The 48 best PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts for making great presentations quickly and easily
- There are many PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts that you can use to work faster and more efficiently on the platform.
- You can use a long list of keyboard shortcuts for common tasks, along with PowerPoint's Access Key shortcuts.
- Visit Business Insider's Tech Reference library for more stories .
Microsoft PowerPoint is a complex program with a vast number of features, so it's worth your time to learn all its secrets. Some of these secrets include keyboard shortcuts, which can seriously speed up your workflow.
Not only can keyboard shortcuts save you a lot of time, but knowing important shortcuts when delivering a presentation can help everything run more smoothly.
Here's a guide to the most useful keyboard shortcuts in the Windows 10 version of Microsoft PowerPoint .
Check out the products mentioned in this article:
Windows 10 (from $139.99 at best buy), acer chromebook 15 (from $179.99 at walmart), microsoft office (from $149.99 at best buy), how to use powerpoint's access key shortcuts.
The ribbon at the top of PowerPoint gives you access to virtually all the program's countless features, and you don't need to use your mouse to use it – every ribbon command has its own keyboard shortcut.
To use the ribbon entirely using your keyboard, do this:
1. Press and release Alt. You should see an overlay called Access Keys appear.
2. Press the Access Key indicated to switch to the Ribbon tab you want to use.
3. Press the Access Key for the command you want to use. Some Access Keys are more than one key press – just press the keys in sequence. If there is yet another layer of choices, continue to press the appropriate keys. For example, if you wanted to rehearse the timing of a presentation, you would press Alt and release it, then press S, and then press T.
Every PowerPoint keyboard shortcut you need to know
You can use the ribbon shortcuts to perform virtually any task in PowerPoint, but you might often find the more traditional keyboard shortcuts more convenient to use.
Here are the most important keyboard shortcuts in PowerPoint.
Delivering a presentation
Start a presentation from the beginning: Press F5 to start playing a presentation from the first slide.
Start a presentation from the current slide: Press Shift + F5 to start playing a presentation from whatever slide is currently on screen.
Start a presentation in Presenter View: Press Alt + F5 to start a presentation in Presenter View, which lets you see your notes on the main computer screen while the audience sees only the slides on a separate screen.
Go to the next slide or start the next animation: To advance to the next slide, you have several options. You can press any of these keys: N, Enter, Spacebar, Right Arrow, or Down Arrow.
Go back to the previous slide or animation: To go back to the previous slide, you also have several options. You can press any of these keys: P, Page Up, Left Arrow, or Up Arrow.
Go to the first slide: Press Home to restart the presentation at the first slide.
Go to the last slide: Press End to go directly to the final slide.
Stop or start an automatic presentation: Press S to toggle an automatic, timed presentation between start and stop.
Go to a specific slide: To go to a specific slide within the presentation, enter the slide number followed by Enter, such as 15 + Enter to go to slide number 15.
Open the All Slides dialog box: To see a list of all the slides in your presentation, press Ctrl + S.
End a presentation: Press Esc to exit a presentation.
Toggle between presentation and a blank screen: To temporarily display a blank screen in the middle of a presentation, press B to see a black screen or W to see a white screen.
Start the laser pointer: Press Ctrl + L to change the pointer into a virtual laser dot.
Draw on the presentation with a pen: Press Ctrl + P to change the pointer into a pen that you can use to annotate the screen.
Hide the pointer and navigation controls: Press Ctrl + H to hide the pointer (or laser dot or pen) and the navigation controls.
Erase annotations: Press E to erase any annotations you've made with the pen.
Creating a presentation
Open a presentation: Press Ctrl + O to open an existing PowerPoint presentation.
Create a new presentation: Press Ctrl + N to create a new presentation.
Add a new slide: Press Ctrl + M to add a new slide to a presentation in progress.
Save the presentation: Press Ctrl + S to immediately save a presentation with its current file name.
Save a presentation with a new filename: Press F12 to open the Save As dialog box and save your presentation.
Close a presentation: Press Ctrl + W to close the current presentation. If it hasn't been saved, PowerPoint will give you the opportunity to save it first.
Editing slides
Copy a slide, text, or other object: Press Ctrl + C to copy the selected item, which can be text, a graphic, or even an entire slide.
Cut a slide, text, or other object: Press Ctrl + X to cut the selected item, which can be text, a graphic, or even an entire slide.
Paste a slide, text, or other object: Press Ctrl + V to paste the content of the clipboard at the cursor location.
Delete a selected slide, text, or other object: Select the item you want to remove and then press Delete.
