A Step-By-Step Guide to Using Canva Docs

Last updated on 2 February 2026

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Canva Docs is here and it is spectacular! I got so excited when I saw that Canva had released a Docs feature on their website. Honestly, Canva gets better and better by the hour it seems, and I can’t get enough.

Just when I thought that was it, they couldn’t do any better; they whip something like Canva Docs out of the bag and stunned us all with its brilliance.

As Canva Docs are new to us all, we’re going to take a look at the document writing feature in this blog post, and I’m going to share some of my thoughts about this new addition. Let’s get into it!

What is Canva Docs?

Canva Docs is an online document editor which allows you to create and share documents with ease. It has a variety of features, including collaboration tools and a library of customisable templates.

With Canva Docs, you can create professional-looking documents quickly and easily, and share them with anyone in your team or organisation, or simply download them for your own personal use.

It’s a stunning solution for creating documents such as reports, presentations, and newsletters right there on the Canva website. This also means you have access to all the Canva designs you’ve previously made, as well as graphs, templates, elements, tables and more. Honestly, so good!

It’s also great for collaborating on projects, sharing ideas, and getting feedback if you’re part of a larger team.

What are the benefits of Canva Docs?

What aren’t the benefits?! Let’s look at some of the benefits of Canva Docs that I’m already seeing after a few hours of using this epic new feature.

Super intuitive: It feels like a document editor like Google Docs or even Word. It’s familiar, which makes it really intuitive.
Clean and fresh: Having said that, it doesn’t have all the pomp and bother of some word editing software. It’s simple, it’s (currently) stripped back, with just the essential tools needed. It’s clean and fresh!
Have access to all your Canva designs: Have a logo you want to add to your document? Or a banner you’ve made? It’s easy to add all your designs to the document.
It’s simple but powerful: Despite the simplified features, there is still a lot you can do with it, making it a powerful tool I’m excited to continue to use.
Time-saving: Having the templates at the ready (whether they be Canva-made or You-made) is SO time-saving! You can quickly edit a document and it’ll look lovely in no time at all.
Collaborative: While I don’t work in many Canva teams, having the ability to make a document collaborative (like a Google Doc) is another great benefit of Canva Docs.
Download as A4, A3, Letter and Legal size PDF: Live in America and need a Letter size doc? Canva’s got your back. Or maybe you need it to be A4? They can do that, too.

How to Get Started with Canva Docs

Creating a Document

It is really easy to create a document in Canva Docs.

First, you’ll need to be logged into your Canva account. If you don’t have one yet, it’s free! Click here to get started.

Once you’re logged in or you’ve created a new Canva account, click the ‘Create a Design’ option. Then, choose the ‘Document’ option, which will open a new window with a selection of templates.

Select the template that best suits your needs, or start from scratch! If you’ve chosen to use a template, remember to customise it to suit your needs, brand colours, and fonts.

Speaking of which!

Adding text, images, and graphics to a Canva Docs file

Adding text, images, and graphics to a Canva Docs file is quite simple. There are two ways to go about it.

Use the tools on the left-hand side of your design to add the things you want to add
Use the little + icon to the left on the Canva Doc to see a drop-down of options.

Text: To add text, simply click the page and start typing! You can also highlight and select the + icon to change the text to a Heading or a Subheading. At the top of the Canva menu, you’ll be able to change the font, size, colour and style of your text. You’re also able to add bullet points, numbered lists, checklists, tables and emojis. 🎉

Images: To add an image, click the ‘Images’ button on the left-hand side menu and select the image that you would like to add.

Elements: To add elements to the file, click on the ‘Elements’ icon on the left-hand side of the page and choose from a range of shapes, charts, lines, and more. Check out these awesome Canva elements to get started!

Graphs: You can also add a graph to a Canva Doc! I love this feature, and I think it would be so helpful for essays if you’re a student. To add a graph to a Canva Doc, simply click the ‘Charts’ button on the left-hand side menu, or click the + on the document and select Pie Chart, Bar Chart or Line Chart.

Here’s a screenshot of the + icon , which sits to the left of what you’re creating, and the chart options in the drop-down.

Canva Document Translator

You can also translate your document into 134 different languages with the Canva Document Translator, without forsaking your formatting or structure. Which is honestly so good. I’ve been working a bit with Microsoft Word recently and oh boy the frustration when you do something like insert an image. You know the frustration, I know you do. 🤣

Canva Document Translator can be found in the Apps section on the left.

Open up your document
Navigate to Apps on the left and find Translate
Choose the language that you’d like to translate into
Click Translate
Review and make any tweaks you need to
And then you’re good to download and/or share your document!

