By Aura Print & Promo · July 2026 · 4 minute read
Canva has put design in everyone's hands, and plenty of the jobs we print start life there. Used correctly, it produces perfectly good print files for flyers, posters, business cards and signage. The catch: Canva's default export is built for screens, not presses. Follow these steps and your file will arrive print ready.
Step 1: Create your design at the correct size
Choose "Custom size", switch the units to millimetres, and enter the finished size of your product - for example 210 × 297mm for an A4 flyer, or 90 × 54mm for a standard business card. Don't design at "Instagram Post" size and hope for the best; pixels made for screens are usually too low resolution for print.
Step 2: Design with the edges in mind
- Any background colour or image that should reach the edge of the finished product must extend all the way to the edge of the Canva canvas (Canva adds the bleed at export).
- Keep text, logos and anything important away from the edges - at least 3mm in, more for a cleaner look. In Canva, turn on File → Settings → Show margins as a guide.
- Use high resolution images. Canva flags low quality images with a warning icon - take it seriously.
Step 3: Export the right way
- Click Share → Download.
- Choose file type PDF Print (not PDF Standard, not PNG, not JPG).
- Tick Crop marks and bleed.
- Tick Flatten PDF if available.
- Under Colour Profile, choose CMYK (available on Canva Pro). On the free plan files export as RGB - see the note below.
- Download.
On the free plan? Canva free exports PDFs in RGB, which means colours will be converted before printing and may shift slightly - vivid blues, greens and oranges are most affected. If exact colour matters, use Canva Pro's CMYK export or ask us to check the file. Read more in
CMYK vs RGB.
What Canva can't do
Canva is great for standard printing, but it can't set up files for advanced finishing - spot UV, foil, embossing, white ink layers or custom die cut shapes. Those need proper layered artwork from InDesign or Illustrator. If your job involves special finishes, talk to us - we can build the finishing files from your Canva design.
Before you hit send
- Correct finished size in millimetres, set as a custom size.
- Backgrounds extended to the canvas edge; important content kept inside the margins.
- Exported as PDF Print with crop marks and bleed ticked.
- Proofread twice. Phone numbers three times.
Full specs live on our Artwork Setup Guide. When your file's ready, get an instant price on flyers, business cards, posters and more.