Apply locks to Brand Templates
Locks help maintain consistency by preventing changes to key elements in a Brand Template, such as logos, text styles, and layout components. admins and brand designers can apply locks before publishing a template, giving team members creative flexibility while protecting the parts that matter most.
Locks can also help guide Canva AI. When you link Brand Templates to a Brand Kit, Canva AI can generate new designs that match your brand. Locked elements stay protected during AI generation, helping keep your brand consistent across designs.
Tips:
- Understanding your AI usage to learn more about how this feature’s AI usage.
- Prompt like a Pro to learn more about how to get the most out of Generate & refine designs.
Use locks to:
- Preserve brand consistency: Make sure all designs created from the template stay aligned with your brand.
- Protect essential elements: Prevent accidental edits to logos, fonts, layouts, and other critical assets.
Who can apply or modify locks?
Only admins and brand designers have permission to apply or adjust locks in Brand Templates. They can do this either before publishing or when editing an existing template for republishing. Learn how to publish designs as Brand Templates.
Can locks be applied after publishing a Brand Template?
No—locks need to be set before publishing a design as a Brand Template. If changes are needed later, admins and brand designers can edit the template, adjust the locks, and republish it.
Types of locks in Brand Templates
Type of lock | Definition or feature of the lock |
|---|---|
Lock | This functions as a full lock, preventing any edits to the selected element. Lock your company logo to ensure it cannot be resized, moved, or deleted. |
Lock position only | This functions as a partial lock, allowing specific changes while keeping other properties fixed. |
Text Lock position only | What it locks: Formatting (font, size, colour, alignment, capitalisation, bullet points), styles (line spacing, transparency, links), and tools (copy/paste style, duplicate, delete). What can be edited: The content of the text box. |
Image / Frame Lock position only | What it locks: Style settings (effects, filters, adjustments, flipping) and tools (copy/paste style, duplicate, delete). What can be edited: Replace, crop, resize, or move the image within its original space. |
Page Locks | Page Lock: Prevents all edits to the page, including deletion. Page Lock position only: Allows some edits while preventing deletion or page movement. |
Background Locks | Prevents the background from being edited or deleted.` |
Apply locks in Brand Templates
- Click on the element (text, image, background, or page) you want to lock.
- On the floating toolbar, click the More icon and then select Lock.
- Choose the type of lock:
- Lock: Prevents all edits.
- Lock position and appearance: Allows limited edits (e.g., text content updates or image replacement).
- Customise partial locks (if applicable):
- For text, lock formatting like font, size, or colour, but allow content updates.
- For images and frames, lock effects and filters, but enable resizing or cropping.
- Review your design and ensure all critical elements are locked as needed to maintain brand consistency.
- Click Share.
- Click the See all.
- Select Brand Template.
- After you've placed your branded template into a folder, click on Publish and close. Make sure it is accessible to your team.
Locks and Canva AI
When you use Brand Templates in Canva AI, Canva AI will generate new designs that match your brand. Locks indicate which elements should stay unchanged. However, Canva AI can behave differently depending on what you’re trying to do:
- Generating new designs from Brand Templates: Canva AI can use your templates as guardrails and will respect the different levels of locks (including Lock position only) in the initial generation.
- Editing an existing design in the editor using Canva AI (for example, Ask Canva): Canva AI currently treats all locks the same. If the content that needs to change is inside a locked element, it may not be able to update it. This applies even if the element is only set to Lock position only. This will be improved soon
What Canva AI preserves
When Canva AI generates designs from your Brand Templates, it follows your brand guidance:
- Locked elements (during generation): Canva AI keeps locked elements unchanged.
- Brand logos: Canva AI keeps brand logos the same by default, even without locks. Locking adds extra protection.
- Brand colours and fonts: Canva AI uses brand colours and fonts from your Brand Templates.
- Layout structure: Canva AI follows the layout structure from your templates.
- Unlocked elements: Canva AI may adjust unlocked elements to fit generated content
- Images and elements: Canva AI will preserve elements and images where possible. Canva AI will only replace them if the user's request explicitly calls for a different visual direction.
Fix Canva AI editing/locking issues
If Canva AI reports errors or can’t update text or images, check whether the affected elements are locked.
If you want team members to update copy while keeping formatting consistent, use Lock position only. For now, Canva AI won’t edit partially locked elements after the initial generation - you’ll need to make those changes manually.
Choose elements to lock for brand protection
Consider locking these elements:
- Brand logos: Lock your logo to make sure it appears correctly in all generated designs.
- Brand colours in key areas: Lock elements with specific brand colours you want to keep consistent.
- Legal disclaimers or required text: Lock any text that must appear exactly as written.
- Layout structures: Lock elements that define your template layout.
- Contact information: Lock phone numbers, addresses, or other details that shouldn't change.
Tip: Lock your brand logo and other critical elements before publishing Brand Templates. This helps make sure they stay maintain their visual integrity when members and/or Canva AI creates new designs from these templates.
Why do locks matter?
Locks are essential for maintaining control and flexibility in your Brand Templates. They:
- Preserve consistency: Prevent accidental or intentional changes to essential elements.
- Enable adaptability: Allow team members to make necessary adjustments within defined parameters.
- Streamline collaboration: Keep templates clear and easy to use for everyone.
- Guide AI generation: Tell Canva AI exactly which elements to protect when creating new designs.
Can I apply locks after publishing the Brand Template?
No, locks must be applied before publishing. If updates are needed, you can edit the template, apply locks, and republish it.
Understand how locking works when editing in the editor
Locking in Canva lets you protect specific elements or an entire design from being edited.
If your design has either Lock All or Design Lock applied and you continue editing with Canva AI in the editor, both will be treated as a full Lock All. This means no changes will be made.
If you want Canva AI to make edits, lock only the specific elements you want preserved. Avoid applying a blanket lock to the whole design.
Test out locks yourself before publishing so you understand the restrictions you have set
For more tips on creating Brand Templates, check out:
Need more help? Contact Canva Support.
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