Canva Pro vs Free: What’s The Difference In 2023?

Are you considering upgrading to the pro version of Canva but confused about the differences between Canva Pro vs Free? 

Don’t worry. You are not alone. We started with Canva’s free version a few years back to meet our daily design requirements. Whether they were for social media or our brand, we relied on the free version. However, the Pro version’s features looked very tempting, so we decided to give Canva Pro our try! 

After using Canva Pro for two years now, we decided to help users stuck between choosing Canva free vs pro. Therefore, in this article, we will compare both Canva versions side-by-side based on our experience. 

By the end of this article, you will get a clear idea about which version is right for you. So, let’s get into the details below! 

Canva Pro vs Free: All The Differences

There are a lot of differences that go unnoticed when considering the difference between Canva Free vs Pro. If you are on the go and need a glance at all the differences, take a look at the table below with our in-depth side-by-side comparison. 

What Does Canva Free Offer?

Compared to other tools online, Canva’s free version offers a lot more. It comes as a surprise that the free version can offer you plenty of features that one can enjoy. The free version comes with the following features: 

• Access to over 250,000 templates that are ready to use. 
• Easy export option to save your files. 
• Thousands of free graphics and pictures that you can use in your designs. 
• Team collaboration features to work with your team seamlessly. 
• More than 100 design layouts can be used for multiple purposes. 
• 5GB cloud storage. 
• Allows you to save your work into various folder types. 
• 57,000+ graphic elements. 

The features offered by Canva free are exceptional, and any user looking for a fully-functional graphic design tool without spending a single dollar can take advantage of the free version of Canva. 

Despite all the functionalities, there are various aspects where the Canva free will restricts your work. For instance, the limited storage option is insufficient for large business owners and designers with regular workflow. 

Similarly, there is a lack of tools for branding. This is a significant downfall for users who want to build their design around their brand. For example, you cannot use your brand logo, add your personal font, or put your brand color palette. On the other hand, the pro version will give you a personal touch that matches your brand and keep an even design throughout by letting you do all the things that the free version doesn’t allow. 

Nevertheless, these are not just the only limits Canva free puts. There are multiple additional features that Canva Pro offers and helps designers and business owners use the full potential of Canva. Let us discuss it in detail in the next section. 

What Does Canva Pro Offer?

From the quick overview of the differences between Canva free vs pro, you may have had an idea about the differences it offers. However, in this section, we will deep dive into all Canva Pro’s features. 

• Access to 610,000+ templates. 

If you check the templates offered by the free version, you may think that they are enough. But, on the brighter side, what if you are offered access to more than 610,000+ ready-to-use templates? That’s what Canva Pro is! The professionally designed templates are available for every niche, occasion, and more. 

• Remove background from the existing image! 

Removing background from pictures is useful when you want to create a thumbnail or create a profile picture for your social media profiles. All you need to do is select the image and use the tool. That’s it! 

• Unlimited folders and additional storage

After you are done designing, you only get 5GB of storage with the free version, which you can use to store your logos, photos, and videos. Although it would be sufficient for students and people who are working on small projects, your storage can run out quickly as your assets increase. Fortunately, the pro version allows you to create unlimited folders where you can segregate your designs, videos, and pictures. Additionally, you get 100GB of storage which is more than sufficient for you and the team. 

• Easily create customized templates and save them for your team

When you work with the focus of your brand in the center, you may find the free version of Canva restricted. With the free version, you can only use the templates that Canva already offers. However, on the other hand, with the Pro version, you can design your template, customize it, and save it so that your team can use these templates whenever they want. 

• Publish your designs directly from Canva Pro

If you use the free version for your social media designs, you will have to save it to your device and then upload it separately. However, with the Pro version, you can create your designs and publish them directly on social media. 

• Magic resize tool. 

Now let’s talk about the real tempting feature of Canva pro. The Magic Resize tool automatically enables you to adjust the designs for different social media platforms. For example, the tool will automatically suggest the right size for your design for each social media platform. 

