Johannesburg, South Africa . Following a wave of global product innovations and community milestones, Canva — the world’s all-in-one visual communication platform — has announced a bold expansion of its investment in South Africa. With a growing local team, new education and creator partnerships, and locally relevant product experiences, the company is accelerating its mission to make design accessible to everyone, everywhere.
Canva has surpassed $3.5 billion in annual revenue and now celebrates reaching 260 million monthly active users globally, marking a major milestone in its mission to empower the world to design. Over 77 million designs were created by South Africans this year alone, showcasing the nation’s growing creativity and entrepreneurial energy.
Among the top uses of Canva in South Africa are posters, presentations, and Instagram posts, highlighting how users bring their ideas to life across diverse formats. South African’s most used AI tools, including Canva AI and Magic Write, continue to make the creative process faster, smarter, and more accessible for everyone.
Our mission has always been to empower the world to design, and that includes unlocking opportunity where it matters most. Africa is home to extraordinary creativity, energy, and potential, and we’re proud to deepen our commitment on the ground. Whether it’s teachers in South Africa, students in Kenya, or creators in Nigeria, we’re here to help local communities design, earn, and learn in ways that make sense for them,” says Duncan Clark, Head of EMEA, Canva.
Building a local presence
Canva now has a dedicated South African team of nine, operating from a new regional office at AfricaWorks in Rosebank, Johannesburg. This on-the-ground investment represents a key step in Canva’s broader Africa strategy, which combines local insight with global technology to empower users across education, small business, and the creator economy.
As part of its localisation efforts, Canva has expanded to nearly 20 African languages, ensuring creators, educators, and entrepreneurs can use the platform in ways that feel natural and culturally relevant. From Swahili and isiZulu to Hausa and Afrikaans, Canva’s interface, templates, and design assets now better reflect the continent’s linguistic diversity and creative richness.
Culturally relevant design, made local
Creativity across Africa is vibrant, mobile-first, and community-driven — and Canva’s platform is evolving to reflect that. Users in South Africa can now access curated design showcases celebrating key cultural and commercial moments, such as Black Friday, Wedding Season, and WhatsApp Starter Packs for small businesses. The platform has also launched Pocket Business Kits, offering ready-made templates for solopreneurs and SMBs looking to elevate their branding and marketing quickly.
Canva has introduced new collections of templates that celebrate local holidays, storytelling, and visual culture — from digital invitations to social posts and event flyers. Local and relevant content is now available on Canva, with templates created in collaboration with a group of emerging African illustrators and designers.
Across Africa, creativity has never been in short supply — what’s often missing is access. This next chapter is about changing that. Whether it’s a young person designing from a township classroom or a creator turning their talent into income, we want Africans to feel like Canva was made with them and for them,” says Dr. Mzamo Masito, Africa Expansion Lead, Canva.
Powering education and opportunity
Education is central to Canva’s mission worldwide, and Africa represents one of its most exciting frontiers. Through Canva for Education, the company is partnering with leading universities such as Rhodes, UCT, UJ, University of Pretoria, HEITSA, and the African Leadership University to bring free design tools and training into classrooms—equipping students and educators with the digital skills needed for the future of work.
Beyond South Africa, Canva has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Education in Ethiopia, and integrated with Snapplify’s authentication technology, enabling seamless access for more than 800,000 learners and 100,000 teachers across the continent. Together, these initiatives reflect Canva’s commitment to supporting the next generation of African creators, educators, and innovators.
“Case Study: ADvTECH is Africa’s leading private education provider with over 100 schools across brands such as Pinnacle Colleges and Crawford International. In summer this year Canva and ADvTECH partnered to enable Canva Education for staff and students. Since launching in July students and teachers have created over 30,000 designs.”
Supporting the creator economy and small business growth
To celebrate South Africa’s growing creator community, Canva has launched the Canva Africa Design Challenge — an open call for designers to create templates that help small businesses, freelancers, and solopreneurs level up their visual identity. Winners will receive a share of US$10,000, 1:1 mentorship with Canva designers, exclusive merchandise, and the opportunity to have their templates published on Canva for millions to use.
At the same time, Canva is expanding its Canva Africa Design Community, Canva Africa Creators, and Canva Africa Canvassadors programs, giving local creators opportunities to learn, collaborate, and monetise their work through the Canva Creator platform.
Expanding access with local payment options
Recognising that accessibility also means affordability, Canva has introduced local currency pricing across South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, and Ghana, helping users avoid foreign exchange fees and pay in familiar amounts. In Kenya and Nigeria, users can now subscribe to daily and weekly Canva Pro plans, offering affordable short-term access to premium features — designed to match how people already pay for everyday services like data and airtime.
To make payments even easier, Canva has rolled out popular local payment methods including M-PESA across Eastern Africa, and Verve cards and bank transfers via NIBSS in Nigeria, expanding access to more than 100 million new users across the continent.
A global mission, rooted locally
Canva’s Africa expansion follows several major global milestones, including the launch of Affinity — a new, completely free, professional-grade creative suite combining vector design, photo editing, and layout tools in one high-performance platform. Since its debut, Affinity has surpassed two million sign-ups globally, with South Africa among the fastest-growing markets.
The company has also committed US$100 million to GiveDirectly over the next four years, supporting cash transfer programs that reach 185,000 people in extreme poverty — a reflection of Canva’s mission to “do the most good.”
