What users are saying about

Canva vs Microsoft Publisher

Canva
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Top Rated
892 Ratings
Microsoft Publisher
33 Ratings

Canva

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Top Rated
892 Ratings
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Score 9 out of 100

Based on 892 reviews and ratings

Microsoft Publisher

33 Ratings
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Score 8.2 out of 100

Based on 33 reviews and ratings

Attribute Ratings

  • Canva is rated higher in 1 area: Likelihood to Recommend
  • Microsoft Publisher is rated higher in 2 areas: Usability, Support Rating

Likelihood to Recommend

8.9

Canva

89%
159 Ratings
8.4

Microsoft Publisher

84%
9 Ratings

Likelihood to Renew

9.7

Canva

97%
6 Ratings

Microsoft Publisher

N/A
0 Ratings

Usability

9.4

Canva

94%
12 Ratings
10.0

Microsoft Publisher

100%
1 Rating

Availability

10.0

Canva

100%
1 Rating

Microsoft Publisher

N/A
0 Ratings

Performance

10.0

Canva

100%
1 Rating

Microsoft Publisher

N/A
0 Ratings

Support Rating

6.4

Canva

64%
27 Ratings
8.0

Microsoft Publisher

80%
6 Ratings

Implementation Rating

10.0

Canva

100%
3 Ratings

Microsoft Publisher

N/A
0 Ratings

Product Scalability

10.0

Canva

100%
1 Rating

Microsoft Publisher

N/A
0 Ratings

Likelihood to Recommend

Canva

Canva is ideal for both big and small businesses as graphic designers' time is usually limited. Any person working in marketing or an SMB owner who wants to quickly create aesthetically appealing images for ads, social media or otherwise can do it quickly.If you want some nitty-gritty changes to the image or if you have tight specs you would need to use other tools like Photoshop.

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Alex Chaidaroglou | TrustRadius Reviewer
Alex Chaidaroglou
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Microsoft Publisher

Microsoft Publisher is well suited for almost any situation. It is something that I'm sure has far more advanced tools than I use or am aware of, but it is also very simple for entry-level users to create professional documents quickly. I have used it for very involved brochures in real estate scenarios and I have also used it for very simple "Construction Zone" signs at a job site under construction. There are so many uses for this program!

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Ashley Vogler | TrustRadius Reviewer
Ashley Vogler
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Pros

Canva

  • Provides readily accessible approved fonts and colors for our university publications.
  • A great selection of templates to select from.
  • Lots of resources for design, like photos, clip art, backgrounds, and other design elements.
  • The ability to share your design with others at the university.
  • The ability to download your design as a png, pdf, jpg, svg, even MP4 video or gif.
  • Easy to edit and alter the design and not lose what you had by creating clones of previous designs and then make the changes.

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Peggi Wolfe | TrustRadius Reviewer
Peggi Wolfe
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Microsoft Publisher

  • Business cards
  • Internal memos that use a logo or a little bit of design.
  • Quick and simple flyers for internal events.

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Robb Auspitz | TrustRadius Reviewer
Robb Auspitz
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Cons

Canva

  • Some pretty basic fonts are missing from the database, which proves to be annoying when trying to stay on brand
  • Pre-grouping sections of templates can be a hassle to figure out
  • Creating your own template from scratch can have it's hiccups, but that could be my lack of design experience.

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Anonymous | TrustRadius Reviewer
Verified User
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Microsoft Publisher

  • The greatest shortcoming is large (300+ page documents) that require lots of internal hyperlinks. While it can do it, I can tell, due to the way it bogs down, that I am pushing the program to its limits.
  • I would like to be able to work better with pdf's. I would like the ability to import a pdf of a graph, picture, or some other object directly into a Publisher document. Currently, I have to first convert the pdf to a jpeg and then import the jpeg. I have not found a way around this issue.
  • At one point, I thought I had the option to automatically turn off hyphenation. Somewhere along the way, it seems as if the default for everything is hyphenation is turned on. I detest hyphenation and turning it off on every box I create becomes cumbersome.
  • More options for graphics. Particularly the defaults that allow you to place "frames" and effects around photos. More options.

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Terry Goodman | TrustRadius Reviewer
Terry Goodman
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Pricing Details

Canva

General

Free Trial
—
Free/Freemium Version
Yes
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
—
Entry-level set up fee?
No

Starting Price

$12.95 per month

Canva Editions & Modules

Edition
Pro$12.951
Enterprise$30.002
  1. per month
  2. Per Month Per User
Additional Pricing Details
—

Microsoft Publisher

General

Free Trial
—
Free/Freemium Version
—
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
—
Entry-level set up fee?
No

Starting Price

$139 one time purchase

Microsoft Publisher Editions & Modules

Edition
Microsoft Publisher$1391
  1. one time purchase
Additional Pricing Details
—

Likelihood to Renew

Canva

Canva 9.7
Based on 6 answers
The ease of use makes Canva a powerful tool for manipulating images, creating original content, and testing ideas without requiring the involvement of graphic design or more time-intensive image editing software such as Photoshop. While it doesn't have the full functionality of a mature software, such as Photoshop, The speed and simplicity of Canva makes it a necessity in a business of any size

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Thomas White | TrustRadius Reviewer
Thomas White
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Microsoft Publisher

No score
No answers yet
No answers on this topic

Usability

Canva

Canva 9.4
Based on 12 answers
It is super easy to use, but it could be limiting if you're on a small device. It is easier on a bigger device because you can resize graphics and text easier than with your fingers on a small device. I do think it's perfect and easy for non-designers who don't have any training. As long as you have a good eye for visuals, Canva is a wonderful substitute for graphics programs on-the-go.

