Resources · Make integration

Canvas LMS Make integrationAutomate Canvas LMS with Make.

Tired of setting up the same courses and assignments by hand in Canvas? The Canvas LMS Make integration gives you 17 modules: 14 actions and 3 searches. This guide is for teachers, instructional designers and training teams, and it walks you from the connection to a working first scenario.

Try the Canvas LMS integration on MakeSee the 17 modules

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What you can automate

What can the Canvas LMS Make integration do for you?

The Canvas LMS Make integration lets Make create, read, update and delete courses and assignments in your Canvas account, and handle student submissions, without any code. You build a scenario, the automation itself, by chaining modules: each module is one brick that does one job in one app.

Launch a course from a request. When a new training request lands in a sheet or a form tool, Create a Course opens the course and Create an Assignment adds the first piece of work inside it, so nobody retypes the same details twice.

Keep grading queues tidy. Get a Submission pulls a student's work into the scenario, and Mark a Submission as Read or Mark a Submission as Unread flags it for the right reviewer. Upload a File to Submission attaches a document produced elsewhere.

Build a quick course report. Search Own Courses or Search User Courses returns a list of courses, one bundle each (a bundle is one item passed from a module to the next), which you can send to a spreadsheet or a message.

One limit to know: Canvas LMS has no trigger in Make, so a scenario starts from another app or from a schedule. The Make documentation for this app also warns that its content was generated with AI, so double check anything important. If you are still weighing tools, the n8n vs Make comparison and the Make review give the wider picture, and Make training helps you go further.

Connect

How do you connect Canvas LMS to Make?

  1. 01

    Copy an API token from Canvas

    In Canvas LMS, click your name or avatar at the top right, open Settings, scroll to Approved Integrations and generate a new API token. Copy it right away: this is the credential Make will use.

  2. 02

    Add a Canvas LMS module in Make

    In your scenario, add any Canvas LMS module and click Create a connection. A connection is your Canvas account linked to Make once, then reused by every Canvas module in your scenarios.

  3. 03

    Name it and paste the token

    The Connection name field is optional, but a clear name helps when you manage several accounts. Paste the token you copied, or follow the on-screen instructions, then save the connection.

First scenario

Your first scenario with Canvas LMS

GoalWhen a training request arrives in another app, Make creates the course in Canvas LMS and adds its first assignment.

  1. 01

    Create the scenario

    Open the Scenarios page, create a new scenario and click the +. Since Canvas LMS has no trigger, the first module comes from the app where your requests arrive, such as a sheet.

  2. 02

    Add Create a Course

    Click the + on the right of the first module, search for Canvas LMS and pick Create a Course. Choose your connection, then map the course details from the data the first module received.

  3. 03

    Add Create an Assignment

    Add one more module with the + and pick Create an Assignment. Map the course returned by Create a Course, so the assignment lands in the course the scenario just opened.

  4. 04

    Test with Run once

    Click Run once. Make runs the scenario one time and shows the bundles each module received. Open Canvas and check that the course and its assignment look right before going further.

  5. 05

    Schedule and switch it on

    Set the schedule on the first module: a new scenario checks every 15 minutes by default, and 15 minutes is also the shortest interval on the Free plan. Then switch the scenario on.

Modules

What each Canvas LMS module does

Canvas LMS gives you 17 modules. For each one: what it does for you, when to reach for it, and what to watch out for.

Canvas LMS1

Create a Course

Action

In Make“Creates a new course.”

This module opens a brand new course in your Canvas account from data the scenario already holds, so a new cohort or program gets its space without anyone clicking through the Canvas setup screens.

When to use it
right after a training request is approved in your sheet or CRM.
Watch out
run it once per request, or add a check first, otherwise a repeated run creates duplicate courses.
Canvas LMS2

Create an Assignment

Action

In Make“Creates an assignment.”

You get a new assignment inside an existing course, built from mapped data, which saves you from copying the same instructions into every section of a program.

