Designrr vs Canva: The Ultimate Showdown for Ebook Creation
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Do you want to know the difference between Designrr vs Canva?
Not sure which platform to choose?
Over the last few years ebooks have become a staple in the world of publishing and content creation. Not only can you make money by selling ebooks on platforms like Amazon Kindle, but you can also use them as bonuses and upsells to other products you sell.
Needless to say, they’re extremely useful, and can help you make a lot of money.
In the showdown between Designrr and Canva, we’re diving into the nitty-gritty of these two contenders in Ebook design and leading platforms for ebook creation.
Let’s explore what makes each of them tick and which one might be the best fit for your ebook projects.
Overview of Designrr
Designrr emerged as a specialized tool for creating professional-quality ebooks and digital documents.
Launched in 2011, its primary goal was to simplify the ebook design process, especially for those without a background in graphic design.
Key Features and Strengths
Focus on Ebook Creation
Designrr is a content design platform tailored specifically for ebook creation. It offers features like automatic table of contents generation and seamless integration with major e-readers. This focus makes it a go-to tool for authors and content creators looking to publish ebooks.
User-Friendly Interface
The platform boasts an intuitive drag-and-drop interface. This makes it easy for anyone to design ebooks without needing advanced design skills.
Integration with Various Platforms
Designrr integrates smoothly with email marketing and payment platforms. This feature is a boon for marketers and businesses looking to use ebooks as lead magnets or sellable products.
Native Exports for Kindle, PDF, and Other Formats
One of Designrr’s strong suits is its ability to export ebooks in various formats. Whether you need a PDF for your website or a Kindle format for Amazon, Designrr has got you covered.
Pricing Plans
Designrr offers several pricing tiers to suit different needs and budgets:
- Standard Plan: A one-time fee for basic ebook designing functions – $29/mo
- Pro Plan: Yearly subscription with more templates and features – $39/mo
- Premium Plan: Includes advanced features like interactive table of contents and Kindle publishing – $49/mo
- Business Plan: Tailored for heavy users with additional features and support – $99/mo
- Designrr Lifetime Deal: Full lifetime access to the Standard plan for a one-time payment of $27
Designrr Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Specialized in ebook creation.
- AI writing tool (WordGenie) can write all content for you.
- Transcribe YouTube videos into ebooks and blog posts.
- Transcribe podcasts into ebooks and blog posts.
- Turn your ebooks into audiobooks.
- Easy-to-use interface.
- Integration with multiple platforms.
- Supports various export formats.
- Easy design navigation.
- Several ready to use elements.
Cons:
- Higher plans can be pricey for individual users.
Overview of Canva
Launched in 2013, Canva started as a versatile all-in-one graphic design platform. It was created to democratize design, making it accessible to everyone, regardless of their design skills.
Key Features and Strengths
Versatility in Design for Various Media
Canva is known for its versatility and broad design work. It’s not just for ebooks; you can create social media posts, presentations, posters, and more. This makes it a one-stop-shop for all your individual design needs.
Extensive Library of Templates and Design Elements
With a massive library of templates, images, illustrations, fonts, and other basic design tools, Canva ensures you’re never short of creative options.
Whether you want a unique ebook cover design or a social media graphic, Canva offers a variety of design assets for every project.
User-Friendly Interface
Canva’s drag-and-drop editor is remarkably user-friendly. It allows even beginners to create professional-looking designs with ease.
Pricing Plans
Canva’s pricing is structured to cater to different user groups:
- Canva Free Plan: Access to a limited selection of templates and design elements.
- Canva Pro Plan: Monthly or annual subscription with additional features and a larger selection of templates – $12.99/mo, or $99/yr
- Canva For Teams: Helps you to collaborate with teams of all sizes – $12.99/mo, or $99/yr
- Canva Enterprise Plan: Customized for larger teams and businesses, offering advanced features and support – custom pricing
Canva Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Highly versatile for various design projects.
- Extensive library of design elements.
- Intuitive and easy to use.
Cons:
- Ebooks are just one of many features, not the primary focus.
- Free version has limitations in templates and features.