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Mandy Cramer | TrustRadius Reviewer
Mandy Cramer
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Microsoft Publisher

Microsoft Publisher 10.0
Based on 1 answer
It has a great feature set but does not overwhelm me with its complexity. This is not an entry-level program, but it is also not one of the top of line graphic designer programs, like Abode In-Design. I can use Publisher to do 95% of what I need to get done. The other 5% I farm out to the graphics design person in the organization. It simply works and does so in a simple to use manner.

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Terry Goodman | TrustRadius Reviewer
Terry Goodman
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Reliability and Availability

Canva

Canva 10.0
Based on 1 answer
I have yet to encounter Canva being offline in at least 6 years of using it regularly. They also announce well in advance if there may be upgrades to the code and the hours during which there may be issues accessing the service.

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Thomas White | TrustRadius Reviewer
Thomas White
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Microsoft Publisher

No score
No answers yet
No answers on this topic

Performance

Canva

Canva 10.0
Based on 1 answer
I haven't ever had issues with a slow-loading site and there haven't been any lag issues within the software. There have been maybe a handful of times over the past six years where I have tried to upload a large image and it will slow down as it loads the last megabyte, but I have yet to have the system time out or require any interference by me

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Thomas White | TrustRadius Reviewer
Thomas White
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Microsoft Publisher

No score
No answers yet
No answers on this topic

Support Rating

Canva

Canva 6.4
Based on 27 answers
Overall, Canva is easy to use, easy to train others to use, allows for creativity with a professional look without enormous associated costs. The mobile apps works almost as easily, but at a minimum allows for easy review and downloading in a pinch. Really, anyone can learn to use Canva quickly and will immediately benefit from the results.

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Anonymous | TrustRadius Reviewer
Verified User
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Microsoft Publisher

Microsoft Publisher 8.0
Based on 6 answers
While I have not directly used support for Microsoft Publisher, I have used their help files and found them to be useful. I have also found that most answers that I need can be found through simple web searches and chat platforms. In all though, there are very few times when the preloaded help files have not given me the answers that I need.

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Kathryn Juarez | TrustRadius Reviewer
Kathryn Juarez
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Implementation Rating

Canva

Canva 10.0
Based on 3 answers
Remember to download the mobile app onto your phone for easy image manipulation on the go. Adding company colors, logos, and typefaces to your company account is an easy process. When images are uploaded, these can also be shared between accounts within a company, as can canvases you've created for easy editing among teams.

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Thomas White | TrustRadius Reviewer
Thomas White
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Microsoft Publisher

No score
No answers yet
No answers on this topic

Alternatives Considered

Canva

Despite that fact that PowerPoint wasn't completely replaced by Canva, it's now used as a base for sketches and drafts. Presentations are much easier to prepare in Canva, taking advantage of their templates. PowerPoint required more time and edition just to create a standard looking slide... while Canva gives non-creatives the chance to create faster with a greater visual impact.

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Anonymous | TrustRadius Reviewer
Verified User
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Microsoft Publisher

Microsoft Publisher is more for beginners, or for basic needs, anyone with some familiarity with the Microsoft suite should be able to use it easily. If you’re looking to create something more graphic and advanced, you’d probably want to look into something like InDesign, which is not as user friendly if you’re not familiar with it at all. For basic needs the average employee should be able to use Microsoft Publisher with ease.

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Amanda Carpenter | TrustRadius Reviewer
Amanda Carpenter
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Scalability

Canva

Canva 10.0
Based on 1 answer
Very easy to add accounts and share content between them. Collaboration is also easy to manage and can be done on a project-by-project basis. The cloud-based software means it is incredibly fast to add a coworker and have them editing images within minutes. A live internet connection is required to access Canva so this is something to consider if expecting to use the software while on journeys without access to wifi etc

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Thomas White | TrustRadius Reviewer
Thomas White
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Microsoft Publisher

No score
No answers yet
No answers on this topic

Return on Investment

Canva

  • As far as ROI is concerned, Canva has proven itself time and time again as having a positive impact for business.
  • Just yesterday, I had to prepare an hour-long presentation on the fly; the great reviews of the presentation and the materials (all made in Canva) only served to advertise for Canva and it proves that Canva is a smart investment.
  • I don't think in the time that I have been a Canva pro user that I can say that my ROI has been negatively impacted. Highest recommendation. The software more the casually pays for itself time and time again.

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Kathleen M Jarchow | TrustRadius Reviewer
Kathleen M Jarchow
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Microsoft Publisher

  • Allowed us to created our own documents/educational material for patients. In previous practices I have worked we had to buy "pamplets and brochures" which were very costly.

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Kristen Lysobey | TrustRadius Reviewer
Kristen Lysobey
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