7 Best Canva Alternatives (With Actual Pricing Comparisons)

Canva is the default choice for non-designers who need to create graphics. It's great. But it's not perfect for everyone. Maybe you're hitting limitations with the free plan, templates feel overdone, or you need more advanced features without the full Adobe Creative Cloud price tag.

I've tested the major Canva alternatives to help you figure out which one actually fits your workflow. Here's what's worth your time—and what's not.

Already know you want Canva? Check out our Canva pricing breakdown or grab a Canva discount.

Quick Comparison: Canva Alternatives at a Glance

1. Adobe Express – Best Overall Canva Alternative

Adobe Express (formerly Adobe Spark) is Adobe's answer to Canva. It's template-based, drag-and-drop, and designed for non-designers—but with the Adobe polish.

What's Good

• Access to 200M+ royalty-free Adobe Stock photos, videos, and music (on premium)
• Over 30,000 fonts from Adobe Fonts collection
• AI-powered features through Adobe Firefly (text-to-image, background removal)
• One-click resize for different social platforms
• Seamless integration if you already use Photoshop, Illustrator, or other Adobe tools

What's Not

• The free plan is genuinely limited—only 1M stock assets and 4,000 fonts
• 25 generative AI credits per month on free (250 on premium)
• Some users find the template library less diverse than Canva's
• Learning curve if you're used to Canva's interface

Adobe Express Pricing

• Free: Basic editing tools, 100,000 templates, 1M stock assets, 5GB storage
• Premium: $9.99/month or $99.99/year – all templates, 200M+ stock assets, 100GB storage, 250 AI credits
• Teams: Contact sales – adds brand kits, collaboration features, 1TB storage per user

Nonprofits get free Premium access. Students get 66% off the All Apps plan ($19.99/month first year).

Verdict: If you're already in the Adobe ecosystem or want access to Adobe Stock without paying separately, Adobe Express is the move. The free plan is more limited than Canva's, but the premium features are excellent.

For a deeper dive, see our Canva vs Adobe Express comparison.

2. Figma – Best for UI/UX Design and Collaboration

Figma is a different beast. It's not trying to be Canva—it's a professional design tool that happens to be browser-based and collaborative. If you're designing interfaces, apps, or websites, Figma is likely a better fit than Canva.

What's Good

• Real-time collaboration—multiple people editing the same file simultaneously
• Proper design system support (components, variables, styles)
• Advanced prototyping with animations and interactions
• Browser-based, works on any device
• Massive plugin ecosystem
• Free for students and educators

What's Not

• Overkill for simple social media graphics
• Steeper learning curve than Canva
• No built-in stock photo library
• Not designed for print materials

Figma Pricing

• Starter (Free): Unlimited personal files, 3 collaborative files
• Professional: $12-16/editor/month – unlimited files, version history, team libraries
• Organization: $45-55/editor/month – design systems, branching, admin tools
• Enterprise: Custom pricing – SSO, advanced security, dedicated support

Verdict: Don't use Figma to make Instagram posts. Do use it if you're designing actual products, apps, or websites and need serious collaboration features. See our Canva vs Figma breakdown for the full comparison.

3. Snappa – Best for Speed and Simplicity

Snappa markets itself as "the easy alternative to Canva." Bold claim, but there's truth to it. If you find Canva cluttered or overwhelming, Snappa strips everything back to essentials.

What's Good

• Genuinely simpler interface than Canva—everything in plain sight
• 5+ million royalty-free stock photos included
• Pre-sized templates for every social platform
• Background remover built-in
• Direct publishing to social media via Buffer
• All photos and graphics are 100% royalty-free for commercial use

What's Not

• Smaller template library than Canva
• No video editing capabilities
• Free plan limited to 3 downloads per month
• No mobile app

Snappa Pricing

• Free: Access to all features, but only 3 downloads/month
• Pro: $15/month ($10/month annually) – unlimited downloads, social media integration
• Team: $30/month – adds team collaboration, shared assets

Verdict: Snappa is what you want if Canva feels bloated. It's focused, fast, and good enough for most social media graphics. The free plan's 3-download limit is rough, but at $10/month annually, Pro is reasonable.

4. Visme – Best for Data Visualization and Presentations

Visme punches above its weight for business users who need more than just graphics. The data visualization features are genuinely impressive—40+ chart types, customizable infographics, and 3D animated widgets.

