The no-code revolution has opened up a world of possibilities empowering marketers, designers, and creators to build tools, websites, and workflows without touching a single line of code. And now, Canva, a brand once known solely for its beginner-friendly graphic design platform, is stepping into the no-code arena.
At Canva Create 2024, the platform unveiled a suite of AI-powered and productivity-enhancing tools marking its boldest evolution yet. Canva wants to become your one-stop shop for design, content, presentations, documents, and now even websites and apps.
As someone actively involved in the digital marketing space, I was excited to try these tools out firsthand. I’m Keerthana, a Digital Marketing Intern at eleven:11 Services, and this is my honest review of Canva’s new capabilities, especially its foray into the no-code landscape and how it compares to existing giants like Webflow, Bubble, and Framer.
The Big Picture: What Canva Announced
During Canva Create 2024, the company introduced a collection of new tools under what they’re calling Magic Studio, a set of AI features designed to automate content creation, design, and now, even website and app layouts.
Here are some of the standout updates:
✅ Magic Design
Enter a few keywords, and Canva will generate templates, visuals, and complete slide decks based on your input. Perfect for quick campaign ideation or pitch decks.
✅ Magic Write
An AI writing assistant that generates copy in your tone of voice. Canva even lets you train it with a sample of your brand language.
✅ Magic Switch
Automatically repurpose one design into multiple formats turn a presentation into a blog post, a document into an Instagram carousel, or a whiteboard into a report.
✅ Canva Code
The headline feature that really caught my attention: Canva Code promises to generate apps or web layouts from a single prompt. Think: “Build me a portfolio site” → and Canva instantly spins up a working visual.
✅ Canva Sheets & Unified Editor
Visually powered spreadsheets and a unified canvas to combine documents, presentations, whiteboards, and charts all synced and collaborative.
✅ Enterprise-Level Controls
New tools for branding, permissions, and organization-wide design systems especially helpful for scaling teams.
My Experience Using Canva Code: Impressive Start, But Room to Grow
Curious about the no-code hype, I tested Canva Code by typing a basic prompt: “Create a travel-themed landing page with a hero section, image gallery, and contact form.”
And within seconds boom Canva generated a neat layout with placeholders and decent structure.
Here’s what worked:
- Speed: The layout was ready in under a minute.
- Clarity: Clean visual design, auto-aligned elements, and good UX.
- Use cases: Perfect for quick concept mockups or internal visuals.
But here’s where things fell short:
- Lack of customization: You can’t deeply edit structure or interactions.
- No dynamic content or logic: Unlike real no-code platforms, Canva Code doesn’t handle logic, databases, or responsive tweaks well.
- Export limitations: No advanced export for developers or integration options.
As a marketer who works closely with designers and developers, I saw it more as a wireframing tool or presentation aid, rather than a production-level solution.
How Canva Stacks Up Against Popular No-Code Platforms
To understand Canva’s position in the no-code ecosystem, it’s helpful to compare it with some of the industry’s leading tools:
Platform | Strengths | Ideal For |
Webflow | Advanced customization, clean code, SEO tools | Agency websites, branded landing pages |
| Framer | Beautiful, animated layouts with AI design | Portfolios, creative sites |
| Bubble | Powerful backend logic, workflows, databases | SaaS apps, marketplaces, internal tools |
| Softr | Built on Airtable, fast MVPs | Client portals, internal dashboards |
| Canva Code | Visual-first, prompt-based layouts | Mockups, quick presentations, idea drafts |
Canva is clearly not a direct competitor to tools like Bubble or Webflow at least not yet. But it’s entering the game with a very low barrier to entry and targeting a different audience: marketers, freelancers, content creators, and small businesses that need fast visuals.
Where Canva Can Shine in a Marketing Agency’s Toolkit
At eleven:11 Services, we’re always experimenting with ways to streamline campaign production from ideation to execution. Canva’s updated platform won’t replace the complex tools we use for client delivery, but here’s where it can seriously help:
Rapid Concepting
Need to create a landing page mockup for a client meeting tomorrow? Canva Code + Magic Design = quick and impressive draft.
Visual Reporting
Canva Sheets, paired with brand kits, helps in turning dull metrics into branded visual reports that clients actually want to look at.
Content Repurposing
Magic Switch makes it easy to adapt a blog post into social media posts, reels, or infographics cutting down our content turnaround time.
Brainstorming
With its unified workspace, Canva becomes a great tool for collaborating visually across teams especially when you’re working on mood boards or campaign direction.
Where It Falls Short (For Now)
As promising as Canva’s new suite is, it’s important to understand its limitations especially for those expecting it to be the next Webflow or Bubble:
- No backend integration: You can’t connect APIs or handle data-heavy workflows.
- Limited responsiveness: Webflow gives full control; Canva’s version is more fixed.
- No real export flexibility: You’re locked into the Canva ecosystem for publishing.
In short, it’s not production-ready for serious web projects. But for internal use, pitches, and visual storytelling it’s fantastic.
Final Thoughts: Why We’re Paying Attention to Canva’s Evolution
What Canva is doing is significant not because they’re beating other no-code players, but because they’re democratizing access to tools that used to require steep learning curves.
And as a digital marketing intern immersed in content creation and campaign strategy, I find Canva’s new tools exciting. They enable faster workflows, cleaner presentations, and stronger internal collaboration.
We’re not ditching Webflow or our dev stack anytime soon but we’re definitely using Canva more in the early stages of our projects.
Looking Ahead: What Canva Needs to Add Next
If Canva wants to compete seriously in the no-code space, here’s what it could improve:
- Custom responsive controls
- API/data source integration
- Code export or developer hand-off options
- Better logic control (for interactivity and user flows)
Until then, Canva sits in a sweet spot: part design tool, party idea machine and that’s a great place for creators and marketers alike.
Ready to Leverage No-Code Tools for Your Brand?
At eleven:11 Services, we don’t just keep up with trends we test them, experiment with them, and help clients use them the smart way.
If you’re wondering how no-code platforms like Canva, Webflow, or Softr can boost your next campaign or website, let’s talk.
👉 Contact us or drop us a DM to explore how we can bring your ideas to life code-free and creatively.
