Your branding does more than you think. People recognize your colors, images, and especially your logo. The last thing you want is to build your business around branding that you cannot trademark – and could easily be ripped off by a competitor. 😨 That is the danger of using Canva to create your logo. I want to explore a couple common questions I get as a website designer: can I use Canva logos for my business? And can I trademark a logo from Canva?
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Can I Use Canva Logos for my Business?
The short answer: yes! Canva* states on their licensing page that “you can use our content in a Canva design, for a wide range of personal and commercial uses”. That means you can use a logo you create in Canva to promote your business, AKA commercial use. (Important to note: Canva can update their policies at anytime. Refer to their licensing page for more information.)
However, just because you can create a logo in Canva doesn’t mean you should. 😉 For one thing, if your using a template to design that logo, you run the risk of looking like everyone else. Or making it easy for your competitors to rip off your brand. (Unfortunately, it happens.)
Another reason I’d stay away from Canva logos is trademarks. 👇🏻
Can You Trademark a Logo From Canva?
If you decide to trademark your business, you’ll have a rough time if your logo was created in Canva. That’s because Canva* specifically states: “you cannot use any of the content as part of a trade-mark, design-mark, trade-name, business name or service mark.” AKA you cannot trademark your Canva-made logo.
This could majorly suck for your business. A brand that you spent years growing and is now recognizable by your audience, suddenly has to undergo a change before you can add legal protection to your business.
If Not Canva, Where?
You might be wondering: if I shouldn’t design my logo in Canva, where should I create it? The best alternative is to hire a designer.
Designers can craft unique logos by hand. Meaning no one else will have the exact same logo as you, and because it’s been uniquely designed, you are able to trademark it. 🙌🏻
With my service, Branding Designer Day, you’ll get a complete branding suite in just three half-days. That includes brand colors, brand elements, a primary logo, and secondary logos! You’ll get a say every step of the way – so your branding turns out exactly as you imagined.
The moral of the story: don’t create your logo in Canva. Canva is great for a lot of things, like social media graphics and slideshows, but not your branding. Instead, invest in a designer who can create a unique logo for you that makes you stand out from the rest (and can’t be replicated easily).
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Excellent read, Alexis! While Canva allows you to quickly generate a range of print and digital designs, it is not great for creating logos as it is not a vector-based application. Canva’s logo templates are also customizable and may be used by anybody. It implies that your logo rights are non-exclusive and that you cannot register it as a trademark.
YES – exactly!
Great write-up, Alexis! I agree with you. Even though they say trademarking is possible in Canva, its is not so. They do no allow trademark on stock photos or templets available in Canva. Which is why I prefer no to make logos on Canva. With all this, there won’t be any uniqueness in a logo.
Really good to know, Alexis, thanks!
In the end, it’s about everyone making sure they end up with a trademark that’s distinctive – whatever the design is, and whatever the source of the design is.
Canva certainly doesn’t want the responsibility of competitors trying to register similar trademarks, and so it makes sense for them to block the protection of these designs completely.
Hi, so if I create a logo on Canva using their graphic elements for a client that is a realtor, I cannot use the ® symbol on the design?
Hey there. You cannot trademark anything that Canva owns on their platform – but don’t forget you cannot just put the registered symbol on something unless they have fully registered their business as a trademark.