Table of Contents
If you’ve been using free Canva for quite some time now, you know it’s one of the best graphic design tools for non-graphic designers.
However, you may have these questions if you’re not using Canva’s premium version.
How much is Canva Pro?
How much is a Canva Pro account?
Is the Canva Subscription cost worth it?
Canva Pro pricing starts at $12.99 for a monthly subscription, but there’s much more you need to know.
I wrote this guide to answer your questions and discuss Canva’s premium features and whether the tool is worth it.
Let’s begin.
How Much Is Canva Pro (Canva Pricing Plans)?
Canva is available in three plans.
Canva Free
Canva Pro – $12.99 monthly (monthly subscription)
Canva for Teams – $14.99 monthly (monthly subscription)
The Canva Pro price depends on whether you sign up for a monthly or annual subscription. Annual subscriptions cost more upfront, but you save more in the long run.
For example, a monthly subscription costs $158.88 for an entire year, but an annual subscription costs only $119.99.
With the Canva monthly fee, you can cancel your plan anytime. Using this tool frequently makes the Canva yearly subscription a better option because you save more.
Canva Free
You can create a free Canva account with your Gmail, Facebook, or Apple accounts and other methods.
Here are Canva’s Free features.
Free access to over 250,000 design templates and a million stock images and graphics
5 GB of cloud storage
Over 100 design types to create social media posts, newsletters, presentations, and more
Drag-and-drop editor
Capability to invite others to collaborate
Selection of printable products you can custom-design and have delivered to your door
The free version offers plenty of functionality to create designs for personal and professional use. However, it has certain limits on features, including the lack of advanced editing tools like background removal.
Canva Pro
Canva Pro pricing depends on choosing a monthly plan ($12.99) or a yearly subscription ($119).
You get more bang for your buck if you choose the Canva annual subscription because you only pay $9.99 monthly instead of $12.99.
Canva Pro Features
The free version offers thousands of templates, images, and graphics but has limited editing tools. Hence, you may want to upgrade to the Pro version for more advanced features and functionality.
Here is the list of Canva Pro benefits and features.
Brand kit with your company’s logo, fonts, and other visual identities
Over 610,000 templates
Over 100 million stock photos and graphics
Background remover for images and graphics
Custom template creation
Magic Resize tool to instantly change a template into another size or format (e.g., Facebook post, TikTok, Instagram Reels, and more)
100GB of cloud storage
Social post scheduling on multiple platforms
While you can find online tools to replace some Canva Pro features and use royalty-free templates and stock images from other sources, having everything under one platform is far more convenient.
Besides being a complete graphic design tool, Canva Pro includes features that cater to businesses and individuals who frequently post on social media platforms.
For example, the Magic Resize tool lets users design and optimize images for various social media platforms, including Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
A Canva Pro subscription also lets you use your brand’s fonts, which are essential for your brand’s visual identity and branding consistency.
Canva Free vs. Pro
Canva free only offers basic editing tools and limited functionality. You can’t access thousands of templates, graphics, images, and videos unless you purchase them individually or upgrade to Canva Pro.
Canva Templates
Using Canva templates makes designing quick and easy, even for non-graphic designers, because the tool sets element placements for you. All you need is to add your images, texts, or videos.
With Canva Free, you can use approximately 8,000 templates. With Canva Pro, you can access over 20,000 templates to create stunning designs.
Photos and Videos
Although the free Canva plan offers over a million stock photos and graphics, it has limited videos. Upgrading is necessary to access more video clips and templates.
Canva’s free plan lets you upload your pictures at no extra cost, but you must pay a fee starting at $1 for premium photos.
Fonts
The free plan has a limited font selection. You can’t upload your own fonts, which is problematic if your brand uses unique typography.
The Canva Pro subscription lets you access a library of over 1,000 font styles and allows you to upload your brand’s fonts.
Brand Kit Feature
Canva Free doesn’t offer a brand kit, an essential feature if you own a business. Without this functionality, you can’t upload transparent logo files and more than three colors for your brand’s color palette.
Canva Pro lets you upload your logo files and create a more extensive library of color palettes.
Background Removal Tool
If you need a transparent background without cropping the parts you want to eliminate, upgrade to Canva Pro.
The instant background remover is handy for designing and transferring logos.
Organization and Storage
Canva Pro gives you 100 GB of storage for your projects, letting you create as many folders as necessary. You can only have two folders with the free version because it only offers 1 GB of storage.
Sharing
Whether working as a freelancer with clients or as a design team member, you need collaboration tools. With the free plan, you can share a link to your project via email, which the recipient can view and edit.
Canva Pro lets you do the same thing, but the recipient can also use the project as a template. You eliminate the risk of having someone steal or alter your work.
Resizing Function
The Canva Pro fee is worth it if you use its unique advanced features, like the Magic Resize tool, that can save you a lot of time.
This function allows you to transform one design into multiple formats. For example, you can turn an Instagram post (or other social media graphics) into an email newsletter, an animated logo, or a Facebook post.
You can also create graphics and customize their size to fit a specific platform.
