---
title: "create custom certificates and badges for courses and communities"
description: "Learn all about designing custom certificates and badges, and access our step-by-step instructions, FAQs, and everything you need to know!"
url: https://help.ivorey.io/en/articles/13168668-create-custom-certificates-and-badges-for-courses-and-communities
collection: "courses"
updated: 2026-11-08
language: en
---

# create custom certificates and badges for courses and communities

Learn all about designing custom certificates and badges, and access our step-by-step instructions, FAQs, and everything you need to know!

> **Success:** Available on Grow and Scale plans

## before you dive in

In ivorey, you can create customised certificates and badges to recognise progress, completion, and milestones inside your courses and communities. These can be branded to match your business and automatically awarded to members when they complete specific actions.

In this guide, you’ll learn how to design custom certificates and badges, apply them to your courses or communities, and use them to enhance engagement, motivation, and completion rates for your members.​

This guide is ideal if you want to:

-   Reward course completion or milestones
    
-   Create branded certificates for programs, trainings, or cohorts
    
-   Use badges to gamify participation inside communities
    
-   Offer tangible proof of completion for students or clients​
    

* * *

## understanding certificates and badges

Certificates and badges serve different purposes inside ivorey, and you can use either, or both, depending on your program structure.

**Certificates** are typically used to mark completion of a course, program, or formal learning experience. They’re ideal for:

-   Full course completion
    
-   Cohort programs
    
-   Professional or educational trainings
    
-   Downloadable or shareable proof of completion
    

**Badges** are more flexible and are often used for progress, participation, or milestones. They work well for:

-   Module or lesson milestones
    
-   Community engagement
    
-   Challenges or gamified programs
    
-   Ongoing memberships or communities​
    

* * *

## create custom certificates

ivorey allows you to design custom certificates visually using the certificate builder, including layout, text, and branding elements, to better reflect your brand and programs.

> **Info:** You can also generate a first draft with **Certificate AI**, either by choosing one of the quick-prompts (course completion, milestone achieved, event participation, training completed) or typing your own description of what you want.

click here for the written steps

1.  From the main ivorey menu, go to **Portals** > **Credentials** > **Dashboard** > click the **\[+ Create\]** button > and select **\[Create Certificate\]** ​
    
2.  Select **\[From Scratch\]** \> give your certificate a name related to what you plan to use it for _(e.g. Course Name Completion Certificate)_ \> and click the **\[Create\]** button​
    
3.  Along the left-hand sidebar, you have the following tabs:​
    
    1.  **Template** - choose a template to use a base starting point, everything is customisable​
        
    2.  **Text** - add text to your design​. You can also insert contact-level custom fields here, so your certificate can dynamically pull in any custom field you've set up
        
    3.  **Elements** - add elements to your design, such as lines, shapes, ribbons, icons, graphics​
        
    4.  **Frame** - add a frame to your design or edit the frame used in a template design (hold down the Alt key to move or edit your frame)​
        
    5.  **Image** - add an image to your design​  
          
        **Note**: You can import a design directly from Canva if you’ve [**connected your Canva account.**](https://help.ivorey.io/en/articles/13631339-canva-integration.md)
        
    6.  **Signature** - add a signature to your design​
        
    7.  **Background** - set the background colour or image for your design​
        
    8.  **Resize** \- select the layout (portrait or landscape) and sizing or custom dimensions for your design​
        
    9.  **Layers -** see the full stacking order of everything on your design, lock individual elements so they can't be accidentally moved or deleted, and catch any broken custom-field placeholders before you save
        
    10.  **QR code** \- add a QR code and redirect URL
         
4.  Click the **\[Preview\]** button at the top right of your screen to preview your design > and click the **\[Save\]** button when you're done editing  
    ​  
    ​**Note:** If you want to manually issue a certificate, you can press the **\[Send\]** button > fill in the **Instructor** and **Recipient** names > click the 📝 Edit button next to **Email Template** to select and edit a template > and click the **\[Send Email\]** button​
    
5.  Click the ← back arrow at the top left of your screen, and you will now see your new certificate under **Templates** > click the **(⁝)** 3 dots on the certificate, here you can: ​
    
    1.  Preview your certificate
        
    2.  Set an expiry date and reminder emails
        
    3.  Edit your design
        
    4.  Clone your certificate
        
    5.  Delete your certificate
        

* * *

## create custom badges

Badges are a powerful way to recognise progress and encourage participation. Design custom badges that can be awarded automatically or manually in courses and communities.

click here for the written steps

1.  From the main ivorey menu, go to **Portals** > **Credentials** > **Dashboard** > click the **\[+ Create\]** button > and select **\[Create Badge\]** ​
    
2.  Select **\[From Scratch\]** \> give your badge a name related to what you plan to use it for _(e.g. Course Name Welcome Badge)_ \> and click the **\[Create\]** button​
    
3.  Along the left-hand sidebar, you have the following tabs:​
    
    1.  **Template** - choose a template to use a base starting point, everything is customisable​
        
    2.  **Text** - add text to your design​. You can also insert contact-level custom fields here, so your certificate can dynamically pull in any custom field you've set up
        
    3.  **Elements** - add elements to your design, such as base shapes, lines, shapes, ribbons, icons, graphics​
        
    4.  **Image** - add an image to your design​  
          
        **Note**: You can import a design directly from Canva if you’ve [**connected your Canva account.**](https://help.ivorey.io/en/articles/13631339-canva-integration.md)
        
    5.  **Layers -** see the full stacking order of everything on your design, lock individual elements so they can't be accidentally moved or deleted, and catch any broken custom-field placeholders before you save
        
