If you are facing a decision on whether to go with Canva pro vs free but need a detailed comparison to help you choose one then this review is for you.

So, like me, you have been using Canva for a number of years and you are constantly prompted to upgrade to the Pro version via a free 30-day trial.

Each time you are tempted to give it a go for that 30-day period just to see what it is like.

However, the timing is never right or you are just not at that place in your business to justify that additional expense.

The truth is that you had a few occasions where you've experienced one of these.

You wrote the perfect Instagram caption and you found the perfect complimentary image on Canva but it's not free.

While creating your Pinterest images you found a cool image that you can use but you aren't excited about the background.

It would be nice to easily organise your product offers or printable items into specific folders.

There must be a better way to get the most out of Canva but how to justify upgrading to the pro version is something you really need.

In this blog post, you will learn the similarities and differences between Canva pro and the free version as well as when the time is right for you to upgrade to Canva pro.

What is Online Graphic Design Software?

If you are new to online marketing or you never thought of creating your own images before let me pause here and explain further.

Whenever you want to promote a business, wedding, party, sale, engagement, an event or send a card you would use software to create the announcement.

Depending on your experience or affinity you might have used Microsoft Publisher to create flyers, business cards, logos, party invitations, thank you cards and banners.

However, since many services are now available online there is a plethora of applications available to create these items on the Internet.

The reason for this is because there is a huge need to collaborate with others in your team or group.

When you are planning a big event there are so many other people involved in creating content and graphics.

Online graphic design software (aka online design tools) gives you the ability to seamlessly create your design from scratch.

If you are like me and graphic design is not in your wheelhouse you will probably customise an existing template instead.

Another obvious reason is that for many small business owners, hiring a graphic designer to create your brand graphics from scratch can set you back at least $1,000.

About Canva

Canva was founded in 2012 in Sydney, Australia by Melanie Perkins, Cliff Obrecht and Cameron Adams.

What many people are not aware of is that Canva acquired Pexels, Pixabay and Zeetings over the years.

They also have partnerships with Office Depot, FedEx and they are valued at $6 billion as of 2020.

Canva Pricing

There is a forever free version of Canva available for small business owners and their pro plan will set you back at $12/month for up to 5 users.

You are probably wondering why would anyone upgrade to the pro plan if they are getting so much value for free.

Taking a closer look at the features at the pro level will help you understand the amazing time saving features.