Animations
With Canva free, you can animate your design in six ways, whereas the Pro version gives you 11 options.
Some brands need animations to give their audience a more profound visual understanding of their products.
Animation eliminates unnecessary visuals and verbiage. Many proponents consider it a more cost-saving communication strategy than traditional diagrams.
Content Planner
If you frequently create social media posts, upgrading to Canva Pro to access the Content Planner is necessary.
This feature lets you schedule your content and post it automatically on these platforms.
Instagram
Pinterest
Slack
Tumblr
Twitter
LinkedIn
Canva for Teams Pricing
What does Canva cost for enterprise businesses?
Canva doesn’t have an enterprise plan. It has Canva for teams. You can consider Canva for Teams as the Canva Enterprise plan
Canva for Teams is another premium version of this popular design tool. Its price starts at $14.99 per month for the first five users on your team. Additional members have an extra cost.
Take a look at the Canva Pro Team pricing.
Unlike Canva Free and Canva Pro, the Canva pricing for Teams is based on your account’s number of “seats” (users). The more users you have, the more you pay for the subscription.
The Canva premium cost is worth it if your company has additional requirements and tighter branding control.
Canva for Teams Features
Canva for Teams includes all the advanced features of the Pro version, plus these additional bells and whistles.
SSO lets you enter your login credentials one-time on a single page to access all your SaaS applications
ISO 27001 certification and compliance to protect your data assets from cyberattacks and other similar risks
24/7 customer support
Canva Pro vs. Canva for Enterprise
What is the difference between Canva Enterprise vs. Canva Pro?
Previously, Canva for Teams and Canva for Enterprise were two different products.
However, the company consolidated these two plans in July 2022, switching all users who signed up for the Enterprise to Canva for Teams.
Thus, some people use Canva for Teams and Canva for Enterprise interchangeably.
The enterprise version of Canva (or Canva for Teams) caters to companies with more requirements and larger teams. Meanwhile, the Pro version is for solopreneurs, small businesses, and freelancers.
Canva Lifetime Price
Can you enjoy free Canva Pro forever? No.
Although you can enjoy lifetime access to the free version, no one-time subscription fee lets you use the premium features forever. There’s also no way to use Canva Pro for free forever unless you know a premium user who will give you their Canva login details.
If you want to use the advanced features, you can upgrade to Canva Pro or Canva for Teams. These two paid versions are available in a monthly or annual subscription.
Is Canva Worth It?
It depends on your needs.
Canva Pro is worth it if you’re a professional or business owner who needs access to advanced designing tools and an extensive library of stock photos, videos, audio tracks, fonts, and graphic elements.
The Pro version is also worth its price if you need to frequently create professional-looking designs. Canva Pro gives you access to time-saving tools like Background Remover and Magic Resize.
The free plan should be enough if you only plan to use Canva occasionally and don’t need a lot of storage.
Which Version of Canva Is Right for You?
Here’s my take on which Canva pricing plan is right for you.
If you want to test the waters or have no budget for the Pro version, use Canva Free.
If you want to access advanced tools or the extensive library of royalty-free images, graphics, and audio tracks, take advantage of Canva Pro’s 30-day free trial before you upgrade to the paid version.
If your team members need access to Canva or you’re a business owner who requires more advanced workflow management, quicker customer support, or higher controls over branding, Canva for Teams is a must.
What Are the Disadvantages of Canva?
Consider the cons of Canva before upgrading to Canva Pro.
The image keyword search needs improvement.
Canva’s photo editing capability is limited compared to Photoshop because you can only do basic filters, image resizing, and cropping.
You can’t use Canva offline.
You can’t download the “Raw” file to your computer.
Canva has limited export settings.
What Are the Benefits of Canva?
Canva’s user-friendly tools and affordable pricing have made it one of the most popular design tools.
Here are the most notable benefits of using Canva.
You can create stunning designs even without a professional graphic designer.
Canva offers a simple and user-friendly interface.
You can access an extensive collection of templates, images, fonts, and other graphic elements.
Canva boasts an extensive collection of social media templates.
Canva offers time-saving photo editing tools like Background Remover.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How Much Is Canva Pro Per Month?
Canva Pro’s monthly subscription costs $12.99 monthly.
How Much Does Canva Pro Cost Annually?
Canva Pro’s annual subscription costs $119.99 annually ($9.99 monthly).
How Much Is the Cheapest Canva Pro?
Choose the annual subscription to save money in the long run. While you must pay an entire year upfront, you pay $9.99 monthly instead of $12.99.
Is the Pro Version of Canva Worth It?
It depends.
Canva Pro is worth using this online graphic design app for your business and professional needs. Canva pricing is reasonable relative to the number of advanced tools you can access.
Who Should Use Canva Pro?
Canva Pro’s versatility makes it an ideal design tool for these users.
Entrepreneurs who create social media graphics to reach their audience and boost their brand
Students and teachers who need a user-friendly design platform to create graphics
Website owners who don’t want to spend on professional graphic designers
Marketers who need to create stunning designs to attract more customers and sales
Creative teams that need an affordable and user-friendly design tool
Novice graphic designers who need to polish their skills and analyze the work of professionals
Users who need access to royalty-free photos, videos, vectors, and illustrations
How Do I Get Canva Pro for Free?
