How To Create a Digital Planner In Canva (4 Easy Steps!)

Q: What Size Should A Digital Planner Be On Canva?

3.7 × 6.7 inches is the perfect dimension for creating a digital planner on Canva. Just click on the ‘ Create a Design’ button from the top right corner of the Canva homepage and then on the ‘ Custom Size’ button. Now enter your dimensions in the width and height section and then click on the ‘ Create New Design’ button to get redirected to a blank canvas.

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Is your calendar and to-do list a total mess?

I feel you. Trying to keep track of appointments, deadlines, and tasks can be overwhelming, especially in our fast-paced digital world.

As much as we all love our paper planners, going digital has some major advantages – it’s customizable, portable, and environmentally friendly.

So if you’re looking to create your own digital planner in Canva this year, you’ve come to the right place.

In this quick guide, I’ll walk you through exactly how to create a digital planner from scratch using Canva’s user-friendly design platform.

Their drag-and-drop tools make it super simple for anyone to create a stylish, personalized planner. So let’s dive in and learn “How To Create a Digital Planner In Canva”!

I’ll show you step-by-step how quick and easy it is.

Table of Contents

How To Create a Digital Planner In Canva (Step by Step)

Below are the steps that you can follow to create a digital planner in Canva:

1. Open a Design

Then click on the ‘Create a Design’ button from the top right corner of the Canva homepage.

Search for ‘Weekly Schedule Planner’ from the search bar located at the top of the new menu and then click on it from the search results.

Note: In this tutorial, I will be creating a ‘Weekly Planner’. You can also create other digital planners as well such as ‘Daily Planner’, ‘Monthly Planner’, and ‘Yearly Planner’.

Just search for your desired keyword in the top search bar of the design menu.

Now you will get redirected to a blank canvas.

2. Create Your Planner Cover

After getting redirected to the blank canvas, we can start by creating a beautiful cover for your digital planner.

Click on the ‘Apps’ button from the left sidebar and then scroll down to click on the ‘Background’ button to add a background to your planner.

From the new menu, click on the image that you like the most to add it to your background.

Now if you add any text element above your background, it will not be readable. So, we will have to first add a base for your text element.

Click on the ‘Elements’ button from the left sidebar, and search for ‘Square’ from the top search bar.

Then click on the square from the search results to add it to your design.

Note: You can also ‘Resize’ the square by dragging the ‘Resizing’ handles on the boundary box outwards or inwards.

After adding a base for your text element, click on the ‘Text’ button from the left sidebar and then on the ‘Add A Heading’ button.

Once you have a text box on your design, start typing the title of your cover.

To change the font style of the title, click on the ‘Font Style’ button from the top toolbar.

Now from the new menu, click on the ‘Font Style’ that you like the most to add it to your title.

After all the necessary elements are added to the cover, we can start decorating it.

Click on the ‘Elements’ button from the left sidebar and then search for ‘Boarder’ from the top search bar.

From the search results, click on the ‘Boarder’ that you like the most to add it to your design.

Note: However, if you want to add any other decorative element on your cover, then search for that keyword from the element’s top search bar.

To resize your decorative element, click on it. Then drag the ‘Resizing’ handles outwards or inwards on the boundary box to make your element bigger or smaller in size.

After resizing the element, drag and position it on your cover.

There you have it! A perfect planner cover is in front of you.

Now click on the ‘Add Page’ button from the bottom of your screen to add pages to your planner.

After clicking on the ‘Add Page’ button, a new blank canvas will open in front of you.

3. Create Pages

After making a planner cover, we can start by adding pages to your planner.

Follow the below steps to create a page for your planner:

a) Add a Background

After getting redirected to the blank canvas, we will start by creating a background for our digital planner.

Click on the ‘Apps’ button from the left sidebar and then scroll down to click on the ‘Background’ button.

Now a new menu with various background categories such as colors, patterns, gradients, abstracts etc will open in front of you.

Click On Color Button from background categories

For example, I want to make my background ‘Cream’ in color to match it with the theme of the cover.

So, click on the ‘Color’ button from the top of the background categories and then click on the ‘Cream’ color to add it to your design.

Note: You can also click on images, gradients, textures, etc. From the same menu add them to your design.

To make the background even more stylish, you can also layer it with various elements.

To do that, click on the ‘Elements’ button from the left sidebar and search for ‘Square’ from the top search bar.

Then click on the ‘Square’ from the search results to add it to your design.

Click On The Square to add it to your background

Once you have the square in front of you, drag the ‘Resizing’ handles to stretch the element according to your preference.

resize the square to add it to your background

b) Add a Title

After creating a background for your page, It is important to add a title to your design.

Click on the ‘Text’ button from the left sidebar and then on the ‘Add A Heading’ button. Now start typing the title of your page on the text box.

For example, I am creating a weekly planner. So, I will type ‘Weekly Planner’ in the text box.

After typing your title, click on the ‘Font Style’ button from the top toolbar. Now a menu will open on the left-hand side with various font styles.

Click on the ‘Font Style’ that you like the most to change the existing font style of the title.

Resize your title by using the ‘Resizing’ handles and then position it on your design.

