7 Best Canva Alternatives

Most of the time, when people think about creating and designing images for free, Canva tends to be the preferred option since it has all kinds of tools that you could need to quickly and easily design flyers, posters, infographics, business cards, slides, and more.

Canva is one of the leading graphic design tools on the market, being used in over 190 countries but the free version has design limitations and like PowerPoint or Google Slides it requires time and a certain level of design skill to get the best results.

If you are looking for other options, including the leading AI design tools, this article will review the best alternatives to Canva. Many of these offer a better, more effective design solution for creators with different levels of design experience.

The 7 Best Canva Alternatives

Canva is one of many options for design software with a full suite of editing features but does have a learning curve. There are additional limitations with its free design plan, for example it can be difficult to search for free resources separately from the premium items. Other challenges include it is not ideal when you need to use graphs or maps in your design. Here is a list of the best paid and free alternatives to Canva. 

Typeset

Typeset is a user-friendly AI-powered design engine that combines your creative content with cutting-edge design, making it easier than ever to create slide decks, presentations, ebooks,  social media posts, banners, reports, thumbnails, advertisements, social media graphics, and so much more visual content. 

Typeset automatically formats your content as you type, making it possible to design professional, ready-to-share content in minutes. Typeset analyzes your content and provides royalty-free images and design templates. 

With just a few clicks, users can create and add visually stunning images, interactive polls, bar charts, pie charts, Gantt charts, and flowcharts into their projects. These dynamic visual elements enhance data clarity and improve communication of key messages.

Pros: 

• No design skills necessary so you can focus on your message. Ideal for beginners or users with graphic design experience
• 30-day money back guarantee, so you can try it risk free. 
• Reuse existing content to expand output. Turn a presentation into an eBook, or social media with little effort. 
• Eliminate writers block: AI provides title and copy suggestions at any time. 
• Save time and effort—Typeset designs your presentation or document in just a few clicks. 
• Intuitive design suggests photos, quotes, logos, and more based on your content. 
• Save brand logos, colors, and fonts and apply them to all documents to ensure cohesive branding with every project. 
• Low cost, basic version and discounted annual subscription plans available. There is also a 50% discount for students, teachers, and nonprofit customers. You can join here.
• Convenient export formats include PowerPoint, PDF, and JPEG.
• Typeset Pro version includes free access to over 10 million high-quality images from Getty Images’ creative library.
• Web-based application works on Android, Windows, and Macs (iOS) computers.

Cons:

• The platform works differently than other design platforms and has a slight learning curve. A 10-15 minute interactive onboarding training conveniently covers the basics. 
• Users with advanced design skills may want additional customization features that are not available with this tool. 
• There are various affordable pricing tiers and discounted subscriptions, but there is no free version.

Adobe Express

There are ways to have Photoshop for free. One of these is Adobe Express (previously called Adobe Spark), an image editing tool that has become one of the best alternatives to Canva, since it integrates many unique features. Still, it has an interface that is not intuitive which presents a barrier for new users or users with limited graphic design experience.

When you use Adobe Express for free, you have access to many photo editor effects, templates, assets, and elements, as well as free fonts and photos. 

Upgrading to the premium plan, which costs $9.99 per month, eliminates some limitations of the free version. The Premium Plan provides over 20,000 fonts, access to millions of royalty-free stock images, and more. 

Pros:

• One of the best photo editing tools available.  
• Includes an image generator that works with AI. 
• Adobe Express is free and includes thousands of templates, Adobe Stock photos, videos and music, Adobe Fonts, and design assets.
• Ideal for those with some expertise in editing pictures, like graphic editors.
• Available in Android, Windows, and Macs (iOS).
• Adobe Express Premium includes 100GB storage with the Adobe Creative Cloud.  

Cons:

• Adobe products, including Express, require some graphic design skill and are not the best option for beginners. 
• The free version provides limited content creation tools.

Visme

Visme is a Canva alternative where you can create social media graphics, infographics, short video clips, and more. 

It specializes in enhancing and improving the design of graphics, infographics, and slides in general. You can choose from thousands of professional-looking templates and resources if you don't want to start from scratch. 

The drag-and-drop editor is intuitive and offers features like the background remover and personalized brand kit.

Visme offers a free version of their product, but it does have some limitations. The tiered Starter and Pro plans upgrade to more features and eliminate several restrictions on the free version. These upgrades are offered at monthly and annual prices. 

Visme also offers AI-powered functions to create complete designs from a prompt. Other features of Visme AI are the ability to edit images, craft text, or get enhanced search results. 

Pros:

• Advanced Data Visualization Tools.
• Available in Android, Windows, and Macs (iOS).
• Offers a robust suite of animation and interactive features.
• Can create videos and GIFs for social media.
• Widgets provide quick access to information, online courses, and interactive content that you can use.
• Robust tutorials and webinars allow you to learn more about this platform and take advantage of all its functions. 
• Team plans have collaboration features to help teams work on projects. 

Cons:

• Limited storage for projects.
• Watermark in the free version.
• Inability to add your own fonts.
• Limited download options with the Free version and Starter version.

PicMonkey

PicMonkey is one of the most affordable alternatives to Canva. It is easy to use and allows you to edit images without problems. With PicMonkey, you can create a wide array of visual designs including business cards, event invitations, collages, banner ads, and more. PicMonkey is owned by Shutterstock, which has a large stock image catalog. Access to the Premium stock photo library comes with the Pro and Business plans. 

PicMonkey has robust image editing features, allowing you to make advanced edits with various filters and effects. Easily resize images with their Smart Resize tool. One of the most notable features is the photo retoucher, which works like Photoshop but is easier for the user. 

With PicMonkey, you get a 7-day free trial, after which you must choose a Basic, Pro, or Business subscription plan.

