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Canva is an amazing graphic design tool that anyone can use.
What I love about it is that you don’t have to be a professional graphic designer to use it. The hardest thing about using Canva is just deciding on a design. The design options are practically unlimited.
If you’ve been using the free Canva version for a while, you may be wondering why bother upgrading to Canva Pro.
The free version is great, and it might be all you need. But once you understand the full scope of what Canva Pro offers, there’s a good chance you’ll want to make the switch.
Canva Pro continues to add to their already impressive toolkit.
Yes, there’s a small learning curve, but it’s really just a matter of jumping in and getting creative. The more you play with Canva Pro, the more you’ll learn.
While the free plan is fantastic, upgrading to Canva Pro unlocks advanced features that enable the creation of truly professional-looking designs.
Can you get by with just the free version of Canva?
The reality is that not everybody needs Canva Pro.
If you’re an individual on a budget, a student, a casual creator, or part of a small business with minimal design needs, the free version may be enough.
It provides access to essential design tools and a variety of Canva templates. This allows you to create visually appealing content without the commitment of a paid subscription.
You still get plenty of benefits with the free version!
For example, you’ll have access to a wide range of design templates, free icons, illustrations, and photos. You’ll still be able to add and customize text with a variety of fonts and formatting options. You’ll even get access to the essential design tools.
So why bother upgrading to Canva Pro? Keep reading to find out more about the extensive features available for Canva Pro users.
13 Canva Pro Benefits You’ve Got to See to Believe
I started using the free Canva version about 5 years ago, and it was all I needed for a long time.
The more I learned about Canva, the more I used it in all of my graphic designs. I made good use of the pre-made templates but quickly realized that the pro version had a lot more to offer.
Here are some of the top Canva Pro benefits:
1. Unlimited Access to Premium Templates
One of the key benefits of Canva Pro is its unrestricted access to premium templates. For example, a Canva Pro account will give you access to the following:
- Professional pitch decks
- Branded social media kits.
- Interactive infographics
- Event branding packages
- Professional Resumes and CVs
- Magazine and Brochure Layouts
- Animated social media posts
- Business proposals
- Product catalogs
- Sales presentations
With a Canva Pro account, you get access to the templates plus the full slate of graphic and design elements.
2. Add Audio to Your Designs
Canva Pro offers extra features, including the ability to pick audio tracks to add to your videos. You can add and layer up to 50 audio tracks to your design!
For example, let’s say you’re a small business owner looking to improve social media content.
You can use Canva to choose a social media template. They’ve got you covered for all your social media needs, including templates for Pinterest, TikTok videos, Instagram reels, Facebook ads, and so on.
Let’s say you want to create an Instagram reel that really stands out.
Choose a pre-made template from Canva, click on Elements, and scroll down until you find the Audio section. Once there, choose the sound that best suits what you’re trying to convey. One click will add it to the track automatically.
3. Image and Video Background Remover
There’s nothing more frustrating than trying to edit a design that has something in it you don’t want. It could be a person who stepped into the picture or a tree that you don’t want in the background.
Before Canva came along, you had to be an expert at Photoshop to edit something like that. Thankfully, things have changed.
This pro feature allows you to quickly remove unwanted backgrounds with the click of a button. Once the image or background is removed, you can further enhance your design with the other Canva design tools.
4. Magic Resize
Magic Resize is a tool that can save you hours of needless work.
With a single click, you can transform your design to fit different platforms.
This time-saving tool ensures that your visuals are optimized for various social media platforms, blog posts, or any other channels.
Using Magic Resize offers consistent branding, adapts to different social media platforms, and is great for marketing materials, presentations, and other contexts where the same design needs to be repurposed.
Of course, Canva Pro makes features like Magic Resize incredibly user-friendly.
Let’s say you’ve got a project you’re working on. Open the project, and then click on Magic Switch at the top of the page.
You’ll be given a number of options, including Translate, Transform into Doc, Resize, and more. All the options you need are right there at your fingertips.
Save your project and make a copy so that you can play around with the tools without losing your work.
5. Brand Consistency with the Brand Kit
I’ve recently started using the Brand Kit, and it’s much handier than I expected it to be.
All I had to do was upload my logo and choose my brand colors for my own customized color palette. I even chose the fonts I wanted to use for headings, subheadings, and body text.
Now all of my branding is in one centralized location.
Now, that’s pretty cool, but it gets better! The Brand Kit utilizes AI concepts to really bring your brand to life. Write a short paragraph explaining the brand voice you’re hoping for and AI takes it from there.
Now, whenever you want to add text, quotes, transcripts for videos, or anything else, AI can help you generate text that best fits your brand’s voice. It could be playful, professional, approachable, cute, funny, delightful…anything you want it to be.
