agent is one of the company’s important AI initiatives.
The tool is designed to help users interact with design software through natural-language instructions and automate parts of the creative process.
Instead of manually completing every step, designers can use AI assistance to explore ideas, modify designs and accelerate workflows.
This approach could expand Figma’s role beyond traditional interface design software.
AI tools can potentially help customers move from an initial idea to a more complete product experience, reducing the time required for repetitive design and development tasks.
For businesses, this could improve productivity across design teams and make collaboration more efficient.
The commercial opportunity is significant because Figma already has an established customer base of designers, developers and organisations.
If customers use AI features regularly, the company can generate additional revenue from its existing platform rather than relying entirely on acquiring new subscribers.
Figma Raises Its 2026 Revenue and Operating Margin Forecast
Strong demand for AI features encouraged Figma to increase its financial outlook for 2026.
The company raised its full-year revenue forecast to between $1.497 billion and $1.499 billion, compared with its earlier projection of $1.463 billion to $1.467 billion.
It also increased its adjusted operating income forecast.
| Financial metric | Previous forecast | Revised forecast |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 revenue | $1.463B–$1.467B | $1.497B–$1.499B |
| Adjusted operating income | $125M–$135M | $158M–$163M |
| Adjusted operating margin | 9% | 11% |
The improved outlook suggests that Figma expects stronger revenue generation and better operating profitability during the year.
Its third-quarter revenue increased 43% year over year to $391.4 million, exceeding analyst expectations.
However, gross margin came in at 80%, slightly below the 81% expected by analysts.
This difference raised questions about the cost of delivering AI-powered features and the company’s ability to scale them profitably.
Why Did Figma Shares Fall Despite Strong Revenue Growth?
Figma’s shares declined around 8% in extended trading after the earnings announcement.
The reaction illustrates the difference between revenue growth and profitability.
While the company reported strong sales growth and raised its annual outlook, investors were concerned that gross margins were not keeping pace with expectations.
AI products can be expensive to operate because every customer interaction may require computing resources, model inference and infrastructure spending.
As customers increase their use of AI features, these costs can rise quickly.
Figma must therefore ensure that revenue from AI credits and subscriptions grows sufficiently to cover the cost of providing those services.
The company’s move towards its own model is partly intended to address this challenge.
Investors will also want evidence that AI adoption is translating into sustainable revenue rather than simply increasing usage and operating expenses.
The Bigger Picture
Figma’s strategy reflects a wider shift in the software industry.
Companies are increasingly moving from traditional subscription-only pricing towards hybrid models that combine subscriptions with usage-based AI payments.
This approach allows software businesses to monetise expensive AI capabilities separately while preserving their existing subscription revenue.
At the same time, companies are exploring proprietary models to reduce dependence on external AI providers and gain more control over operating costs.
For Figma, the combination of AI credits and its own model could create a stronger business model if customer adoption continues and inference expenses decline.
However, the company must balance monetisation with affordability. If AI features become too expensive, customers may limit usage or consider competing design platforms.
Looking Ahead
Figma’s next challenge will be converting growing AI adoption into sustainable improvements in gross and operating margins. Investors will monitor AI credit utilisation, additional purchases, the share of workloads handled by its proprietary model and the cost of serving increasingly complex AI tasks. The company’s revised 2026 guidance provides a stronger outlook, but future quarterly results will determine whether the strategy delivers the expected financial benefits.
In the longer term, Figma could benefit from making AI an integral part of the design process rather than treating it as a separate feature. Its existing customer base gives it an advantage in introducing AI tools to professional design teams. If the company can combine useful AI capabilities with efficient model operations and a sustainable pricing structure, it could strengthen both customer retention and profitability.
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