Insert a hyperlink: Select text or object in a slide and then press Ctrl + K to open the Insert Hyperlink dialog box to turn it into a link. If you press Ctrl + K without selecting anything first, then you will need to specify the link text as well.
Go to the next or previous slide: Press Page Down to advance to the next slide; press Page Up to go back to the previous slide.
Change the order of a slide: Press Ctrl + Up Arrow to move the selected slide one position earlier in the presentation; press Ctrl + Down Arrow to move it one later in the presentation.
Move a slide to the start of the presentation: Press Ctrl + Shift + Up Arrow to move the selected slide to the start of the presentation.
Move a slide to the end of the presentation: Press Ctrl + Shift + Down Arrow to move the selected slide to the end of the presentation.
Editing text
Bold: Press Ctrl + B to bold the selected text.
Italics: Press Ctrl + I to italics the selected text.
Underline: Press Ctrl + U to underline the selected text.
Make the font bigger: Press Ctrl + Shift + Right Arrow to increase the size of the selected text a little at a time.
Make the font smaller: Press Ctrl + Shift + Left Arrow to decrease the size of the selected text a little at a time.
Center text: Press Ctrl + E to center the selected paragraph.
Left align text: Press Ctrl + L to left-align the selected paragraph.
Right align text: Press Ctrl + R to right-align the selected paragraph.
Justify text: Press Ctrl + J to justify the selected paragraph. This causes the text to auto-fit to the left and right margins of the slide.
Superscript: Press Ctrl and the Plus sign to turn the selected text into superscript.
Subscript: Press Ctrl + = to turn the selected text into subscript.
Check spelling: Press F7 to run PowerPoint's built-in spell checker.
General tasks
Search within a presentation: Press Ctrl + F to open the Find dialog box, where you can search for specific text within the presentation. You can also search and replace text using this dialog box.
Undo: Press Ctrl + Z to undo your last action.
Redo: Press Ctrl + Y to redo the last action, if possible. If it's not possible for PowerPoint to redo the action, nothing will happen.
Help: Press F1 to open the Help and Support pane.
Cancel: Press Esc to abort any task you don't want to complete. In some cases, you may also need to click "Cancel."
Related coverage from Tech Reference :
How to do a voiceover on a powerpoint presentation and add pre-recorded audio to your slides, how to add a border to slides in powerpoint, and give your slideshow a sleek design, how to change and format the background of your powerpoint slides to custom designs, how to change your language settings in microsoft powerpoint in 3 different ways, how to copy or duplicate a powerpoint slide and put it anywhere in your slideshow.
Insider Inc. receives a commission when you buy through our links.
Watch: Here's how to use Apple's time-saving app that will make your life easier
- Main content
91 PowerPoint Keyboard Shortcuts
Download PowerPoint Shortcut Keys PDF
Table of Contents
- 1.1 Most Used PowerPoint Shortcuts
- 1.2 Edit Text Shortcuts
- 1.3 Tab Selection Shortcuts
- 1.4 Navigation Shortcuts
- 1.5 Outlining Views Shortcuts
- 1.6 Presentation Windows Shortcuts
Learn PowerPoint Shortcuts for Windows
Most Used PowerPoint Shortcuts
Similar Programs: LibreOffice Impress Keyboard Shortcuts
Edit Text Shortcuts
Similar Programs: Google Slides Keyboard Shortcuts
Tab Selection Shortcuts
Similar Programs: reveal.js Keyboard Shortcuts
Navigation Shortcuts
Similar Programs: Apple Keynote Keyboard Shortcuts
Outlining Views Shortcuts
Similar Programs: Microsoft Sway Keyboard Shortcuts
Presentation Windows Shortcuts
- CodeLite Keyboard Shortcuts
- ComplyPro Keyboard Shortcuts
- Comsol Keyboard Shortcuts
- CrazyTalk Keyboard Shortcuts
Related Articles
140 ALT Codes Symbol – ™ © ♥ Ñ € ¢ £ ½
36 Desk.com Keyboard Shortcuts
48 MindManager Keyboard Shortcuts
47 PythonWin Keyboard Shortcuts
120 Kerbal Space Program Keyboard Shortcuts
37 RocFall2 Keyboard Shortcuts
Home Blog PowerPoint Tutorials Essential Shortcuts for PowerPoint Presentations
Essential Shortcuts for PowerPoint Presentations
PowerPoint is an indispensable tool for business professionals, aiding in creating impactful presentations that can make or break a deal. However, creating and delivering presentations can be time-consuming. To help you speed up your presentation slide design and delivery performance, here are 30 essential PowerPoint shortcuts every user should master.
