Canva is one of the most popular graphic design tools available to pros and amateurs alike. We can use it to design all sorts of graphics, including posters, Instagram posts, videos, and wallpapers.
Sometimes, we work really hard on our Canva designs, only for them to turn out blurry when we download them. It’s always frustrating when this happens. Fortunately, there are a few things you can do to avoid this problem.
1. Use the Right Canvas Size
When youstart using Canva, you quickly become familiar with the app’s different canvas types, each with a specific size. If you’re using a custom canvas, you’ll have to set its height and width. But you can’t just go with any canvas. Whether you’re using an existing canvas or creating your own, it has to be precisely the right size; otherwise, you’ll end up with a blurry design.
In particular, avoid using smaller dimensions than what is recommended. For instance, Instagram posts are 1080 x 1080 px. If you create a 400 x 400 px Instagram post, the quality will drop once you download and post it. Not sure what canvas size to use? you’re able to always look it up—it’s better to be sure than to regret it later.
You also want to avoid resizing your design to smaller dimensions, this can cause it to turn out blurry. Note that this only applies to Canva Pro users as the free version doesn’t have a resizing option. If you finish working on a design only to discover that the size is too small, Canva Pro allows you to increase the dimensions—one of the reasons it’sworth upgrading to Canva Pro.
Some sites compress images, like Facebook and Instagram, which can make them look blurry. To avoid this, download your designs in PNG format, especially if your design includes text.
Here’s how to do it:
After doing this, your design should be saved to your device as a PNG.
If downloading your designs as PNGs doesn’t quite do the trick, you’re able to save them as PDFs first, then convert them. This is especially useful for image-heavy designs because it ensures the images don’t lose their sharpness.
When downloading your design as a PDF, choose PDF Print rather than PDF Standard. It guarantees your designs are high-quality if you want to print them.
To save your design as a PDF Print, clickShare>Download, then choosePDF PrintunderFile type. After downloading it, you can use anonline file converterto convert it to a PNG or JPG file.
4. Avoid Over-Enlarging Elements in Your Design
In Canva, you can make the elements in your design bigger or smaller, depending on your preferences. When enlarging elements, such as images and graphics, you want to avoid going overboard as this can make them appear blurry.
5. Stick to High-Quality Images
(Image credit: Pexels:https://www.pexels.com/photo/wooden-hut-on-a-hill-surrounded-by-forests-13894048/)
When using images in your Canva designs, ensure they’re high-resolution (a minimum of 300 PPI). Anything other than that will result in blurry designs.
You don’t need to pay for professional photographs to access high-quality images. Instead, there are several photographywebsites where you may find copyright-free imagesat no charge.
6. Review Your Designs Before Downloading Them
Go over your designs before downloading them to ensure they’re good to go. Is your canvas the right size? Are your images high-resolution? Are your elements looking a little blurry? Consider all these things.
Besides reviewing your design, ensure you’ve selected the correct file type. If everything looks good, go ahead and download your design.
Avoid Blurry Canva Designs
Putting a lot of work into your Canva design only for it to turn out blurry is frustrating. Luckily, there are ways to prevent this, like using the right canvas size, downloading your designs as PNGs or PDF Prints, and using high-quality images.
If your design turned out blurry, give the tips above a shot to enhance the overall quality of your Canva project.
