Canva reveals top design trends shaping creativity 2025

Canva has unveiled its 2025 Design Trends Report, shedding light on emergent styles set to shape creativity and work practices in the coming years.

The report, which draws insights from Canva's extensive user base of over 200 million people, including creators and professionals across the globe, highlights a variety of design trends increasingly adopted by top-tier corporations, including 95% of the Fortune 500. Among these trends are 'refined grit' and 'analogue meets AI', which are noted for their influence on the aesthetics seen within executive suites.

Maria Izvestkina, Design Lead at Canva, notes the reflection of current work and creativity states in these trends: "Analogue Meets AI – Inspired by analog techniques like collage, this intersection of the past and present opens up new design possibilities in the age of AI." The trend signals a blend of traditional methods with contemporary technologies, creating new avenues for design innovation.

The report categorises seven major trends expected to dominate the design landscape as we head into 2025. These include 'Serious Fun', a style described as playful yet strategic, aimed at reshaping professional design paradigms; and 'Refined Grit', which defies conventional aesthetics by promoting stripped-back designs that foster unique visual identities.

A pertinent example of evolving design preferences is reflected in the significant increase in specific search terms across the Canva platform. Maria Izvestkina draws attention to the increase, stating: "Searches for 'scrapbook' on Canva are up 92% since last year." This suggests a growing fascination with nostalgic design elements being reimagined in modern contexts.

Additionally, search terms like 'shapes' and 'modular' have increased by 56% and 23% respectively, aligning with the 'Shape Theory' trend, which employs bold geometric forms to balance structure with warmth and functionality.

The 'Opulence Era' trend introduces a blend of minimalist aesthetics coupled with intricate detailing, balancing luxurious design with understated glamour. The rise in search terms like 'elegant' and 'luxury'—up by 33% and 30% respectively—further illustrates this trend's appeal.

Maria Izvestkina highlights the playful approach of 'Serious Fun': "This playful yet strategic style blends humour and casual elements in unexpected ways to reimagine what professional designs could be." This trend has seen notable growth in related search terms, including 'silly,' 'funny,' and 'humour,' with respective increases of 92%, 36%, and 27%.

The dynamic 'Future in Motion' trend, which integrates motion to enhance storytelling, has seen the search for 'motion,' 'animation,' and 'interactive' rise by 109%, 78%, and 46%. This reflects a growing interest in vibrant and dynamic content.

'Refined Grit' promotes a minimalistic and edgy aesthetic, with related terms like 'cutting-edge,' 'bold,' and 'edgy' seeing substantial upticks of 71%, 40%, and 23%. Meanwhile, 'Mechanical Botanical' merges technology with biological elements, underscored by the growing search for 'techno' and 'cyber' terms, both of which are up by around 30%.

According to the report, 77% of UK business leaders believe that incorporating visual trends enhances company performance, suggesting that these emerging styles could play a pivotal role in maintaining engaging communications, both internally and externally.