Examples
App elements
Assets and media
Fundamentals
Intents
Design interaction
Drag and drop
Design elements
Localization
Content replacement
Text elements
Create and style text elements in designs.
Running this example
To run this example locally:
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If you haven't already, create a new app in the Developer Portal(opens in a new tab or window). For more information, refer to our Quickstart guide.
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In your app's configuration on the Developer Portal(opens in a new tab or window), ensure the "Development URL" is set to
http://localhost:8080
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Clone the starter kit:
git clone https://github.com/canva-sdks/canva-apps-sdk-starter-kit.gitcd canva-apps-sdk-starter-kitSHELL -
Install dependencies:
npm installSHELL -
Run the example:
npm run start text_elementsSHELL -
Click the Preview URL link shown in the terminal to open the example in the Canva editor.
Example app source code
// For usage information, see the README.md file.import {Button,ColorSelector,FormField,Rows,Select,Text,TextInput,Title,} from "@canva/app-ui-kit";// FontWeight and TextAttributes are Canva's type definitions for text stylingimport type { FontWeight, TextAttributes } from "@canva/design";import { useCallback, useState } from "react";import * as styles from "styles/components.css";import { useAddElement } from "utils/use_add_element";// UI state matches the properties accepted by Canva's text element APItype UIState = {text: string;color: string;fontWeight: FontWeight;fontStyle: TextAttributes["fontStyle"];decoration: TextAttributes["decoration"];textAlign: TextAttributes["textAlign"];};const initialState: UIState = {text: "Hello world",color: "#ff0099",fontWeight: "normal",fontStyle: "normal",decoration: "none",textAlign: "start",};export const App = () => {const [state, setState] = useState<UIState>(initialState);// Custom hook that provides addElement function, which uses Canva's addElementAtPoint or addElementAtCursor APIsconst addElement = useAddElement();const { text, color, fontWeight, fontStyle, decoration, textAlign } = state;const disabled = text.trim().length < 1 || color.trim().length < 1;// Creates a text element in the Canva design using the configured styling optionsconst addText = useCallback(async () => {await addElement({type: "text", // Specifies this is a native Canva text element...state,children: [state.text], // Text content is passed as children array});}, [state, addElement]);return (<div className={styles.scrollContainer}><Rows spacing="2u"><Text>This example demonstrates how apps can add text elements to design.</Text><FormFieldlabel="Text"value={text}control={(props) => (<TextInput{...props}onChange={(value) => {setState((prevState) => {return {...prevState,text: value,};});}}/>)}/><Title size="small">Custom options</Title><FormFieldlabel="Color"control={() => (// ColorSelector provides Canva's native color picker interface<ColorSelectorcolor={color}onChange={(value) => {setState((prevState) => {return {...prevState,color: value,};});}}/>)}/><FormFieldlabel="Font style"value={fontStyle}control={(props) => (<Select<TextAttributes["fontStyle"]>{...props}stretchonChange={(style) => {setState((prevState) => {return {...prevState,fontStyle: style,};});}}options={[{ value: "normal", label: "Normal" },{ value: "italic", label: "Italic" },]}/>)}/><FormFieldlabel="Font weight"value={fontWeight}control={(props) => (<Select<FontWeight>{...props}stretchonChange={(fontWeight) => {setState((prevState) => {return {...prevState,fontWeight,};});}}options={[{ value: "normal", label: "Normal" },{ value: "thin", label: "Thin" },{ value: "extralight", label: "Extra light" },{ value: "light", label: "Light" },{ value: "medium", label: "Medium" },{ value: "semibold", label: "Semibold" },{ value: "bold", label: "Bold" },{ value: "heavy", label: "Heavy" },]}/>)}/><FormFieldlabel="Decoration"value={decoration}control={(props) => (<Select<TextAttributes["decoration"]>{...props}stretchonChange={(decoration) => {setState((prevState) => {return {...prevState,decoration,};});}}options={[{ value: "none", label: "None" },{ value: "underline", label: "Underline" },]}/>)}/><FormFieldlabel="Text align"value={textAlign}control={(props) => (<Select<TextAttributes["textAlign"]>{...props}stretchonChange={(textAlign) => {setState((prevState) => {return {...prevState,textAlign,};});}}options={[{ value: "start", label: "Start" },{ value: "center", label: "Center" },{ value: "end", label: "End" },]}/>)}/><Button variant="primary" onClick={addText} disabled={disabled} stretch>Add element</Button></Rows></div>);};
TYPESCRIPT
// For usage information, see the README.md file.import { AppUiProvider } from "@canva/app-ui-kit";import { createRoot } from "react-dom/client";import { App } from "./app";import "@canva/app-ui-kit/styles.css";const root = createRoot(document.getElementById("root") as Element);function render() {root.render(<AppUiProvider><App /></AppUiProvider>,);}render();// Hot Module Replacement for development (automatically reloads the app when changes are made)if (module.hot) {module.hot.accept("./app", render);}
TYPESCRIPT
# Text elementsDemonstrates how to create basic text elements with styling controls including color, font weight, style, decoration, and alignment. Shows fundamental text insertion and formatting patterns.For API reference docs and instructions on running this example, see: <https://www.canva.dev/docs/apps/examples/text-elements/>.Related examples: See design_elements/richtext_elements for advanced text formatting, or app_text_elements for text within app elements.NOTE: This example differs from what is expected for public apps to pass a Canva review:- Text content and styling are hardcoded for demonstration purposes only. Production apps should provide comprehensive text editing interfaces or dynamic content loading- Font validation and fallback handling is not implemented. Production apps must validate fonts and provide fallback options- Internationalization is not implemented. Production apps must support multiple languages using the `@canva/app-i18n-kit` package to pass Canva review requirements- Accessibility features are simplified for demonstration. Production apps must meet WCAG 2.0 AA standards
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