Note: I have positioned my title on the left-hand side of the page, but you can position it anywhere according to your preference.

c) Add Shapes

Once you have the title on your design, start by adding the necessary elements to it.

Click on the ‘Elements’ button from the left sidebar and search for ‘Square’ from the top search bar.

But this time click on ‘Square With Round Edges’ from the search results.

Once you have the shape on your design, click on the ‘Color’ button from the top toolbar to change the color of the element in front of you.

Then click on the ‘Color’ of your liking from the new menu to add it to your shape.

After changing the color of the shape, resize and then position it to its respective place on the page.

Note: Follow the same process to add as many shapes as you want. As I am making a ‘Weekly Calendar’ I will create seven shapes for seven days and a small note area to fill my leftover space.

d) Add Details

After adding title and shapes to your planner, start adding the necessary details.

For example, I am creating a ‘Weekly Planner’ and have already created seven shapes for seven days. So in this step, we will add names to each shape.

To do that, click on the ‘Text’ button from the left sidebar, then on the ‘Add A Subheading’ button. Once you have a text box on the design, type ‘Monday’ (the first day of the week).

Then change the ‘Font Style’ of the text from the top toolbar as explained above.

After customizing the text, resize and position it on one of the shapes.

I am not going to change the color of the text because my shapes are so colorful.

However, if you want to change the color of the text then you can easily do so by clicking on the ‘Text Color’ button from the top toolbar.

Note: In the same way, add all the days of the week on the shapes.

I am also going to add a ‘Month’ and ‘Week’ section on the top right corner of my page to remind myself of the work to be done during that time (refer to the screenshot below).

Now I will also provide a space in front of ‘Month’ and ‘Week’. So that it can be filled later.

To do that, click on the ‘Elements’ button from the left sidebar and then search for a ‘Line’ from the top search bar.

Click on the line according to your liking from the search results to add it to your design.

Then to fit that line in the narrow space, drag the ‘End Points’ of the line inwards to make it smaller in size.

Now drag it to its respective place on the design.

After adding a writing space below the ‘Month’ section, proceed with adding the same space below the ‘Week’ section as well.

Click on the line and then on the ‘Duplicate’ button to duplicate the existing line.

Then drag the duplicated line below the ‘Week’ section.

e) Add Decorations (Optional)

Now your planner is ready in front of you.

But if you want to make it an eyecatcher then simply decorate it!

Note: You can take inspiration from Pinterest or Google images for decorating your planner.

Click on the ‘Elements’ button from the left sidebar and then search for your desired decorating element.

From the search results, drag and drop your preferred element on the design.

For example, I am searching for the ‘Plant’ element for demonstration purposes.

Once you have the element on your design, resize and place it in its position.

Note: In the same way, you can add as many decorative elements as you want on your planner.

You can again click on the ‘Add Page’ button to add more pages to your planner.

4. Download/ Share Your Planner

After creating a planner, you can proceed with downloading it on your computer or sharing it with your friends.

a) Share Your Template Link

If you want to sell this planner, just copy the template link and share it with your buyers.

To do that, click on the ‘Share’ button from the top right corner of the screen and then on the ‘Template Link’ button.

Now you will see a unique link on your screen, Click on the ‘Copy’ button to copy the link and then share it with your buyers.

Anyone who clicks on this link will be able to access and edit this template.

b) Download Your Planner

If you want to save this planner on your computer and then print it out to fill it out manually.

Then click on the ‘Share’ button from the top right corner of the screen and then on the ‘Download’ button.

From the download settings, set your file type to ‘PDF Print’, select the number of pages that you want to save from the ‘Select Pages’ section, and then set the ‘Color Profile’ according to your preference.

Lastly, click on the ‘Download’ button at the end to start the process.

FAQ- How To Create a Digital Planner In Canva

Below are a few frequently asked questions:

What Size Should A Digital Planner Be On Canva?

3.7 × 6.7 inches is the perfect dimension for creating a digital planner on Canva. Just click on the ‘Create a Design’ button from the top right corner of the Canva homepage and then on the ‘Custom Size’ button.

Now enter your dimensions in the width and height section and then click on the ‘Create New Design’ button to get redirected to a blank canvas.

How To Make An Editable Planner In Canva?

To make an editable planner, download your design from Canva and then upload it on the Dochub platform. Click on the ‘Manage Fields’ button from the top left corner of the screen and then on ‘Paragraph Field’, ‘Checkbox Field’, or ‘Text Field’ from the new left side menu.

Then while pressing the left button of your mouse, drag the cursor to create a box in your desired place to make it fillable. To know more in detail, go through our ‘How To Make an Editable PDF in Canva’ blog post.

Before You Leave

And there you have it – now you know exactly how to create your own custom digital planner in Canva!

We covered everything from selecting the right template and stylizing it to adding your key planner pages and elements like calendars, habit trackers, and more.

As you start using your new digital planner, don’t forget to customize it over time for what works best for you.

Change up colors, fonts, add or remove pages – the possibilities are endless!

I hope this planner helps you stay productive and achieve your goals this year.

Let me know in the comments below if you have any other questions on creating digital planners in Canva or want more tips!

And please share this post if you found it helpful. Here’s to an organized and successful year ahead!