Cricut Design Space Update 2026: Where Did Everything Go?
Let’s just say it out loud… the Cricut Design Space update 2026 is frustrating.
If you opened Cricut Design Space in January 2026 and immediately felt lost, annoyed, or tempted to close the app altogether, you’re not alone. This update didn’t remove features: it hid them, rearranged them, and forced creators to completely retrain their muscle memory.
For many users, especially those returning after a break or following older tutorials, this update feels like chaos instead of progress. Tools that used to live neatly across the top are now buried inside pop-out panels, shrinking your canvas and slowing down your creative process.
In this post, I’m going to show you where everything moved in the latest Cricut Design Space update (not teach every feature from scratch). The goal is simple: help you re-orient yourself so you can get back to crafting without rage-clicking your mouse.
Before we dive in: if you need help with functions of each of these (i.e. what does warp text do or offset) check this tutorial out too.
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Why the Cricut Design Space Update 2026 Feels So Bad
The biggest problem with the Cricut Design Space update 2026 isn’t the new features… It’s the refreshed interface and how disconnected everything feels.
Previously, Design Space had a logical flow:
- Tools lived in predictable places
- The canvas stayed visible
- Switching between objects felt fast
Now, nearly everything has been pushed into a side Edit panel, which immediately eats up valuable workspace. If you design large projects, detailed layouts, or layered files like decals or paper crafts, this change impacts you more than Cricut probably intended.
This update especially affects:
- All users following older Design Space tutorials
- Seasoned creators with established workflows
And judging by the thousands of comments across social platforms, most people aren’t loving it.
Live Mode vs Beta Version: Why This Matters More Now
Before going any further, it’s important to understand that the Cricut Design Space exists in two versions:
Live (Latest Version that we are reviewing)
- What most users see
- More stable
- Fewer crashes
- Best for tutorials and everyday crafting
Beta Version
- New features appear here first
- Less stable
- Higher chance of bugs and crashes
- Often looks different from Live
As a seasoned creator, I recommend staying on Live mode. Beta features don’t always work correctly, and it creates confusion when you’re following tutorials or switching between mobile devices and the desktop app.
Another thing to mention: sometimes locations get features first too. I am based in the United States and I know the UK may have some features before me!
Where Did the Top Toolbar Go?
This is where the frustration really starts.
In the new design space software experience, the familiar top toolbar is essentially gone. Instead, most tools now live inside the Edit panel (top left corner),
Here’s what that means in practice:
- No object selected = no tools visible
- Select an object = tools appear in Edit
- Open Edit = smaller canvas
You still have basics like color, undo, redo, and sizing at the top, but everything else: rotate, position, arrange, and effects, is now tucked away.
This makes even simple actions feel slower and interrupts your creative process constantly.
Working With Images and Shapes After the Update
When working with design elements or your own images in the Cricut Design Space Update 2026, here’s where things live now:
Inside the Edit panel, you’ll find:
- Position (relative to the canvas)
- Arrange (bring forward, send backward)
- Rotate
- Flip
- Offset
- Sticker maker (requires Cricut Access subscription)
- Warp (subscription-locked)
The biggest issue here isn’t access: it’s visibility. Once you click off the object, those tools disappear. If you’re trying to preview how designs pop on a large project, you’re constantly opening and closing panels just to see your work or zooming out with constant shifting.
Text Tools Are Split (And That’s Confusing)
Text behaves differently than images in the Cricut Design Space update 2026, which adds another layer of frustration.
Some tools still live at the top:
- Fonts
- Bold, italic, underline
- Font size/Text Box Size
- Color
- Operation
But essential text tools (like kerning, curve, line spacing, and ungrouping) are hidden inside the Edit panel and only appear when the correct text box is selected.
This inconsistency makes simple text edits feel unnecessarily complicated, especially for users creating signage, labels, or layered designs.
“Missing” Tools That Aren’t Actually Gone
One common complaint I see is that features are “gone.” In reality, they’ve just been relocated… and poorly.
Here’s where some commonly searched tools ended up after the Cricut Design Space update 2026:
- Select All
Right-click on the canvas or use Command + A / Control + A - Curve Text
Appears only one single lined text boxes - Letter Spacing (Kerning)
Now inside the Edit panel - Position
Moved entirely into Edit and tied to canvas placement
Cricut Access, Image Suggestions, and Subscription Fatigue
Another ongoing frustration (and not entirely new) is how heavily Design Space pushes subscription content.
When uploading your own images, you may notice:
- Suggested premium shapes
- Cricut Access alternatives
- A small selection of Cricut images that mimic your upload
For many seasoned creators, this feels intrusive. If you already have your own images, being shown an ever-growing library of images you didn’t ask for doesn’t improve creativity… it slows it down.
This also reinforces the feeling of additional cost layered into basic functionality, even when you just want unlimited use of your own designs.
Community Reaction: Cricut, Please Listen
Across my social media channels, I’ve received over a thousand comments from Cricut machine users about this update… and the response has been overwhelmingly negative.
Common themes include:
- The refreshed interface feels unuser-friendly
- Losing canvas space hurts productivity
- Too many pop-out panels
- Slower workflow overall
As a seasoned creator who has been on her crafting journey for 5+ years, I agree. This update prioritizes aesthetics over usability (a lot of people are comparing it to Canva), and that’s a problem for people who actually use Design Space daily.
