is an online design and publishing tool created with a mission to empower ​everyone in the world to design anything and publish anywhere. With this in mind, we ​have been giving developers like you, an opportunity to develop their own apps ​(extensions or plugins).

This page contains guidelines that would help you understand our review criteria so your ​app can go through the process quickly.

Use a suitable hosting platform

Choose a hosting platform that’s reliable, secure, and capable of handling the expected ​traffic.

For production apps, don’t use Glitch’s free service, Heroku, or other similar platforms. ​The servers are slow and go to sleep after a few minutes of inactivity, which causes ​timeout errors when opening an app.

Follow Canva's brand guidelines

If your app integrates with a third-party platform, any references to Canva must adhere ​to Canva's brand guidelines.

At a minimum, read the following pages:

• Terms of Use
  
• Canva Developer Terms
  
• Canva App Terms
  

You're asked to agree to these terms when submitting an app.

Test signature verification

If your app requires Authentication or uses the Fetch capability, you must also implement ​and pass signature verification tests as a prerequisite of submitting your app.

Secure your app

Use reasonable security measures to protect your app and its users.

At a minimum:

Follow the design guidelines

Canva's UX Guidelines give advice on how to create delightful apps. If you want to reduce ​the amount of time your app spends in the review pipeline, double (and triple) check that ​it follows the guidelines.

Compatibility with mobile devices is not a strict requirement but it is highly ​recommended. If your app is suitable for mobile use, make sure to follow the UX ​guidelines for mobile.

Test the app

Run through the app to ensure it’s complete and everything works as expected. This ​avoids a lot of friction in the review phase and reduces the chances of rejection.

At a minimum, test the following:

• Core functionality
  
• Authentication flow (with and without an active session, with an existing user, with a ​newly signed up user)
  
• Endpoints
  
• Links
  
• Buttons
  

• Implement encryption and a strong password policy.
  
• Sanitize names received from Canva and avoid security issues such as XSS, CSRF ​attacks, or path traversal. Handle maximum length and unsupported characters ​suitably.
  
• Avoid OWASP Top 10 risks.
  

Create the App Directory listing

Your app's listing in the Apps Directory is an excellent way to drive attention and ​engagement to your app once released. Before submitting your app, create copy and ​graphics that clearly communicate your app's benefits.

For a complete list of guidelines, refer to Create your app listing.

Review the copy

The copy reflects your app’s quality and reputation. Keep the language simple, and free ​from typos and formatting errors. Proofread the copy, run a spellcheck, and review the ​grammar and punctuation. Remove any external links.

Provide the required details

We need the following details before proceeding with the app review. In some cases, this

Test the app

Run through the app to ensure it’s complete and everything works as expected. This ​avoids a lot of friction in the review phase and reduces the chances of rejection.

At a minimum, test the following:

• Core functionality
  
• Authentication flow (with and without an active session, with an existing user, with a ​newly signed up user)
  
• Endpoints
  
• Links
  
• Buttons
  

Canva will monitor the app’s health regularly and may disable the app if there’s a high ​error rate.

Handle low power mode

If a user enters low power mode on their device, it may affect the capabilities of the app. ​For example, iOS throttles the requestAnimationFrame method.

To confirm how your app behaves in low power mode, enable the mode and test the app.

Optimize the touch interactions for different devices

If an extension supports touch interactions, verify that the interactions feel intuitive on ​desktop and non-desktop devices. It's easy to be precise with a desktop computer and a ​mouse, but many users may be using their finger on a touchscreen. Find a balance that ​feels good across a range of hardware.

Check for performance warnings

When a user installs an app that renders its own frontend, Canva invisibly runs the app in ​the background and detects if the user may have issues running the app on their device. If ​Canva detects an issue, it shows an error notification to the user.

Support the required operating systems

At a minimum, Canva expects apps to support the following versions of mobile operating ​systems:

• iOS 12
  
• Android 5.0
  

To confirm if these browsers support a feature, visit caniuse.com

An example of a useful feature that is not available in iOS 12 is OffscreenCanvas.

After Submission

After developing your app and submitting it for review, the Canva Ecosystem team will ​check if it meets Canva’s guidelines.

Duration

You can expect to receive feedback from the team within 5 business days.

Updates

Updates and messages from the team will be added to your ticket, which will ​automatically be generated once you submit your app via the Developer Portal.

You will also receive feedback via the portal when we approve or reject your app.

Check for performance warnings

When a user installs an app that renders its own frontend, Canva invisibly runs the app in ​the background and detects if the user may have issues running the app on their device. If ​Canva detects an issue, it shows an error notification to the user.