Spacing scale

A spacing scale is the limited set of gap, margin and padding values a design system allows — typically built on a 4-pixel or 8-pixel base unit, so all spacing falls on a predictable rhythm. Tokens look like space-1 (4px), space-2 (8px), space-4 (16px), and so on.

Without a scale, every component invents its own padding and the layout drifts; with one, you get cleaner foundations, tighter visual rhythm and easier review ("is that 12 or 14?"). The 4/8 grid is the convention because it scales cleanly across density modes (compact vs comfortable) and divides evenly for half-steps. Pair the scale with consistent typography scale line-heights for vertical rhythm.

Related: Foundations · Design tokens · Typography scale · Grid system