Canva Automation via Rube MCP

Automate Canva design operations through Composio’s Canva toolkit via Rube MCP.

Prerequisites

• Rube MCP must be connected (RUBE_SEARCH_TOOLS available)
• Active Canva connection via RUBE_MANAGE_CONNECTIONS with toolkit canva
• Always call RUBE_SEARCH_TOOLS first to get current tool schemas

Setup

Get Rube MCP: Add https://rube.app/mcp as an MCP server in your client configuration. No API keys needed — just add the endpoint and it works.

1. Verify Rube MCP is available by confirming RUBE_SEARCH_TOOLS responds
2. Call RUBE_MANAGE_CONNECTIONS with toolkit canva
3. If connection is not ACTIVE, follow the returned auth link to complete Canva OAuth
4. Confirm connection status shows ACTIVE before running any workflows

Core Workflows

1. List and Browse Designs

When to use: User wants to find existing designs or browse their Canva library

Tool sequence:

1. CANVA_LIST_USER_DESIGNS – List all designs with optional filters [Required]

Key parameters:

• query: Search term to filter designs by name
• continuation: Pagination token from previous response
• ownership: Filter by ‘owned’, ‘shared’, or ‘any’
• sort_by: Sort field (e.g., ‘modified_at’, ‘title’)

Pitfalls:

• Results are paginated; follow continuation token until absent
• Deleted designs may still appear briefly; check design status
• Search is substring-based, not fuzzy matching

2. Create and Design

When to use: User wants to create a new Canva design from scratch or from a template

Tool sequence:

1. CANVA_ACCESS_USER_SPECIFIC_BRAND_TEMPLATES_LIST – Browse available brand templates [Optional]
2. CANVA_CREATE_CANVA_DESIGN_WITH_OPTIONAL_ASSET – Create a new design [Required]

Key parameters:

• design_type: Type of design (e.g., ‘Presentation’, ‘Poster’, ‘SocialMedia’)
• title: Name for the new design
• asset_id: Optional asset to include in the design
• width / height: Custom dimensions in pixels

Pitfalls:

• Design type must match Canva’s predefined types exactly
• Custom dimensions have minimum and maximum limits
• Asset must be uploaded first via CANVA_CREATE_ASSET_UPLOAD_JOB before referencing

3. Upload Assets

When to use: User wants to upload images or files to Canva for use in designs

Tool sequence:

1. CANVA_CREATE_ASSET_UPLOAD_JOB – Initiate the asset upload [Required]
2. CANVA_FETCH_ASSET_UPLOAD_JOB_STATUS – Poll until upload completes [Required]

Key parameters:

• name: Display name for the asset
• url: Public URL of the file to upload (for URL-based uploads)
• job_id: Upload job ID returned from step 1 (for status polling)

Pitfalls:

• Upload is asynchronous; you MUST poll the job status until it completes
• Supported formats include PNG, JPG, SVG, MP4, GIF
• File size limits apply; large files may take longer to process
• The job_id from CREATE returns the ID needed for status polling
• Status values: ‘in_progress’, ‘success’, ‘failed’

4. Export Designs

When to use: User wants to download or export a Canva design as PDF, PNG, or other format

Tool sequence:

1. CANVA_LIST_USER_DESIGNS – Find the design to export [Prerequisite]
2. CANVA_CREATE_CANVA_DESIGN_EXPORT_JOB – Start the export process [Required]
3. CANVA_GET_DESIGN_EXPORT_JOB_RESULT – Poll until export completes and get download URL [Required]

Key parameters:

• design_id: ID of the design to export
• format: Export format (‘pdf’, ‘png’, ‘jpg’, ‘svg’, ‘mp4’, ‘gif’, ‘pptx’)
• pages: Specific page numbers to export (array)
• quality: Export quality (‘regular’, ‘high’)
• job_id: Export job ID for polling status

Pitfalls:

• Export is asynchronous; you MUST poll the job result until it completes
• Download URLs from completed exports expire after a limited time
• Large designs with many pages take longer to export
• Not all formats support all design types (e.g., MP4 only for animations)
• Poll interval: wait 2-3 seconds between status checks

5. Organize with Folders

When to use: User wants to create folders or organize designs into folders

Tool sequence:

1. CANVA_POST_FOLDERS – Create a new folder [Required]
2. CANVA_MOVE_ITEM_TO_SPECIFIED_FOLDER – Move designs into folders [Optional]

Key parameters:

• name: Folder name
• parent_folder_id: Parent folder for nested organization
• item_id: ID of the design or asset to move
• folder_id: Target folder ID

Pitfalls:

• Folder names must be unique within the same parent folder
• Moving items between folders updates their location immediately
• Root-level folders have no parent_folder_id

6. Autofill from Brand Templates

When to use: User wants to generate designs by filling brand template placeholders with data

Tool sequence:

1. CANVA_ACCESS_USER_SPECIFIC_BRAND_TEMPLATES_LIST – List available brand templates [Required]
2. CANVA_INITIATE_CANVA_DESIGN_AUTOFILL_JOB – Start autofill with data [Required]

Key parameters:

• brand_template_id: ID of the brand template to use
• title: Title for the generated design
• data: Key-value mapping of placeholder names to replacement values

Pitfalls:

• Template placeholders must match exactly (case-sensitive)
• Autofill is asynchronous; poll for completion
• Only brand templates support autofill, not regular designs
• Data values must match the expected type for each placeholder (text, image URL)

Common Patterns

Async Job Pattern

Many Canva operations are asynchronous:

1. Initiate job (upload, export, autofill) -> get job_id
2. Poll status endpoint with job_id every 2-3 seconds
3. Check for 'success' or 'failed' status
4. On success, extract result (asset_id, download_url, design_id)

ID Resolution

Design name -> Design ID:

1. Call CANVA_LIST_USER_DESIGNS with query=design_name
2. Find matching design in results
3. Extract id field

Brand template name -> Template ID:

1. Call CANVA_ACCESS_USER_SPECIFIC_BRAND_TEMPLATES_LIST
2. Find template by name
3. Extract brand_template_id

Pagination

• Check response for continuation token
• Pass token in next request’s continuation parameter
• Continue until continuation is absent or empty

Known Pitfalls

Async Operations:

• Uploads, exports, and autofills are all asynchronous
• Always poll job status; do not assume immediate completion
• Download URLs from exports expire; use them promptly

Asset Management:

• Assets must be uploaded before they can be used in designs
• Upload job must reach ‘success’ status before the asset_id is valid
• Supported formats vary; check Canva documentation for current limits

Rate Limits:

• Canva API has rate limits per endpoint
• Implement exponential backoff for bulk operations
• Batch operations where possible to reduce API calls

Response Parsing:

• Response data may be nested under data key
• Job status responses include different fields based on completion state
• Parse defensively with fallbacks for optional fields

Quick Reference