Linear UI Skills
Opinionated constraints for building Linear-style interfaces with AI agents.
When to Apply
Reference these guidelines when:
- Building dark-mode interfaces
- Creating Linear-inspired design systems
- Implementing UIs with Inter font and 4px grid
Colors
- MUST use dark backgrounds (lightness < 20) for primary surfaces - detected lightness: 4
- MUST use
#080A0A as page background (surface-base)
- SHOULD limit color palette to 10 distinct colors
- MUST maintain text contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 for accessibility
Semantic Tokens
| Token |
HEX |
RGB |
Usage |
surface-base |
#080A0A |
rgb(8,10,10) |
Page background |
surface-raised |
#D2D2D3 |
rgb(210,210,211) |
Cards, modals, raised surfaces |
surface-overlay |
#E3E3E6 |
rgb(227,227,230) |
Overlays, tooltips, dropdowns |
text-primary |
#5C5C5C |
rgb(92,92,92) |
Headings, body text |
text-secondary |
#2D2E30 |
rgb(45,46,48) |
Secondary, muted text |
text-tertiary |
#444749 |
rgb(68,71,73) |
Additional text |
border-default |
#B0B1B1 |
rgb(176,177,177) |
Subtle borders, dividers |
Typography
- MUST use
Inter as primary font family
- SHOULD use single font family for consistency
- MUST use
60px / 700 for primary headings
- MUST use
17px / 400 for body text
- SHOULD reduce font weights (currently 4 detected)
- MUST use
text-balance for headings and text-pretty for body text
- SHOULD use
tabular-nums for numeric data
- NEVER modify letter-spacing unless explicitly requested
Text Styles
| Style |
Font |
Size |
Weight |
Color |
Count |
heading-1 |
Inter |
60px |
700 |
#E2E4E3 |
1 |
body |
Inter |
17px |
400 |
#444749 |
1 |
body-secondary |
Inter |
16px |
400 |
#5C5C5C |
1 |
body-secondary |
Inter |
15px |
500 |
#2D2E30 |
1 |
text-14px |
Inter |
14px |
400 |
#B2B3B3 |
1 |
text-13px |
Inter |
13px |
400 |
#4C4C4C |
1 |
text-13px |
Inter |
13px |
400 |
#525355 |
1 |
text-12px |
Inter |
12px |
400 |
#525456 |
1 |
caption |
Inter |
9px |
400 |
#545557 |
1 |
label |
Inter |
9px |
400 |
#565759 |
1 |
Typography Reference
Font Families:
Font Sizes: 9px, 12px, 13px, 14px, 15px, 16px, 17px, 60px
Spacing
- MUST use 4px grid for spacing
- SHOULD use spacing from scale: 5px, 11px, 12px, 13px, 14px, 16px, 19px, 20px
- SHOULD use 5px as default gap between elements
- NEVER use arbitrary spacing values (use design scale)
- SHOULD maintain consistent padding within containers
Borders
- MUST use border-radius from scale: 6px, 8px
- MUST use 1px border width consistently
- SHOULD use 6px as default border-radius
- NEVER use arbitrary border-radius values (use design scale)
- SHOULD use subtle borders (1px) for element separation
Border Radius Reference
Scale: 6px, 8px
Layout
- MUST design for 1920px base viewport width
- SHOULD use consistent element widths: 52px
- SHOULD maintain text-heavy layout with clear hierarchy
- NEVER use
h-screen, use h-dvh for full viewport height
- MUST respect
safe-area-inset for fixed elements
- SHOULD use
size-* for square elements instead of w-* + h-*
Detected Layout Patterns
- Main Content: width: 1920px, height: 1013px
- Header: height: 63px
Components
Buttons
| Variant |
Background |
Text |
Border |
Height |
Radius |
| Ghost |
transparent |
#5C5C5C |
none |
- |
- |
Interactive States
Focus
- MUST use
2px outline with accent color (#5E6AD2)
- MUST use
2px outline-offset
- NEVER remove focus indicators
Hover
- Buttons (primary): lighten background by 10%
- Buttons (secondary): use
#D2D2D3 background
- List items: use
#D2D2D3 background
Disabled
- MUST use
opacity: 0.5
- MUST use
cursor: not-allowed
Interaction
- MUST use an
AlertDialog for destructive or irreversible actions
- SHOULD use structural skeletons for loading states
- MUST show errors next to where the action happens
- NEVER block paste in
input or textarea elements
- MUST add an
aria-label to icon-only buttons
Animation
- NEVER add animation unless it is explicitly requested
- MUST animate only compositor props (
transform, opacity)
- NEVER animate layout properties (
width, height, top, left, margin, padding)
- SHOULD use
ease-out on entrance animations
- NEVER exceed
200ms for interaction feedback
- SHOULD respect
prefers-reduced-motion
Performance
- NEVER animate large
blur() or backdrop-filter surfaces
- NEVER apply
will-change outside an active animation
- NEVER use
useEffect for anything that can be expressed as render logic
1---2name: linear-ui-skills3description: Linear's UI design system. Use when building interfaces inspired by Linear's aesthetic - dark mode, Inter font, 4px grid.4license: MIT5---6
7# Linear UI Skills
8
9Opinionated constraints for building Linear-style interfaces with AI agents.
