Culture dominated by toxic positivity and massive egos - Frontend Software Engineer Canva Employee Review

2.0
Aug 31, 2022
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Benefits and share options are decent. Food and coffee in office are great too, but the office itself is standard open-plan hell, with desk positions shuffling multiple times per year.

Cons

The company-wide culture is a surreal hellscape of toxic positivity, massively invades into the personal lives of employees, and micromanaging is the norm. The toxic positivity is part of a culture that demands loyalty and demands that your colleagues be treated like your own family, with after-hours social events being the norm. The boundary between work and home is utterly nonexistent. The company claims it has a flat, manager-less organisational structure; but this creates an environment where a few entrenched engineers hold unilateral control over massive sections of the codebase with no accountability. There's also no room for career development outside of their very strict career plans, which are applied unilaterally. Engineers are forced to remain engineers, are expected to become overworked senior engineers, and are not able to move to different roles in the company.

Explore other reviews about Canva

5.0
Apr 27, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

- Fast pace - Interesting tech - Fun product to work on - Great culture & values

Cons

- Crunch periods can be full on

3.0
May 28, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Product is beloved by users. Brand affinity is second to none which makes being a marketer a lot of fun. Genuinely good and caring coworkers who want to build something great. Hiring bar is high. Vibe and Thrive benefit is clever and unique.

Cons

Behind the brand is a cult like culture with the “founders” surrounded by yes people (whether they are aware of it or not). Mediocrity seems to be tolerated among management’s “old guard” causing tension and churn with newer and sometimes more experienced leaders. Insecure leaders at some of the highest levels perpetuate much of the toxic behaviors described in the reviews below such as gaslighting and favoritism. People “disappear” with little to no explanation, but hey, it’s the “Canva way”.

4
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