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Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
Head-to-head

Canva vs Picsart AI Photo Editor

Canva 4.9★ · Free + IAP 75
Winner Canva
Picsart AI Photo Editor 4.7★ · Free + IAP 55

Canva is generally preferred for its broader design capabilities and perceived ease of use for many, despite its own issues with pricing and AI features, while Picsart struggles with aggressive paywalls and reliability concerns.

Full reviews: Canva · Picsart AI Photo Editor

Canva offers a versatile platform for various design needs, praised for its templates and ease of use, though some find it difficult for beginners and criticize its pricing model. Picsart, while offering strong photo editing, faces significant backlash for its aggressive paywalls, AI implementation, and reliability issues.

Head to head

Features and Versatility edge: CanvaR3R11R14R16
Canva Canva is lauded for its extensive templates, video editing capabilities, and overall versatility for creating various content, from social media to presentations R3R11R14. However, some users find its video editor terrible and glitchy R48, and its AI features are criticized as subpar R16.
Picsart AI Photo Editor Picsart is praised for its photo editing, graphic design, and collage-making tools, with users finding it versatile for vision boarding and custom icons . However, its AI features are widely disliked and seen as 'garbage' R73R115, and many core features are locked behind paywalls .
Ease of Use edge: CanvaR4R12R17R23
Canva Canva is described as easy to use and learn by trial and error, helping users be creative without needing graphic design skills R17R23. However, a significant number of users find it not intuitive and very hard for beginners or those unfamiliar with design aspects R4R12.
Picsart AI Photo Editor Picsart is considered easy and user-friendly by some . Despite this, some users find it confusing, especially with its paywalls and the need to create an account to even access the app .
Reliability and Performance tieR6R7R46R48
Canva Canva users report issues with the app not working, being unable to download creations, and experiencing glitches like white screens or disappearing content R6R7R46. Video editing is specifically called out as slow, glitchy, and prone to lagging R48.
Picsart AI Photo Editor Picsart also suffers from glitches, disappearing projects, and slow performance, particularly with video exporting . Users also report issues with updates causing content to be inaccessible .
Price and Value edge: CanvaR1R9R10R15
Canva Canva's free version is seen as having very few options and limits on everything, with many desirable features requiring a paid Pro account R1R9R15R18. Users also complain about significant subscription price hikes, from $12.99 to $18.99 , and issues with trial charges and refunds R10.
Picsart AI Photo Editor Picsart is heavily criticized for its aggressive paywalls, with users unable to save work, add text, or remove backgrounds without paying . Subscriptions are deemed very expensive, with some mentioning $10 monthly or $11.99 weekly, and additional charges for AI credits R63R69R76. Users also report issues with unauthorized charges and denied refunds R82R103.
Customer Support edge: CanvaR10R11R82R103
Canva Canva's customer service is mentioned positively by one user for having templates and resources R11. However, another user reports being refused a refund because their subscription was through Apple, not Canva directly R10.
Picsart AI Photo Editor Picsart users report terrible customer service, with no contact support, unanswered emails, and generic replies to refund requests . Issues with canceling subscriptions and denied refunds are also highlighted R82R103.
Pick Canva if

Pick Canva if you need a versatile design tool for various content types, appreciate a wide range of templates, and are willing to pay for a Pro account to unlock full features R11R14. It's also a better choice if you value an app that many find easy to learn and use for creative projects R17R23.

Pick Picsart AI Photo Editor if

Pick Picsart if your primary need is photo editing, graphic design, or collage making, and you are prepared to navigate its aggressive paywalls for advanced features . It might also appeal if you are a long-time user familiar with its interface, despite recent changes .

Evidence note: Canva has a significantly larger number of reviews and a higher lifetime rating, suggesting broader user satisfaction despite recent negative feedback. Picsart's reviews are heavily skewed towards negative experiences regarding pricing and AI, which impacts its overall perceived value.

Frequently asked

Is Canva's free version useful?
Canva's free version has limited options and many features are locked behind a paywall, making it less useful for advanced or frequent users R1R9R18R34.
How much does Picsart cost?
Picsart's paid subscriptions are considered expensive, with users mentioning $10 monthly or $11.99 per week, and additional charges for AI tools on top of the subscription R63R69R76R90.
Are the AI features good in these apps?
Canva's AI features are criticized as 'terrible' and 'slop' R16, while Picsart's AI is widely disliked, labeled as 'garbage' and 'disappointing' by users R73R115.
Do these apps have reliability issues?
Both apps have reported reliability issues, with Canva users experiencing problems like not being able to download videos, white screens, and lagging video editors R7R48R51R55, and Picsart users reporting glitches, disappearing projects, and slow video exporting .

What reviewers actually said

Built only from these 120 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.

