powerpoint presentation windowed mode

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• How can I view a PowerPoint show without using full screen?

Updated on Apr 27, 2020

This guide provides instructions on how to set your PowerPoint (for Windows) application to play your slide show in a window, not in full screen. This is particularly useful if you are participating in a video call and might want to see the presentation, your notes, and the webinar interface.

Please note: To display your presenter notes, you will need a two monitor set up.

How to display a slide show in a window:

• Select "Set up Slide Show" on the "Slide Show" tab
• Select the radio option, "Browsed by an individual (window)"
• Start your PowerPoint show
• To exit the show, use the "Normal" button to return to the file editing interface .

1. Select "Set up Slide Show" on the "Slide Show" tab.

• Navigate to the " Slide Show " tab.
• Select on " Set up Slide Show ."

2. Select the radio option, "Browsed by an individual (window)"

• Select "Browsed by an individual (window)" radio button option.
• Select on "OK" to save your changes.

3. Start your PowerPoint show (as per normal).

4. To exit the show, use the "Normal" button to return to the file editing interface.

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How can I view a PowerPoint slideshow in windowed mode (ie, not full screen)?

This slideshow is only opening in full screen mode. I can't find any context menu options that will switch it to windowed mode.

Update: I am opening this .pptx file as an attachment from within a Word doc. Opening it that way seems to force to full screen. However, when I right-click the attachment and select Edit, it opens in actual edit mode within PowerPoint itself. Also, when I save the attachment and open it directly from the drive, it also opens in edit mode. This will suffice for now, but it would be nice to be able to switch a full screen presentation to windowed.

• microsoft-powerpoint
• microsoft-powerpoint-2010

• upvoted for the correct update: in office365 still the same –  user1708042 Commented Mar 27, 2020 at 7:55

2 Answers 2

In the Ribbon, on the Slide Show tab, there's a button called Set Up Slide Show .

In there is an option called Browsed by an individual (window) .

• While it's in full screen mode, I don't see a ribbon. At any rate, I updated my answer with some work-arounds, though I'd like to see a more practical solution. –  oscilatingcretin Commented Jan 15, 2015 at 13:10

For Office 2016 (OS X), it's similar to the answer posted previously. You can go to "Slide Show" tab -> "Set Up Slide Show" -> on the popup, under the "Show type", choose "Browsed by an individual (window)" -> "OK".

Then "Play from Current Slide" will play the slide in windowed mode.

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PowerPoint presentations in a window not full screen

PowerPoint presentations don’t have to be full-screen, that’s the default and normal way to show a deck, but a window option is also there.  A windowed presentation lets you display the slides in other software like virtual cameras or desktop capture.

Go to Slide Show | Setup Slide show and choose ‘Browsed by an individual (window)’.

The options are the same in PowerPoint for Windows or Mac.

Start the slide show (Slide Show | From Beginning or From Current Slide) as usual except now it appears in a resizable window.

Windowed presentation controls

There are back and forward slide buttons on the bottom status bar (see above).

Click on the icon between those two buttons to see some more options.

The same options appear if you right-click in the presentation while windowed.

• Next / Previous
• Go to Slide – choose a slide from the flyout list.
• Go to Section – for decks in Sections
• Zoom In / Zoom Out
• Print Preview and Print
• Edit Slides
• Full Screen

It would be really nice if Presenter View could appear in a second window – but alas it’s not an option. That would let the use control the presentation properly while the slides appear in another window (which could be visible via a third-party tool).

Switching Full Screen and window slide show

Starting from a windowed presentation means you can switch between Full Screen and the window presentation without showing the entire PowerPoint menus etc.  It’s a little neater and more professional.

Go to Full Screen from the menu option.

In Full Screen mode press Escape to return to the windowed presentation.

Why use a windowed PowerPoint presentation?

Having the slides in a resizable window gives you options not available when the deck is taking up the whole screen.

Perhaps you’re demonstrating some software?  Have the presentation in one window and the software in another? See A better Side-by-Side document view for Windows and Mac to see how to use windows controls in Windows or Split View on a Mac.

A windowed presentation can be selected as an input option for a virtual camera or other service which lets you choose to display a selected running program.  Full screen PowerPoint can’t be selected but the same slide can be chosen from a windowed presentation.