When to use it
just after Create a Course, to seed each new course with its first piece of work.
Watch out
it needs to know which course to target, so map the course from a previous module instead of typing it by hand.
Canvas LMS3

Create a Submission

Action

In Make“Creates a submission.”

Here Make hands in work on an assignment for you, which is handy when students deliver their work somewhere other than Canvas and you want everything to end up in one place for grading.

When to use it
when work comes in through a form or a shared folder and should appear in Canvas.
Watch out
the target assignment must exist before this module runs, so fetch or create it earlier in the scenario.
Canvas LMS4

Delete a Course

Action

In Make“Deletes an existing course.”

Removing a course from Canvas is what this module does, which keeps your account clean when a session is cancelled or a test course has served its purpose.

When to use it
when a cancellation is logged in another tool and the course should disappear with it.
Watch out
a delete cannot be undone from Make, so add a filter that confirms the course really is the right one before this step.
Canvas LMS5

Delete an Assignment

Action

In Make“Deletes an existing assignment.”

With this module, an assignment that is no longer relevant goes away without you opening the course, which helps when a program changes and old work would only confuse students.

When to use it
when an assignment is marked as dropped in your planning sheet.
Watch out
nothing brings the assignment back afterwards, so test on a sandbox course with Run once before pointing it at live classes.
Canvas LMS6

Get a Course

Action

In Make“Retrieves an existing course.”

Pulling the full details of one course into your scenario is the job here, so the next modules can reuse its name or settings instead of asking you to type them again.

When to use it
when you already know which course you need and want its details before an update or a report.
Watch out
it returns a single course, so if you do not know which one yet, start with a search module.
Canvas LMS7

Get an Assignment

Action

In Make“Retrieves an existing assignment.”

Reading one assignment gives your scenario its current details, which is what you need before updating it, copying it elsewhere, or sending a reminder that quotes the assignment correctly.

When to use it
when a message to students should include the exact assignment details from Canvas.
Watch out
it reads one known assignment; to find several at once, Search Assignments is the better choice.
Canvas LMS8

Get a Submission

Action

In Make“Retrieves an existing submission from user.”

A single student's submission comes into the scenario with this module, so you can pass it to a reviewer, archive it, or check what was handed in without browsing Canvas yourself.

When to use it
when a reviewer needs one specific student's work sent to their inbox.
Watch out
it targets one student on one assignment, so both must be known or mapped from earlier modules.
Canvas LMS9

Make an API Call

Action

In Make“Performs an arbitrary authorized API Call.”

When the listed modules stop short, this one reaches any endpoint of the Canvas LMS API with the same connection, so you are not stuck the day you need something the other modules do not cover.

When to use it
for a Canvas feature that has no dedicated module in Make.
Watch out
you have to read the Canvas API documentation yourself to know which endpoint to call and what it expects.
Canvas LMS10

Mark a Submission as Read

Action

In Make“Marks an existing submission as read.”

Flagging a submission as read tells your team it has been looked at, which keeps the grading view honest when work is handled partly outside Canvas.

When to use it
once a reviewer confirms in another tool that a piece of work has been checked.
Watch out
this only changes the read status; it does not grade or comment, so pair it with other steps if you need more.
Canvas LMS11

Mark a Submission as Unread

Action

In Make“Marks an existing submission as unread.”

The opposite move puts a submission back in the unread state, so it shows up again for whoever needs to take a second look.

When to use it
when a student resubmits a file or a reviewer asks for another pass, and the work should come back to the top.
Watch out
if the same scenario also marks work as read, add a filter so the two steps do not undo each other.
Canvas LMS12

Update a Course

Action

In Make“Updates an existing course.”

Changing an existing course from outside Canvas keeps it in line with your planning tool, so a new name or setting decided elsewhere reaches Canvas without a manual edit.

When to use it
when a program's details change in your planning sheet and Canvas should follow.
Watch out
map only the values you want to change, and use Get a Course first if you need to compare the old version.
Canvas LMS13

Update an Assignment

Action

In Make“Updates an existing assignment.”

