Canva or Envato: Which Website Building Platform Is Right for You?

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If you enjoy designing for projects, presentations, or social media, you may be familiar with Envato and Canva. Both are popular online platforms that can assist you. But what sets them apart? Which one is more suitable for your requirements? In this article, we will provide a detailed comparison of Envato and Canva to help you decide. Let's begin!

A brief comparison between Envato and Canva.

Envato offers high-quality and sophisticated design assets that can be edited with your own tools, while Canva is a preferred option for creating stunning designs without the need for external tools.

Before we discuss Envato vs Canva, let's first provide an overview of both Envato and Canva.

What is the purpose of Envato?

Envato is a platform that provides products and services for creative individuals. Users can access digital assets, including graphics, videos, music, and web templates. They can also buy and sell their assets, create mockups and logos, and learn new skills from tutorials and courses. Envato's goal is to assist users in bringing their ideas and projects to life using cost-effective and top-notch resources.

Envato Resources

Envato provides a range of products and services for creative projects, including the following:

• Envato Elements
• Envato Market
• Placeit by Envato
• Envato Tuts+

1. Envato Elements

Through a subscription-based model, users have the opportunity to enjoy unlimited access to a wide variety of high-quality graphics, templates, videos, audio tracks, and other resources.

Envato Elements enables individuals and businesses with visually appealing and engaging content, enhancing productivity and saving valuable time. The platform is a reliable choice for creative professionals in need of design elements, website themes, or stock media.

Envato Elements is an online library containing millions of digital assets.

Currently, there is an extensive collection of stock video clips, images, audios, graphics, web templates, fonts, 3D templates, presentation templates, WordPress themes, plugins, video templates, and more available, totaling 1.3 million+ video clips, 52 million+ images, and 510k+ royalty-free audios.

2. Envato Market

Envato Market offers a variety of assets for buying or selling, including WordPress themes, website templates, stock videos, royalty-free music, and more. Over the past 15 years, creatives have earned more than $1.3 billion USD through Envato Market's various sites. Additionally, Envato Market provides a wide range of creative assets that are not found on Envato Elements.

Their asset libraries include:

• PhotoDune is a library of royalty-free stock photos.
• VideoHive consists of a collection of videos and video templates that are royalty-free.
• GraphicRiver is a collection of graphic templates, icons, logos, and more.
• AudioJungle offers a diverse collection of royalty-free audios and audio templates.
• ThemeForest offers a wide selection of themes and templates for websites.
• 3DOcean offers a selection of 3D print models.
• CodeCanyon includes a collection of code snippets, scripts, and plugins.

The Envato Market consists of multiple directories, where each asset must be paid for individually.

They regularly update their list with thousands of new items every week. Access to unlimited downloads of these assets is available for a monthly fee of $16.50.

3. Placeit by Envato

In 2018, Envato acquired Placeit, a design company based in Mexico. Placeit is a tool for creating mockups, which helps incorporate online designs into various templates and create product shots.

Placeit is primarily used by brands rather than individuals. However, when compared to Canva, Placeit lacks in features, template collection, and content library, lacking the same level of excellence and advancement.

4. Envato Tuts+

Envato Tuts+ provides a wide range of topics for creatives to learn from, including design, code, photo and video, business, and more. It offers numerous free tutorials and courses, taught by experienced instructors who have worked for notable companies such as Apple, Adobe, and Ubisoft.

Popular categories such as WordPress, Photoshop, Illustrator, After Effects, and more can be explored on Envato Tuts+. Additionally, Envato Tuts+ is part of the Envato network, which also includes Envato Market and Envato Elements.

What is the primary use of Canva?

Canva is a user-friendly graphic design platform catering to business owners, offering subscription services that enable them to create and edit visual content effortlessly. It provides access to thousands of templates, an extensive selection of photos, fonts, and icons, and even allows users to upload their own content. Beyond its array of creative resources, Canva's subscription services include collaboration features, facilitating teamwork, design sharing, and hassle-free printing. Widely utilized for crafting professional and captivating graphics, Canva serves both personal and business-related design needs seamlessly.

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Comparison between Envato Elements and Canva.

Here is a comparison of Envato and Canva.

When comparing Envato and Canva in terms of stock content, there are several significant differences.

Stock Content Comparison:

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Envato:

• Variety of Stock content:
• Over 12 million assets
• Quality of Stock content:
• High-quality and sophisticated
• Categories:
• Presentation Templates: 87,000+
• Audio: 120,000+
• Graphic elements: 125,000+
• Videos: 69,000+
• Photos: 7+ million

Canva:

• Variety of Stock content:
• Over 100 million assets
• Quality of Stock content:
• Simple and easy to use
• Categories:
• Presentation Templates
• Audio
• Graphic elements
• Videos
• Photos: 100+ million

Envato offers various options for enhancing your brand with video content. They provide downloadable stock video footage for immediate use, as well as customizable video templates that can be edited using an editing tool.

The video content on Canva videos includes video templates and stock footage, which are less complex and straightforward compared to the videos on Envato Elements.

Both Envato and Canva photos are known for their exceptional quality and are suitable for use in designs.