Table of Contents
Reasons to Learn PowerPoint Shortcuts
Frequently used shortcuts, apply character formatting, ribbon navigation, select and edit text and objects, control slides during a presentation.
Time Efficiency and Productivity: Mastering PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts can significantly reduce the time spent creating and editing presentations, allowing users to focus on content and delivery.
Enhanced Focus: By eliminating the need to search for functions in menus, presenters can maintain their focus on the task at hand, leading to better quality work.
Professionalism: Quick and seamless operation during a presentation can make a user appear more professional and in control.
Ease of Use: Once mastered, keyboard shortcuts become second nature, making the software easier and more enjoyable.
Accessibility: For users with disabilities, PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts can provide an easier and more accessible way to use software.
This selection of shortcuts represents the most commonly used tools by PowerPoint users. Applying these shortcuts to our workflow will significantly speed up our performance.
- Insert a new slide: CTRL + M / CMD + M
- Duplicate a selected object or slide: CTRL + D / CMD + D
- Change the zoom for the slide: ALT + W + Q / OPTION + W + Q
- Cut selected object, text, or slide: CTRL + X / CMD + X
- Copy selected object, text, or slide: CTRL + C / CMD + C
- Paste selected object, text, or slide: CTRL + V / CMD + V
- Undo the last action: CTRL + Z / CMD + Z
- Start Slide Show: ALT + S + B / OPTION + S + B
- End Slide Show: Esc / Esc
- Insert a Picture: ALT + N + P / OPTION + N + P
This set of shortcuts will help us to edit our copy text in PowerPoint slides.
- Open the Font dialogue box: CTRL + T / CMD + T
- Apply bold formatting: CTRL + B / CMD + B
- Apply an underline: CTRL + U / CMD + U
- Apply italic formatting: CTRL + I / CMD + I
- Apply subscript formatting: CTRL + = / CMD + =
- Apply superscript formatting: CTRL + SHIFT + ‘+’ / CMD + SHIFT + ‘+’
- Insert a hyperlink: CTRL + K / CMD + K
Instead of manually switching between tabs in the Ribbon, we can do it via PowerPoint shortcuts.
- Open the File page: ALT + F / OPTION + F
- Open the Home tab: ALT + H / OPTION + H
- Open the Insert tab: ALT + N / OPTION + N
- Open the Design tab: ALT + G / OPTION + G
- Open the Transitions tab: ALT + T / OPTION + T
- Open the Animations tab: ALT + A / OPTION + A
- Open the Slide Show tab: ALT + S / OPTION + S
- Open the Review tab: ALT + R / OPTION + R
- Open the View tab: ALT + W / OPTION + W
Most of these shortcuts are handled with the arrow keys of your keyboard in combination with CTRL/CMD and SHIFT/OPTION. We will list a few other shortcuts, but you can find the full list in the infographic shown at the end of this guide.
- Send object back one position: CTRL + [ / CMD + [
- Send object forward one position: CTRL + ] / CMD + ]
- Select another object (when one is selected): TAB or SHIFT + TAB / OPTION + TAB
- Send an object to the back: CTRL + SHIFT + [ / CMD + OPTION + [
- Bring an object to the front: CTRL + SHIFT + ] / CMD + OPTION + ]
Ideally, these shortcuts are handled by the person in charge of the slides during the presentation rather than the speaker. Still, since both roles sometimes are done by the same presenter, it’s best to familiarize ourselves with these shortcuts.
- Stop or restart an automatic presentation: S
- End a presentation: ESC
- Erase on-screen annotations: E
- Display a blank slide or return to the presentation: W
- Hide the pointer and navigation button immediately: CTRL + H
Mastering PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts is not just about saving time; it’s about transforming your work process to be more efficient, professional, and focused. The benefits are clear, from increased productivity and ease of use to enhanced professionalism during presentations.
We invite you to take the time to learn and practice these shortcuts. Incorporate them into your daily work routine and watch as they become second nature, significantly improving your presentation design and delivery. Remember, the small investment of time and effort you put into mastering these shortcuts will pay off in the long run, giving you a valuable skill that will serve you well throughout your professional journey. So, start today and unlock the full potential of your presentations with the power of keyboard shortcuts!
Like this article? Please share
Microsoft PowerPoint, PowerPoint Tips, PowerPoint Tools Filed under PowerPoint Tutorials
Related Articles
Filed under PowerPoint Tutorials • June 3rd, 2024
How to Align Text Boxes in PowerPoint
Organize your presentation slides layout in seconds by mastering how to align text boxes in PowerPoint. Step-by-step instructions with images here.