• 24/7 customer support. 

Customer support is crucial because if you ever get stuck into a problem, you need a reliable support team to help you. With the free version, you get access to the help center. However, the support is self-help, meaning you have to find answers to your query on your own through FAQs, blogs, articles, forums, and more. On the other hand, if you purchase the pro version, you get 24/7 customer support through email. 

The features of Canva Pro doesn’t limit here. Additional perks include access to pre-licensed pictures, videos, thousands of audios, and more. 

How To Get Canva Pro For Free?

Apart from trying Canva Pro for free with a 30-day free trial, there are a few certain ways that you can get Canva Pro for free. Here are two ways to get Canva Pro for free:

1. Canva For Education 

Canva For Education allows students and teachers to access Canva Pro for free and collaborate on projects easily. School Institutions can also sign up for Canva for education and get access to Canva Pro. You will get access to the entire space, where you will be able to see all the projects of your students in one place and help them out as well.

To sign up for Canva for education program, you will need an email address ending with .edu. Only after verifying yourself as a student or teacher you will get access to Canva Pro.

2. Canva For Nonprofits

Canva also offers free access to Canva Pro to Nonprofits, and the designs, workspace, and templates are tailored to fulfill the needs of nonprofit organizations. You can apply for this program if you are running a registered non-profit organization. After they review and approve your application, you can access Canva Pro.

You must also fulfill the eligibility criteria to access Canva Pro. You need to produce the documents of your organization being a legitimate non-profit organization.

Pros & Cons Of Canva

Here are the pros & cons of using Canva.

Pros

• You don’t need any technical skills to start creating amazing designs on Canva.
• Canva offers everything you need to create logos, designs, infographics, and images.
• You can share your designs directly to social media platforms using Canva’s social media integrations.
• Canva allows you to collaborate with your team on the same project in real time.
• If you want to learn visual editing, graphic design, and image editing, then you can enroll in Canva’s design school.

Cons

• Canva’s mobile app is not easy to use.
• Features are very limited in Canva free version.

Canva Pro: Pricing 

Canva pro does not complicate the users with its pricing. Instead, you get a simple pricing structure where you can pick the plan which suits you the best. Let’s look at the price breakdown of Canva Pro below!

If you are a solopreneur and need to try your hands on the excellent tool, you can also try Canva Pro for free for 30 days. When you purchase the plan, you get a free trial of 30 days initially. After the trial period ends, you can decide to continue or dismiss the Pro version. 

Furthermore, we recommend opting for the annual plan since it helps you save plenty of money compared to the monthly plan. The monthly plan can be expensive for beginners and students. This is why the annual plan will allow you to save maximum! 

Our Experience With Canva Pro: Is it Worth it?

Canva Pro is no different from the free version regarding the user interface. You need not be a designer to get started with the pro version and enjoy its perks. When you start designing on your desktop, you can easily see all the options in front of your screen. 

The one-click Magic Resize tool is one of our favorite tools. The Pro version also allowed us to improve branding with customization options. We also tried the team collaboration feature and were surprised by how effortless it did our work. For example, after one editor designed a template, the other could use the ready-made template immediately, saving time and repeated efforts. 

Lastly, it also helped us schedule our posts. Overall, Canva Pro provides unlimited design options and makes your work hassle-free. So, investing a couple of dollars to sky-rocket your designing game is worth it!

Bottom Line: Canva Pro vs Free (2023)

Now that we have reached the end of our comparison, we believe you have a clear picture of what each version offers. It comes as no surprise that paying for Canva Pro is worth it, and there are plenty of perks you can enjoy compared to the free version. 

You can enjoy 30 days of free Canva Pro with the free trial! So, even if you are unsatisfied with the pro version, you don’t have to spend a single penny from your pocket. 

We hope our comparison between Canva Free vs Pro helped you understand the differences. Over to you. Do you think Canva pro is worth it? We are excited to hear your thoughts about it in the comment section below!

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