Create design export job

Create an asynchronous job to export a design from Canva.

Starts a new job to export a file from Canva. Once the exported file is generated, you can download it using the link(s) provided.

The request requires the design ID and the exported file format type.

Supported file formats (and export file type values): PDF (pdf), JPG (jpg), PNG (png), GIF (gif), Microsoft PowerPoint (pptx), and MP4 (mp4).

You can check the status and get the results of export jobs created with this API using the Get design export job API.

POST https://api.canva.com/rest/v1/exports

This operation is rate limited to 20 requests per minute for each user of your integration.

This endpoint requires a valid access token that acts on behalf of a user. The token must have the following scopes (permissions):

  • design:content:read

For more information, see Scopes.

#Authorizationstring
Required

Provides credentials to authenticate the request, in the form of a Bearer token.

For example: Authorization: Bearer {token}

#Content-Typestring
Required

Indicates the media type of the information sent in the request. This must be set to application/json.

For example: Content-Type: application/json

#design_idstring
Required

The design ID.

#formatExportFormat
Required

Details about the desired export format.

Properties of format
#typestring
Required

This can be one of the following:

  • pdf: Export the design as a PDF. Providing a paper size is optional. The default paper size is A4.

  • jpg: Export the design as a JPEG. Compression quality must be provided. Height or width (or both) may be specified, otherwise the file will be exported at it's default size.

    If the user is on the Canva Free plan, the export height and width for a fixed-dimension design can't be upscaled by more than a factor of 1.125.

  • png: Export the design as a PNG. Height or width (or both) may be specified, otherwise the file will be exported at it's default size. You may also specify whether to export the file losslessly, and whether to export a multi-page design as a single image.

    If the user is on the Canva Free plan, the export height and width for a fixed-dimension design can't be upscaled by more than a factor of 1.125.

  • pptx: Export the design as a PPTX.

  • gif: Export the design as a GIF. Height or width (or both) may be specified, otherwise the file will be exported at it's default size. Large designs will be scaled down, and aspect ratio will always be maintained.

  • mp4: Export the design as an MP4. You must specify the quality of the exported video.

#qualityinteger or string
Sometimes required

For the jpg type, the quality of the exported JPEG determines how compressed the exported file should be. A low quality value (minimum 1) will create a file with a smaller file size, but the resulting file will have pixelated artifacts when compared to a file created with a high quality value (maximum 100).

For the mp4 type, the quality is the orientation and resolution of the exported video. Orientation is either horizontal or vertical, and resolution is one of 480p, 720p, 1080p or 4k. This can be one of the following:

  • horizontal_480p
  • horizontal_720p
  • horizontal_1080p
  • horizontal_4k
  • vertical_480p
  • vertical_720p
  • vertical_1080p
  • vertical_4k
#pagesinteger[]
Optional

To specify which pages to export in a multi-page design, provide the page numbers as an array. The first page in a design is page 1. If pages isn't specified, all the pages are exported.

#export_qualitystring
Optional

Specifies the export quality of the design. This can be one of the following:

  • regular: Regular quality export. This is the default.

  • pro: Premium quality export.

#sizestring
Optional

The paper size of the export PDF file. The size attribute is only supported for Documents (Canva Docs). This can be one of the following:

  • a4
  • a3
  • letter
  • legal
#heightinteger
Optional

Specify the height in pixels of the exported image. If only one of height or width is specified, then the image will be scaled to match that dimension, respecting the design's aspect ratio. If no width or height is specified, the image will be exported using the dimensions of the design.

#widthinteger
Optional

Specify the width in pixels of the exported image. If only one of height or width is specified, then the image will be scaled to match that dimension, respecting the design's aspect ratio. If no width or height is specified, the image will be exported using the dimensions of the design.

#losslessboolean
Optional

If set to true (Default), the PNG is exported without compression. If set to false, the PNG is compressed using a lossy compression algorithm. Lossy PNG compression is only available to users on a Canva plan that has premium features, such as Canva Pro. If the user is on the Canva Free plan and this parameter is set to false, the export operation will fail.

#as_single_imageboolean
Optional

When true, multi-page designs are merged into a single image. When false (default), each page is exported as a separate image.

Examples for using the /v1/exports endpoint:

curl --request POST 'https://api.canva.com/rest/v1/exports' \
--header 'Authorization: Bearer {token}' \
--header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
--data '{
"design_id": "DAVZr1z5464",
"format": {
"type": "pdf",
"size": "a4",
"pages": [
2,
3,
4
]
}
}'
sh

If successful, the endpoint returns a 200 response with a JSON body with the following parameters:

#jobExportJob

The status of the export job.

Properties of job
#idstring

The export job ID.

#statusstring

The export status of the job. A newly created job will be in_progress and will eventually become success or failed.

#urlsstring[]
Optional

When the export job is completed, also returns a list of urls for the exported resources. The list is sorted by page order.

#errorExportError
Optional

If the export fails, this object provides details about the error.

Properties of error
#codestring

If the export failed, this specifies the reason why it failed. This can be one of the following:

  • license_required: The design contains premium elements that haven't been purchased. You can either buy the elements or upgrade to a Canva plan (such as Canva Pro) that has premium features, then try again. Alternatively, you can set export_quality to regular to export your document in regular quality.
  • internal_failure: The service encountered an error when exporting your design.
#messagestring

A human-readable description of what went wrong.

{
"job": {
"id": "e08861ae-3b29-45db-8dc1-1fe0bf7f1cc8",
"status": "in_progress"
}
}
json
{
"job": {
"id": "e08861ae-3b29-45db-8dc1-1fe0bf7f1cc8",
"status": "success",
"urls": [
"https://export-download.canva.com/..."
]
}
}
json
{
"job": {
"id": "e08861ae-3b29-45db-8dc1-1fe0bf7f1cc8",
"status": "failed",
"error": {
"code": "license_required",
"message": "User doesn't have the required license to export in PRO quality."
}
}
}
json

To get started, generate an access token or provide your own below