It is essential to have high-quality graphics that accurately represent your business. But with so many design software packages available, business owners may find it difficult to select the best design software.
Canva and Adobe Illustrator are the two most popular solutions right now.
Both apps are useful, but they are not equal.
Canva is best suited to non-designers searching for an extremely basic and rapid design tool. It provides hundreds of pre-designed templates, from social media posts and short videos to logos and marketing elements.
Conversely, Illustrator is aimed at professionals that need industry-standard vector-based graphic design software to create precise artwork ranging from logos and icons to sketches, drawings, billboards, typography, and advanced illustrations.
This was only a quick overview of each platform. In this blog post, we’ll compare Canva and Illustrator and their benefits and drawbacks to help you make the best selection for yourself.
1. Graphics
The most significant difference between the two software is that Canva only makes raster graphics, whereas Illustrator creates vector images.
Let me clarify for those who believe I’m speaking another language.
Raster images are graphics composed of pixels. This allows them to be lower in file size and are the sort of graphics file used for digital output (anything that will be used/seen on a screen or that will be used/seen on the internet).
The disadvantage of raster graphics is that they cannot be expanded without becoming pixelated, they are difficult to alter, and if not saved at a high enough quality, they will appear bad when printed.
Vector pictures, conversely, are made up of magical, computer-produced routes that are automatically recalculated when enlarged or modified, guaranteeing that they never get pixelated or grainy – meaning they’re always in the greatest resolution possible.
In short, Illustrator allows you to export your drawings as raster AND vector files, whereas Canva only generates raster graphics.
Winner: Illustrator
2. Features
Canva makes it easy to create a professional-looking design since you can utilize the well-designed template and alter the details to make it your own. Canva’s finest feature is the availability of ready-to-use templates. You may start creating amazing pictures right away by using a template.
You may also make your design by combining stock graphics and pictures. You can search for a graphic by clicking on the Elements option. If you want some flower graphics, for example, search floral, and you will discover alternatives for images, graphics, and so on.
You can change colors and move around objects on the template if you don’t want your design to look the same as other businesses that use the same template. Still, if you want to add a personal touch, such as creating freehand drawings or vectors, Adobe Illustrator is the way because Canva lacks drawing tools.
To produce creative vectors and freehand drawings, Adobe Illustrator includes the well-known pen tool, pencil, shape tools, and other vector tools.
Adobe Illustrator is often used for designing logos and marketing materials and making artwork since there is so much you can do with typography and text. Text effects are an important aspect of graphic design.
To create amazing patterns, you may bend text, have it follow a route, or even make it fit in a form.
Winner: Again, Illustrator! You can bring your creativity in Adobe Illustrator, whereas on Canva, you can only use templates.
3. Use of Internet
Canva is an online design tool that requires access to the internet. You wouldn’t be able to load stock pictures, fonts, and layouts or upload photos to Canva if you didn’t have access to the internet. Nothing works, which is one of Canva’s drawbacks.
Conversely, Illustrator is downloaded into your computer, so you don’t need internet connectivity to begin designing.
With an Adobe Creative Cloud membership (which is how you obtain an Illustrator subscription), you can install Illustrator on two separate devices and access your libraries and Typekit fonts from any computer where your account is signed in.
Winner: Adobe Illustrator. Although there is now wifi nearly everywhere, it is still useful to operate offline, especially when the internet is unstable.
4. File types and compatibility
After generating your design, whether published digitally or printed, you must save it in a certain format.
For example, we generally save the file as png for print, and we usually save the work as png or jpeg for online pictures. If you wish to submit a design file to a colleague to alter, you must also give the original file.
There are several formats for opening, arranging, and saving in Adobe Illustrator, whether digital or print. For example, you may open over 20 file types, including cdr, pdf, jpg, png, ai, etc. You may also save and export your design for future reference. In summary, Illustrator is compatible with the vast majority of regularly used file types.
When you download your final design from Canva, you’ll notice several format options to download/save your file, depending on whether you’re using the Free or Pro edition.
They recommend saving the picture as a png because it is a high-quality image generally used when creating something on Canva. You may save your design as an SVG file if you have the Pro edition.
Winner: Illustrator. Both applications support the standard png, jpeg, pdf, and gif file formats, but Adobe Illustrator is significantly more versatile and saves files in higher resolution.
5. Skills needed
Adobe Illustrator contains many tools, and while they are valuable and simple to use, mastering them requires time and experience. Drawing circles and shapes and tracing pictures is simpler, but logo design is different. That may become rather difficult.
In other words, many tools are simple to use, such as the pen tool. Connecting anchor points is simple; the difficult part is developing a concept and selecting the appropriate tool. What are you planning to cook? The technique is simple if you understand the concept.
Canva provides over 50,000 themes, stock vectors, and photos, so you don’t have to start from scratch. There are no tools necessary; select the template and start working.
Winner: Canva
6. Pricing
Canva has a free plan and a Pro version that costs $12.95/month or $119.40/year. Adobe Illustrator is available through a Creative Cloud subscription, which starts at $20.99/month for a single app or $52.99/month for the full Creative Cloud suite.
In conclusion, Canva and Adobe Illustrator have their strengths, and the choice depends on your business’s specific needs and skills. Canva is a great choice for non-designers who need a quick and easy tool to create professional-looking designs. At the same time, Adobe Illustrator is the go-to software for professional graphic designers and businesses that need to create high-quality, custom graphics and branding materials.
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