Which Canva download format should I use?

PDF Print is Canva’s highest-resolution export and the best starting point. A large PNG or JPG works too — for crisp printing you want about 300 DPI, roughly 2550 × 3300 pixels for US Letter.

Will the colors and fonts survive the trip to Word?

Yes — the design is embedded as artwork, exactly as Canva rendered it. Nothing is rebuilt or substituted, which is what breaks letterheads that go through PDF-to-Word converters.

Does the design repeat on every page?

Yes. The artwork is anchored in the header layer, so page 50 looks exactly like page 1 — and keeping it on only the first page is a single checkbox that’s already set up in the file.

Can my team edit the letters without wrecking the design?

That’s the point of the header layer: while anyone types in the body, the artwork can’t be clicked, moved, or deleted. Editing the design itself takes a deliberate double-click into the header.

How to Use a Canva Letterhead in Word (Without It Jumping Around)

Last updated: August 5, 2026

Skip the reading — your letterhead in Word in about two minutes.Upload your letterhead

The letterhead looks perfect in Canva. Then it lands in Word, and the design slides around every time someone types. The problem isn’t Canva or Word — it’s the paste in between.

Why does my Canva letterhead jump around in Word?

Because it was pasted into the document body. Canva hands you a finished picture of your design — PDF, PNG, or JPG — and a picture dropped into the body is just content: it sits in the text flow, shifts as lines are added above it, and gets dragged or deleted by a stray click. Nothing anchors it to the page.

Word’s picture-wrapping options move the problem around without solving it — the image still lives in the editable layer, one click away from sliding. Real letterhead lives in the header layer, where typing can’t touch it. That’s the difference that decides every method comparison.

How do I get a Canva letterhead into Word properly?

Export the design from Canva, then let WordLetterhead build the Word file around it: your artwork becomes a locked, full-page header image that repeats on every page and can’t be selected while anyone types.

In Canva, download the letterhead — PDF Print gives the sharpest result.
Upload that file and drag the typing area over the space the design left open.
Download the .docx and start typing — the design stays put.

Letter, A4, Legal, or a custom size. No account, and the watermarked preview is free.

Can’t I just convert the Canva PDF to Word instead?

A converter gives you an editable rebuild — fonts swapped, layout shifted, the design broken into loose text boxes. That’s the opposite of what letterhead needs, which is artwork that stays exactly as designed while text flows around it. Here’s what converters do to letterheads — and why even a “perfect” conversion is the wrong kind of file.

Common questions

Which Canva download format should I use?: PDF Print is Canva’s highest-resolution export and the best starting point. A large PNG or JPG works too — for crisp printing you want about 300 DPI, roughly 2550 × 3300 pixels for US Letter.
Will the colors and fonts survive the trip to Word?: Yes — the design is embedded as artwork, exactly as Canva rendered it. Nothing is rebuilt or substituted, which is what breaks letterheads that go through PDF-to-Word converters.
Does the design repeat on every page?: Yes. The artwork is anchored in the header layer, so page 50 looks exactly like page 1 — and keeping it on only the first page is a single checkbox that’s already set up in the file.
Can my team edit the letters without wrecking the design?: That’s the point of the header layer: while anyone types in the body, the artwork can’t be clicked, moved, or deleted. Editing the design itself takes a deliberate double-click into the header.