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How to Play a PowerPoint Slideshow in a Small Window instead of Full Screen

Last updated on April 10th, 2024

PowerPoint was originally intended for the purpose of presenting slideshows in a projector. However, over time, the software has evolved and is now being utilized for a range of other purposes. For example, PowerPoint is now commonly used for presenting online webinars or training employees remotely using software such as TeamViewer, GoView, or GoToMeeting. Additionally, PowerPoint can also be used to record screen or screencasts using free tools such as Screenr .

For presenters who prefer to play their slideshows in a small window that can be easily controlled in Windows, rather than in full screen mode, the following tip may prove beneficial. By configuring PowerPoint to play slideshows in a resizable window, presenters can have a greater control over their presentations, especially when dealing with online meetings, sharing screen with teammates or presenting online.

To configure PowerPoint to play a slideshow in a resizable window, rather than in full screen mode, follow these steps:

How to Configure PowerPoint Slideshow to play in a resizable window instead of full screen mode?

So, how can I view a PowerPoint show without using full screen? Go to SlideShow and then Setup Slide Show.

Now, in the Set Up Show dialog, make sure to select Browsed by an individual (window) . By default you will see that the Presented by a speaker (full screen) is selected.

Now, every time you start the slideshow for example using the keystroke F5 then you will see that the slideshow opens in a regular window instead of full screen.

This configuration can be useful for a range of purposes, including:

• Recording screencasts using PowerPoint and including animations and transitions in a resizable window.
• Conducting online webinars using tools such as TeamViewer for presentations and GoToMeeting without entering full screen mode.
• Sharing a window online with the presentation while working on other windows simultaneously.
• Playing the slideshow in multiple monitors.

In conclusion, while PowerPoint was originally designed for presenting slideshows in a projector, it has evolved to offer a range of other uses, including online webinars, remote employee training, and screen recording. By configuring PowerPoint to play slideshows in a resizable window, presenters can have greater control over their presentations and offer a more personalized experience for their audience. This feature can be particularly useful for those looking to record screencasts or conduct online webinars. Overall, PowerPoint’s versatility continues to make it a valuable tool for a variety of industries and purposes.

If you enjoyed this article, and you want to learn more tips on how to deliver your presentations, we recommend reading how to set up PowerPoint in presentation mode via Presenter View and set up the slideshow in PowerPoint.

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Running Powerpoint in Windowed Mode

This is by far one of the best PowerPoint tips I've ever gotten in a very long time. Full credit to Adam Cook who showed me this one day.

I'm fortunate enough to have a single 44" ultrawide screen as my daily monitor when I'm docked. Unfortunately, however, this means that when I'm presenting a slide deck, I lose access to other applications, notes, etc. Enter Window Mode for PowerPoint!

What is Window Mode?

Did you know that instead of your presentation taking up the full screen when in presentation mode, or worse yet, presenting your deck in edit mode, you can display your slides in a resizable window? Here is what that looks like:

Now instead of sharing my whole screen, I can share just this window, and continue to work around it to look at at my Teams chat, interact with participants, launch virtual machines that I'm preparing to share, etc.

How to Setup Window Mode

If this sounds like something that'll be useful in your next presentation, you can set this up as follows:

• From the Slide Show ribbon in PowerPoint, select Set Up Slide Show.
• In the dialog box, select "Browsed by an individual (windows)" and click OK.
• Next, launch your presentation and you'll now present in a window you can share instead of going full screen!

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How to Present a PowerPoint Slideshow (w/ Shortcuts)

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There are a variety of ways to start a PowerPoint presention, depending on:

• Where you start your presentation (from beginning or from current)
• Which PowerPoint view you prefer to present in (Slide Show view or Presenter view)
• How comfortable you are with keyboard shortcuts

Why would Microsoft include so many ways to present a presentation? My guess is that everyone learns PowerPoint differently, and has personal presentation styles.  The more options you have, the easier your life will be as there will always be a way to start your presentation the way you want to (or jump back into it when you need to).

See all the options below and find the method that works best for you and let the slide show begin !

NOTE: If you are running two presentations side-by-side, each presentation needs to be started as it’s own slide show. To see how to set up two PowerPoint presentations to run side-by-side like this before you start your slide show, read my guide here .

Table of Contents

Start slide show from beginning.

To start a slideshow from the beginning of your presentation using the ribbon, simply.

• Navigate to the  Slide Show tab
• Select  From Beginning

Selecting  From Beginning  starts your presentation from the very first non-hidden slide in your presentation, regardless of which slide you are currently inside of your deck.