In-Depth Comparison: Designrr vs Canva
Purpose and Focus of Each Platform
When it comes to the core purpose, Designrr and Canva serve different masters.
Designrr is laser-focused on ebook creation. It’s built from the ground up to cater to authors, marketers, and content creators who need to produce professional ebooks efficiently.
Canva, on the other hand, is a jack-of-all-trades in the design world. It’s not just for ebooks; it’s a versatile tool for creating a wide array of visual content, from social media graphics to business presentations.
While it can be used for ebooks, it’s more of an all-purpose design tool rather than a specialized ebook creator.
So, if your focus is creating ebooks, then Designrr is the better choice. However, if you want a tool that can cater to a wider variety of design needs such as logos, banners, YouTube thumbnails, social media posts, etc, then choose Canva.
Cost Comparison
The cost of using Designrr and Canva varies significantly, reflecting their different focuses.
Designrr offers monthly pricing plans starting at $29 per month and go all the way up to $99 per month.
However, Designrr also have hidden lifetime deal on their Standard plan for a one-time fee of $27. This is Designrr special offer is not available on their website. However, you can access this deal here.
Designrr’s Pro and Premium plans give you access to more features, such as YouTube and podcast transcription and conversion into ebooks and blog posts.
While the Designrr Pro and Premium plans are more expensive if you’re paying monthly, Designrr also have a special deal on the Premium plan here. This deal is also not available directly on Designrr’s website, but you can access it with this link.
Canva, in contrast, has a robust free version suitable for basic design needs, which is pretty sweet. Its Pro plan, priced at $99.99 annually or $12.99 monthly, offers more advanced features and templates compared to Canva’s free plan.
Canva for Teams and Enterprise plans cater to larger organizations with their specific pricing models.
Designrr offers a more cost-effective solution for ebook creators, especially if you opt for the Designrr lifetime deal. It’s also the better overall tool specifically for ebooks.
Canva, on the other hand, can design a wide range of things that Designrr just can’t do. For example, YouTube thumbnails, infographics, social media posts, business cards, and so on.
Yes, Canva can create you an ebook, but only with a maximum of 100 pages, it has a lot less features for ebooks, and it takes a heck of a long time to create an ebook with Canva. Canva also cannot write all your content for you like Designrr can.
Don’t get me wrong, Canva’s a great tool, I personally love Canva and use it in my business, but it’s not the best tool for ebooks.
Canva has a free plan for basic design needs. If you want to use the pro account, then it’ll cost you $12.99 per month, or $119.99 annually.
Templates and Design Options
Templates are where both platforms shine, but in different ways. Designrr offers a plethora of ebook-specific templates, making it easy to start and finish an ebook project with a professional look.
These templates are tailored to fit the standard formats and styles of ebooks, which is a big plus for ebook creators.
Canva, with its broader focus, has a vast library of templates for all sorts of design projects.
While it includes ebook covers and some basic layouts, it doesn’t offer the same level of ebook-specific templates as Designrr.
However, the sheer volume and variety of templates in Canva are unmatched, providing endless creative possibilities for a range of projects.
Importing and Inserting Content
Designrr takes the lead in content importing capabilities. It allows users to directly import text from various sources like Word documents and blog posts, which is a huge time-saver for ebook creation. This feature streamlines the process of transferring content into your ebook design.
Canva, on the other hand, lacks direct content import features. Users need to manually add text by typing or copy-pasting, which can be time-consuming for longer ebooks.
Canva also does not have a built in AI writing tool like Designrr does. So, if you’re using Canva, then you’re gonna have to write all the content yourself, but this is not so with Desigrr.
While Canva offers great flexibility in formatting and layout, the lack of import functionality is a notable drawback for ebook creation.
Number of Pages and Table of Contents
Designrr offers unlimited pages for your ebooks, which is ideal for longer or more complex projects. It also features an automatic table of contents generation, making navigation through the ebook a breeze for readers.
In contrast, Canva limits free users to 30 pages per document, and Canva Pro users to 100 pages.
