Canva Skill#

Use Canva Connect API for design creation, export, and asset upload workflows.

Prerequisites#

Create a Canva Integration:

1. Go to https://www.canva.com/developers/
2. Create a new integration
3. Get your Client ID and Client Secret

Set environment variables:

bash

export CANVA_CLIENT_ID="your_client_id"
export CANVA_CLIENT_SECRET="your_client_secret"

Authenticate on first use and store tokens in ~/.canva/tokens.json.

API Base URL#

bash

https://api.canva.com/rest/v1

Authentication#

Get access token from local token file:

bash

ACCESS_TOKEN=$(cat ~/.canva/tokens.json | jq -r '.access_token')

Refresh tokens automatically when the auth flow supports it.

Core Operations#

List Designs#

bash

curl -s "https://api.canva.com/rest/v1/designs" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" | jq .

Get Design Details#

bash

curl -s "https://api.canva.com/rest/v1/designs/{designId}" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" | jq .

Create Design from Template#

bash

curl -X POST "https://api.canva.com/rest/v1/autofills" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "brand_template_id": "TEMPLATE_ID",
    "data": {
      "title": {"type": "text", "text": "Your Title"},
      "body": {"type": "text", "text": "Your body text"}
    }
  }'

Export Design#

Start export job:

bash

curl -X POST "https://api.canva.com/rest/v1/exports" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "design_id": "DESIGN_ID",
    "format": {"type": "png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080}
  }'

Check export status:

bash

curl -s "https://api.canva.com/rest/v1/exports/{jobId}" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" | jq .

Upload Asset#

bash

curl -X POST "https://api.canva.com/rest/v1/asset-uploads" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/octet-stream" \
  -H 'Asset-Upload-Metadata: {"name": "my-image.png"}' \
  --data-binary @image.png

List Brand Templates#

bash

curl -s "https://api.canva.com/rest/v1/brand-templates" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" | jq .

Export Formats#

• PNG: width, height, lossless
• JPG: width, height, quality (1-100)
• PDF: standard, print
• MP4: for video designs
• GIF: for animated designs

Common Workflows#

Create Instagram Post#

1. List brand templates
2. Find an Instagram post template
3. Autofill with content
4. Export as PNG 1080x1080
5. Download exported file

Create Carousel#

1. Create multiple designs using autofill
2. Export each as PNG
3. Combine for posting

Batch Export#

1. List designs
2. Loop through and export each
3. Download all files

Error Handling#

Handle common errors clearly:

• 401: Token expired, refresh needed
• 403: Missing required scope
• 404: Design/template not found
• 429: Rate limit exceeded

Required Scopes#

• design:content:read
• design:content:write
• asset:read
• asset:write
• brandtemplate:content:read

Tips#

• Prefer Brand Templates for posters and slides when available.
• Batch exports to reduce repetitive work.
• Cache commonly used template IDs locally.
• Poll export jobs until complete before downloading.

Current Status#

This local skill skeleton is installed in the workspace, but Canva API use is not ready until the integration credentials and first-time OAuth authentication are completed.