You can also start your slide from the beginning of your presentation by hitting the Slideshow From Beginning keyboard shortcut,  F5 .

Regardless of which method you use, this is the classic way to start your presentation in full screen from your first title slide (regardless of where you are in your slide deck).

Let the slide show begin!

NOTE: To expand your knowledge and learn how to use PowerPoint’s FREE and HIDDEN built-in laser pointer to point things out during your presentation, read my guide here .

Take your PPT skills to the next level

Start slide show from current.

To begin your slide show from the slide you are currently on using the ribbon, simply

• Navigate to the Slide Show tab
• Select  From Current Slide

Selecting From Current Slide starts your slide show from whatever slide you are currently on, even if the slide is hidden.

You can also start your slide from the current slide you are on by hitting the  Shift+F5  keyboard shortcut.

Because it’s often easiest to catch errors when building your slides in this full screen mode, I highly recommend learning the  Shift+F5  shortcut and using it frequently as you build your slides to spot them for errors.

If you don’t want to bother learning the From Current Slide shortcut, you can also start your slideshow by clicking the  Slide Show  icon at the bottom of your screen.

This is a fantastic way to spot check your slides as you are building them. On top of that, it’s a fast and uncomplicated way to re-start your presentation from where you left off after demoing something on screen.

Start a mini-slide show in PowerPoint

You can also use the following hidden PowerPoint shortcut to run a mini slide show over the top of your current deck.

To run a mini slide show, simply:

• Hold down the  Alt key  on your keyboard
• With your mouse, click the  Slide Show  icon

Doing so starts a small slide show of your presentation that you can see below, from the current slide you are on.

Presenter View

The Presenter View is an alternate way to run your presentation in PowerPoint. In this view, your slides are projected on screen, and the details of your presentation are displayed on your computer as pictured below.

The presenter view includes your next (non-hidden) slides that is coming up, your current slide projected on screen, how long you’ve been talking and your speaker notes.

To launch the  Presenter View  from the beginning of your presentation using your Ribbon, simply:

• Navigate to the  Slide Show  tab
• Hold down the  Alt key on  your keyboard
• Click  From Beginning

Holding down the  Alt key  and clicking  From Beginning , the Presenter View will launch from the very first (non-hidden) slide in your presentation.

You can also launch the presenter view from the beginning of your presentation at any time by clicking Alt + F5  on your keyboard.

Start Presenter View in PowerPoint From Current Slide

Did you know that you can access different views in PowerPoint by adding keys as you click commands in the PowerPoint ribbon?

To start the Presenter view from your current slide using your Ribbon, simply:

• Hold down the Alt key on your keyboard
• Click  From Current Slide

Holding the Alt key and clicking From Current Slide launches the Presenter View from your current slide. So, this is another way you can quickly practice your presentation, see your speaker notes and see what’s coming up next.

You can also launch the Presenter View from the beginning of your presentation at any time by hitting Alt+F5 on your keyboard.

Showing and Hiding Presenter View

Regardless of which view you start your PowerPoint slide show; you can switch between the two different slide show views without exiting presentation.

To switch between the two slideshow views (while giving your presentation), simply:

• Right-click your slide in whichever presentation view you are currently in
• Select either Show Presenter View or Hide Presenter View

When would you use a feature like this during a presentation? One example is if you want to view your notes without leaving the slide show mode.

NOTE: The letter r  for both  Show Presenter View  and  Hide Presenter View  is underlined. This means that it is a keyboard shortcut. So, if you want to quickly flip between these two presentation views, you can simply right-click your slide and hit the letter r on your keyboard. Doing so automatically switches the view you are in.

Controlling how your presentation runs

Another way to control how your presentation runs (including the default laser pointer and pen color), is the Set Up Slide Show dialog box.

To open the  Set Up Slide Show  dialog box, simply:

• Select the  Set Up Slide Show  command

Doing so, opens all your PowerPoint slide show settings and options as pictured below.

Inside the slide show settings dialog box, you can select:

• How your presentation runs (full screen, window or in kiosk mode).
• Your default pen and laser pointer color options ( see our laser pointer article here ).
• Which slide you want start from, or which slides you want to show. You can also setup a custom show here.
• How your slides progress (manually or using slide timings).
• Which of your computer monitors (or screens) your slide show runs on.

The  Set Up Slide Show dialog box is also the secret to running multiple presentations at the same time in PowerPoint. To expand your knowledge and learn how to set this up, read our guide here .

