You can do a lot of things with the free version of Canva. However, the more you use it, the more you see its limitations. Maybe you’re thinking about upgrading to Canva Pro.
Before you bite the bullet, it’s only fitting to consider how much it’s going to cost and whether or not it’s worth the money.
I can’t tell you outright that it is worth it because I don’t know what you want to use Canva Pro for. But, I can tell you that I’m the most frugal business owner you’ll meet (ask my wife) and that I’m happy to pay for Canvas Pro and I think it’s definitely worth it for our business.
In this article, I can show you how different Canva Pro is from the free version. That way, you can make an informed decision based on your needs.
Let’s get started.
What is Canva?
On the off chance that you’re new to blogging and creating graphics for social media, let me first cover what Canva is.
Canva is a graphic design editor primarily used for creating images. Most Canva users make images like Pinterest pins, YouTube thumbnails, Facebook posts, infographics, or pretty much graphics you might need for business. The effortless drag-and-drop style of the platform makes it easy for anyone to use.
Canva also has a massive photo, font, design element, background, texture, video, and audio library. You can gain access to this library to make truly unique creations.
If you’re not the type to start from scratch, there are also many templates available for any design you’d want to make. Even if graphic design is not really in your wheelhouse, you can still create professional-looking graphics on Canva nonetheless.
Canva’s free plan offers a ton of functionality. Without paying anything, you can accomplish practical tasks like making Pinterest pins and graphics for social media. You can see everything that’s paywalled on the free plan, so you know what you’re missing.
The features available on Canva Pro can sure come in handy at times. I use the paid version because I love having access to its vast stock photo library, and I get to store and sell my designs as well.
I’ll make some comparisons below so you can figure out if the paid version of Canva is suitable for you too.
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Canva: Free VS Pro
Fonts
On the free version of Canva, you get limited access to the platform’s font library. Sure, there are a lot, but you may need to use ones that are paywalled. You also can’t upload your own fonts, so that’s a no-go for those who like to make custom fonts.
With Canva Pro Pricing, you get access to the complete library with over 1,000 fonts to choose from! Plus, you can upload other fonts too.
Photos and Videos
As I said before, there are plenty of resources available on the free version of Canva, including 4 million photos, videos, and other elements. You can also upload your own pictures for free and you don’t have to pay for the Pro version if you’d like to use premium photos. You can buy the rights starting at $1.
On the other hand, Canva Pro lets you use its complete photo library, which has over 60 million elements you can add to your designs at no extra cost.
Templates
Some people prefer to start working with a template. Templates are handy because element placements are already set for you. All you have to do is customize what’s on your images. With Free Canva, you can use 8000 templates. But with Canva Pro, you get to use over 20,000 templates.
Organization and Storage
After using Canva for a while, you’ll find it helpful to organize your projects. With the free version of Canva, you can only create two folders and have a total of 1GB as storage. With the paid version, you get to create as many folders as you want and have a capacity of 100GB as storage for your projects.
Brand Kit
Maybe you intend to use Canva to make branding images for your business. Well, the free version of Canva doesn’t have a brand kit. You can’t upload transparent logo files, and your color palette is limited to only three colors.
But with Canva Pro, you can upload your logo files so you can put your logo on your graphics quickly. You can also create up to 100 color palettes containing up to 100 colors each. I’d say this feature is necessary if you’re trying to build up your brand.
Sharing
Of course, sharing is essential if you work within a company, however small. Some collaboration is necessary for design most of the time. With Free Canva, you can share a link to your project via email. The recipient can then view or edit the project.
With Canva Pro, you get to do the same thing, but the recipient is also allowed to use the project as a template. This feature is what lets users sell their unique templates on Canva.
I think this new feature is a tremendous improvement on only being able to share a link to edit a design. It eliminates the chances of having your work altered and stolen. I like that you can send essentially just a copy of your work and not the original.
Resizing
It makes sense that you’d be able to resize your design as a whole on any graphic design software, right? Not with Canva. If you end up with a design that’s the wrong size, you have to start all over again because there’s no way to resize it.
Canva Pro comes with the “magic” resize function. This function will save you a lot of time. You can also turn one design into multiple formats if necessary. Honestly, this is the main thing that got me to switch to Pro.
Transparent Backgrounds
Transparent backgrounds are handy when you want to slap images onto things without having to crop out what you don’t want to see. And you guessed it; this feature is not available in the free version.
On Canva Pro, you can delete backgrounds in one click and save images as transparent PNG files. This feature is perfect for designing and transferring logos.
Animations
In Free Canva, you can animate your design in six ways. In the Pro version, there are eleven ways. This is not a very important feature for most, but I thought I’d add it here for those who are interested.
Stuff About Canva That Could Be Better
Canva has been a part of my blogging for years. There’s not much about Canva Pro Pricing that I can complain about. The only thing that I think could be better is its photo library search function.
Canva has no filter to narrow down your searches. To chance on the right image, you have to scroll through loads of photos in the library. Sure, you can use a keyword to limit your search, but only one. I think most people will agree with me when I say that this is the worst thing about Canva.
I also have to say that Canva is not available offline. So if you don’t have constant internet access or your service is slow, you can’t use Canva.
Aside from these two drawbacks that apply to both the free and Pro versions of Canva, it’s still a powerful editing tool that’s worth using.
Who is Canva Pro for?
If you want to sell your unique templates on Canva, it would be vital to make the upgrade. You can sell your templates by using the “share a link to use as template” feature to send out copies of your work.
If you need access to Canva’s extensive media library, then you should go for it too. I have to say that having access to all the paywalled elements makes my creations unique. I can customize my graphics however I want, with stuff that best fits my design choices.
A Recap of Canva Pro Features
- Access to paywalled content in Canva’s library
- Access to more than 1000 premium fonts and the ability to upload your own
- Brand kit feature with 100 color palettes
- “Magic” resize tool
- Ability to share links are templates
- Ability to upload and make transparent backgrounds
- Access to over 20,000 premium templates
- Unlimited folders for organization and 100GB for storage
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Canva Pro Pricing
The Canva Pro Pricing monthly plan will cost you $12.95 per month. You’re going to be billed monthly, and you can cancel anytime. If you pay for Canva Pro for the whole year, the monthly cost is reduced to $9.95 per month. All in all, you pay $119.40.
If you plan to use Canva Pro with a large team, Canva has the Canva Enterprise plan, which is $30 per month.
I’d also like to put this out there: If you’re a teacher, student, or nonprofit organization, you can apply for a Canva Pro plan for free!
Trying Out Canva Pro
If you’re still unsure about upgrading to Canva Pro, I have some good news for you. You can sign up for Canva’s one-month free trial. During these 30 days, you check out all of Pro’s features to know if upgrading will be worth it for you.
Don’t worry; if you don’t like the Canva Pro Pricing, you can cancel your trial any time before it ends and you don’t have to pay anything.
Is Canva Pro worth it?
It is, for me. Canva Pro offers many features that I’d miss if I go back to the free version. That being said, it’s possible to create great stuff on the free version, but upgrading is definitely worth it if you want to expand your business.
