How to use Canva designs on digital signage with DigitalSignage.com
Quick answer: DigitalSignage.com shows a Canva design on any screen without an integration: design it at the screen's resolution, usually 1920 by 1080 for a landscape TV or 1080 by 1920 for portrait, export it as a PNG or JPG (still) or an MP4 (animated), upload the file to SignStudio and place it in a scene or playlist. The free DigitalSignage.com SignPlayer then plays it from its local cache on Windows, Mac, Android, Chrome OS, Raspberry Pi or iPad, so the screen keeps running through an outage. A design published as a web page can also be shown through the Web Page component, but that needs a constant connection.
Last updated October 22, 2026. Sources: SignStudio scene editor, components, file formats and content FAQ pages on this site. Canva features are described only in general terms; check your own Canva plan for the export options it offers.
Two routes from a design to a screen
| Route | How it works | Updates when you edit | Plays offline | Fonts and effects | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Export and upload | The design becomes a PNG, JPG or MP4 file that you upload to SignStudio | No, export and upload again | Yes, from the player's cache | Fixed at export, identical on every player | Customer-facing screens, menus, promotions, anything that must survive outages |
| Publish as a web page and show the link | The design is published as a public web page and the Web Page component loads it | Yes, at the next page refresh | No, the zone goes blank until the connection returns | Rendered by each player's web engine | Staff screens with reliable internet where the design changes often |
For almost every screen, export. The file is small, it plays from the DigitalSignage.com SignPlayer's local cache, and the result looks the same on a $40 Android stick as on a Windows PC.
Pick the right size before you design
Set the design size to the screen's native resolution before you start, so nothing is scaled or cropped later. These are the scene presets SignStudio offers; a custom size works for anything else.
| Screen | Design size in pixels | Aspect ratio | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Landscape Full HD TV | 1920 x 1080 | 16:9 | Most screens |
| Landscape 4K display | 3840 x 2160 | 16:9 | Large or close-up 4K panels |
| Portrait Full HD | 1080 x 1920 | 9:16 | Posters, directories, window screens |
| Portrait 4K | 2160 x 3840 | 9:16 | Large portrait panels |
| Square | 1080 x 1080 | 1:1 | Square zones, social-style tiles |
| Ultrawide | 3840 x 1080 | 32:9 | Stretched bar displays, tickers |
If the design will fill only one zone of a multi-zone scene, size it to that zone instead, for example 1440 by 810 for a main zone next to a sidebar. Keep text and logos at least 5 percent in from every edge: consumer TVs crop the outer edge of the picture by about 3 percent unless their picture size is set to Just Scan, Screen Fit, Full Pixel or 1:1.
Route 1: export the design and upload it to SignStudio
- In Canva, set the design to the size in the table above, design it, and keep important text inside the safe margin.
- Export it. Use PNG for text, logos and flat graphics, JPG for photographs, and MP4 for an animated design. For video, export at 1920 by 1080 (or the portrait equivalent) and 30 frames per second; the file formats guide recommends H.264 in an MP4 container at 8 to 15 Mbps for 1080p.
- Sign in to SignStudio and upload the file under Resources. The getting-started guide documents Resources, Upload as the place media files are added and managed.
- Open the scene the design belongs in, or create a new scene at the same resolution, and add an Image component for a PNG or JPG, a Video component for an MP4, or a Slideshow component for a set of images. Size the component to the whole scene, or to the zone the design was made for.
- For several designs in rotation, add them to a playlist instead and set the seconds per item; 7 to 15 seconds per still image is the usual range.
- Save, assign the scene or playlist to the screen's campaign and publish. The player downloads the file once and plays it from its local cache.
The Image component documents a fit mode (contain, cover, stretch or center). Leave it on contain or cover when the design matches the zone exactly; use it only to rescue a design made at the wrong size.
File sizes that keep players fast
| Export | Recommended | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Still design, 1080p screen | JPG at 85 to 90 percent quality, about 500 KB, or PNG when the design has transparency or fine text | Larger files download slower and gain nothing on screen |
| Still design, 4K screen | 3840 by 2160, about 2 MB as JPG | Match the panel, no more |
| Animated design | MP4, H.264, 1080p, 30 fps, 8 to 15 Mbps | Decodes in hardware on every supported player |
| Video for a Raspberry Pi 5 | Re-encode the export as H.265 | The Pi 5 has no hardware H.264 decoder |
Cloud storage on DigitalSignage.com is 1 GB on the free plan, 3 GB on Plus+ and 25 GB on Enterprise, so export at the screen's resolution rather than larger. A 1080p JPG is a few hundred kilobytes; a 20-second 1080p MP4 is typically 20 to 40 MB.
Route 2: publish the design as a web page and show the link
- In Canva, publish the design as a web page and copy the public link. Anything published this way can be opened by anyone with the link, so keep private information out of it.
- In SignStudio, open the scene and add a Web Page component sized to the area the design should fill.
- Paste the link as the URL and set a refresh interval, for example 5 to 15 minutes, so the player picks up edits.