Setup Slide Show SECRET Shortcut

To use the SECRET shortcut to open the Set Up Slide Show dialog box, simply:

• Hold down the Shift key on your keyboard
• With your mouse, click the Reading View icon at the bottom of your screen

This is useful when you need to quickly cycle through lots of PowerPoint presentations and change how those presentations run. Instead of wasting time clicking through the Ribbon, simply hold the Shift key and click the  Reading View icon. This is also a friendly conversation starter with a fellow PowerPoint enthusiast at Happy Hour.

NOTE: The color of your Reading View icon might be different than in the picture above, as it is dependent on the Office Theme you selected for PowerPoint.

How to exit a PowerPoint presentation early?

Regardless of how you start your full screen presentation, you can end your presentation at any time by hitting the Esc key on your keyboard.

Hitting  Esc  immediately takes you out of the   PowerPoint presentation mode and back to the normal editing view of your slides, on whatever slide you were last presenting.

Here is how you can use a combination of all the different keyboard shortcuts to spot check and practice your presentation in full screen before you finalize your presentation.

• Hit  F5  on your keyboard to   start your presentation in full screen from the very first slide in your presentation. You can then use your arrow keys to advance, spot checking your slides for errors.
• When you find an error, simply hit  Esc  key to return to the normal PowerPoint editing view to fix your slide.
• When you are done, hit  Shift + F5  to return the full screen presentation mode from the slide you just updated. You can then continue spot checking your presentation (without having to start over from the beginning).

In this way you can quickly work your way through your slides and practice your presentation, fixing and adjusting your content as you go.

Understanding how to run your presentations is CRITICAL to the success of your presentation. Not only in presenting them live, but also in knowing how to spot check your slides as you build them.

I personally find it easiest to spot check your slides and quickly fix errors by running your presentation in slide show mode (or full screen). The last place you want to discover an error is during your presentation.

Using the commands and shortcuts above, you can quickly start, exit and step back into your slide show. Once you have these commands and features down, you will also look like a whiz during your presentations.

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Choose the right view for the task in PowerPoint

You can view your PowerPoint file in a variety of ways, depending on the task at hand. Some views are helpful when you're creating your presentation, and some are most helpful for delivering your presentation.

You can find the different PowerPoint view options on the View tab, as shown below.

You can also find the most frequently used views on the task bar at the bottom right of the slide window, as shown below.

Note:  To change the default view in PowerPoint, see Change the default view .

Views for creating your presentation

Normal view

Normal view is the editing mode where you’ll work most frequently to create your slides. Below, Normal view displays slide thumbnails on the left, a large window showing the current slide, and a section below the current slide where you can type your speaker notes for that slide.

Slide Sorter view

Slide Sorter view (below) displays all the slides in your presentation in horizontally sequenced, thumbnails. Slide show view is helpful if you need to reorganize your slides—you can just click and drag your slides to a new location or add sections to organize your slides into meaningful groups.

For more information about sections, see Organize your PowerPoint slides into sections .

Notes Page view

The Notes pane is located beneath the slide window. You can print your notes or include the notes in a presentation that you send to the audience, or just use them as cues for yourself while you're presenting.

For more information about notes, see Add speaker notes to your slides .

Outline view

You can get to Outline view from the View tab on the ribbon. (In PowerPoint 2013 and later, you can no longer get to Outline view from Normal view. You have to get to it from the View tab.)

Use Outline view to create an outline or story board for your presentation. It displays only the text on your slides, not pictures or other graphical items.

Master views

To get to a master view, on the View tab, in the Master Views group, choose the master view that you want.

Master views include Slide , Handout , and Notes . The key benefit to working in a master view is that you can make universal style changes to every slide, notes page, or handout associated with your presentation.

For more information about working with masters, see:

What is a slide master?

Use multiple slide masters in one presentation

Change, delete, or hide headers and footers on slides, notes, and handouts

Views for delivering and viewing a presentation

Slide show view.

Use Slide Show view to deliver your presentation to your audience. Slide Show view occupies the full computer screen, exactly the way your presentation will look on a big screen when your audience sees it.

Presenter view

Use Presenter view to view your notes while delivering your presentation. In Presenter view, your audience cannot see your notes.

For more information about using Presenter view, see View your speaker notes as you deliver your slide show .

Reading view

Most people reviewing a PowerPoint presentation without a presenter will want to use Reading view. It displays the presentation in a full screen like Slide Show view, and it includes a few simple controls to make it easy to flip through the slides.

