More drama than a soap opera - Front End Developer Canva Employee Review

1.0
Aug 5, 2023
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

* Free food * Smart engineers

Cons

During the 1.5 years I've been at Canva so far: * I saw someone cry on a Zoom call with our Philippines team * Canva's CTO was forced to apologise because his totally valid criticisms hurt the feelings of someone in a team which wasn't doing its job * Bob Iger became an investor, prompting an engineer to post a very angry message in a company-wide Slack channel complaining that Bob Iger isn't pro-diversity enough. The Slack channel was locked and I don't see that engineer at Canva anymore. The engineer must've resigned or got fired. Incidents like that last one are why I'm giving Canva a 1-star review for diversity. A small handful of Canva employees tear each other down for diversity's sake and wind up making worse strides towards D&I than even a heartless megacorp for which "diversity and inclusion" is just a box to check. I wish I could reveal the other fun stories, but I'd need to go into details and Canva makes us sign non-disparagement agreements. I don't want to get sued haha

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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