Sharing and Save your Canva Doc

Sharing and Saving your Canva Doc file is really easy.

No matter which one you’re doing – saving or sharing – you’ll need to head to the Share button in the top-right-hand corner. From there, you can choose to add team members to your Document, allow it to be accessed by people externally, or download it to your computer.

You can save your Canva Doc to your computer in PDF form. Select Share > Download > and then choose your file size. You can pick between A4, A3, Letter and Legal size PDF.

Your Canva Doc’s changes will save automatically as you edit your file, however, you can click ‘save’ in the top left-hand corner (on your desktop) anytime you want.

Tips and Tricks for Using Canva Docs

Customising Your Canva Document

Customising your Canva document is a great way to create unique, professional-looking designs, no matter what kind of document you’re putting together.

You can easily adjust the colours, fonts, and images in your document to create something that is completely unique, just like you would any other Canva design. You can also add things like text boxes, shapes, and other elements to help you bring your ideas together.

Note: When adding an image or an element to your Canva Doc, if you want it to sit alongside your text, you’ll need to add a Table.

Organising Your Content

I don’t know about you, but organising my Canva account is a mission! Canva has introduced some tools recently that make organising your account easier, but it’s always good to have some extra tips up your sleeve.

First, create folders for each project or client. If you need to break it down further for your Canva Docs, you can create subfolders, too. This will help you easily access the files you need and maintain a logical structure. We love a structured account!

Second, make sure to use descriptive labels for files and folders. This will make them easier to find and save you time. A lot of time. Trust me.

Third, set up a template library for your most used document styles to save and reuse layouts, fonts, and colours. This will help you keep your designs consistent and again, save time.

Fourth, use the search bar to quickly find what you’re looking for. If you’ve named your Canva Docs well, then you’ll be able to use the Canva search bar to quickly find a specific document when you need to access it on the fly.

Using Canva Doc Templates

Designing with Canva Doc templates is a great starting point. Not only do they look great, but they save you time as well, which is something we’re all trying to get back, right?

Canva has hundreds of unique templates to choose from, and you can customise your documents with just a few clicks. Whether you’re creating a new resume, writing a business proposal, or creating an infographic, Canva Doc templates have you covered.

However! Remember that Canva templates, no matter what you’re creating, should be used as just that: templates. Remember to add in your own flare, fonts, and colours and sprinkle it all with a little personality too.

What is the Magic Write feature in Canva Docs?

We’ve looked at AI content writers before and how you might use them for blogging and other projects, but with Canva Docs you have the option of using an AI writing feature called Magic Write.

I’ve been really impressed so far with Magic Write, as I’ve played around with it. It’s really easy to use and it’s super helpful having the AI option right there in the document, without needing an external website to use.

Here’s a paragraph that I got Magic Write to right … about itself:

“Magic Write leverages AI-powered natural language processing to suggest phrases and sentence structures that are tailored to your content. You can also use AI to format your text and apply style elements to make it look more polished. With Magic Write, you can create professional documents with minimal effort and time.”

Pretty good, right!? But as I said in my post about using AI writers for blogging, use it sparingly. I like to use AI for content ideas or for helping me outline a blog post. But I wouldn’t use it to write an entire blog post.

Some final thoughts on Canva Docs

Canva Docs is really impressive so far. It’s easy to use, has some great features, and I do love how you can integrate all your other designs from Canva into the document you’re working on.

There are, however, some things that I would love to see them add to the Canva Docs designs in the future, that I think would be beneficial for users.

Word count: I wanna know how many words I’ve written. I really do. Is it 100? Is it 2000? I don’t know.
Headings: At the moment, you can only change the body text to Heading and Subheading. It would be helpful to have a further breakdown for quick editing.
Columns: As far as I can see in my exploration of Canva Docs, there is no option to turn your text into columns. You can, however, add a table and then add text into two cells in a row. But it would be great if columns were added.

Canva Docs is a great tool for users who need access to a wide range of features and benefits for creating and editing documents. It is an intuitive, user-friendly platform that helps users quickly and easily create beautiful documents. And with the ability to collaborate on docs with others, and download them as a PDF, I’ve been super impressed with what Canva Docs offers at the moment.

I believe that there are more features coming as they work on receiving feedback from users and making sure it’s all working as it should. I’m looking forward to seeing what other features they might add to the Canva Docs design, and of course, any other projects from Canva in the pipeline!

I wanna know! Have you used Canva Docs yet? What do you think? Leave your thoughts in the comments!