Senior Backend Engineer (Java)

Join the team redefining how the world experiences design.

Hey, g'day, mabuhay, kia ora, 你好, hallo, vítejte!

Thanks for stopping by. We know job hunting can be a little time consuming and you're probably keen to find out what's on offer, so we'll get straight to the point.

Where and how you can work

Our flagship campus is in Sydney. We also have a campus in Melbourne and co-working spaces in Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide. But you have choice in where and how you work, we trust our Canvanauts to choose the balance that empowers them and their team to achieve their goals.

About the team

With the rapid rise of generative AI and the increasing complexity of workflows at scale, Canva is uniquely positioned to become the go-to platform for discovering and accessing visual design services. We’re already collaborating with thousands of developers via our Apps SDK and public REST API to bring these capabilities to life.

As part of the Ecosystem group, the Developer Experience team owns the platforms that empower third-party developers to build Apps that run inside Canva, as well as Integrations powered by our Connect API.

But don't just take our word for it, check out what Software Engineer - Abbie Wade has to say about working in Engineering at Canva -

"The challenges that I am solving do not have a known solution, which means I get to create and innovate each day."

What you’d be doing in this role

As Canva scales, change continues to be part of our DNA — and we like to think that’s part of the fun. What you work on when you start might evolve, but here’s a flavour of what you’ll be diving into:

• Collaborate with engineers, tech leads, designers, and product managers across Canva to design, build, and deploy backend solutions that power great user experiences
• Design and develop scalable, reliable, and secure backend services — with a focus on performance, maintainability, and operational excellence
• Build tools and APIs for a variety of audiences including internal teams, third-party developers, and Canva users
• Identify and champion opportunities for cross-team collaboration to drive innovation and improvements aligned with our broader goals
• Contribute to the team’s technical roadmap, and help shape its vision and execution
• Work in a cross-functional team to deliver high-quality software — safely, quickly, and at scale
• Partner with stakeholders across the group and wider Canva to ensure alignment and shared success
• Continuously improve the developer experience — from onboarding and documentation to testing, observability, and debugging tools
• Proactively identify and address technical and user experience pain points, balancing short-term needs with long-term sustainability
• Contribute to design and code reviews, mentoring, and knowledge-sharing to help the team grow and improve
• Stay up to date with the latest in backend technologies, architectures, and best practices — and bring fresh ideas into the team
• Grow and thrive in Canva’s supportive, fast-paced, and empowering culture

You're probably a match if

• You’re comfortable working within our core technology stack: Java, MySQL, and AWS (including EKS, S3, SQS, SNS), with infrastructure as code using Terraform
• You’re comfortable using AI tools to be more effective in your role (Cursor, Claude, ChatGPT, etc)
• You have a strong foundation in computer science and software engineering fundamentals — including concurrency, multithreading, data structures, system design, and architectural patterns
• You collaborate effectively with teammates and communicate clearly across technical and non-technical audiences
• You’re interested in building platforms that empower third-party developers to create rich experiences within Canva

What's in it for you?

Achieving our crazy big goals motivates us to work hard - and we do - but you'll experience lots of moments of magic, connectivity and fun woven throughout life at Canva, too. We also offer a range of benefits to set you up for every success in and outside of work.

Here's a taste of what's on offer:

• Equity packages - we want our success to be yours too
• Inclusive parental leave policy that supports all parents & carers
• An annual Vibe & Thrive allowance to support your well-being, social connection, office setup & more
• Flexible leave options that empower you to be a force for good, take time to recharge and support you personally

Check out lifeatcanva.com for more info.

Other stuff to know

We make hiring decisions based on your experience, skills and passion, as well as how you can enhance Canva and our culture. When you apply, please tell us the pronouns you use and any reasonable adjustments you may need during the interview process.

We celebrate all types of skills and backgrounds at Canva so even if you don’t feel like your skills quite match what’s listed above - we still want to hear from you!

Please note that interviews are conducted virtually.