Canvas apps are UI-driven and fully customizable, where you design screens manually. Model-driven apps are data-driven, built on Dataverse, with UI generated automatically.
Canvas App
- Screen-by-screen design
- Full UI control
- Works with multiple data sources
- Best for custom, mobile-friendly apps
Model-Driven App
- Data-first approach (Dataverse)
- Auto-generated UI
- Strong business logic and security
- Best for process-driven apps


