The Doughnut conceptual framework, developed by the economist Kate Raworth, is gaining considerable momentum. It is often framed as a representation of the normative objective that socio-ecological transitions are intended to achieve. This contribution sets out the main strengths and weaknesses of this framework, according to the increasingly prolific literature on the subject on the one hand, and on the other, according to our recent practical experiences of downscaling the Doughnut to a Swiss territory and a Swiss institution. It shows that, since its creation, the Doughnut has been used and remodelled along a continuum between conceptual and theoretical purity, inspired by the framework of planetary boundaries and theories of basic human needs, and a pragmatic tool aimed at guiding public action at local level. In this respect, the local reinterpretation of the Doughnut raises several practical questions, which in turn can lead to the local tool being distanced from the original framework. We suggest that, if the Doughnut is to remain a strong sustainability tool, some additional principles should be adopted by practitioners while downscaling it. Hence, we propose six guiding principles for maintaining the integrity of the Doughnut’s conceptual framework in its local variations.