Canva Price Increase: Everything You Need to Know

We are very familiar with Canva as a perfect tool that creates a one-stop-shop for every creative tasks. Whether you’re a creator, a businessperson, or a writer like me who wants to add creativity to blogs/landing pages. 

Canva is one of the famous designing platforms (among all Canva Alternatives) with user base which has grown by over 200% since 2022, reaching over 185 million monthly active users as of May 2024.

Nowadays, Canva is in limelights, because of its creative and advanced features? NO! Our all-in-one solution for every designing task has increased its prices for ‘Team Subscription Plans’.

What to know more in detail? Stick to the blog to know everything you need to know about Canva Price Increase, to stay updated.

Why Canva increased its subscription prices?

This is not normal that Canva did increase its subscription prices, there is a solid reason behind it. 

Let’s understand!

It is well seen that Canva lunched in Australia in 2012, and with the span of time it has enhanced so much as a designing platform so much for industry experts as well as for beginners. 

Canva has hiked its subscription prices primarily due to the growth in its Visual suite and significant investment in AI-infused design tools- Magic Studio.

While this increase in price can be considered substantial for many users, they should also consider some of the additional benefits and features now offered through Canva.

“Canva Teams has come a long way since launching in 2020, with major enhancements in team collaboration, brand management, the launch of our Visual Suite and our investments in [Canva’s AI feature] Magic Studio,” statement by Canva’s Spokesperson in an interview with Fortune. 

Also mentioned that since 2020 launch- this is the very first time Canva made an increase in pricing. By providing all sorts of assistance to their customers; designing for a deadline, solving a tech issue, or making collaborations efficient.

What are the key features of Canva subscription price hikes?

To understand more of this 'Team Price Increase', I want to know what are the features that Canva will provide. Here are the key features of Canva subscription price hikes: -

• Collaborative Design: Teams can collaborate in real-time on designs, streamlining feedback and approvals.
• Brand Kit: Customize and maintain consistency with logos, brand colors, and fonts for teams.
• Unlimited Folders and Storage: Organize projects and assets with unlimited folders and increased cloud storage.
• Team Templates: Create reusable templates that all team members can access and modify.
• Advanced Sharing Options: Control access and permissions for different team members on projects.
• Design Approval Workflow: Simplified review process with feedback and approval functionality for teams.
• Premium Stock Content: Access to millions of premium photos, videos, and illustrations.
• Team Insights and Analytics: Monitor team activities and performance metrics on shared designs.

4 Prominent benefits for Canva Users (Then v/s Now)

Here are 4 prominent benefits for Canva users, comparing "Then" (before the team subscription price increase) vs "Now" (after the increase): -

1. Access to Premium Features

• Then: Canva Pro users had access to an extensive library of templates, stock photos, icons, fonts, and videos with collaborative features at a lower team subscription price.
• Now: Despite the subscription price increase, users still benefit from expanded features like Brand Kit management, content planner, and unlimited storage, but now with enhanced collaboration tools for bigger teams. The price hike aligns with the added value to manage larger teams and scale design efforts.

2. Team Collaboration

• Then: Canva Pro allowed team members to collaborate on designs in real-time with features like shared folders and comments, which was ideal for small to medium-sized teams at an affordable rate.
• Now: Canva has improved its collaboration tools, making it easier to assign roles, control access, and collaborate with even larger teams. The price increase reflects the upgraded management and workflow tools, especially useful for bigger organizations.

3. Design Sharing and Publishing

• Then: Canva users could share designs and publish them across various platforms, with some limited integrations and straightforward design sharing.
• Now: Canva’s new integrations with platforms like Dropbox, Google Drive, and Slack have expanded. Users can seamlessly connect designs with these services, making it easier to manage content workflows. The price increase aligns with these more robust integrations.

4. Advanced Editing Tools

• Then: Canva offered a strong set of design tools, but some advanced tools like background remover and resizing were limited to specific tiers.
• Now: With the subscription price increase, Canva has introduced more advanced editing tools, including AI-powered design suggestions and additional content creation tools (video editing, animations, etc.), making the platform more powerful for users.