You can create a Canva account with your email address and sign up for Canva Pro’s 30-day free trial.
Follow these steps.
Go to the Canva website and click Sign up.
From the sign-up page, click Continue with email or Continue with work email.
Enter your email address.
Enter the authorization code that Canva sends to your email.
Verify your email.
Enter the confirmation code from Canva to set up your account.
Does Canva Have a Free Trial?
Yes. With Canva for Teams and Canva Pro free trials, you can access premium tools for 30 days. However, you must enter a valid credit or debit card to activate your account.
You can cancel anytime during your 30-day trial to prevent Canva from charging your card.
If you don’t cancel before the trial ends, Canva will automatically upgrade your plan to the paid version.
How Much Is Canva Pro for Students?
For primary and secondary students, Canva for Education is 100% free.
Canva for Education is identical to Canva Pro. In short, eligible students can use the same premium tools, including the drag-and-drop editor, background remover, and a million stock photos, templates, and graphics.
Canva for Education also includes a library of free educational resources.
How Much Is Canva Pro for Teachers?
Teachers can access premium tools for free with Canva for Campus, which offers the same features as the Pro version.
How Do I Get Canva Pro for Free as a Student or Teacher?
Here’s how to access Canva Pro for eligible students, educators, school districts, and institutions.
Open the Canva for Education sign-up page.
Sign up for Canva for Education with a verified educational email domain or your school or district’s Google, Clever, or Microsoft account.
Follow the sign-up prompts.
Click Get verified.
Which Organizations Qualify for Canva Pro Pricing Nonprofit?
Elibile nonprofit organizations can unlock all the advanced tools of Canva Pro for free. All they have to do is to fill out the application form for Canva to verify their eligibility.
Eligible nonprofit organizations should meet these requirements.
Registered nonprofits
Public health groups and government entities assisting with public health
Social impact organizations with a mission to help the public or community
Why Is Canva Pro So Expensive?
Some online design tools, such as VistaCreate, are cheaper than Canva Pro. However, nothing comes close to Canva’s premium tools, multiple integrations, editing capabilities, and extensive library of templates.
The price difference between Canva’s premium versions and its closest competitors isn’t significant enough to deter most users from switching to another service.
Do Professionals Use Canva?
While Canva is dubbed the best graphic design software for non-designers, it doesn’t mean professional designers shy away from using it.
Canva Pro allows professional graphic designers to spend more time creating graphics than making revisions by letting their clients or teammates make minor copy changes.
Collaboration tools and cloud storage let your clients or team access and edit your design through their accounts or links.
Is Canva Best Tool for Graphic Design?
While users have varying opinions over the best graphic design software, Canva is one of the best complete, user-friendly online design tools with an extensive library of images and graphics.
What Is the Best Alternative to Canva?
People have different opinions on the best Canva alternative. However, users often mention these graphic design tools (for non-professional designers) as possible contenders.
Visme
VistaCreate (formerly Crello)
Adobe Creative Cloud Express (formerly Adobe Spark)
Fotor Photo Editor
Prezi
Venngage
Marq
Some desktop applications like Adobe Photoshop, Premiere, and Illustrator also serve as Canva alternatives. However, these tools differ from Canva because they require a steeper learning curve and lack a library of free photos, videos, and graphics.
What Is Unique About Canva?
This online design tool offers an extensive library of templates, backgrounds, fonts, images, stickers, audio tracks, and videos. Non-designers also love Canva’s drag-and-drop photo editing functionality.
Do I Need To Pay Canva to Download My Design?
You must pay to download your Canva design using the free plan. The “Pro” graphics have a small crown icon next to them, typically costing $1 to $2.
However, you can unlock the Pro graphics and use or upload them for free when you upgrade to Canva Pro.
Can I Edit Photos With Canva?
Yes. Canva has a photo editing tool. You can even incorporate the edited photos into other designs and download them free with no watermark.
Is Canva Better Than Photoshop?
Both programs are helpful in their ways. However, Canva is better than Photoshop for non-designers.
Canva’s photo editor has limited functionality. Thus, Photoshop remains the gold standard for heavy image editing and graphic design.
Does Canva Offer Animations?
Yes. Canva has an extensive library of animations, videos, and GIFs to incorporate into your designs. However, you must upgrade to Canva Pro to access most of these elements.
While you can access Pro elements using Canva Free, you must buy their rights for a small fee.
Is It Legal To Sell Canva Templates?
You can sell your templates using other platforms, such as Etsy if you create your original design using Canva’s tools and content (photos, fonts, and other graphic elements).
You cannot copy and resell Canva templates.
The Bottom Line
Canva is a real game-changer because it allows small business owners, freelancers, and non-professionals to create stunning designs.
I hope my guide helped you understand Canva’s pricing and whether it’s worth it for your specific needs.
If you think Canva Pro isn’t for you, maybe you need the best digital art software.