What's Good

• Exceptional for infographics and data presentations
• Brand wizard auto-extracts colors, fonts, and logo from your website
• Interactive content (clickable prototypes, embedded videos)
• 30+ data widgets including radial gauges and progress bars
• Integrations with HubSpot, Salesforce, Slack, Google Analytics
• Good for creating actual documents, not just graphics

What's Not

• Interface is more complex than Canva
• Can feel sluggish with large files
• Pricing is higher than competitors
• Steeper learning curve

Visme Pricing

• Free: Limited templates and storage
• Starter: $12.25/month (billed annually)
• Pro: $24.75/month – brand kit, analytics, premium templates
• Teams: Custom pricing

Discounts available for students, educators, and nonprofits.

Verdict: If you're creating investor decks, sales presentations, or anything data-heavy, Visme is worth the premium over Canva. For simple social graphics, it's overkill.

5. VistaCreate (Formerly Crello) – Best Canva Clone

VistaCreate is the closest direct competitor to Canva. Same drag-and-drop approach, similar template library, similar pricing. The key differentiator: paid subscribers get full access to Depositphotos' entire library.

What's Good

• Very similar interface to Canva—easy switch
• Premium includes unlimited Depositphotos access
• Strong template library, especially for social media
• Animation features for social content
• 14-day free trial of premium

What's Not

• Free plan is limited compared to Canva's
• Slightly less polished than Canva
• Smaller community and fewer integrations

VistaCreate Pricing

• Starter (Free): Limited templates and downloads
• Pro: ~$13/month – unlimited templates, Depositphotos access, brand kits

Verdict: If you're already paying for Depositphotos or want a Canva-like experience with different stock assets, VistaCreate makes sense. Otherwise, Canva's ecosystem is stronger.

6. PicMonkey – Best for Photo Editing + Design

PicMonkey sits between pure photo editors (like Lightroom) and design tools (like Canva). It's the choice if you need to actually edit photos—not just drop them into templates.

What's Good

• Proper photo editing tools (dodge, burn, curves, layers)
• Touch-up and retouching features similar to Photoshop
• Brand kit for consistent designs
• Templates for social, print, and marketing materials
• Good mobile app

What's Not

• Learning curve for photo editing features
• No free plan (only 7-day trial)
• Interface can lag with large images
• Smaller template library than Canva

PicMonkey Pricing

• Basic: $7.99/month – essential editing and design
• Pro: $12.99/month – adds brand kit, premium templates
• Business: $23/month – team collaboration, advanced storage

Verdict: If photo editing is a significant part of your workflow, PicMonkey beats Canva. For template-based graphics, stick with Canva.

7. Pixlr – Best Budget Option

Pixlr is the scrappy underdog. It's primarily a photo editor, but the AI features and template system make it a viable Canva alternative if budget is your primary concern.

What's Good

• Starts at just $1.99/month
• AI-powered tools (background remover, batch editor, auto design)
• 50,000+ templates
• No download/install required
• Decent free version

What's Not

• Interface feels dated compared to competitors
• Fewer templates and stock assets
• AI image generation quality is inconsistent
• Limited collaboration features

Pixlr Pricing

• Free: Basic editing with ads
• Plus: $1.99/month – ad-free, more tools
• Premium: $7.99/month – all AI features, unlimited saves
• Team: $12.99/month – collaboration features

Verdict: At $1.99/month, Pixlr is hard to argue with if you just need basic graphics and photo editing. Don't expect Canva's polish, but the value is there.

When to Actually Switch from Canva

Canva is good enough for most people. Here's when it makes sense to look elsewhere:

• You need real photo editing: PicMonkey or Pixlr
• You're designing UI/apps/websites: Figma
• You want Adobe ecosystem integration: Adobe Express
• Data visualization is critical: Visme
• You find Canva overwhelming: Snappa
• You want Depositphotos access: VistaCreate

If none of those apply? Stick with Canva. It's popular for a reason.

What About Free Canva Alternatives?

Every tool on this list has a free tier, but they're all limited in meaningful ways. If you're trying to avoid paying anything:

• Pixlr Free gives you decent photo editing with ads
• Figma Starter is genuinely useful for design work (unlimited personal files)
• Adobe Express Free works for basic needs but hits walls quickly
• Canva Free is honestly still the best free option for most use cases

The reality: free tiers exist to get you to pay. If you're doing this professionally, budget for a paid tool. If you're doing it occasionally, Canva's free plan is probably fine.

Bottom Line

There's no single "best" Canva alternative—it depends on what you're actually trying to do. Adobe Express is the closest direct competitor with better stock assets. Figma is better for actual product design. Snappa wins on simplicity. Visme dominates for presentations and data.

My recommendation: Try the free tiers of 2-3 options on this list before committing. The right tool is the one that fits your specific workflow, not the one with the most features.

For more on Canva itself, check out our full Canva review, how to use Canva, or Canva tutorial for beginners.