This price shift is aimed at reflecting the extra value and scalability Canva provides for businesses and large teams.

Let's understand the structure of the Canva pricing now!

• Canva provides a tiered subscription plan based on the number of team members.
• For Canva Pro Teams, the cost typically starts around $119.99/year for the first person, with an additional cost per person for each added team member. The pricing increases with each additional member in the team.
• They also offer monthly billing, with a starting price around $12.99/month per person, making it flexible for small teams or those needing a short-term plan.

How Canva team price increase can be avoided?

If you also came this long in this blog. So, you also being wondering about the 'Alternatives of Canva' by which one can avoid the team price increase.

There are several excellent alternatives that offer similar design capabilities for creating graphics, presentations, social media posts, and more. Here are five of the best Canva alternatives: -

1) Creatosaurus: This platform provides templates, icons, fonts, and image editing tools. You can create high-quality visuals, social media posts, and web pages easily.

Free plan available; premium plan starts at a lower rate than Canva.

Those looking for professional-quality designs with AI Generative Tools.

2) Crello (Now VistaCreate): Similar to Canva, VistaCreate offers templates, animations, and an easy drag-and-drop editor. You can create social media graphics, ads, and presentations with ease.

Free plan available with paid options starting at a lower price point than Canva.

Designers and non-designers who want a wide selection of templates and an easy interface.

3) Snappa: Snappa provides pre-sized templates for social media, ads, and blogs, along with free stock photos, fonts, and icons. The interface is simple, making it a user-friendly Canva alternative.

Free plan available; premium plans are affordable and lower than Canva.

Bloggers, small business owners, and marketers needing quick and easy designs.

4) DesignBold: DesignBold offers over 10,000 templates and a large library of stock photos. Its drag-and-drop editor is similar to Canva, making it easy for beginners.

Free plan available; premium starts at a lower price than Canva.

Freelancers, small businesses, and individuals who want a straightforward design tool.

Some case studies of User’s reaction to increase in Canva team pricing

The price hikes-mostly because of customer emails-have brought about criticism, especially from small businesses reliant on Canva. Users have taken to social media to complain about the fact that the price increase is too high, even with a 40%-off discount for the first year.

The frustration isn't just about the cost but about how Canva's handled this," said a digital marketing consultant. For many users, the discount feels like a band-aid on what they see as a steep price hike.

For example: -

i) Reid Southen (@Rahll): Film concept artist and illustrator of projects like Transformers said on Canva Team Subscription hike,"A 300% price increase is seriously insane, are they out of their minds? AI is such a scam."

ii) Jamie Crain (@JamieCrain): Award-Winning Communicator, Former Politico + Veteran of 100+ Campaigns, Marketing Strategist, and a Media Company Founder said on this major price hike," This @canva price increase is interesting. I'm canceling and moving back over to Adobe since I don't actually use the second seat. BUT: the marketing groups I'm in right now. Wow. @Adobe has an opportunity here. People are angry and already talking about dropping Canva.

This really shows that Canva can lose some of its customers after the 'Team Price Subscription".

Canva shift: A basic tool to a pro team subscription price increase in 2024

Canva was launched in 2013 by Melanie Perkins, Cliff Obrecht, and Cameron Adams to inspire non-designers with its ease of design. It was meant to democratize design, making it easy for users without prior design experience to create professional-looking graphics without the complexity of more traditional design programs like Adobe Photoshop.

By 2024, Canva had grown into an international platform that made designing easy for millions of users. The company recently raised its subscription prices, a sign that it's finally grown up into a full-fledged professional tool.

1) The Early Days of Canva as a Creative Tool in the Market

When Canva was new to the design tool market, it mainly focused on solving problems of unskilled customers in design and creativity. It provided free tools, templates, etc. for there go to presentations, posters, invitations, and much more.

Canva known how to solve a problem at design!

The platform's key feature was its drag-and-drop functionality and pre-designed templates that made creating professional visuals accessible to everyone.

