Canva UI Editorial Brand Guidelines
The Task
At Canva, we believe in making complex things simple. That extends to how we visually showcase our UI, features, and content across every digital surface. As Canva grew, so did the variety of places our brand appeared: landing pages, in- app moments, social campaigns, event presentations, even a massive stage at Canva Create. Each surface had its own demands, and with different teams producing work at speed, the challenge was clarity and consistency at scale.
The brief was to create a system that could scale across different outputs and feel equally effective whether seen as a thumbnail or projected to thousands. The goal was to establish a shared visual language that united teams and ensured every audience, no matter the channel or scale, experienced Canva in the same way. It needed to empower teams in the company while also elevating the product for the millions who encounter it daily.
At Canva, we believe in making complex things simple. That extends to how we visually showcase our UI, features, and content across every digital surface. As Canva grew, so did the variety of places our brand appeared: landing pages, in- app moments, social campaigns, event presentations, even a massive stage at Canva Create. Each surface had its own demands, and with different teams producing work at speed, the challenge was clarity and consistency at scale.
The brief was to create a system that could scale across different outputs and feel equally effective whether seen as a thumbnail or projected to thousands. The goal was to establish a shared visual language that united teams and ensured every audience, no matter the channel or scale, experienced Canva in the same way. It needed to empower teams in the company while also elevating the product for the millions who encounter it daily.
The Solution
The result was a design system that gave every team at Canva the ability to craft visuals with clarity, consistency, and confidence. At its heart was a flexible spectrum — a framework that helped teams determine the right level of detail and intricacy depending on the surface. Rich, expressive UI could bring a landing page to life, while simplified gestures worked better in tooltips or small thumbnails.
Supporting this was a set of guiding principles: clear focus, considered context, expressive color, and authentic product representation. These principles made sure the system always felt human, intuitive, and true to Canva. Every element was designed to be scalable and simple to use, so whether someone was designing for an event keynote or a tile, they could apply the system without hesitation.
The outcome was immediate adoption across teams. Instead of slowing creativity, the system unlocked it — removing ambiguity, aligning execution, and ensuring that Canva felt consistent across every format. Designers, marketers, and event producers could align faster, collaborate more easily, and still bring their own creativity to the table.
The result was a design system that gave every team at Canva the ability to craft visuals with clarity, consistency, and confidence. At its heart was a flexible spectrum — a framework that helped teams determine the right level of detail and intricacy depending on the surface. Rich, expressive UI could bring a landing page to life, while simplified gestures worked better in tooltips or small thumbnails.
Supporting this was a set of guiding principles: clear focus, considered context, expressive color, and authentic product representation. These principles made sure the system always felt human, intuitive, and true to Canva. Every element was designed to be scalable and simple to use, so whether someone was designing for an event keynote or a tile, they could apply the system without hesitation.
The outcome was immediate adoption across teams. Instead of slowing creativity, the system unlocked it — removing ambiguity, aligning execution, and ensuring that Canva felt consistent across every format. Designers, marketers, and event producers could align faster, collaborate more easily, and still bring their own creativity to the table.
