‘Our community is important’: Canva responds to pricing backlash

Australian technology firm Canva has moved to quell a customer backlash over pricing changes after some users were told last month that their bills for using the design software would more than triple.

Canva has more than 190 million users globally and the company in September announced significant price rises for some of those users, particularly for its business-oriented “Canva Teams” product, and said new AI features were a key reason for the changes.

Canva leaders Cliff Obrecht, Melanie Perkins and Cameron Adams. Credit: Louie Douvis

It raised subscription prices in the US from $US120 ($178) a year for up to five users to $US300 a year for the first 12 months, then $US500 a year, an increase of more than 300 per cent.

For Australian users, a flat fee of $40 a month for up to five users would shift to $13.50 for each user, meaning a team of five would pay nearly 70 per cent more.

The company cited new AI-powered features as one reason for the change and said the new prices reflected “the value of our expanded product experience”.

“This change helps us continue building awesome products like our Visual Suite, Magic Studio, Brand Tools, and other highly requested features,” the company said in a statement at the time.

“Our original pricing reflected the early stage of this product and has remained unchanged for the last four years. We’re now updating the price for customers on this older plan to reflect our expanded product experience, while those who joined since April are already on the updated rates.”

Amid a backdrop of cost-of-living pressures and stubborn interest rates, Canva faced criticism from some long-term customers who were concerned they would be effectively priced out of using its products.

Canva has long positioned itself as a fun, easy–to–use, and highly affordable design alternative to Adobe Photoshop, and its users have commonly become acolytes of its products.

“Canva’s strategy risks pricing out the smaller teams that benefit most from its platform,” app designer Chris Kernaghan wrote in a blog post last month.

“These are the same teams that have contributed significantly to Canva’s success by championing its tools and expanding its reach through word-of-mouth.”

On Thursday, the company will announce two updates in response to that feedback: early Canva adopters will still benefit from discounted pricing, and a new “pricing promise” will ensure more certainty going forward.

“Listening to our community is an incredibly important part of our DNA, and we understand this change may have felt too sudden for some, especially early adopters on our old pricing model,” Canva said in a blog post.

Leonardo.AI co-founder and chief executive JJ Fiasson with Canva co-founders Cliff Obrecht and Melanie Perkins.

“Our community is at the heart of every decision we make, and today, as a special thank you to our early Canva Teams users for their loyalty and continued support, we’re pleased to maintain their original pricing for their current team.”

Canva is also launching a “pricing promise” – a set of principals it says will guide pricing decisions.

That includes a guarantee that it will give at least 60 days’ notice for price changes, along with promises that Canva’s offerings will be “value-packed” and “always affordable” with no hidden fees. It will also promise fair regional pricing, including “accessible prices to reflect local economic conditions”.

It also says it will continue to offer generous free plans for individuals, nonprofits, and schools.

It comes at a crucial moment for Canva, which has been one of Australia’s defining tech success stories of the past decade and has continued to grow its valuation and headcount despite the “tech wreck” of the past two years that has torn through the sector.

Canva has more than 4500 employees, most of whom are in Australia. More than 190 million people globally now use its design platform every month, and its valuation has climbed to an estimated $US39 billion ($58.9 billion). It’s been busy adding AI features to its products and, in August, acquired Australia’s most-hyped AI start-up, Leonardo.ai, for a reported $320 million.

Big tests are still to come for Canva, which is expected to pursue a public listing by 2026. It’s a move that billionaire co-founder Cliff Obrecht previously told this masthead would probably be on New York’s Nasdaq, which Atlassian chose for its blockbuster IPO nearly a decade ago.

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