Pros: 

• Designed for people who need to create professional-looking visual graphics for any purpose.
• High-quality stock images from the Shutterstock photo library. 
• Available in Android, Windows, and Macs (iOS).
• Basic video editor.

Cons: 

• It doesn't offer a free plan.
• Basic plan offers limited (1GB) storage and omits several features.
• Image download formats are limited to JPG, PNG, or PDF.

Pixlr

Pixlr is a good option for graphic design beginners. Pixlr gained popularity for its user-friendly interface, intuitive controls, and a rich library of more than 50,000 templates, fonts, elements, stickers, and overlays. A free version of Pixlr’s photo editor still exists, as well as a suite of additional tools, including generative AI capabilities such as object remover, face swap, and image upscale. 

Pixlr Designer provides templates for various projects, a collage maker, and animation tool. These are available through a Pixlr Premium subscription. 

Pixlr’s free photo editor includes ads, but an upgrade to Pixlr Plus for $1.99 per month removes the ads, and includes some AI credits. While the UI is easy to use, it can be confusing to navigate between Pixlr’s various products and plans. 

Pros:

• Fairly low learning curve and is easy to use.
• Available in Android, Windows, and Macs (iOS).
• Free version, and low-cost upgraded subscriptions.
• A host of generative AI features with functions including auto fix and image generator.
• Supports a variety of image file formats, including GIF, JPEG, PNG, BMP, and TIFF.
• Includes mobile functionality as well as web and desktop. 

Cons:

• It is geared mainly towards photo creation/editing and visual content.
• Suite of products can be difficult to navigate.
• Export options do not include PPT or PDF for slide decks or eBooks.

Snappa

Snappa is another graphic editor alternative to Canva that offers a wide variety of templates and royalty-free photos. Additionally, you can upload custom images to include in your projects. Snappa was initially created for small businesses to quickly create digital graphics and images. It is easy to use for social media, display ads, blog images, and more.

Snappa offers a free plan that includes templates and stock imagery but is limited to three downloads per month. Upgrading to the Pro plan allows for unlimited downloads and offers additional features including an image background remover. A Buffer integration allows for scheduling social media which saves time for small businesses and solopreneurs. 

Pros:

• The design elements include photos, icons, vectors, and a simple set of shapes. The vectors are displayed in all black and can be color-customized.
• Buffer integration for social media scheduling.
• Includes all standard sizes for social media channels and blog graphics.
• Available in Android, Windows, and Macs (iOS).
• A 33% discount for annual subscriptions.

Cons:

• Snappa free version heavily limits use.
• Design tools and templates are primarily geared for social media use, although there are infographic templates. 
• Need to rely on outside tools to create animations or gifs.  

VistaCreate

VistaCreate (formerly known as Crello) is positioned as a top alternative to Canva for small businesses because of its easy to use branding and style features and the ability to schedule social posts from the platform or even print through their connection to VistaPrint. At the same time the VistaCreate user interface is very similar to Canva and the same level of design abilities are needed to be effective. 

VistaCreate also has an extensive template library and resources that you can use in your content and a video editor and animation capabilities.

VistaCreate offers a robust free plan, which includes access to many of their templates and scheduling tool and may be enough in many cases. The Pro subscription allows access to team editing and projects and unlocks even more template capabilities. 

Pros:

• Big library with tons of templates.
• Offers advanced features like social media scheduling.
• Design templates are conveniently divided between Print, Business, and Design for social.
• The free version tends to be enough for most people.
• Available in Android, Windows, and Macs (iOS). Mobile-friendly.

Cons: 

• No generative AI features.
• Range of design features and options is not as expansive as Canva.
• Unable to export projects as a PPTX PowerPoint file for presentations.

There are many more alternatives to Canva than were covered here, and a growing number of AI design tools similar to Typeset that reduce or eliminate the design process for creative content. Some other Canva alternatives worth mentioning are Fotor, Piktochart, Stencil, and Easil. 

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How To Choose The Right Canva Alternative?

After all those options, you must ask yourself: Which one should I choose to use? The truth is that there is no fixed answer to that. You can use the free trials that many of them include so you can try these platforms on your own, but here are a few key factors to consider when making a decision: 

• Identify your needs: Each design tool has its own pros and cons. For example, Picmonkey and Pixlr are considered great options for most people. Still, they lack business or more professional content, so they may not be the right choice if you need a design tool for business or academic projects. 
• Assess your design capabilities: Depending on your level of design experience, some software will be better for your needs than others. AI tools like Typeset handle a lot of the formatting, which is great for inexperienced designers but also benefits creators with graphic design experience but who lack the time or resources to design their content. 
• Customization options: Depending on what you want, some software offers the option to customize the templates and design elements. The one where customization is distinctive is Visme and Adobe Express.  
• Templates: These are different in each one of these platforms, so it is important to identify which contains the templates that are more related to your needs. Some of these products are geared more towards casual use than business content needs. If you’re designing eBooks for your business, for example, Typeset’s ebook creator offers extensive templates that can be quickly customized. 
• Pricing and budget: Even if there are a few differences among all these options, many offer a free version or have a similar price. The free plan options include Adobe Express, Visme, Snappa,VistaCreate, and Pixlr.  
• AI features: AI is rapidly advancing the capabilities of content creation, from writing to designing. Businesses of all sizes are leveraging AI products to streamline their business. Choosing an AI-powered design software will likely save you time in the long run. 

With Typeset, you can create a wide range of visual content, including formatted presentations, document layouts, social media content for various platforms, data visualizations, marketing materials, visuals for reports, and more. 

It's a versatile tool that caters to different content design needs. Create content in minutes with Typeset. Try it risk free with our 30-day money back guarantee. Start designing today.