The views in PowerPoint that you can use to edit, print, and deliver your presentation are as follows:

Master views: Slide, Handout, and Notes

You can switch between PowerPoint views in two places:

Use the View menu to switch between any of the views

Access the three main views (Normal, Slide Sorter, or Slide Show) on the bottom bar of the PowerPoint window

Views for creating or editing your presentation

Several views in PowerPoint can help you create a professional presentation.

Normal view      Normal view is the main editing view, where you write and design your presentations. Normal view has three working areas:

Thumbnail pane

Slides pane

Slide Sorter view      Slide Sorter view gives you a view of your slides in thumbnail form. This view makes it easy for you to sort and organize the sequence of your slides as you create your presentation, and then also as you prepare your presentation for printing. You can add sections in Slide Sorter view as well, and sort slides into different categories or sections.

Notes Page view      The Notes pane is located under the Slide pane. You can type notes that apply to the current slide. Later, you can print your notes and refer to them when you give your presentation. You can also print notes to give to your audience or include the notes in a presentation that you send to the audience or post on a Web page.

Outline view     (Introduced in PowerPoint 2016 for Mac) Outline view displays your presentation as an outline made up of the titles and main text from each slide. Each title appears on the left side of the pane that contains the Outline view, along with a slide icon and slide number. Working in Outline view is particularly handy if you want to make global edits, get an overview of your presentation, change the sequence of bullets or slides, or apply formatting changes.

Master views      The master views include Slide, Handout, and Notes view. They are the main slides that store information about the presentation, including background, theme colors, theme fonts, theme effects, placeholder sizes, and positions. The key benefit to working in a master view is that on the slide master, notes master, or handout master, you can make universal style changes to every slide, notes page, or handout associated with your presentation. For more information about working with masters, see Modify a slide master .

Views for delivering your presentation

Slide Show view      Use Slide Show view to deliver your presentation to your audience. In this view, your slides occupy the full computer screen.

Presenter view      Presenter view helps you manage your slides while you present by tracking how much time has elapsed, which slide is next, and displaying notes that only you can see (while also allowing you to take meeting notes as you present).

Views for preparing and printing your presentation

To help you save paper and ink, you'll want to prepare your print job before you print. PowerPoint provides views and settings to help you specify what you want to print (slides, handouts, or notes pages) and how you want those jobs to print (in color, grayscale, black and white, with frames, and more).

Slide Sorter view      Slide Sorter view gives you a view of your slides in thumbnail form. This view makes it easy for you to sort and organize the sequence of your slides as you prepare to print your slides.

Print Preview      Print Preview lets you specify settings for what you want to print—handouts, notes pages, and outline, or slides.

Organize your slides into sections

Print your slides and handouts

Start the presentation and see your notes in Presenter view

In PowerPoint for the web, when your file is stored on OneDrive, the default view is Reading view. When your file is stored on OneDrive for work or school or SharePoint in Microsoft 365, the default view is Editing view.

View for creating your presentation

Editing view.

You can get to Editing View from the View tab or from the task bar at the bottom of the slide window.

Editing View is the editing mode where you’ll work most frequently to create your slides. Below, Editing View displays slide thumbnails on the left, a large window showing the current slide, and a Notes pane below the current slide where you can type speaker notes for that slide.

The slide sorter lets you see your slides on the screen in a grid that makes it easy to reorganize them, or organize them into sections, just by dragging and dropping them where you want them.

To add a section right click the first slide of your new section and select Add Section . See  Organize your PowerPoint slides into sections for more information.

Views for delivering or viewing a presentation

Use Slide Show view to deliver your presentation to your audience. Slide Show view occupies the full computer screen, exactly the way your presentation looks on a big screen when your audience sees it.

Note:  Reading View isn't available for PowerPoint for the web files stored in OneDrive for work or school/SharePoint in Microsoft 365.

Most people reviewing a PowerPoint presentation without a presenter will want to use Reading view. It displays the presentation in a full screen like Slide Show view, and it includes a few simple controls to make it easy to flip through the slides. You can also view speaker notes in Reading View.

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• Start the slide show and make the display window as large as possible without it going over or behind GP4 and make sure it displays the entire slide without cutting anything off.

Keywords: PowerPoint , window , full-screen , chat , ppt

• Why do I lose access to GP4 when I use PowerPoint in full screen mode?