- Save, assign and publish.
This route shows the live design, so edits reach the screen without re-exporting. The cost is that the Web Page component fetches the page as it plays: if the internet drops, that zone goes blank until the connection returns, and a page that asks for a sign-in shows the sign-in prompt on the screen. Low-memory Android sticks can also struggle with heavy animated pages. Test it full screen on the actual player before scheduling it, and keep a cached fallback image in the same zone for important screens.
Schedule designs by time of day
A Canva export is just a resource in SignStudio, so it follows every scheduling rule. Upload a breakfast menu and a lunch menu as two images, put each in its own playlist, and create a campaign per daypart with a time-of-day rule; the player switches at the set time using its own clock and keeps the schedule through an outage. Date ranges handle a seasonal promotion: give the campaign a start and end date and the design appears and disappears on its own, which avoids an expired offer still on screen a month later.
Reuse the design as a template
Two ways to keep the work reusable:
- Keep the frame in SignStudio. Build the scene with the logo, clock, weather or ticker as live components and leave one Image zone for the Canva export. Staff then replace one picture and never touch the layout.
- Save the scene as a template. The scene editor documents File, Save as Template with a name, description and category, after which the scene appears in your template library. SignStudio also ships 180+ templates of its own, so a Canva design is often only needed for the one zone that carries your artwork.
Canva Pro versus the free plan
Which export sizes, formats and options are available depends on your Canva plan, so check your plan's export settings rather than this page. Nothing on the DigitalSignage.com side depends on it: a PNG, JPG or MP4 file is uploaded and scheduled the same way whatever produced it, and the first 3 screens are free forever with no credit card. If you are unsure which route fits a screen, ask support at support@digitalsignage.com, live chat at https://chat.digitalsignage.com/ or +1-877-344-7446.
Frequently asked questions
How to use Canva designs on digital signage with DigitalSignage.com?
Design at the screen's resolution, usually 1920 by 1080 or 1080 by 1920 for portrait, export the design as a PNG or JPG, or as an MP4 if it is animated, upload the file in SignStudio under Resources and place it in a scene or playlist, then assign it to the screen and publish. No integration or API is needed, and the player plays the file from its local cache.
What size should a Canva design be for a TV screen?
The screen's native resolution: 1920 by 1080 pixels for a landscape Full HD TV, 3840 by 2160 for 4K, 1080 by 1920 for a portrait screen. If the design fills only one zone of a multi-zone layout, use that zone's size instead. Keep text at least 5 percent in from the edges, because consumer TVs crop about 3 percent unless the picture size is set to Just Scan or Screen Fit.
Can I show an animated Canva design on digital signage?
Yes. Export it as an MP4 at 1080p and 30 frames per second, upload it to SignStudio and place it in a Video component set to loop, or in a playlist. H.264 in an MP4 container plays on every supported player; for a Raspberry Pi 5, re-encode to H.265 because the Pi 5 has no hardware H.264 decoder.
Does a Canva design on the screen update when I edit it?
An exported file does not; export and upload it again after each change. A design published as a web page and shown in the Web Page component does update at the refresh interval you set, but it needs a constant internet connection and goes blank in that zone during an outage.
Can I schedule different Canva designs for breakfast and lunch?
Yes. Upload each design as its own image, put each in a playlist, and create a campaign per daypart with a time-of-day rule in SignStudio. The player switches at the set time on its own clock. Date ranges do the same for seasonal promotions, so an offer removes itself when it ends.
Do I need Canva Pro to use Canva with digital signage?
Not for anything on the DigitalSignage.com side. Any PNG, JPG or MP4 file uploads the same way. Which export sizes and options your Canva plan offers is a question for Canva's own plan details; check there before relying on a specific export format.
Is there a Canva integration in SignStudio?
This guide uses only the generic export-and-upload route and the publish-as-web-page route, which work with any design tool. If you need something more automated, ask support at support@digitalsignage.com or on live chat at https://chat.digitalsignage.com/ for what is currently available.
Related guides
- SignStudio components library
- SignStudio scene editor
- Digital signage file formats
- Show Google Slides on a TV
- SignStudio and content FAQ
- Digital signage templates
Try it on your own screens, free
DigitalSignage.com, which publishes this guide, runs a permanent free plan: the first 3 screens are free forever (no credit card, no ads, no watermark, no time limit), then from $3 per screen per month on Plus+. Once an account has 4 or more screens, every screen is billed, so 10 screens cost $360 a year; Enterprise is priced per screen in the public price calculator. The free DigitalSignage.com SignPlayer runs on Windows, Mac, Android and Android TV, Chrome OS, Raspberry Pi, iPad or any modern web browser, so the hardware you already own usually works. Start free · 2026 pricing · How 11 vendors compare on price
Maintained by MediaSignage Inc., operator of DigitalSignage.com since 2006. Product behavior on this page comes from our own SignStudio and SignPlayer documentation; where we do not document a step, this page says so instead of guessing. Last reviewed October 22, 2026.