One aspect of Canva that users appreciate is its ability to categorize photos into numerous categories, which helps refine searches. Users can simply select their preferred photo and incorporate it into a design using Canva.

The filtering options provided by Envato are limited as they only allow you to filter by background, orientation, and color.

Envato provides WordPress templates in addition to 3D graphics and sound effects.

We will compare the font offerings of Envato and Canva in a fair comparison.

Font Selection

Envato provides a wide range of fonts through its marketplace platform called Envato Elements. The font library includes various styles such as serif, sans-serif, script, display, and decorative fonts.

Canva carefully selects fonts for its library that are both popular and trendy, making them suitable for a range of design purposes.

Quality and Professionalism

Fonts available through the Envato platform are created by reputable type foundries and skilled designers, guaranteeing that users have access to high-quality and visually pleasing typefaces.

The fonts provided by Canva are generally of good quality, but they may not always meet the level of sophistication found in professional font libraries.

Envato provides pre-designed website templates for various content management systems, such as WordPress. However, modifying the design components purchased from Envato requires design software like WordPress, Adobe Photoshop, Shopify Illustrator, DaVinci Resolve, Apple Motion, among others.

Envato Elements is useful for individuals with a strong understanding of design, including both experienced designers and users with sufficient design knowledge.

Canva offers the option to create custom designs or use premade templates. It is an online tool that allows easy drag and drop functionality for your designs. Canva also provides a stock library of beautiful images, graphics, and videos for those who don't have their own.

It is possible to make changes to the designs and templates available on Canva within the platform itself, without needing external tools. Canva can be utilized by individuals of all experience levels to create various design creations.

Pricing Models:

Canva adopts a fixed pricing model, offering a monthly subscription of $12.99 per user, providing access to all platform features and content.

Envato's pricing structure for a team of five users requires each user to pay $10.75 per month, totaling $53.75 monthly for the team.

For Canva's multiple-user plan, the monthly fee is $14.99 per user. Hence, a team of five users would incur a total cost of $74.95 per month.

Free Versions and Educational Benefits:

Envato's free version, called Placeit, includes watermarked designs, indicating the use of the free version.

Canva offers a free version with certain limitations, restricting access to all features and content.

Both platforms offer educational benefits: Envato extends a 30% discount to students, while Canva provides a free version for students' use.

Free Trials:

Envato offers a 7-day free trial, whereas Canva's trial period extends to 30 days, allowing users to explore and test the platform's features and services.

Which is the preferred option - Envato or Canva?

Both Envato and Canva are design tools that offer different applications and features, potentially appealing to different audiences.

The following criteria suggest using Canva.

• If you have limited design experience but want to create impressive graphic designs quickly and easily.
• Your goal is to create designs using pre-existing templates with simple adjustments.
• If you are not familiar with advanced external design tools, you may find it easier to use a drag-and-drop option to create your designs.
• Companies frequently require brand and business designs, but prefer to avoid expensive designer fees.
• Your objective is to create straightforward graphics using a graphic design tool that is free and has essential features and pre-designed content.
• If you're a student looking for a high-quality design tool that is free of charge, then this might be a good option for you.

The use of Envato is recommended if the specified conditions apply.

• As a designer, you need templates, videos, and graphics that are advanced and of exceptional quality.
• You have a high proficiency in using futuristic design software to modify complex designs from Envato, and you feel comfortable while doing so.
• To create a functional website, you will need a variety of assets including code, themes, and web templates that can enhance your design with a professional touch.
• You have the option to access a collection of 33,000 fonts, which can be downloaded and used for all your brand design projects.

You can choose Canva or Envato if you want high-quality photos. One great tool for showcasing your designs is Placeit by Envato. It offers thousands of options. Canva Pro also provides mockup templates for your use.

The choice between Envato and Canva ultimately depends on individual needs, preferences, and skill levels. Envato caters to professionals who need a variety of design resources, including an extensive image library, and advanced customization options, while Canva is more suitable for beginners and cost-conscious individuals who want user-friendly design tools at an affordable price. By understanding the strengths of both platforms, users can make an informed decision that suits their specific requirements.

FAQs

Which option would be more suitable, Envato or Canva?

Both Canva and Envato serve various use cases. Canva may be better for certain use cases, while Envato may be better for others. The choice between the two depends on your specific needs and which platform is more suitable for them. Envato provides a wide range of creative assets, whereas Canva is known for its user-friendly design tools.

Are there any alternative programs to Canva?

If you require more precise image control and graphic design options, Adobe Creative Cloud provides a comprehensive range of design tools, including Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop, which are frequently viewed as more robust alternatives to Canva.

Is Envato Elements a good investment?

Envato Elements is considered valuable because it provides a wide range of high-quality digital assets, including templates, graphics, and stock photos, all for a single subscription fee.

Who are the competitors of Envato market?

Envato Market's competitors include ThemeForest, Creative Market, and GraphicRiver, as they offer similar digital products and services for creative professionals.

Is it possible to earn money from Envato?

Envato offers the opportunity to earn money by selling digital products on their marketplaces. Authors receive 20% of the revenue from sales or subscription downloads that include their assets and templates.