Final Thoughts on the Cricut Design Space Update 2026
The Cricut Design Space update 2026 didn’t remove functionality, but it absolutely disrupted workflows.
If you’re brand new, you may adapt quickly. But if you’re a returning user, following older tutorials, or working on complex designs, this update feels like unnecessary friction.
My advice:
- Stay on Live mode
- Bookmark updated tutorials
- Leave feedback directly with Cricut
And most importantly: you’re not crazy for feeling frustrated.
Join the Conversation
Leave a comment below and tell me:
- Do you hate this update?
- Are there features you still can’t find?
- What do you wish Cricut would change back?
If enough creators speak up, Cricut does listen.
Completely agree with your criticism of the new Cricut ds update. So disappointed. Unless something changes back (or fixed), I will be forced to look for another cutting machine and software.
A lot of people love designing in Silhouette Studio and cutting with Cricut. Silhouette is a one time fee with a lot of features.
Absolutely hate the new Cricut changes to Design Space. I’m seriously considering getting a Juliette or Romeo cutter and leaving Cricut completely. I can’t imagine how much harder it would be to learn this software as a newbie. What a mistake!
I am a newbee and design space is not user friendly.
I totally agree! I cannot stand needing to go into that ridiculous pop-up menu every time I need a shape, or every time I need to do anything. I just think that this is ridiculous! I would also add, that ever since the update, those of us on Android, are facing a problem wherein stuff that we have on the screen on our phone we’ll be told that it is too small to cut, even if it is writing, however when I go to my computer, the same project in the identical way is working just fine.
Not sure if that it’s also happening with the Apple people.
I really want the top toolbar back! Aside from everything they have updated, I would also love it if the text wrapping feature was able to be set as either off or on, and not repeatedly on so I have to turn it off every single time.
I totally agree with your critique of the update. Having all the edit tools at the top was so user friendly. I despise the edit features being moved to the side. I loose the visibility of my designs I’m working on when I open those features. I hope they are encouraged to rethink this update and correct these changes. Otherwise…
I also do not like the new Cricut update, for all of the same reasons that you have noted. I have been a Cricut user for 5 years, and I just want to be able to upload svgs and cut them. Design Space used to be so much more user friendly than it is now. I use a PC laptop, and I feel like I need to get an additional extra large monitor, just so I can actually see the shape or text that I am trying to edit!
Absolutely hate it now. I have used Cricut for years, before needing a computer. An interface like Inkscape or something similar would be great. Easy to use with everything at your finger tips.
I hate the update. I’ve been away for a while due to caring for my elderly father. Came back and took me a good hour longer to do some simple things due to this asinine update. I hope the old way comes back!
I agree with you, the new update is not user friendly and takes up too much room on the working screen. Hopefully they will put it back to the way it was before.
It feels like Cricut is trying to force us to use other software to do our actual designing. The lack of intuitiveness on this current update is glaring at us. Not sure what their tech team was thinking.
Kelsey, I couldn’t agree with you more……I hate the updates!!!
The new update on Cricut Design Space has given me nothing but frustration. It takes so much longer to design due to the pop up menu that coverrs what I am working on.
I generally love creating new designs. However I am discouraged from using this new layout on Design Space.
At present I don’t have a paid subscription to Design Space and will not even consider for the future if this is what they offer.
Totally Agree.
Only use my Cricut for ocasional stickers or vinyl work. Opened it up after being away for a while and I’m totally lost. Didn’t use it enough to have really know where everything was , now struggling all over again.
Frustating.
I do not like the Cricut latest update either. The way I see it…if it’s not broken, don’t fix it.
Thank you
Well, no need for me to give my specific dislikes about the new update – I agree completely with you and all of the other commenters. I’ve been a Cricut user since the very beginning, and a Design Space user since it came out, so I’m no newbie. I find it incredibly disappointing that every time Cricut updates (which seems to be every time I use Design Space these days), it gets harder to use. Who is making these decisions? Do they even ask or listen to those of us who use their product? It sure doesn’t seem like it. Over the years, I’ve spent a small fortune on their machines and supplies, yet I hesitate to even try making anything now, even simple things, because I just end up furious and frustrated. How can they think it’s a good thing, when they’re causing people to want to throw their Cricut machines in the garbage and buy a competitor’s machine, just because their design program is so much easier to use? I wish they’d stop making new, useless machines that none of us can afford and instead, spend some time really fixing their design program. Anyway, thank you for helping us navigate this new, awful update. Of course, in two days, I’m sure there will be another one that changes things again…
AAAAAAAAAGH. Why, oh why???? This Cricut operating change has made my work life a mess. There is so little time to begin with and NOW. PLEASE SOMEBODY FIX THIS. I have too much invested, too much going on, and VERY LITTLE patience left. Thanks. Lynne
I echo everything folks said and have given feedback with Cricut as well. I just recently gave my Explore 2 to my sister as i got a Maker 4 and this is by far the worst update they have made. She is so frustrated with this Cricut she is ready to throw it out (She had an Expression which used to be mine too which gives an indication of my “Cricut age” ) I write technical specs for my job and whoever wrote the requirements for this cannot be a front-end user or should be moved into a different role where they have a better chance of success. This update for all of the reasons noted above needs to be backed out. My sister who is new to Design Space and quite computer literate hates the application and as a seasoned user, I am disappointed and frustrated. Do better Cricut!