Filed under PowerPoint Tutorials • May 31st, 2024
How to See Notes in PowerPoint
Optimize your presentation slides by knowing how to see notes in PowerPoint. Instructions for slide design and Presenter View modes.
Filed under PowerPoint Tutorials • May 28th, 2024
How to Circle Something in PowerPoint
Mark important areas in your presentation slides by learning how to circle something in PowerPoint. Instructions with shapes, handmade, and slideshow.
Leave a Reply
- CPAs + Advisors
- Wealth Management
- Meet Our Team
- Newsletter Sign-up
- Client Onboarding
- Training Guides
- Polycom Video Guides
- Huntress Managed Security
- Cisco Umbrella DNS Filtering
- Security Awareness & Training
- Microsoft Cloud Security
- Backup & Disaster Recovery
- Web Development
10 Keyboard Shortcuts to Use When Presenting PowerPoint Slideshows
In business meetings, you can use Microsoft PowerPoint slideshows to highlight important information and capture audiences’ attention. During a slideshow , clicking through various options with the mouse can throw off your timing. Plus, the audience can see you perform these actions.
A better approach is to use keyboard shortcuts . Besides being faster, you will look like a more experienced presenter. Here are 10 keyboard shortcuts that you can use when presenting slideshows using PowerPoint 2016, 2013, 2010, or 2007. You can also Google some other keyboard shortcuts!
Keyboard Shortcuts For PowerPoint
Pressing the F5 key begins the slideshow from the first slide.
2. Shift+F5
To begin the slideshow from the current slide , press Shift+F5. In other words, press the Shift and F5 keys at the same time.
3. Spacebar, N, or Right Arrow
When you are ready to advance to the next slide or perform the next animation, you can press any of the following: the Spacebar , the N key, or the right arrow key.
4. Backspace, P, or Left Arrow
If you need to backtrack , press the Backspace, P, or left arrow key to go back to the previous slide or animation.
Pressing Ctrl+P changes the mouse pointer from an arrow to a pen. You can then use the pen to add a note to a slide or call attention to an item.
6. W or Comma
During a presentation , you might want to pause the slideshow so that you can discuss a certain point. Pressing the W or comma key pauses it and displays a white screen. Pressing the W or comma key again resumes the slideshow. When the slideshow is paused, you can use the pen to write on the white screen. If you do not already have the pen activated, though, you will need to do so with the mouse (Pressing Ctrl+P to activate the pen does not work – it simply prompts the slideshow to resume.) Anything you write on the white screen will not be saved when you resume the slideshow .
7. B or Period
Pressing the B key or period key pauses the slideshow and displays a black screen, which you can write on. Press the B or period key again to resume the slideshow.
8. Ctrl+E or E
If you need to erase a mark you made with a pen on a slide, you can change the pointer to an eraser by pressing Ctrl+E. You can erase all the marks you made to a slide at once by pressing the E key. (The pointer will not change in the latter case.) You cannot use Ctrl+E or E to erase marks on a white or black screen created when pausing a slideshow.
Pressing Ctrl+A changes the pointer to the default arrow.
Another way to change the pointer to the default arrow is pressing the Esc key. If the pointer is already an arrow, pressing Esc exits the slideshow.
Share this post
Related posts.
7 Questions to Ask Before Choosing a PDF Editor
Choosing a PDF editor is a lot more nuanced than... read more
Why Would You Tag Someone in an Email?
In real life, nonverbal cues like eye contact make it... read more
How to Use Focus Sessions in Windows 11 to Get Work Done
Did you know Windows 11 has a built-in productivity tool... read more
What are MailTips in Microsoft Outlook?
While composing a message in Microsoft Outlook, you may have... read more
Windows 11 In-place Upgrade or Clean Install?
Security updates and support for Windows 10 will end Oct.... read more
Planning Your Upgrade from Windows 10 to 11
Next year, Oct. 14, 2025, to be exact, Microsoft will... read more
Microsoft Unbundles Teams and Office: What You Need to Know
Earlier this month, Microsoft announced it will sell its messaging... read more
Why Does Windows 11 Need TPM 2.0?
If your organization is looking to make the jump to... read more
What Determines Whether an Email Goes to Junk Folder or Quarantine?
If your organization uses Microsoft Defender, you may have received... read more
Why We Recommend Microsoft 365 Business Premium to Our Clients
Microsoft 365 Business Premium is a subscription service that allows... read more
Critical PowerPoint Shortcuts – Claim Your FREE Training Module and Get Your Time Back!
