An extended Reality (XR) system provides methodologies for scaling a virtual object in an XR user interface of the XR system. The methodologies include providing to a user an XR user interface of an XR system, where the XR user interface includes a virtual object displayed to the user. The XR system determines a pinch location of a pinch hand pose being made by the user and scales the virtual object based on the pinch location and a virtual object center point of the virtual object. The XR system redisplays the scaled virtual object to the user in the XR user interface.