How to Draw in Canva (2023 Guide)

In this post I’m going to show you how to draw in Canva — in just a few simple steps.

Canva is an increasingly popular design tool and one that is often turned to as an easy-to-use alternative to Photoshop.

However, one thing that often surprises new Canva users is the apparent lack of a pen tool for drawing freehand (something that you find as standard in most graphic design tools, Photoshop included).

But in fact getting your hands on such a tool for Canva is perfectly possible and in the steps below, I show you how to access this feature and draw freehand on any Canva project you like.

1. Install the Draw app

Most key Canva features are provided ‘out of the box’ — but some, like Canva’s drawing tool, are provided as add-on apps.

To add the drawing app, log into Canva and then click the ‘apps’ option on the left-hand menu.

This will return a large number of apps — but you can use the search box provided to find the drawing one.

Just type ‘Draw’ into the box provided.

This will return a few search results — click on the ‘Draw (Beta)’ icon to install the drawing tool.

You’ll then get the option to install the app and use it on an existing design or a new one. Just choose which one you’d prefer.

2. Choose your brush settings

Once the ‘Draw’ app is installed, you’ll see it as an option in the set of icons that appear on the left hand side of any Canva design.

To add drawings with the app, you first need to select a ‘brush’ (or pen) type. Four are currently available: pen, marker, glow pen and highlighter.

Then, select a brush size. This governs how thick the line used in your freehand drawings is going to be.

The next thing to choose is a is transparency setting — this lets you define how opaque or ‘see through’ you’d like your freehand drawing to be.

And finally, it’s time to pick a color for your drawing. This is easily done using the color palette provided.

3. Start drawing

With the Draw app added, and your brush settings decided upon, it’s time to start drawing!

You just use your mouse (and its left-hand button) to do so — it’s a fairly intuitive process.

One thing to note is that as you draw, an eraser tool becomes available — as its name suggests, you can use this to rub out any mistakes you make while drawing.

And that’s pretty much all there is to it! I hope this guide to drawing in Canva has proved useful — do leave any feedback or questions in the comments section below.