The brand kit also allows you to add your brand graphics, icons, and photos in one centralized place. Of course, you can always go back and make changes if you want. It’s yours!
6. Full Access to Magic Studio
I mentioned Magic Resize earlier in this blog post, but the reality is that Canva Pro users have full access to the entire Magic Studio.
It’s amazing how many new and improved features Canva Pro has added in the short time I’ve been a member.
One of the best additions is the Magic Studio. It’s a collection of AI-powered tools that you can use directly in Canva. It’s a convenient feature because you don’t have to jump between platforms to use it.
In addition to helping you kickstart your creativity, features like Magic Switch allow you to quickly transform your decks into different kinds of documents.
Users with a Canva Pro account can easily edit visuals with Magic Expand or redesign images with Magic Grab. Magic Grab allows you to edit, reposition, or resize the subject of your photo!
Additional features include Magic Edit, Magic Eraser, Magic Morph, and Magic Write, to name a few. You’ll be amazed at everything it can do.
7. Custom Fonts for Personalized Typography
With Canva Pro, users can upload and use their custom fonts, adding a personalized touch to their designs.
This feature is especially beneficial for businesses looking to maintain brand consistency and stand out with unique typography. Once you have your custom fonts uploaded, make sure to add them to your brand kit!
8. Create a Canva Team
Adding team members is easy in the Canva Pro version. This is a great way to share your design ideas and get feedback from the people who matter the most.
Canva Pro allows you to add up to five people to your team at no extra cost. This can save you a lot of time and hassle. No more emailing back and forth for feedback. This is a great feature for a lot of
reasons. Here are some ways people might use Canva Teams:
- Collaborate on design projects.
- Brand management
- Template sharing
- To access a centralized location for team members to access and use approved graphics, images, and templates
- Teams can upload custom fonts and brand elements, making sure everyone has access to the same design elements.
- Team administrators can manage user access.
- t’s a great tool for onboarding new team members by providing them access to training materials, tutorials, etc.
- Teams can use Canva’s content planner to manage and schedule content.
- Canva teams integrate with other tools and platforms.
- Teams can use Canva to create event posters, marketing collateral, and campaign graphics collaboratively.
9. Schedule Social Media Posts
I love this feature, and I use it regularly. It’s as simple as creating a design using one of the many social media templates.
So, for example, I’ll create a Pinterest post first. I can then make a copy and resize that same Pinterest post into various sizes to fit Instagram Pages, Facebook, and so on.
Canva Pro has a scheduling option where you can take all of those social media posts you just batch created and set them up to publish at various times.
I really like this option because I don’t have to pay for a separate social media scheduler. Instead, I can use the full breadth of the platform to get the most out of it. And batch scheduling is a great idea for any content creator.
10. Generous Storage Space for Your Designs
Canva Pro provides users with a generous amount of storage space, allowing you to save and organize your designs without worrying about running out of space.
This feature is particularly valuable for those who work on multiple projects or require a centralized hub for their visual content.
With the free version, you get 5GB of storage space. It’s pretty good, but it doesn’t come close to the 1TB of cloud storage you’ll get with Canva Pro.
11. Time-Saving Features: Magic Resize and More
The Pro version of Canva introduces time-saving features like Magic Resize, enabling users to adapt their designs for different platforms without the hassle of manual adjustments. These tools streamline the
design process, allowing users to focus on creativity rather than repetitive tasks.
12. Commercial Use for Business Owners and Creatives
Unlock the full potential of Canva for commercial purposes with a Canva Pro subscription.
Small business owners, entrepreneurs, and content creators can confidently use Canva Pro to create designs for their business, ensuring compliance with licensing agreements and copyright laws.
13. Easily Convert Presentations
Professional graphic designers can benefit greatly from Canva Pro’s advanced features.
The platform offers a wide range of tools and resources that cater to the needs of experienced designers, providing a user-friendly interface without compromising on functionality.
Summing it up
In addition to all of the features noted in this blog post, I also wanted to mention that there are totally FREE options for teachers, schools, and districts.
Teachers can invite their students to their Canva classroom. This feature is available for primary or secondary schools only.
You don’t need a Canva Pro account to access the educational version of Canva. To get verified, you’ll be asked to answer some questions about yourself, including your school name, school address, and school website, among other things.
Ultimately, Canva Pro is a no-brainer for anyone working a creative side hustle, managing a full-time business, or even indulging in a hobby that can become a money-making endeavour.
Personally, I love the freedom Canva Pro gives me to create original content using its unique design elements. I can then download my original creations and sell them on platforms like Etsy or here on my own website.
