As a content creator who doesn't have a design background, I've always chosen Canva as one of my go-to platforms for design and content creation. When they started rolling out Canva AI tools, I was both excited and skeptical. Can these innovative Canva AI tools truly make content creation easier, or are they just another gimmick?
After spending time testing every AI feature in Canva's Magic Studio, I'm ready to share my honest experience as a non-designer who just wants to create decent-looking content without the headaches.
Canva has steadily been introducing AI tools under their "Magic Studio" umbrella. If you're wondering which Canva AI tools are available in the free version versus the Pro subscription (currently $19 CAD per month), here's the breakdown:
As you can see, the free version gives you a taste of the AI content creation tools, but the Pro version is where the real magic happens.
How it works: Enter an image description (up to 280 characters), choose a style and size, and let the AI image generator create your visual.
My experience: I tried generating a blog cover with this description: "A 28-year-old East Asian woman in work attire sitting at a cozy cafe. She is excited and joyful, with her mouth open in a wide smile and eyebrows raised. Her hands are raised in the air, clenched into fists. In front of her is an open laptop. Use vaporwave and neon style."
The results were impressive overall, capturing the vibe and general concept well. However, I noticed some quirks with finer details. As you can see, in this example, the hands sometimes looked distorted, and facial expressions occasionally ventured into uncanny valley territory.
Verdict:
How it works: Select an image, click edit, choose "magic expand," select a size, and expand.
My experience: The results were mixed. When I tried it on a simple bedroom image with minimal details, it performed adequately. However, with more complex images involving people or text, such as the blog cover I just generated, the results were less impressive.
Verdict:
How it works: Select an image, click edit, choose "magic edit," use the brush or AI-selected area, describe your edit, and generate.
My experience: I tested this feature extensively, trying various edits to see what works and what doesn't:
✅ Changing the colour of bedding
✅ Adding a puppy to an image
✅ Turning a tomato into a flower
❌ Turning a tomato into a blueberry
Verdict:
How it works: Select an image, click edit, choose "magic eraser," use the brush or AI-selected area, click erase.
My experience: I used this to remove an exit sign from my image and erase reflections of lights. The tool performed admirably, especially when using the AI selection option.
Verdict:
How it works: Select an image, click edit, choose "magic grab," use the brush or AI-selected area, click grab.
My experience: I "grabbed" a person and their laptop from my image to reposition them, making space for text. The tool did a great job isolating the subject but struggled with reconstructing the background properly. As you can see, the neon lights in my image weren't expanded or reconstructed well.
Verdict:
How it works: Search "magic morph" in Apps, add and select a text, shape, or simple graphic, describe the look or choose from examples, click "magic morph."
My experience: I tried several transformations:
✅ Turning a star shape into "pink neon light"
❌ Converting a mirror graphic into an actual mirror
✅ Transforming the text "bedroom" into soft, pink pillows
Verdict:
How it works: Type what you want in the search bar, add images/clips, and browse the generated designs.
My experience: Using a garden clip, I searched for "Instagram post about gardening," "annual report of a gardening business," and other content types. The AI suggested multiple designs that matched the theme, colours, and vibe of my clip. The results were fantastic.
Verdict:
How it works: Open the text tool, click "magic write," enter a prompt, and press enter to see results.
My experience: I generated a blog headline with the prompt "compelling blog headline about AI job application tools" and received "Unlock Your Dream Job: How AI-Powered Application Tools Are Revolutionizing the Job Hunt." I also tried creating a LinkedIn post about the same topic.
Verdict:
How it works: Click "resize," scroll down, choose "translate," select your target language and which page to translate, click translate.
My experience: I translated my blog headlines into Traditional Chinese. The tool did well with literal translations (like "Crypto Trading" to "加密貨幣交易") but struggled with creative expressions that couldn't be translated word for word.
Verdict:
How it works: On a video design, click the sparkle button, choose "magic design for video," select videos, describe the video you want to make, and generate.
My experience: I created an Instagram reel using clips from my Banff trip with the prompt "vlog of my trip to Banff." The tool arranged my clips in a logical order and added accurate, vivid captions.
Verdict:
How it works: Select a clip, click "trim," click "highlight," wait for the AI to generate and organize labels, choose the selection you want.
My experience: I used this with my Banff clips and was impressed by how well it identified what was happening in each clip, making it much easier to choose the best parts for my video.
Verdict:
How it works: Select the soundtrack, click "beat sync," check the "sync now" button.
My experience: I tried this with the audio in my Banff reel. It was incredibly easy to use. Literally just a click. It also displayed beat markers that made timing adjustments much simpler.
Verdict:
How it works: Select a clip, click "audio," check the "enhance voice" button, and let it process.
My experience: I tested this on a clip where my mic was shaky, resulting in background noise. The tool eliminated about 90% of the noise with just one click.
Verdict:
How it works: Click "magic switch" or "resize," choose "transform," describe what kind of document you want to create, click "transform to doc."
My experience: I transformed my Banff vlog into a travel itinerary. The results were impressive. The tool organized and formatted the existing information into a logical, usable document.
Verdict:
How it works: Select a page of your design, click "animate," choose "magic animate," select the recommended style or an alternative.
My experience: I used this on my website cover image. While not revolutionary, it applied animation effects to all elements simultaneously, saving me from having to animate each element individually.
Verdict:
After testing every Canva AI tool in Magic Studio, I can confidently say that while these AI content creation tools aren't perfect, they're genuinely useful for content professionals like me who don't have formal design training.
If you regularly create:
Then yes, the Pro subscription with full access to Canva AI tools is absolutely worth it. Even with the AI's occasional quirks and limitations, Canva remains the most accessible and powerful design tool I've used. For content professionals looking to level up their visual game without the steep learning curve, the AI content creation tools in Canva's Magic Studio are a game-changer worth embracing.
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Last Update: 03/01/2025
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