Design Tools for Merch: What to Use and What the Licenses Allow

Most new Merch sellers lose their first weeks to the wrong question. They ask "which app is best?" when the questions that matter are "can it export the file Amazon wants?" and "am I allowed to sell what I make with it?"

This guide covers both. It walks through the common tools, what each one is good and bad at for Merch, and the license rules that catch people out.

What any Merch design tool has to do

Before comparing apps, know the job. For a standard t-shirt, Amazon's templates page asks for a PNG with a transparent background, in the sRGB color space, under 25 MB, at 4500 by 5400 pixels. Other products use other sizes, all listed on that same page.

So the tool you pick must be able to:

• Work on a large canvas (4500 by 5400 pixels or bigger) without crawling.
• Export a PNG with a transparent background, meaning no white box behind your design.
• Export in RGB, not CMYK. CMYK is the color mode print shops often use, but Amazon asks for RGB files.
• Give you fonts and graphics you are licensed to use on products you sell.

Amazon publishes official templates for Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator and GIMP on its templates page. That is a small hint about what the program expects people to use, but any tool that meets the list above works.

The tools, one by one

Canva

Canva runs in the browser and is the easiest place to start. Text, shapes and layouts come together fast, and the library of elements is huge.

• Good for: quick text designs, testing ideas, people who have never used design software.
• Watch out for: downloading with a transparent background is a paid-plan feature, according to Canva's own help center. On the free plan you get a background you then have to remove.
• License catch: Canva says you can sell print-on-demand products only if they are an original design. You cannot print a Canva element or template "as-is". Combining elements, text and your own layout is the expected use. Read Canva's page on using Canva to create products for sale before you upload.

Canva also says that if a print service makes you claim you own the copyright in everything you upload, you cannot use Canva content there, because you only hold a license. When you submit a design, Merch asks you to acknowledge that you have "all the necessary rights" to the artwork. Read the wording yourself and decide; if in doubt, keep stock elements out of your Merch designs.

Kittl

Kittl is also browser-based, built around typography, text effects and vintage-style templates. Many Merch sellers like it for text-heavy shirts.

• Good for: stylized text, badges, retro looks, fast iteration.
• Watch out for: Kittl's licensing page says commercial use of content made on the Free plan is prohibited. Paid plans allow selling designs on physical products like t-shirts.
• License catch: paid plans below the top tier have a cap on printed copies per design (Kittl's page lists the number). Kittl also says designs built on its templates, fonts or illustrations cannot be registered as trademarks. Check the current terms on Kittl's licensing page, since they change.

Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop

The industry standards, sold as part of an Adobe subscription.

• Illustrator is a vector app. Vector art is made of shapes and curves, not pixels, so you can scale it to any size without blur. Great for clean text and logos.
• Photoshop is a pixel (raster) app. Best for textures, distressed effects, photo-based art and final PNG export.
• Good for: total control, official Amazon templates, Adobe Fonts included with the subscription.
• Watch out for: the learning curve, and the ongoing subscription.

Adobe's font licensing FAQ says you can use Adobe Fonts in merchandise you sell, with no limit on how many items you produce. What it does not allow: products where a customer types their own text in your font, or selling individual letters as products.

Affinity

Affinity (Designer, Photo and Publisher) was bought by Canva. In late 2025 the apps were combined into one Affinity app that is free to use with a Canva account; generative AI features need a paid Canva plan. It covers both vector and raster work.

• Good for: a Photoshop and Illustrator style workflow without the Adobe subscription.
• Watch out for: no official Amazon template in Affinity format, though it opens PSD files, so you can start from Amazon's Photoshop template.

Procreate

Procreate is an iPad drawing app sold as a one-time purchase. It is loved for hand-drawn illustration and lettering.

• Good for: illustrators, hand lettering, natural brush textures.
• Watch out for: maximum canvas size depends on your iPad model, and bigger canvases mean fewer layers. Check you can create a 4500 by 5400 canvas before you start a design, not after. Many sellers draw in Procreate and finish (clean edges, export) on a computer.

Inkscape and GIMP

Both are free and open source.

• Inkscape is a vector editor, the free answer to Illustrator.
• GIMP is a raster editor, the free answer to Photoshop. Amazon offers GIMP templates.
• Good for: zero budget, full control.
• Watch out for: clunkier interfaces and fewer tutorials aimed at Merch.

Photopea

Photopea is a free, ad-supported photo editor that runs in your browser and looks a lot like Photoshop. It opens PSD files, so it works with Amazon's Photoshop templates.

• Good for: quick edits on any computer, background removal touch-ups, PNG export.
• Watch out for: very large files can strain browser memory.

Quick comparison

Note Plans and features change often. Check each tool's own pricing and license pages before you commit.

Fonts and graphics: the licensing part

This is where real trouble starts. A great design built on a font you were not allowed to use can be removed, and repeat problems can put your account at risk. (This is general information, not legal advice. For your specific situation, talk to a lawyer.)

Fonts

• "Free for personal use" means no. Many free font sites offer fonts that are free only for personal projects. A shirt you sell is commercial use. You need a commercial license.
• Google Fonts are free for commercial use, including in products you sell. Most use the SIL Open Font License. Each family page shows its license, so check it.
• Adobe Fonts are allowed in merchandise you sell while you have the subscription that includes them.
• Never let the customer type in your font. Adobe, Creative Fabrica and others say this needs a different license. On Merch you upload a flat PNG, so this mostly matters if you also sell elsewhere.

Graphics and templates

• Don't upload a stock graphic unchanged. Canva, Creative Fabrica and most marketplaces require you to build something new around it. A single clipart image on a shirt is not "your design".
• Creative Fabrica says its subscription license covers products you sell on print-on-demand sites. Its license page also says you can keep selling products you made while subscribed after you cancel, but you cannot create new designs with those files after cancelling. Read the current license yourself, because terms are versioned and updated.
• Single-purchase marketplaces (individual font or graphic sales) each have their own license text. Look for words like "commercial use", "POD" or "print on demand", and any cap on sales.
• Licenses do not cover trademarks. A properly licensed font spelling out a famous brand name is still a trademark problem. See how to check trademarks before you upload and the difference between copyright, trademark and publicity rights.

Keep receipts

Tip Make a simple folder or spreadsheet: which font and which graphic went into which design, where you got it, and a copy of the license as it read on the day you downloaded it. If a listing is ever questioned, you can answer in minutes.

How to choose

• Starting from zero, text designs: Canva or Kittl, on a plan that allows commercial use and transparent export.
• Want pro tools without a subscription: Affinity, or Inkscape plus GIMP.
• You draw: Procreate, finished on a desktop app.
• Already know Adobe: Illustrator for clean art, Photoshop for final PNG export.

The tool matters less than you think. Rejections usually come from file problems, content policy or trademarks, not from which app you used. Our post on why Merch designs get rejected covers the common causes.

The short version

• Any tool works if it exports a transparent, RGB PNG at the right pixel size.
• Free plans often block commercial use or transparent export. Check before you design 50 shirts.
• "Free for personal use" fonts are not allowed on products you sell.
• Never upload a stock graphic or template unchanged.
• Keep a record of every font and graphic license.

MerchPPC does not make designs. Once your designs are live, it helps with what comes next: its Catalog shows which designs actually sell and earn their ad spend. What MerchPPC is explains the rest.