Our 80 Favorite PowerPoint Keyboard Shortcuts
- PowerPoint Tutorials
- Shortcuts & Hacks
- May 16, 2017
We pulled together this list of our 80 favorite PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts together because…
Creating a PowerPoint presentation is no small task!
It requires juggling all sorts of PowerPoint stuff like charts, tables, pictures, object formatting, text and shapes just to create your slides in the first place. Then there is the delivery of the presentation itself.
On top of that, companies, bosses and clients want everything done yesterday. For you as an employee (or contractor) that means expectations are rising. Getting more done in less time. That’s where PowerPoint Keyboard Shortcuts come to your rescue.
With a little bit of practice, these PowerPoint shortcuts will seriously cut down your build time, make your slides look more polished and professional and get you to Happy Hour.
The Benefits of Using Keyboard Shortcuts
One of the main reasons to learn your keyboard shortcuts is they eliminate mental stress and anxiety.
Studies show that one of the main sources of modern stress and anxiety in the workplace is what researchers call Cognitive Load . The point being that your brain can only make so many decisions a day before it basically shuts down.
That’s why high-profile leaders like Steve Jobs, Barack Obama, and Superman focus on wearing one or two outfits every day. It cuts down on the decisions they need to make, allowing them to focus on higher priority tasks.
How do keyboard shortcuts help you out here? They eliminate a bunch of micro-decisions and mental hoops your brain otherwise has to process to get a task done.
So instead of playing hide-n-seek in the ribbon for your command – let me see…where was that command again? – your fingers just hit the keys and get the task done. Decreasing your cognitive load.
In that sense, your keyboard shortcuts not only decrease your cognitive load, freeing up your mind for higher priority tasks, they also blast through your otherwise repetitive and annoying tasks for you, getting you to Happy Hour.
To see a list of our favorite Windows 10 keyboard shortcuts, read our guide here .
3 Tips for Mastering Your Shortcuts
If learning your PowerPoint shortcuts was easy, everyone would already have their black belt in PowerPoint, but they don’t. So the very first rule is simply – COMMIT.
Here are a few other tips to make learning your PowerPoint shortcuts as easy as possible:
A. Set learning goals
Define your goals. If there are 100 keyboard shortcuts you want to learn and you can only learn 2 or 3 a day, break it up. Don’t worry about the 100, just worry about the 2 or 3 you want to learn that day (or that week).
B. Put your shortcuts to use
When you first learn a new keyboard shortcut, the most important thing is to start using it every single time you want to complete that task. A common learning mistake is not consistently using the shortcut right off the bat because it’s not comfortable.
Disclaimer: When you first start learning your keyboard shortcuts (for whichever program in which you are working), you might not feel any faster, or you might even feel slower. That’s because it’s new and uncomfortable.
But trust me, the fastest people in PowerPoint use shortcuts. And that can be you. Don’t give up.
C. Not all keyboard shortcuts are worth learning
Just because a shortcut exists doesn’t mean you should learn it.
There are hundreds of keyboard shortcuts and thousands of commands you can set up as shortcuts in PowerPoint that you’ll never need to use.
That’s why I recommend that instead worrying about all of the available shortcuts, just focus on learning the keyboard shortcuts around the core activities you perform every single day.
PowerPoint Slide Shortcuts
1. display the all slides dialog box (slideshow mode).
After starting a slideshow, you can open the All Slides dialog box by hitting CTRL + S on your keyboard.
This dialog box allows you to visually see all the slides within your presentation and quickly jump around between them.
This is handy when you want to quickly move forwards or backwards within your presentation and you don’t know what the slide number is.
2. Go to slide number (in slideshow mode)
Slide Number + Enter Key
When you give a presentation, your topic never goes in the order you planned. There are some situations when you require going to nonadjacent slides in your presentation.
For instance, say you are on slide 50, and your audience puts a question that requires you to jump to slide 20. Pressing Page Up 30 times doesn’t seem professional.
To easily jump to the 20 th slide in your presentation, after you start your slideshow, simply hit the slide number on your keyboard and then hit Enter .
Note: This only works while after you start Slideshow (F5) or start Presenter View (Shift + F5). This shortcut will not work in the normal slide editing view of your presentation.
3. Display a black or white slide (in slideshow mode)
For a black slide, press B or . (period)
For a white slide, press W or , (comma)
Sometimes you may need to pause your presentation for a lunch break or to answer a question unrelated to your topic.
