Canvas Plugin Development
Canvas LMS doesn't use plugins the way Moodle or WordPress do: it extends through LTI apps and the Canvas API. We build the custom tools that do exactly what a "Canvas plugin" would: added functionality, embedded right inside Canvas.
Trusted by teams running their own learning platforms
You want to add functionality to Canvas, but there's no plugin for it.
You've used platforms where you just install a plugin to add a feature. Canvas doesn't work that way. There's no plugin directory to drop something into, so when you need Canvas to do something it doesn't do out of the box, it's not obvious how to get there, or who can build it.
Trying to force a "plugin" onto Canvas wastes time and breaks later.
Because Canvas has no plugin system, people improvise: fragile scripts, browser hacks, or workarounds bolted on the side. They break on the next Canvas update, only work for some users, and can't pass data back to the gradebook. You spend effort on something that was never going to hold, when the platform already has a proper way to be extended.
The right way to extend Canvas: LTI apps and API tools.
Canvas is built to be extended through LTI and its API, and that's exactly what we build. Whatever you were hoping a "plugin" would do, we deliver it as a proper Canvas LTI app or API integration: added features embedded inside Canvas courses, secure sign-on, grade passback, and data flowing between Canvas and your systems, built to standard so it survives updates.
Custom LTI apps for Canvas
The functionality you wanted from a plugin, embedded inside Canvas courses.
Canvas API integrations
Automate enrollments, sync data, and connect Canvas to your other tools.
Grade passback
Anything that assesses learners posts scores straight to the Canvas gradebook.
Built to standard
LTI 1.3 and API work that keeps working through Instructure's updates.
Full Canvas development
If you need more than a single tool, we do broader Canvas builds too.
How we build your Canvas tool
Discovery call
A free 30-minute call to understand what you need Canvas to do and how your Canvas is set up.
Scope & plan
A clear plan: what we build, how it embeds in Canvas, the timeline, and the cost. Fixed and upfront.
Build & test in sprints
You get a working tool to test, validated against real Canvas instances.
Launch & handover
We install it, confirm it works in production, and hand over documented code. We stay available for Canvas updates.
How much does a custom Canvas tool cost?
A custom Canvas tool, whether an LTI app or an API integration, typically costs from a few thousand dollars for a focused feature to more for complex functionality with grade passback and data sync. The price depends on what the tool does and how deeply it integrates with Canvas. At Rizon, we scope it during a free discovery call and give you a fixed price before any work begins.
What moves the price: whether you need a simple embedded tool or a full LTI app with grade passback, how much Canvas API work is involved (enrollment automation, data sync), and how many Canvas setups you support. A single focused tool sits at the low end; a full app with API integration sits higher.
Canvas plugin development, answered
Does Canvas LMS support plugins?
Not in the way Moodle or WordPress do, because Canvas has no plugin directory to install into. Instead, Canvas is extended through LTI apps and the Canvas API. Anything you'd want a "plugin" to do is built as an LTI tool or API integration.
How do you add custom functionality to Canvas?
Through LTI and the Canvas API. An LTI app embeds your functionality inside Canvas courses with sign-on and grade passback; the API lets us automate enrollments, sync data, and connect Canvas to your other systems. Together they cover what a plugin would do elsewhere.
What's the difference between a Canvas plugin and a Canvas LTI app?
"Canvas plugin" is a loose term, since Canvas has no true plugins. The real equivalent is an LTI app: a tool that launches inside Canvas courses, signs users in automatically, and passes grades back. It's the standards-based way to extend Canvas.
Can you build a Canvas tool that posts grades to the gradebook?
Yes. Any tool we build that assesses learners can post scores straight to the Canvas gradebook through LTI grade passback, automatically and reliably.
Do you also do broader Canvas development?
Yes. Beyond single tools, we handle full Canvas LMS development: LTI integrations, custom apps, and API work.
Let's build what you need inside Canvas.
Tell us what you want Canvas to do. In 30 minutes, we'll tell you how we'd build it. No pitch, no obligation.