For ebooks longer than 100 pages, users need to find workarounds, such as merging separate PDF exports, which can be time-consuming and a bit annoying.
Canva also requires manual insertion of table of contents pages, which can be a bit of a hassle for longer ebooks.
This is another reason why we say that Designrr wins hands down over Canva when it comes to ebook creation.
Page Numbering and Export Options
Designrr automatically adds page numbers and allows for consistent headers and footers across your ebook.
Designrr also offers various export options, including direct exports to Kindle and ePub formats, which is a big plus for authors looking to publish on platforms like Amazon and Apple Books.
Canva requires manual insertion of page numbers, which offers more customization but can be more labor-intensive.
While Canva allows PDF exports, converting these to other ebook formats requires additional steps and tools.
Flexibility and Element Positioning
Canva excels in flexibility and control over element positioning. Its freeform design environment lets users place and adjust design elements with pixel-perfect precision. This level of control is great for designers who want to fine-tune every aspect of their design.
Designrr, while user-friendly, offers less flexibility in element positioning. It prioritizes ease and speed, with adjustments happening in set increments.
This approach is great for those who value simplicity and quick results but might be limiting for users who want more detailed control over their individual designs.
User Experience, Ease of Use and Learning Curve
When it comes to user experience, both Designrr and Canva have their unique strengths.
Designrr’s interface is streamlined and focused, making it particularly user-friendly for those specifically looking to create ebooks. Its drag-and-drop functionality and intuitive design tools mean that even beginners can quickly get to grips with the basics of ebook design.
Canva, with its wider range of features and design options, offers a slightly more complex interface. However, it’s still designed with ease of use in mind.
The platform is known for its straightforward, user-friendly design editor, which allows users to create professional-looking designs with minimal effort. So, when it comes to creating all kinds of visual designs, Canva is pretty awesome.
Comparison of the Learning Curve for Beginners
For beginners, Designrr might have a shorter learning curve, especially if their primary goal is ebook creation. The platform’s focus on this specific task means that new users can quickly learn how to use the necessary tools without being overwhelmed by unrelated features.
Canva, while still user-friendly, may require a bit more time for beginners to fully explore and understand all of its features, given its broader focus.
However, its extensive range of templates and design elements can help ease this learning process, allowing users to create high-quality individual designs even as they’re still learning the ropes.
Who Should Use Designrr?
Designrr is ideal for authors, content creators, marketers, and small business owners who are focused on creating professional ebooks.
Designrr is particularly well-suited for projects that require importing text from other sources, creating long-form content, and exporting in various ebook formats.
Who Should Use Canva?
Canva, on the other hand, is a great choice for a broader audience, including social media managers, graphic designers, educators, and businesses needing a variety of design solutions.
Canva is perfect for creating social media graphics, presentations, posters, and other visual content, in addition to ebook covers and layouts.
Use Cases & Target Audience
For users whose primary need is ebook creation, especially if they require specific features like automatic table of contents or Kindle format exports, Designrr is the recommended choice.
For those who need a more versatile tool for a range of design tasks, including but not limited to ebook creation, Canva is the better option.
Its wide array of templates and design elements make it suitable for almost any type of visual content creation.
Final Verdict on Designrr and Canva
In the Designrr vs Canva showdown, it’s clear that each platform has its own set of strengths.
Designrr excels in specialized ebook creation with features tailored for this purpose, while Canva offers a more versatile design experience suitable for a variety of visual content.
For dedicated ebook creators looking for a tool that simplifies the process and offers specific ebook-related features, Designrr is the way to go.
For users seeking a versatile design tool that can handle a wide range of projects, including ebooks, Canva’s extensive features and vast template library make it an excellent choice.
Designrr and Canva: Final Thoughts
Choosing between Designrr and Canva for ebook creation ultimately depends on your specific needs and goals.
If your focus is solely on creating professional ebooks with ease, Designrr is your best bet. However, if you’re looking for a tool that can cater to a broader range of design needs while still offering the capability to create ebooks, Canva is the ideal choice.
Both platforms offer robust design capabilities, but understanding your primary requirements will help you make the best decision for your ebook creation journey.
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