Design Handoff Best Practices
Simple, repeatable handoff practices that make development faster and reduce friction.
Handoff is a transfer of intent, not just files. These practices keep teams aligned and reduce rework.
- Deliver a single source of truth: tokenized colors, a clear type scale, and component specs.
- Provide real content examples and edge cases, not placeholder lorem.
- Annotate interactions: microcopy, states, and animations should be described or demonstrated.
- Share assets in ready-to-use formats: exported SVGs, optimized images, and a simple install README.
Communication beats perfection: schedule a short walkthrough with the devs and capture questions in one place.
When handoff is straightforward, shipping becomes predictable and designers can iterate faster.