How to Detach an Instance in Figma (and Remove a Component)

The instance turns into a frame with the same layers, fills and overrides it had a moment before. From then on, edits to the main component no longer reach it, and it drops out of any library update. Figma has no relink command, so treat detaching as one-way. If you detach by mistake, undo straight away. Nested instances inside the detached frame stay instances, so an icon inside a detached button still follows its own main component.

Before you detach, check whether you need to. A lot of detaching happens because a designer wants to hide an icon or change a label. Component properties (boolean, text, instance swap) cover those cases without breaking the link, and swapping the instance covers the rest.

When Detach instance is missing from the menu, one of these is usually the reason. Figma's help center doesn't list causes, so these come from the Figma community forum, most common first.

1. You selected a layer inside the instance. Click the instance's top-level layer in the Layers panel, then try again.
2. It's a nested instance. An instance inside another instance can't be detached on its own. Detach the parent instance first, then the nested one becomes a regular instance you can detach.
3. You selected the main component. Main components can't be detached, because they aren't instances. See the next section.

If none of these fit, check that you can edit the file at all. In view-only mode the canvas can't be changed, so Detach instance won't do anything.

This is one of the most-viewed component threads on the Figma forum, and the answer is a workaround. There is no Remove component or Un-component command for a main component.

1. If you just created it, undo (⌘Z / Ctrl+Z). That's the quickest fix.
2. Otherwise, place an instance of the main component next to it.
3. Detach that instance with ⌥⌘B / Ctrl+Alt+B. You now have a plain frame that looks the same.
4. Delete the main component.

To delete an instance, select it and press Delete. That removes the copy and nothing else: the main component and other instances are untouched. If you want to keep the design but drop the link, detach it instead. If you want a different component in its place, swap it from the Instance menu rather than deleting and re-placing.

Sometimes you detach because the instance now looks better than the main. If the main component is in the same file, you can send an instance's changes back up with Push changes to main component. Every other instance then gets the update and nothing gets detached. It doesn't work when the main lives in a library or when the instance is nested. In those cases, open the main with ⌃⌥⌘K / Ctrl+Alt+Shift+K and make the edit there.

If an instance looks wrong because of old overrides, reset it. Open More actions next to the component name in the right sidebar, choose Reset, then reset one property or Reset all changes. The instance keeps its link and matches the main again.

Some changes are never possible on an instance: layer order, position, constraints and text layer bounds. If you keep detaching to get at those, the fix belongs on the main component. Press ⌃⌥⌘K / Ctrl+Alt+Shift+K to jump to it. The basics of building one are in how to create a component in Figma, and nested setups are covered in Figma nested components.