LabCanvas documentation

Getting started

Open the dashboard and sign in or create a free account (the free plan includes one design of each kind; downloads are part of LabCanvas Pro). From there you can start a figure, a presentation, a 3D scene, a protein view or a graph project. Everything autosaves in your browser (IndexedDB) and, with cloud saving on, to your private cloud folder, so the dashboard lists it on any computer; File › Save a copy downloads a portable .labcanvas file. Each app can be installed as a desktop app from the browser.

Figure editor

Tools are on the left: Select (V), Direct selection (A), Pan (H), Zoom (Z), Shapes, Lines, 3D shapes, Pen (P), Pencil (N), Brush (B), Text (T), Objects (Shift+O), Lens, Icons, Eyedropper (I), Gradient (G), Scissors (C), Eraser (Shift+E) and Image. The settings bar above the canvas shows only what fits the selection; the right panel has Design and Layers. Combine shapes with Pathfinder, make clipping masks with Ctrl+7, show rulers with Shift+R and the grid with Ctrl+'.

Zoom lens: the Lens tool adds a magnified callout: a round, square or rounded lens with a glass, thin, coloured, dashed or microscope frame, a ring on the source and callout lines. Drag the lens anywhere; double-click it and drag the ring to change what it magnifies; switch Live off to freeze the picture.

Scientific objects, equations and tables

Objects (Shift+O) opens a searchable palette of adjustable objects in groups (Bio & nano, Materials, Lab, Devices, Effects). Selected objects show all their settings in the right panel and stay vector art. Equation opens a LaTeX editor (MathJax, with mhchem); double-click an equation to edit it. Table adds an editable table with scientific styles; paste from Excel with Edit as text.

The Library’s Online tab finds any molecule on PubChem: type a name, a PubChem CID or a SMILES (PubChem suggests names as you type). LabCanvas builds it in 3D from its SMILES the same way as the template molecules (real bond lengths, angles and stereocentres), drawn in ball and stick or space filling; choose PubChem 3D to use PubChem’s own conformer instead, in the card or later in the right panel. Add it, or drag it onto the canvas; the right panel turns and tilts it, hides hydrogens and changes the atom size, and Change molecule swaps in another one. The atoms are saved in your design, so it draws offline and in every export.

Export for journals

Download (Ctrl+Shift+E) exports PNG, JPEG, WebP, TIFF, PDF or SVG. Choose the size (actual, 85, 114 or 174 mm columns, A4, A0 or any width) and the resolution (96, 150, 300, 600 dpi or custom). PNG and TIFF record their DPI; PDF keeps shapes, gradients and standard fonts as vectors.

Slides

Slides uses the same editor. Add slides with Ctrl+M and choose layouts; set backgrounds, transitions (fade, push, wipe, cover, zoom, flip, dissolve), speaker notes, slide size and theme in the slide panel. Present with F5 (Shift+F5 from the current slide); export one vector PDF.

3D Studio

Add models from the library (click, or drag into the view), import files (GLB, OBJ, STL, PLY, FBX, 3MF, PDB, mmCIF, SDF, XYZ) or fetch from PubChem and the PDB. Move, rotate and scale with W, E and R. Adjustable models show their settings in the panel; modifiers add arrays, displacement, scattering and gradients. Draw (B) makes freehand strokes on objects, on the floor or in the air; they become smooth curves whose points you can edit. Switch on Ray traced for path-traced renders and export PNG or GLB.

Protein viewer

Load a PDB ID or a PDB/mmCIF file. Choose a representation and colouring, add a transparent surface, select residues on the sequence bar and give them their own style, then export a PNG (1×, 2×, 4×, transparent) or add it to a figure. /protein.html?pdb=4HHB opens an entry directly.

Graphs and statistics

Projects hold data tables, results and graphs, like GraphPad Prism. Start from one of 37 graph presets with example data or paste your own. The Stats tab suggests the right test; results update as you type. Add to figure places the graph as a linked vector that updates with the data. Projects save as .lcplot files, which the labcanvas Python package can also write and render.

AI assistant and MCP

The AI button opens an assistant that edits through the same commands as the toolbar: figures, slides, zoom lenses, library icons, 3D scenes, protein views and graphs. Describe what you need, or attach images and PDFs (a sketch, a figure, a paper). It runs on models chosen by LabCanvas, such as Claude, and uses the AI credits included in your plan; your chats are saved to your account. Everything one answer changes in the figure is one undo step. AI agents such as Claude Desktop or Claude Code can also drive LabCanvas through its MCP server.

Keyboard shortcuts

On macOS use ⌘ instead of Ctrl.

Frequently asked questions