Pixlr vs Canva: What Program to Choose

If you’re wondering which graphic design tool to choose, Pixlr or Canva, we’ve prepared a review to help you make a decision. Even though they have similar sets of features, we’ve found out some distinctive features.

Pixlr is the best photo editing software for beginners with over 600 effects and overlays. The program includes all basic features you need, like cropping, re-sizing, red-eye removal, etc.

Canva is a popular design platform that combines high-end features with eye-catching graphics. It has a user-friendly UI and allows users to create banners, charts, infographics, CVs, presentations, invitations, gift cards, etc.

Pixlr is a cloud-based editor with a wide range of graphic tools and editing utilities. While Pixlr was originally intended for non-professional use, it now has both basic and advanced photo editing tools.

There are 2 versions of this free web design software: Pixlr X and Pixlr E. Pixlr X is easier to use for beginners. It's easy to learn and comes with various presets for faster editing. Pixlr E is a more powerful editor for professionals. If you compare Pixlr vs Photoshop, you will notice that the former has a UI that is similar to Photoshop’s interface. It has all the advanced tools that you might need.

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Free. Pixlr is a completely free online tool. There are no hidden fees. You can use it even for commercial purposes. This makes it a cost-effective solution for photographers, freelance artists, and small businesses.

Grabber for Firefox. By right-clicking on any image on a web page, you can upload it to Pixlr for editing. This free Firefox add-on also allows users to capture all browser content or take print screens.

User-friendly interface. Pixlr has a clean interface with an editing area in the center. On the left, you can find the most frequently used functions in the toolbar. On the right, you will see the image control panel, which consists of three blocks: navigation, layers, and history.

A wide range of functions. Under each button, you’ll find a whole set of related tools. You can use the basic editing tools to crop, re-size, and rotate your images.

To change color, lightness, brightness, and saturation, you can use both automatic correction tools and set the values manually. Besides, you can adjust contrast and blur. Portrait photographers can quickly remove skin blemishes, red pupils, and whiten teeth.

Extensive Effect menu. Each effect can be further customized. Besides, you can use various overlay effects: textures, fireworks, optical distortions, flares, etc.

Online mode only. While reading the Pixlr vs Canva comparison, keep in mind that the former is a web application. Thus, you need a reliable Internet connection to use this free online editor. A slow connection can cause difficulties if you need to edit large photos.

Supports only JPEG. Despite its extensive functionality, Pixlr may not be the best option for some users. The program supports only JPEG. If you want to work with RAW, TIFF, and DNG files, you should opt for another program.

Canva is a perfect software for beginners. Most people use it for creating images, printable forms, PDFs, invoices, flyers, infographics, and websites. This web design software has an online and desktop version as well as mobile apps.

Here, you will find a wide range of editing and compositing tools. With them, you can crop your image, add blur effects and remove the background. Users can work with layers, add text labels or fun stickers to images.

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Various effects. Canva has a set of effects for making your pictures more attractive. Here, you can flip and crop images, add filters, and adjust brightness, contrast, saturation, hue, blur, etc.

You can find popular effects, including Duotone, Background Remover, and Liquify, under the Effects tab. Users can apply most of them for free, however, some options, like background removal, are available only for those who pay for a subscription.

Mobile version. Android and iOS apps are as user-friendly as the main web version. You can use various photo editing tools and save the result directly to your device.

Extensive font library. Canva has a font library in the Text section. There you will find simple and complex fonts. Canva will help you find a specific font and select supportive ones.

Instant publication on social networks. Like most online editors, Canva lets you share images on social media platforms. The program has a handy feature to schedule your social media posts on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest pages and groups, LinkedIn, Slack, and Tumblr profiles and pages.

Easy to create projects from scratch. Canva also lets users create their designs from scratch. In this automatic photo editor, you can find customizable templates that allow you to change images and colors.

When selecting a template, a user will see a dashboard. There are many free templates, however, some advanced ones cost $1. You can also easily add doodles, graphics, illustrations, texts, backgrounds, images, and photos.

It’s impossible to re-size images in the basic version. It is better to determine the size and format of a picture you want to use in advance. In the free version, you cannot resize images. To do this, you need to pay for a premium account. You can create a layout with custom dimensions and insert parts from the previous draft into the new work. However, it will take time to place all the elements in the right places.

You need an Internet connection. It’s crucial to have a device with a good amount of RAM to use this editor. Besides, a stable Internet connection is required. The result of each action is automatically saved, that is why the editor requires a good connection.

While comparing Pixlr vs Canva, we took into account their prices.

Pixlr is a free editor that only requires signing up. You can select one of 3 plans. Besides Pixlr Free, you can use a premium version that has even more features and image-editing tools. You can try a 30-day free version of Pixlr Premium or buy a subscription for $4.90/month.

You can also purchase the Pixlr Creative Pack for $14.90/month. It provides unlimited access to standard content (10 million graphics files, templates, fonts, photos, videos, and 3D files), full access to Pixlr X and E, and advanced editing tools.

Canva also has three plans to choose from. The first one is completely free. The Pro version costs $119.99/year. It provides unlimited access to premium tools and content. The Enterprise plan is perfect for teamwork. It costs $30/month per person.

Comparing Pixlr vs Canva, it is worth noting that both these photo editing software for PC help you create professional visuals with ease and have good sets of tools.

Pixlr is a cloud-based editor that comes with various graphics and editing tools. Even though it was designed as non-professional software, nowadays it’s used by novices and advanced users.

Canva has an impressive set of graphic design tools available in its online version and iOS and Android apps. You can use it to create various types of images for newsletters or social media posts. Canva is best suited for small business owners, entrepreneurs, and marketers who are focused on fast project development.

Pixlr vs Canva

What is Pixlr?

Pixlr: Strengths and Weaknesses

What is Canva?

Canva: Strengths and Weaknesses

Pixlr vs Canva: Price

Pixlr vs Canva: Who Wins?