4.  Click the **\[Preview\]** button at the top right of your screen to preview your design > and click the **\[Save\]** button when you're done editing  
    ​  
    ​**Note:** If you want to manually issue a badge, you can press the **\[Send\]** button > fill in the **Instructor** and **Recipient** names > click the 📝 Edit button next to **Email Template** to select and edit a template > and click the **\[Send Email\]** button​
    
5.  Click the ← back arrow at the top left of your screen, and you will now see your new badge under **Templates** > click the **(⁝)** 3 dots on the badge, here you can: ​
    
    1.  Preview your badge
        
    2.  Set an expiry date and reminder emails
        
    3.  Edit your design
        
    4.  Clone your badge
        
    5.  Delete your badge
        

* * *

## how to customise and apply email templates

Certificate and badge notification emails keep your members updated when credentials are issued, renewed, or expiring. Follow the steps below to customise these templates and apply them to your account.

### customise email templates

You have default certificate and badge email templates ready for you inside your account. For instructions on **how to customise these templates**, please refer to Step 2 in our [Customise Default Emails With Custom Values](https://help.ivorey.io/en/articles/11512903-customise-default-emails-with-custom-values.md) guide - your newly designed certificate or badge will now display under My Templates.

### apply your email templates

The written steps below will walk you through how you can apply the certificate and badge notification email templates you’ve customised.

click here for the written steps

1.  From the main ivorey menu, go to **Portals** > **Credentials** > **Email Settings**
    
2.  You will see all the default notifications and email template available for your certificates and badges > click the **(⁝) preview icon** on the right-hand side of the certificate/badge you’d like to preview
    
3.  To edit an email template, click the **\[Default Template\]** button on the right-hand side. Here you can:
    
    1.  Select the template you have cusomtised
        
    2.  Edit the selected template
        
    3.  Preview
        
4.  Once you’re happy, click the **\[Save\]** button
    

* * *

## how to send certificates and badges

### apply a custom certificate or badge to a course

Once your certificate and/or badge is created, they can be applied to courses to recognise engagement or milestones.​

For instructions on **how to add a credential or a badge to a course**, please refer to Step 2 in our [Create a Course and Course Offer](https://cqcighsbi.gleap.help/en/articles/12050212-create-a-course-and-course-offer) guide - your newly designed certificate or badge will now display under My Templates.

### send a custom certificate or badge using workflows

Workflows are most commonly used to send certificates and badges inside communities, such as rewarding engagement, recognising milestones, or for gamification. However, you can also use them to automate certificates and badges for any other membership or client experience, for example, sending badges after completing lessons or sending a certificate automatically when a client completes a coaching package.

For instructions on **how to add a certificate/badge to a community**, please refer to our [Create Rewards For Community Gamification](https://cqcighsbi.gleap.help/en/articles/12095037-create-rewards-for-community-gamification) guide - and add an "**Issue Certificate**" or **“Issue Badge”** action to your workflow.​ The same actions can be used for any other membership/client experience workflows.

### send directly using email

You also have the option to send your certificates or badges directly to learners via email.

click here for the written steps

1.  From the main ivorey menu, go to **Portals** > **Credentials** > **Dashboard**
    
2.  You will see all the certificates and badges you’ve created under **Templates** > click the **(⁝)** 3 dots on the certificate/badge you’d like to send > click **edit**
    
3.  Click the **\[Send\]** button in the top right corner
    
4.  Fill in the Instructor and Recipient names > use you default template or click the 📝 Edit button next to Email Template to select and edit a template and subject line
    
5.  Click the **\[Send Email\]** button
    

* * *

## how members can access their certificates and badges

However a certificate or badge was sent, it also always shows up in the member's Client Portal inside their profile settings under “Certificates & Badges”. This is the one place they can go back to and access it anytime, regardless of how they originally received it.

Whenever a member opens their credential, whether that's from their Client Portal or a link you've emailed them, they land on the same preview screen with a couple options to preview, download (PDF, PNG, or JPG), share (LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, X, or WhatsApp) or copy the shareable URL link.

* * *

## frequently asked questions

can i export issued certificates as a CSV file?

Yes! You can select a custom date range, download up to 500 certificates instantly, or receive them by email if you’re exporting a larger batch.

1.  From the main ivorey menu, go to **Portals** > **Credentials** > **Dashboard** > click the **Issued Certificates** tab
    
2.  Above the tabs (Templates, Issued Certificates, Issued Badges), you can select your custom date range
    
3.  Click the **\[Export CSV\]** button > and then **\[Download\]**
    

can i export issued badges as a CSV file?

No, you can currently only export issued badges.

* * *

## need help?

Hit the support chat widget inside ivorey – we can:

-   Walk you through any of the steps
    
-   Troubleshoot anything that’s not working
    

We’re here and ready to help via the chat widget in the bottom right of your ivorey account. Or if you are looking for done-for-you support, you can browse our current services [here](https://ivorey.io/services) 🤍

## Related

- [all about courses: a master help guide](https://help.ivorey.io/en/articles/10055762-all-about-courses-a-master-help-guide.md)
- [create a course](https://help.ivorey.io/en/articles/12050212-create-a-course.md)
- [customise your course branding](https://help.ivorey.io/en/articles/13631428-customise-your-course-branding.md)
- [automated course login and notification emails](https://help.ivorey.io/en/articles/12050530-automated-course-login-and-notification-emails.md)
- [customise a course offer checkout](https://help.ivorey.io/en/articles/12157355-customise-a-course-offer-checkout.md)