10
11## When to Apply
12
13Reference these guidelines when:
14- Building dark-mode interfaces
15- Creating Linear-inspired design systems
16- Implementing UIs with Inter font and 4px grid
17
18## Colors
19
20- MUST use dark backgrounds (lightness < 20) for primary surfaces - detected lightness: 4
21- MUST use `#080A0A` as page background (`surface-base`)
22- SHOULD limit color palette to 10 distinct colors
23- MUST maintain text contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 for accessibility
24
25### Semantic Tokens
26
27| Token | HEX | RGB | Usage |
28|-------|-----|-----|-------|
29| `surface-base` | #080A0A | rgb(8,10,10) | Page background |
30| `surface-raised` | #D2D2D3 | rgb(210,210,211) | Cards, modals, raised surfaces |
31| `surface-overlay` | #E3E3E6 | rgb(227,227,230) | Overlays, tooltips, dropdowns |
32| `text-primary` | #5C5C5C | rgb(92,92,92) | Headings, body text |
33| `text-secondary` | #2D2E30 | rgb(45,46,48) | Secondary, muted text |
34| `text-tertiary` | #444749 | rgb(68,71,73) | Additional text |
35| `border-default` | #B0B1B1 | rgb(176,177,177) | Subtle borders, dividers |
36
37## Typography
38
39- MUST use `Inter` as primary font family
40- SHOULD use single font family for consistency
41- MUST use `60px` / `700` for primary headings
42- MUST use `17px` / `400` for body text
43- SHOULD reduce font weights (currently 4 detected)
44- MUST use `text-balance` for headings and `text-pretty` for body text
45- SHOULD use `tabular-nums` for numeric data
46- NEVER modify letter-spacing unless explicitly requested
47
48### Text Styles
49
50| Style | Font | Size | Weight | Color | Count |
51|-------|------|------|--------|-------|-------|
52| `heading-1` | Inter | 60px | 700 | #E2E4E3 | 1 |
53| `body` | Inter | 17px | 400 | #444749 | 1 |
54| `body-secondary` | Inter | 16px | 400 | #5C5C5C | 1 |
55| `body-secondary` | Inter | 15px | 500 | #2D2E30 | 1 |
56| `text-14px` | Inter | 14px | 400 | #B2B3B3 | 1 |
57| `text-13px` | Inter | 13px | 400 | #4C4C4C | 1 |
58| `text-13px` | Inter | 13px | 400 | #525355 | 1 |
59| `text-12px` | Inter | 12px | 400 | #525456 | 1 |
60| `caption` | Inter | 9px | 400 | #545557 | 1 |
61| `label` | Inter | 9px | 400 | #565759 | 1 |
62
63### Typography Reference
64
65**Font Families:**
66- `Inter` (used 13x)
67
68**Font Sizes:** 9px, 12px, 13px, 14px, 15px, 16px, 17px, 60px
69
70## Spacing
71
72- MUST use 4px grid for spacing
73- SHOULD use spacing from scale: 5px, 11px, 12px, 13px, 14px, 16px, 19px, 20px
74- SHOULD use 5px as default gap between elements
75- NEVER use arbitrary spacing values (use design scale)
76- SHOULD maintain consistent padding within containers
77
78## Borders
79
80- MUST use border-radius from scale: 6px, 8px
81- MUST use 1px border width consistently
82- SHOULD use 6px as default border-radius
83- NEVER use arbitrary border-radius values (use design scale)
84- SHOULD use subtle borders (1px) for element separation
85
86### Border Radius Reference
87
88**Scale:** 6px, 8px
89
90## Layout
91
92- MUST design for 1920px base viewport width
93- SHOULD use consistent element widths: 52px
94- SHOULD maintain text-heavy layout with clear hierarchy
95- NEVER use `h-screen`, use `h-dvh` for full viewport height
96- MUST respect `safe-area-inset` for fixed elements
97- SHOULD use `size-*` for square elements instead of `w-*` + `h-*`
98
99### Detected Layout Patterns
100
101- **Main Content**: width: 1920px, height: 1013px
102- **Header**: height: 63px
103
104## Components
105
106### Buttons
107
108| Variant | Background | Text | Border | Height | Radius |
109|---------|------------|------|--------|--------|--------|
110| Ghost | transparent | #5C5C5C | none | - | - |
111
112## Interactive States
113
114### Focus
115
116- MUST use `2px` outline with accent color (`#5E6AD2`)
117- MUST use `2px` outline-offset
118- NEVER remove focus indicators
119
120### Hover
121
122- Buttons (primary): lighten background by 10%
123- Buttons (secondary): use `#D2D2D3` background
124- List items: use `#D2D2D3` background
125
126### Disabled
127
128- MUST use `opacity: 0.5`
129- MUST use `cursor: not-allowed`
130
131## Interaction
132
133- MUST use an `AlertDialog` for destructive or irreversible actions
134- SHOULD use structural skeletons for loading states
135- MUST show errors next to where the action happens
136- NEVER block paste in `input` or `textarea` elements
137- MUST add an `aria-label` to icon-only buttons
138
139## Animation
140
141- NEVER add animation unless it is explicitly requested
142- MUST animate only compositor props (`transform`, `opacity`)
143- NEVER animate layout properties (`width`, `height`, `top`, `left`, `margin`, `padding`)
144- SHOULD use `ease-out` on entrance animations
145- NEVER exceed `200ms` for interaction feedback
146- SHOULD respect `prefers-reduced-motion`
147
148## Performance
149
150- NEVER animate large `blur()` or `backdrop-filter` surfaces
151- NEVER apply `will-change` outside an active animation
152- NEVER use `useEffect` for anything that can be expressed as render logic
ihlamury