What is Canva?
Canva is a user-friendly graphic design tool that has enjoyed great success since its inception in 2012.
The company’s founders, Melanie Perkins and Cliff Obrecht, had the vision to make graphic design accessible to everyone, which is evident in the easy-to-use interface of the application.
Today, Canva is used by millions of people worldwide and has become the go-to platform for creating beautiful visuals. In this post, we look at the history of Canva and explore some of the key factors that have made it so popular.

Canva’s major goal is to build design software that allows anyone to make amazing designs without having any graphic design experience.
Canva was created by three people who spotted a gap in the market for such a service, and it has since evolved to become one of Australia’s most successful start-ups, with over 130 million monthly users on its platform.

Canva Start-Up Story and Investors History
Canva is a company that most investors have never heard of and which has been growing exponentially for years now, with records being broken every other week.
Canva, the largest startup success story in this country and one of Australia’s most successful businesses, has chosen to remain private. They have built Canva on behalf of producing digital graphic design tools such as marketing presentations or greeting cards that are simple enough for anyone, not just those in tech-to use with efficacy.

The three 30-something co-founders are worth an estimated $10 billion combined. Still, they don’t appear to be interested in becoming billionaires themselves – as one founder Cliff Obrecht said on Wednesday, “it’s not our vibe”.
Even though they’re competing against some big names like Atlassian (a fellow Australian company), it seems likely we’ll be seeing more growth ahead because, at the time, they reported 1 billion dollars worth of global valuation back when ‘unicorn’ status was achieved last year!

Despite Canva’s reliance on US funds, it has been able to provide exponential returns. The company is now 55 million users strong and generated $650M annually in revenue last year as opposed to only about 260 Million dollars back when they first started. This means that their profits are likely pretty substantial already, even though most people don’t know exactly how profitable or not because of secret agreements made between private investors.
- Founder: Melanie Perkins and Cliff Obrecht
- Cofounder: Cameron Adams
- Started in 2013
- Current revenue: $650M annually
The company is looking to raise more money, and it will be interesting to see how much they are valued. Nine months ago, Canva raised $80 million in equity capital – but this was not based on the price paid by existing investors who sold stock for new ones, rather than that ten times oversubscribed.

The CFO of Canva is not interested in giving away any investor information. Still, he says there has been an oversupply and undersupply of their stocks which caused them to go public earlier than expected.
He also adds how history demonstrated this company was greatly helped by workers moving into remote collaboration during Covid’s economic uncertainties, leading up until today, where we’ve seen huge increases in both active users and revenue streams.
Founders have stock invested with the company on its valuations at any given time – whether that be fair or not–to crystallise profits while providing an opportunity for updated compensation structures should they choose so.
He calls them validation points; most unlisted companies enjoy operating under the radar without pressure from Wall Street forcing their hand into meeting quarterly goals, which often result only.

And despite actually making profits for four years, the notion of paying dividends isn’t something its management sees as far off because they know it will join some stage during Canvas evolution where this becomes possible.”
Pricing of Canva
Canva is created as a graphic design tool based in Australia that allows you to create social media graphics, presentations, and other visual content.
With paid memberships like Canvas Pro ($119 yearly), which comes standard on all plans, customers can alter or download free designs for their projects – it’s like having your graphic designer on hand!

Enterprise-level packages are available for people who require more functionality than what this basic plan gives; they cost $30 monthly per user and include limitless downloads, so you won’t have any trouble utilising them extensively before deciding whether or not upgrading is worthwhile.
You have three pricing,
- Basic plan – Free
- Pro plan-$12.99 USD per month, i.e. Rs 3999/-
- Enterprise plan-$30 USD per month, i.e. Rs 2200/-
Features of Canva

- You can convert your videos to mp4 online for free.
- Image Montage. Mix images that tell a story in masterful photomontages.
- You can choose filters and Brighten Images.
- Canva has a variety of Sound Effects for Video.
- You can try Image Enhancer.
- You can try using Flip Image.
- You can try Video Transitions.
- You can do Online Video Recorder while teaching students in Canva.
Advantages of Using Canva as a Designer
1. Canva is a user-friendly graphic design tool that allows you to create professional-looking designs easily.
2. Alternatives for Adobe Spark, Visme, Crello, and Stencil.
3. You don’t need prior knowledge or work experience in designing.
4. You can use Canva for presentations, graphic designing, logo designing, and post designing for social media.
5. Pre-build templates are one of the most special features of Canva.
6. you can resize for any social media platform as you wish.
7. Canva has a collab with Github where you can get a free Canva pro version if you are a student.
Also Read: Top 10 Advantages and Disadvantages of Canva Design Tool
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is Canva, and how does it work?
A. Canva is an online design tool that allows users to create stunning visuals, graphics, and documents for various purposes. It provides multiple design templates, images, fonts, and other elements that can be customized to suit individual needs. Users can drag and drop elements, edit text, and apply filters to create professional-looking designs without design expertise.
2. How did Canva come into existence?
A. In Australia, Canva was founded in 2012 by Melanie Perkins, Cliff Obrecht, and Cameron Adams. The idea behind Canva was to simplify graphic design and make it accessible to everyone, regardless of their design skills. Over the years, Canva has become a popular design tool, empowering individuals and businesses to create visually appealing content.
3. What makes Canva different from other design tools?
A. Canva stands out for its user-friendly interface, extensive library of design templates, and ability to collaborate and share designs seamlessly. It also offers a range of features, such as drag-and-drop functionality, photo editing tools, and the ability to create designs for multiple platforms, making it a versatile and convenient design tool.
4. Is Canva free to use?
A. Canva offers both free and paid versions. The free version provides access to various design elements and features, while the paid version (Canva Pro) unlocks additional premium features and content. Canva Pro offers a subscription-based model with monthly or annual payment options.
5. Can Canva be used for personal and commercial projects?
A. Yes, Canva can be used for both personal and commercial projects. Whether you need to create social media graphics, marketing materials, presentations, or unique designs, Canva provides the flexibility and tools to cater to various design needs.
Key Takeaway
Canva is a graphic design company created by two Australians, Melanie Perkins, and Cliff Obrecht. They started the business in 2012 from their homes with an investment of $25,000.
Since then, the company has grown to be profitable, with a market capitalization of more than $1 billion. Canva has also been attributed to creating over one million employees worldwide.
Its goal is to make design accessible to everyone, and it has succeeded.
This is confirmed that Canva is becoming a required talent for most people who apply for jobs and study.
Canva has proven that you don’t have to be a professional designer to use it; you can even use it to improve the design of your post or presentation. I hope you enjoyed learning about the history of Canva.
If you are new to Canva and create a professional design for your clients and business, then check out our Canva mastery course at an affordable price!
And, thanks for reading!
One Comment on “What is Canva Online Design Tool? [A Brief History]”
Great post! I had no idea Canva was founded by Melanie Perkins in 2012. I’ve been using their design platform for a while now, but I never knew about the early struggles they faced. Thanks for sharing the history of Canva, it’s really interesting to see how far they’ve come!