Canva Ends 2025 with Remarkable Growth
Creative company Canva concluded 2025 on a high note, reporting a 20% increase in monthly active users. This growth was significantly driven by the adoption of its innovative AI tools.
Impressive User Base and Revenue Milestones
According to the company, Canva achieved over 265 million monthly active users and more than 31 million paid users in 2025. This robust user base contributed to an annual recurring revenue (ARR) of $4 billion, as shared by co-founder and COO Cliff Obrecht during Web Summit Qatar. Additionally, the company’s subscription-based B2B segment, which includes companies with more than 25 seats, experienced a remarkable 100% growth, reaching $500 million in ARR.
Global Expansion and Localized Pricing
While North America remains Canva’s largest market, the company continues to see growth in international regions. In a bid to attract more paying users, Canva has introduced lower-priced subscriptions in countries like Pakistan, Uruguay, Morocco, and Jamaica.
AI at the Core of Canva’s Strategy
Canva’s investments in AI are yielding significant returns. The company launched an AI-powered tool last year that enables users to create mini apps and websites. This tool now boasts more than 10 million monthly active users. According to Obrecht, the success of this tool has prompted Canva to position AI at the core of its strategy, describing the shift as moving towards becoming a “design agency in your pocket.”
“Where we started was… we got the Canva platform, and we’re giving the Canva platform a bunch of AI tools. We’re inverting that now. We’re becoming an AI platform with a bunch of design tools. So you can think of it more like a cursor for design,” Obrecht explained.
Competition and Strategic AI Integration
Canva’s pivot to AI comes amidst increasing competition from companies like Adobe, Freepik, and Apple. Apple, in particular, has made significant moves to position itself as a comprehensive creator suite by bundling tools such as Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, and Pixelmator Pro into its $12.99 per month Creator Studio package.
To further solidify its AI-driven strategy, Canva is actively integrating with advanced chatbots like ChatGPT and Claude. By October 2025, users had engaged in more than 26 million conversations with the Canva app on ChatGPT. Additionally, Canva emerged as one of the top 10 referred domains from ChatGPT.
SEO, LLM Search Results, and Traffic Growth
Canva is dedicating resources to enhance its visibility in LLM (Large Language Model) search results and improve its SEO strategies. Obrecht explained, “We drove a lot of early days in Canva through Google, really understood people’s search intent, and delivered them content that they could then go into our product and edit. And so we really see ChatGPT or any of the LLMs as top-of-the-funnel acquisition platforms.”
While search remains a key driver of traffic, referrals from LLMs now account for double-digit percentages. Canva is also investing in expanding its presence across chatbot platforms to further capitalize on this opportunity.
Future Plans and Valuation
Canva was last valued at $42 billion during a share sale. Obrecht hinted in an interview with Bloomberg last November that the company plans to go public within the next “couple of years.”