In these situations, B and W shortcut keys to display a blank screen. Pressing B or W second time will pick up the show where you left it.
4. Select all slides
You can select the slides all at once if your presentation is in slide sorter view simply hit CTRL + A .
Remember, this PowerPoint shortcut will work only if your presentation is in Slide Sorter View. To learn more about the Select All shortcuts throughout the Microsoft Office Suite, see our guide here .
5. Duplicate active slides
To add the copy of the current slide in your presentation, press CTRL + SHIFT + D .
6. Start Slideshow (from beginning)
When you are ready to start your Slide Show from the very first slide in your presentation, in all versions of PowerPoint, simply hit F5 on your keyboard.
To learn all the different ways to start a PowerPoint slideshow, see our guide here .
7. Start Slideshow (from current slide)
To view your presentation from your current slide (all versions of PowerPoint) in Slide Show Mode, hit SHIFT + F5 .
8. Go to the previous / next slide
To move to the next slide in your presentation, hit Page Down .
To move to the previous slide in your presentation, hit Page Up .
PowerPoint Pointer Shortcuts
9. using the built-in laser pointer.
While in Slide Show Mode, hold down the CTRL key on your keyboard and click and drag with your mouse.
Holding the CTRL key and dragging around with your mouse turns on the laser pointer to draw your audiences’ attention to different aspects of your slide.
Note: To learn how to change the color of your laser pointer shortcut in PowerPoint (Between red, green and blue), read our guide here .
10. Writing on your slide with a pen (inking)
After you start your Slide Show, you can write on your slides with a pen by hitting CTRL + P and use your mouse (or pen if you have a touch screen) to write and/or draw on your slides.
Hitting CTRL + P a second time turns the Pen off..
11. Writing on your slide with a highlighter (inking)
After starting a Slideshow, to write on your slides with your highlight, hit CTRL + I and use your mouse (or pen if you have a touch screen) to highlight and draw on your slides.
12. Hide and erase ink onscreen (inking)
While in slideshow mode, after using the pen or highlight shortcuts to add into your slides in Slide Show mode you can either:
Hit CTRL + M to hide the ink. And if you do so a second time, you will make the ink re-appear.
Press E at any time to erase all of the ink on that slide.
PowerPoint Shortcut Tip
Be careful when erasing the Ink on screen as there is no way to un-erase that ink. If you typically want to save the ink on yours, memorize the CTRL + M shortcut instead as it merely hides the ink.
13. Hide the pointer and navigation buttons
To hide your pointer and navigation immediately, hit CTRL + H .
To hide your pointer and navigation after 15 seconds, hit CTRL + U .
Pointers and navigation button could be annoying to the audience. So it’s important to hide while giving presentation.
PowerPoint Menu Shortcuts
14. display the shortcuts menu.
SHIFT + F10
After you start your Slide Show, Shift + F10 is the equivalent of right-clicking on the screen, displaying the different presentations options available to you.
15. Display the Slideshow Help shortcuts
While in Slideshow mode, this command display all the different slide show shortcuts you can use to quickly navigate your presentation. If you ever forget your shortcut, just hit F1 .
16. Display the taskbar
While in Slide Show mode, you can display the task bar at the bottom of your screen by hitting CTRL + T .
Displaying your taskbar is a fast and easy way to navigate between different documents and files on your computer without closing out of your presentation.
PowerPoint Hyperlink Shortcuts
17. insert a hyperlink.
Select the text or object on your slide that you want to add the hyperlink too, then hit CTRL + K to open the Insert Hyperlink dialog box.
For details on how to use hyperlinks in PowerPoint to create interactive presentations, click here .
Note: Your hyperlinks and zoom slides will properly carry over when you convert your presentation to the PDF file format. See details here .
18. Select a hyperlink
While in Slide show mode, to go to the first or next hyperlink on a slide hit the TAB key.
While in Slide show mode, to go to the last or previous hyperlink on a slide, hit SHIFT + TAB .
19. Open a hyperlink
Once you’ve navigate to a hyperlink (using the above keyboard hot keys) you can activate it by hitting the ENTER key.
PowerPoint Font & Paragraph Shortcuts
20. align a paragraph.
First, select the your text or paragraphs, then hit:
Left alignment, hit CTRL + L
Right alignment, hit CTRL + R
Center alignment, hit CTRL + E
Justify alignment, hit CTRL + J
21. Jump to the end / beginning of a line
Hit the END key move to the end of a line.
Hit the HOME key to move the beginning of a line.
22. Increase or decrease text list levels
To promote a paragraph, hit ALT + SHIFT + Left Arrow.