Editing an assignment already in Canvas lets you push corrected instructions or new settings in one pass, which beats opening each course when the same change applies everywhere.

When to use it
after Search Assignments finds every copy of an assignment that needs the same fix.
Watch out
a search can return several bundles, and each one runs this module once, so check the list before you switch the scenario on.
Canvas LMS14

Upload a File to Submission

Action

In Make“Uploads a new file to submission.”

Attaching a file to a submission brings a document from another app straight into Canvas, such as a scanned paper or a report exported by a different tool.

When to use it
when student work arrives as a file in cloud storage or an email attachment.
Watch out
on the Free plan Make handles files up to 5 MB, so larger documents need a paid plan or a lighter format.
Canvas LMS15

Search Assignments

Search

In Make“Searches for assignments.”

Finding assignments that match your criteria returns them one by one, as separate bundles, ready to be updated, listed in a report or sent in a reminder.

When to use it
when you need every assignment of a course rather than a single known one.
Watch out
a search can return zero, one or many results, and every module after it runs once per result, which uses more operations on your plan.
Canvas LMS16

Search Own Courses

Search

In Make“Searches for own courses.”

Listing the courses tied to the connected account gives you a quick inventory, with each course arriving as its own bundle for the next module.

When to use it
to build a summary of your courses in a sheet, or to loop over them and apply the same change.
Watch out
it only sees the courses of the account behind the connection, not those of other users.
Canvas LMS17

Search User Courses

Search

In Make“Searches for courses of given user ID.”

Looking up the courses of a given user, identified by their user ID, shows where a learner or teacher is enrolled without browsing Canvas screen by screen.

When to use it
when support needs to check a person's courses before answering a question.
Watch out
you need that user's ID, so map it from an earlier module; for your own courses, Search Own Courses is simpler.
Need help

Need help automating Canvas LMS with Make?

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FAQ

Canvas LMS and Make: frequent questions

01Is the Canvas LMS Make integration free?
Yes, Canvas LMS is a standard app in Make, so it works from the Free plan. That plan allows 2 active scenarios, runs them at most every 15 minutes, stops each run after 5 minutes and handles files up to 5 MB, with 512 MB of data transfer. Paid plans (Core, Pro, Teams and Enterprise) go down to 1 minute between runs and count usage in credits. Your Canvas LMS subscription is a separate matter, set by Canvas itself.
02What do you need to connect Canvas LMS to Make?
You need an active Canvas LMS account and an OAuth2 access token. In Canvas, open your profile menu, go to Settings, scroll to Approved Integrations and generate a new API token. Then add a Canvas LMS module in Make, click Create a connection, give it a name if you like and paste the token. The connection is then reused by every Canvas module you add later, so you only do this setup once per Canvas account.
03Can a Canvas LMS scenario start on its own in Make?
Not from Canvas itself: the app has no trigger module in Make, only 14 actions and 3 searches. You start the scenario another way. Either the first module belongs to another app, such as a sheet or a form tool, or you put a Canvas search first and let the schedule run it. A new scenario runs every 15 minutes by default, with 15 minutes as the minimum on the Free plan and 1 minute on paid plans.
04What if a Canvas LMS module is missing in Make?
Use Make an API Call. With the same connection, it can reach any endpoint of the Canvas LMS API, so a feature without its own module is still within reach. You will need the Canvas API documentation to know what to send. Also keep in mind that the Make documentation for this app says it was generated with AI and may contain mistakes, so verify any important detail with Canvas.
05Should you use Make or n8n for Canvas LMS?
It depends on the tool your team already uses. In Make, Canvas LMS comes with 17 modules covering courses, assignments and submissions, plus Make an API Call for the rest, and it runs on the Free plan. Many apps also have an n8n node, so check in n8n whether Canvas LMS is one of them before deciding. Pick the tool where your other automations already live, which keeps everything in one place.
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