Talking about the 'Subscription Plan' at that time, so, Canva didn't had any. It offered a free version in front of everyone which attracted almost millions of users to it, as regular customers. Gradually, it served the advanced features like templates, editing tools, stock photos, and enhanced customization options with some charges.

By 2020, Canva had over 40 million users globally and was valued at $6 billion. The platform expanded its toolkit to include video editing, team collaboration features, and integrations with tools like Google Drive and Dropbox, further positioning itself as a powerful design hub for professionals and businesses alike.

2) Canva’s Growth and Business Model in the Market of Creative Tools like Adobe

One of the most successful strategies of Canva was its freemium model: in as much as users could access its basic features for free, advanced features included in the Canva Pro subscription entailed added storage, premium assets, and advanced editing tools. This kind of pricing model allowed Canva to retain huge masses of users and successfully convert a substantial share of them into subscribers.

As the company grew, it made sure to provide much importance to a workspace that was collaborative by adding new tools for teams and enterprises. Among those came real-time collaboration, brand kits, and advanced asset management. In fact, the turn toward catering to teams along with individuals marked a point in the journey of Canva into a design powerhouse.

In 2021, Canva introduced Canva for Teams, a subscription for businesses, including branding features, workflow management, and collaborations on a grand scale.

3) Canva’s Pro Team Subscription and Price Increase in 2024

By 2024, Canva had gained the leading position of an all-round design platform, employed by individuals, freelancers, businesses, and corporations. The demand for more sophisticated features and improved user experiences impelled Canva to enhance the service-desire, especially for Pro Teams.

In January 2024, Canva announced a price increase for the Pro Team subscription. This price hike was representative of the expanded toolset on this platform, to name a few: -

i) Advanced Design Features: Canva introduced newer AI-powered design features, including auto-content generation, which really reduced the workload of professional users.

ii) Improvements in Collaboration: More real-time collaboration features and advanced project management now meant that teams could work with seamless ease on big-scale design projects.

iii) Increased Asset Access: With the Pro Team subscription, users were given access to an increased amount of premium stock images, templates, fonts, and video assets that gave them more creative leeway.

iv) Brand Controls: With Canva, there was the introduction of advanced branding controls for businesses to manage how logos, colors, fonts, and templates were used by teams to create on-brand designs.

But for these changes, Canva was able to justify the price increase as a necessary step that helps to support their growing infrastructure and demands from its users. It was telling users that this would bring in more added value to businesses and professional teams that rely on Canva as a default design tool.

Canva’s ability to evolve in response to its users' needs has allowed it to retain a strong position in the design tool market. As of 2024, it competes directly with established giants like Adobe, while maintaining a unique appeal with its user-friendly interface and flexibility.

Conclusion for Canva Price Increase

As such, the recently avowed price increase by Canva for its Team Subscription Plans is reflective of continued investment into advanced features like AI-powered tools, improved collaboration, and more design resources within the platform. Though small businesses and freelancers might feel the pinch from this recent price hike, it's a robust tool for larger teams and professional users because of the additional value provided with collaboration, brand management, and content creation.

Those would like to look for alternatives, though, and many design platforms exist that offer similar functionalities at rather inexpensive rates, so creative solutions for whatever need the users might have been found.

Further Readings on AI Designing Tools

AI Image Generator: A Powerful Tool for Creatives & Businesses

Muse AI Photo Editor - Free online AI image editor | Creatosaurus

FAQs on Canva Price Increase

1) Are there any alternative design tools that are more affordable?

Ans: There are several alternatives to Canva, including Creatosaurus, Adobe Creative Cloud, Figma, and Visme. These tools may offer similar features but with different pricing structures.

2) How much will the price increase be for existing Canva Teams customers?

Ans: The exact amount of the increase will vary depending on your current subscription plan and location. However, many users have reported significant price hikes, with some seeing increases of up to 300%.

3) Is there a discount available for existing customers?

Ans: Canva has offered a one-year discount for existing Teams subscribers to ease the transition to the new pricing. However, the specific details of this discount may vary.