When you’re working across multiple projects in Canva, the designs you return to most often can get buried under newer work. Canva’s star feature — also referred to as favoriting — solves this by pinning your most-used designs to a dedicated Starred view, accessible from any device in one click. This guide covers everything about starring designs in Canva: how to star and unstar, how Starred works alongside folders, when to use it, and how to get the most out of it as part of a broader organizational workflow.
What Does Starring a Design in Canva Do?
Starring a design in Canva marks it as a favorite. Starred designs:
- Appear in the Starred section of your left sidebar for instant access
- Remain in their original folder or Projects location — starring doesn’t move a design
- Show a solid gold star icon on the design thumbnail so you can identify them at a glance
- Sync across all your devices — a design starred on desktop appears starred on mobile too
- Are personal — starring a shared design only marks it as starred for you, not for other collaborators
Starring is non-destructive and reversible. Unstarring a design removes it from the Starred view but leaves it exactly where it was — in the same folder, untouched.
Why Use the Star Feature?
Starring works best as a shortcut layer on top of your folder system. Think of folders as your filing cabinet and stars as the items currently on your desk — the things you’re actively working with or need to access repeatedly.
Common use cases:
- Active project templates — star master templates you duplicate frequently so they’re always one click away
- Client brand files — star a client’s primary design file during an active campaign, unstar when the campaign ends
- Designs pending review — star designs you’re waiting on feedback for so you can check them quickly
- Daily-use assets — star a social media post template you update every week
- Cross-device quick access — starred designs surface at the top on mobile, where folder navigation is slower
- Frequently shared designs — star a design you share via link regularly so you can grab the link quickly
How to Star a Design in Canva
Method 1: From the Home Screen or Projects View
- Go to your Canva home screen or open Projects in the left sidebar
- Hover over the design thumbnail you want to star
- A star icon (☆) appears in the top right corner of the thumbnail
- Click the star icon
The star turns solid gold (★), confirming the design is now starred. It immediately appears in your Starred section.
Method 2: From Inside the Editor
You can star a design while you’re editing it without going back to the home screen.
- Open a design in the Canva editor
- Look at the design title at the top center of the screen
- Click the star icon that appears next to the design name
- The star fills to indicate the design is now starred
This is the most convenient method when you’re mid-edit and decide a design is worth starring.
Method 3: Right-Click the Design Thumbnail
- On the home screen or Projects view, right-click any design thumbnail
- Select Add to Starred from the context menu
How to View All Starred Designs
- In the left sidebar on the Canva home screen, click Starred
- All designs you’ve starred appear in this view, regardless of which folder they’re stored in
The Starred view is available on both desktop and mobile. On mobile, tap Projects at the bottom navigation bar, then tap Starred.
How to Unstar a Design in Canva
Unstarring is as simple as starring — it just reverses the action.
From the Home Screen or Projects View
- Hover over a starred design thumbnail
- Click the solid gold star (★) in the top right corner
- The star reverts to an outline (☆), and the design is removed from the Starred view
From Inside the Editor
- Open the starred design in the editor
- Click the solid gold star next to the design name at the top
- The star empties, indicating the design is no longer starred
From the Starred View
- Open Starred in the left sidebar
- Hover over the design you want to unstar
- Click the gold star on the thumbnail to remove it
The design disappears from the Starred view but remains in its original location in your Projects or folder.
How Starring Works on the Canva Mobile App
The star feature is fully supported on iOS and Android with a slightly different interface.
Star a Design on Mobile
- Open the Canva app and go to Projects
- Tap and hold a design thumbnail until the selection menu appears
- Tap Add to Starred
Or:
- Open a design in the mobile editor
- Tap the three-dot menu (⋯) at the top of the screen
- Tap Add to Starred
View Starred Designs on Mobile
- Tap Projects in the bottom navigation bar
- Tap Starred from the list
All your starred designs appear here, synced from desktop.
Unstar on Mobile
- Tap and hold the starred design thumbnail
- Tap Remove from Starred
Starred Designs vs. Folders: How They Work Together
Starring and folders serve different organizational purposes and work best in combination. Understanding the distinction helps you use both more effectively.
| Starred | Folders | |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Quick access to active or frequent designs | Long-term storage and project organization |
| Capacity | No limit, but best kept small (10–20 designs) | No limit — suited for large collections |
| Visibility | Personal only | Shareable with collaborators |
| Design location | Design stays in its original folder | Design lives inside the folder |
| Best for | Current projects, daily-use templates | Completed work, client archives, all projects |
| Mobile navigation | One tap from Projects | Requires navigating into folder hierarchy |
Recommended Workflow
Use folders as your primary organizational system — every design belongs in a folder. Use stars as a dynamic shortlist of what you’re actively working on. When a project wraps up, unstar its designs. When a new project starts, star the relevant files.
This way your Starred view stays lean and useful rather than becoming a second cluttered inbox.