  1. [R3] Canva 3/5 · US Good Collage tool, Needs Dark Mode: This is honestly a really great tool for assembling images text videos. Amazing for individual or collaborative work, can really help get a project started. I would use it way more if there was a way to make the white background an off-white, or gray color. As the bright light can be a bit much at night.
  2. [R11] Canva 5/5 · US The amazing wonders of Campa: Amazing. Customer service has hundreds of templates video editing your name. Have a good luck exploring on camera.
  3. [R14] Canva 5/5 · US Easy Peasy: Unlimited options!
  4. [R16] Canva 1/5 · US sigh: when I tried the ai it was just absolute terrible. It was like you guys didn’t even try it. Whoever sees this, use anything else. Like, ANYTHING else. I’m pretty sure anything else doesn’t have AI slop like this stupid app. I am usually not this angry, but now I damn am. The AI is questionable. After coding something, 4 messages later, it basically forgets what it codes and forgets your na
  5. [R4] Canva 1/5 · US Not intuitive! Very hard for beginners: Canva is very hard to use if you are not an expert! It’s not intuitive. It’s very difficult to navigate. I would not recommend unless you take their courses to understand how to be an expert at using the app.
  6. [R12] Canva 3/5 · US Coach: Really great app but very hard to navigate when you are unfamiliar with the design aspect of Canva
  7. [R17] Canva 5/5 · US Love this app!: Easy to work and helps me to be creative without needing a a bunch of graphic design skills
  8. [R23] Canva 5/5 · US An app for All ages!: Easy to Learn by Trial & Error
  9. [R6] Canva 3/5 · US The app is not working: Update the apps for iOS version
  10. [R7] Canva 1/5 · US UnSharable: All of a sudden Im unable to download the video I have created.
  11. [R46] Canva 1/5 · US I like canva and all, but I had a project for a while and everything disappeared I just went on it: dont really like it now
  12. [R48] Canva 3/5 · GB Great for some things, not for everything: Canva is great for short-form social media content but terrible for editing longer videos, it’s honestly the most frustrating video editing app I’ve ever used. It’s ridiculously slow, glitchy and lags constantly even when doing it on a laptop in google chrome. The clips either stop playing completely or stay stuck in the video in playback when they’re not
  13. [R1] Canva 2/5 · US Money: Why do you have to pay for everything might as well use something else because this other app this app just lucky I even picked it and then I’m trying to work in these things keep coming up. Can you rate us? Can you rate us like stop. Let’s me work in peace
  14. [R9] Canva 3/5 · US (:: I love it it’s just I hate the way you put patterns over the pictures and graphics to get people to get pro I don’t think that’s necessary
  15. [R10] Canva 1/5 · US GREEDY THIEVES!: claimed a FREE 14 day trial, got charged full price immediately. at the end of the TRIAL, i was charged full price AGAIN. they refuse to refund because my subscription is through apple and not canva directly. I’ve been supporting this app for YEARS when it was $7/month back in 2020 and the downhill this app has taken is despicable honestly. i will NEVER support this app ever again
  16. [R15] Canva 3/5 · US 3/5 Review: Love this app but only worth it if you have a pro account and that sucks.
  17. [R82] Picsart AI Photo Editor 1/5 · US I can’t cancel my subscription: I’ve tried everything…
  18. [R103] Picsart AI Photo Editor 1/5 · US They denied the refund: I accidentally subscribed to this plan and immediately asked for a refund. But they refused!! I haven’t used the service a single time since being charged. Absolutely horrible experience!!!!
  19. [R18] Canva 3/5 · US Kinda: This is .. a good game . But you can only use the ones that don’t have little crowns 👑and that means those little crowns you have to PAY for . And im a kid. So I can’t pay for those little crowns . But anyway you have a LIMIT on EVERYTHING and then you have to Pay for more time !!!other than the price , it’s an ok app you can make pictures and videos but you don’t get the really good ones b
  20. [R34] Canva 2/5 · US Meh: Very few options on the free version. Paid versions too expensive for a casual user. Not very user friendly on iphone…have to click everywhere and hunt around for tools and options.
  21. [R63] Picsart AI Photo Editor 3/5 · US It’s okay: It works good if you get it perfect but it is very expensive I payed for the $10 monthly and got to make 2 videos today and now I can’t make anymore until next month. My opinion, not worth it.
  22. [R69] Picsart AI Photo Editor 3/5 · US Too expensive: Nice, but they want to charge you for everything I bought a subscription for a year and then they wanna charge me for credits to use AI tools on top of that so they’ve made it too expensive to use. I canceled the subscription
  23. [R76] Picsart AI Photo Editor 2/5 · US Use Free Only: The app is pretty good and you can do a lot of photo editing with it. They have the most basic features available on pro which is a subscription for $11.99 per week!!! I don’t recommend getting this, just use the free version. The “pro” version is just basic AI editing that will absolutely mess up your face or other people’s faces when you edit them, especially in group settings. If
  24. [R90] Picsart AI Photo Editor 3/5 · US Good but a lot of money: My mom can’t afford it pro is 12$ or smth like that
  25. [R73] Picsart AI Photo Editor 1/5 · US ai garbage: yet another app implementing ai garbage slop nobody wants
  26. [R115] Picsart AI Photo Editor 1/5 · US AI, Genuinely disheartening: I am incredibly disappointed that this app has so much ai. It even has ai in the name now it is genuinely so disappointing and disgusting. I remember being younger and using this app as a editing app learning and improving my editing skills and now it’s not even about that it’s all about ai and how you don’t even need skills to use it. I will never understand why just
  27. [R51] Canva 3/5 · GB Ok when it works and stops glitching and disappearing: Your reliability must improve, especially for paying subscribers like me. What on earth happened this past week? White screens and no functionality.
  28. [R55] Canva 2/5 · US It just stopped working: I was using the app but it just stop working and has been saying it’s been having technical difficulties for a few weeks now

Synthesized from 120 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store