To demote a paragraph, hit ALT + SHIFT + Right Arrow .
These List Level Shortcuts are extremely effective when filling in company templates as it properly uses the bullet spacing set on your Slide Master. This is entirely different than the Promote and Demote paragraph shortcuts.
To see how to use these List Level Shortcuts to properly fill in a company PowerPoint template (and see how they are COMPLETELY different than the TAB and SHIFT + TAB shortcuts) see the short YouTube video below.
23. Promote and demote paragraphs
To promote a paragraph, hit the TAB key.
To demote a paragraph, hit SHIFT + TAB .
24. Move selected paragraphs
To move selected paragraphs up, hit ALT + SHIFT + Up Arrow .
To move selected paragraphs down, hit ALT + SHIFT + Down Arrow .
25. Select all text
When within a shape or text box (the blinking cursor), hit CTRL + A to select all text.
Note: There are a wide variety of ways you can use the Select All shortcut in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. To learn all about it, read our guide here .
26. Delete text (towards the left)
To delete one character to the left, hit the BACKSPACE key.
To delete an entire word to the left, hit CTRL + BACKSPACE
Note: Instead of deleting text, you can instead create the strikethrough text effect using your keyboard shortcuts. To expand your knowledge and learn the strikethrough shortcuts for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, read our guide here .
27. Delete text (towards the right)
To delete one character to the right, hit the DELETE key.
To delete one word to the right, hit CTRL + DELETE .
28. Change the font size
To increase the font size, hit CTRL + SHIFT + , (comma) .
To decrease the font size, hit CTRL + SHIFT + . (period) .
29. Open the Font dialog box
If you want to open the font dialogue box to performing font or font size changing operations, do the following:
To open font dialogue box to change formatting of the characters, hit CTRL + T .
30. Change case shortcut (uppercase, lowercase, etc.)
While making a presentation, you frequently need to change your text between uppercase, lowercase, sentence case, etc. That is why knowing the SHIFT + F3 shortcut is such a timesaver in PowerPoint.
31. Make text subscript / superscript
Hit CTRL + = (equal) too apply subscript formatting with automatic spacing.
Hit CTRL + SHIFT + = (equal) to apply superscript formatting with automatic spacing.
32. Make text bold
Select the text, and hit CTRL + B to make it bold.
33. Make text italic
Select the text, and hit CTRL + I to make text italic.
34. Make text underlined
Select the text, and hit CTRL + U to give it an underline.
35. Open the spell check engine
To open up the spell check engine to double-check your spelling and grammar, hit the F7 function key.
36. Launch the thesaurus
To open thesaurus, hit SHIFT + F7 .
PowerPoint Text & Object Shortcuts
37. select all objects on a slide.
To select all the objects on a slide, with the slide space active (click somewhere on the slide to be sure), hit CTRL + A .
38. Format Painter shortcut #1 of 2: Pick Up Style
To copy the formatting of text or of an object, select it and then hit CTRL + SHIFT + C .
39. Format Painter Shortcut #2 of 2: Apply Style
To paste the formatting of text or of an object onto another object, hit CTRL + SHIFT + V .
Format Painter Shortcuts in Action
The Format Painter is one of the fastest ways to pick up and apply formatting styles throughout your presentation.
And what is so great about these specific shortcuts is that they are SUPER easy to learn. That’s because they mimic the standard CTRL + C to Copy and CTRL + V to Paste shortcuts. All you need to do is add the Shift key:
- Ctrl + Shift + C to copy your formatting
- Ctrl + Shift + V to paste your formatting
40. Open the Paste Special dialog box
CTR L + ALT + V
The Paste Special shortcut gives you a variety of pictures format paste options for your content. To use the shortcut first CTRL + C to copy something in PowerPoint, then hit CTRL + ALT + V to open up the Paste Special options.
PowerPoint Tip
The Paste Special dialog box is where you can find the WMF and EFM file formats for breaking apart your copied PowerPoint Tables and PowerPoint charts.
41. Group objects on a slide
To group selected objects on a slide, hit CTRL + G .
42. Ungroup objects
To ungroup objects (including grouped objects, SmartArt graphics, EMF and WMF objects), select them and hit CTRL + SHIFT + G .
To learn other cool things you can group and ungroup in PowerPoint, see our guide here .
43. Regroup ungrouped objects
To reform an ungrouped set of objects, simply select a single object from the previous group, hit CTRL + SHIFT + J .
44. Rotate objects or text boxes
To rotate an object by 15° to the right, with an object selected, simply hit ALT + Right arrow .