How Many Designs Should You Star?
Canva doesn’t impose a limit on how many designs you can star — but the feature loses its usefulness if you star everything. The goal is to keep your Starred list short enough that every item on it is genuinely useful at a glance.
A practical guideline:
- 10–20 starred designs is a comfortable working set for most users
- Under 10 is ideal if you’re a focused single-project user
- Over 30 starts to defeat the purpose — consider whether some designs would be better served by a dedicated folder with quick sidebar access instead
If your Starred list has grown unwieldy, spend 5 minutes unstarring anything you haven’t opened in the past month. Think of it like clearing your desk — it should only hold what you’re currently using.
Starring Shared and Team Designs
Starring a Design Someone Shared With You
If a colleague shares a design with you, you can star it from your Shared with me view:
- Go to Projects → Shared with me in the sidebar
- Hover over the shared design
- Click the star icon to star it
The design appears in your Starred view for quick access. Starring it does not affect how the design appears for the person who shared it — stars are always personal.
Starring Team Designs (Canva Teams)
On Canva for Teams, you can star designs from the team workspace:
- Switch to your Team workspace using the workspace selector in the sidebar
- Browse team folders and designs
- Star any team design using the same hover-and-click method
Starred team designs appear in your personal Starred view alongside your own work. Your teammates’ starred selections remain private to each individual.
Using Starred Designs as a Review Queue
One underused application of the star feature is as a lightweight review or approval queue.
How It Works
- When a design is ready for internal review, star it
- During review sessions, open Starred to see all designs awaiting attention
- After reviewing and approving a design, unstar it to clear it from the queue
This works particularly well for solo designers or small teams who don’t need a formal project management tool but still want a simple way to track what’s pending.
Tips for Getting the Most Out of Starred Designs
Star templates, not one-off designs Designs you create once and deliver are better stored in folders. Templates you duplicate and reuse repeatedly are the ideal candidates for starring — they’re always relevant and frequently needed.
Combine starring with clear design naming A star gets you to the right section fast. A clear name gets you to the right design within that section. Before starring a design, make sure it’s named descriptively (e.g., “Weekly Instagram Post Template” rather than “Untitled design”).
Use stars to mark designs shared via link If you regularly share a specific design’s link with clients or team members, star it so you can retrieve the link quickly without digging through folders.
Unstar as a project completion ritual When you finish a project, unstar all related designs as a deliberate “closing” step. It keeps your Starred view current and gives a satisfying sense of completion — and it takes about 10 seconds.
Audit your stars monthly Set a recurring monthly reminder to open your Starred view and remove anything no longer active. This takes under two minutes and keeps the feature genuinely useful.
Common Issues and Fixes
| Problem | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Star icon not appearing on thumbnail | Thumbnail not hovered correctly | Move the cursor directly over the thumbnail — the star appears in the top right corner |
| Starred design not showing in Starred view | Design was unstarred or sync delay | Refresh the page; check if the design’s thumbnail shows a solid star |
| Starred designs not syncing to mobile | App needs a refresh | Close and reopen the Canva app; starred status syncs with the cloud |
| Can’t find the Starred section | Sidebar collapsed or on wrong workspace | Look for Starred under Projects in the left sidebar; switch workspace if needed |
| Starring a design moves it | This doesn’t happen — starring never moves designs | The design is still in its original folder; check there if it seems “missing” |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the star/favorite feature available on the free Canva plan?
Yes. Starring designs is available on all Canva plans including the free tier. No Pro subscription is required.
Does starring a design notify the design owner?
No. Starring is a private action. If you star a shared design, the owner receives no notification and sees no change on their end.
Can I share my Starred list with a teammate?
No. The Starred view is personal — it reflects your own starred selections only. To give a teammate access to a set of designs, use a shared folder instead.
Does unstarring a design delete it?
No. Unstarring only removes the design from your Starred view. The design remains exactly where it was — in its folder or Projects location — completely unaffected.
Can I star a design that’s inside a folder?
Yes. Starring works regardless of where a design is stored. A design inside a nested subfolder can be starred and will appear in your Starred view, while staying in its original folder location.
Is there a keyboard shortcut to star a design?
No. Canva doesn’t currently offer a keyboard shortcut for starring. The fastest method is hovering over the thumbnail and clicking the star icon, or clicking the star next to the design name inside the editor.
Final Thoughts
The star feature is one of Canva’s simplest tools, but it punches above its weight when used with intention. The key insight is treating Starred not as a permanent collection but as a dynamic shortlist — things that are currently relevant, not things you once liked. Star at the start of a project, unstar at the end, and audit occasionally.
Paired with a solid folder system, starring gives you two distinct speeds of access: deep organization for everything, and instant retrieval for what matters right now.
Open Canva, hover over your most-used design, and click the star. That’s your Starred list started — now keep it lean and let it work for you.