Product Feature

Visual Comparison Tool for Design QA

OverlayQA overlays a Figma frame or an uploaded image on top of a live webpage, has its AI find the differences, and turns each one into a tracked issue with its real CSS values attached. Uiprobe and Pixelay also compare Figma to a live site: Uiprobe reports expected and actual values property by property, and Pixelay gives you seven ways to view the difference. OverlayQA is the pick when you want each difference tracked to fixed.

How Visual Comparison works

Visual Comparison renders your design spec as a semi-transparent layer on top of the live webpage in your browser. You can adjust opacity, toggle the comparison on and off, and pan across the page to spot differences between design and implementation. When you find a discrepancy, OverlayQA's capture and AI tools turn it into a structured, exportable issue.

When you spot a difference, click on the element to capture its exact CSS properties, DOM selector, and a screenshot of the discrepancy. OverlayQA's AI analyzes the visual differences, so instead of saying "the spacing looks wrong," you can report that a component has 16px padding when the spec calls for 24px. This precision eliminates ambiguity and lets developers fix issues in a single pass.

There are two ways to run a visual comparison, and one of them needs nothing installed. On any public URL, open the page in Team Review from the dashboard, upload your design or pick a Figma frame, and OverlayQA captures the page and reports the differences. For localhost, staging, preview deployments, and login-gated pages, the Chrome extension runs the same comparison in your own browser session. Comparing against a PDF reference also runs in the extension.

AI Visual Comparison

Upload a design or pick a Figma frame, and OverlayQA captures the live page on the server. OverlayQA's AI lists the visual differences it detects in controls, typography, and spacing, and each finding you keep becomes a tracked issue. It runs in Team Review, in the dashboard, with no extension.

Compare any public URL, nothing to install

Visual Comparison and AI Visual Comparison both run natively in Team Review on any public URL, so designers, PMs, and clients can check a build without installing anything. The Chrome extension covers localhost, staging, and login-gated pages, and comparing against a PDF reference.

Why visual comparison matters in website design and development

• Eliminates tab-switching: compare design specs and live implementations in the same view instead of toggling between tools.
• Pixel-precise reporting: click any element to capture exact CSS values and DOM selectors, giving development teams actionable context instead of vague feedback.
• Catches what manual review misses: subtle spacing, color, and typography differences that human eyes miss become visible when design and implementation are compared side by side.
• Handoff is where drift starts: 91% of developers and 92% of designers say the design handoff process could be improved (Figma, Designer and Developer 2025 Trends). Comparing the build against the design closes that gap with evidence instead of opinion.
• Protects the final product: visual comparison catches drift before it reaches production, ensuring the user experience matches the original design intent across every release.
• Share findings with anyone: generate a public link to share captured issues with stakeholders, clients, or teammates who don't use OverlayQA. No login required.

Frequently asked questions about visual comparison

What is visual comparison in OverlayQA?

Visual comparison is the process of reviewing a live web page against a design spec to identify differences in layout, spacing, color, and typography. You overlay the design, a Figma frame or an uploaded image, directly on the live page, then click any element to inspect its computed CSS values and capture the difference as a tracked issue. Unlike screenshot-based visual regression testing, which diffs one build against another, visual comparison checks the build against the design source of truth, so it catches drift during implementation instead of locking a wrong baseline in place.

What tool overlays a Figma frame on top of a live webpage?

Three tools do this well. Uiprobe compares a Figma frame with a live page and lists each difference with its expected and actual value. Pixelay gives you seven views of the build against the design, including overlay, split-screen and difference. OverlayQA overlays the frame on the live page, or has its AI find the differences for you, and turns each one into a tracked issue you can send to Jira, Linear, Notion, Asana, Trello, ClickUp, GitHub, Basecamp or monday.com.

How is OverlayQA different from Uiprobe or Pixelay?

Pick by what happens after the comparison. If you want an exact property-by-property report, Uiprobe is built for that. If you want the most ways to look at the difference, Pixelay is. OverlayQA is for teams that want the differences found for them and tracked to fixed: its AI lists what changed, and each difference becomes an issue with a screenshot and computed CSS that you can assign and send to your tracker. The same page can also get an accessibility audit and an Auto Review.

Do I need Figma to use visual comparison?

No. You can upload an image as the comparison source and overlay it on the live page. Connecting Figma through OAuth adds a frame browser and two-way comment sync, but it is optional.

How is visual comparison different from visual regression testing?

Visual regression tools diff screenshots of past builds against new builds, so they catch changes but not whether either build matched the design. Visual comparison checks the live page against the design source of truth during implementation, before a wrong baseline gets locked in.

What is scrub mode?

Scrub mode is a clip-reveal comparison: a vertical divider you drag across the page, showing the design on one side and the live build on the other. It makes spacing and alignment differences visible without toggling opacity back and forth.

Can I capture issues while comparing?

Yes. Click any element during a comparison to capture a screenshot, the CSS selector, and computed values like padding, font, and color. AI drafts a structured issue you can export to Jira, Linear, Notion, Asana, Trello, ClickUp, GitHub Issues, Basecamp, or monday.com.

If I overlay the build on the Figma file, do they match 100%?

Almost never on the first pass, and that is the point of checking. Overlaying the design on the live page makes the gaps visible instead of debatable: OverlayQA reports which elements diverge and by how much, using the page's real computed CSS values rather than an eyeballed guess.

Is there an AI tool for UI review against a Figma design?

Yes. AI Visual Comparison sends the design and a capture of the live page to OverlayQA's AI, which lists the visual differences it finds and drafts each one as a structured issue with a severity. You review the findings and create the issues you want to keep.

Do I need to install anything to compare a design?

Not for a public URL. Open the page in Team Review from the OverlayQA dashboard, upload your design or pick a Figma frame, and the comparison runs server-side with nothing installed. The Chrome extension is required for localhost, staging, and login-gated pages, and for comparing against a PDF reference.