To rotate an object by 15° to the left, hit ALT + Left arrow .
PowerPoint Table Shortcuts
45. moving the cursor from cell to cell.
To move to the next cell, hit the TAB key.
To move to the previous cell, hit SHIFT + TAB .
46. Moving the cursor from row to row
To move to the next row, hit the Up arrow key.
To move to the previous row, hit the Down arrow key.
47. Add a new row (to the bottom of the table)
To add a new row at the bottom of the table, move your cursor to somewhere on the bottom row of your table and hit the TAB key.
48. Add an indent within a table cell
PowerPoint Charting Shortcuts
49. format the selected chart element.
With a charting element selected (such as the data labels or columns), hit CTRL + F1 to jump to the formatting options for that specific element.
This charting shortcut works in both PowerPoint and Excel, and is one of the fastest ways to drill down to the specific formatting options for your charts.
50. Moving a chart (nudging it) with your keyboard
To move your chart like any other object, simply hold the CTRL key down, and then click the chart with your mouse.
Doing so selects your chart like any other object, allowing you to use the Arrow keys to move it around on your slide.
PowerPoint View Shortcuts
51. switch between the outline view and the normal view.
Hit CTRL + SHIFT + TAB to switch between the Outline and Normal View in PowerPoint.
52. Switch between the Slide Master View and the Normal View
Holding the SHIFT key and clicking on the Normal View icon in the lower right-hand corner of your screen will take you to the Slide Master View of your presentation.
Hit the shortcut again to come back to the Normal View.
53. Switch between the Handout Master View and the Normal View
Holding the SHIFT key and clicking on the Slide Sorter View icon in the lower right-hand corner of your screen will take you to the Handouts Master View of your presentation, where you can customize the handouts for your presentation.
54. Open the Set Up Slide Show dialog box
Holding the SHIFT key and clicking on the Reading View icon in the lower right-hand corner of your screen will open up the Set Up Slide Show dialog box, where you can choose to show your presentation in a resizable window, run custom slide shows, etc.
55. Close the Thumbnail View
Holding the CTRL and SHIFT keys, and clicking on the Normal View icon in the lower right-hand corner of your screen will close the Thumbnail View and give you more work space for your presentation.
56. Open the Outline View in full screen
Holding the CTRL and SHIFT keys, and clicking on the Slide Sorter View icon in the lower right-hand corner of your screen will open up the Outline View in full screen.
57. Run a mini presentation
In Microsoft PowerPoint 2007 and 2010, hold down the CTRL key , and in 2013 and 2016 hold the ALT key , and then select the Slide Show View icon in the lower right-hand of your screen to run a mini presentation in the upper left-hand corner of your deck.
Hit ESCAPE to move to that slide.
58. Switch between open presentation
If you have multiple presentations open on your device, you can switch among them by hitting CTRL + F6 .
59. Switch between open PowerPoint windows
To switch between your active windows, hit CTRL + TAB.
60. View all active windows
To see all open and active windows on your computer, hit WINDOWS + TAB .
61. Cycle through content placeholders
To cycle through the content placeholders on your slide (built on the Slide Master), first click into a placeholder and then hit CTRL + ENTER .
Once you have cycled through your content placeholders, hitting CTRL + ENTER again creates a new blank slide, based on the slide layout you were just previously on.
62. Insert new slide shortcut
This shortcut adds a new blank slide to your presentation, based on the slide layout you were just on.
Note: After hitting CTRL + M to insert a new slide, you can immediately start typing the title of your new slide. This makes creating a quick draft outline of your presentation easy.
To see how to do this using the Outline View in PowerPoint, read our guide here .
62B. New Slide Shortcut (Optional)
Ctrl + Enter is a unique little shortcut.
While working in the normal PowerPoint view, hitting CTRL+ENTER cycles through the content placeholders in your layout allowing you to quickly type text or add content.
Once it cycles through all the available placeholders in your layout, hitting the shortcut again adds a new slide to your presentation.
So, the way the CTRL+ENTER shortcut is different than the CTRL+M shortcut, is that before it creates a new blank slide, it first cycles through all the content placeholders on your slide.
Instead of ending up with a new blank slide, you instead create a duplicate of the slide you were working on (making it easy to save your work).
What type of new slide is added? When using the New Slide shortcuts in PowerPoint, the slide layout that is inserted is based on the slide layout you were just on when you used the shortcut.
For example: If you are on the Section Header layout, using the New Slide shortcuts inserts a new blank Section Header layout. If you are on a Comparison layout, using either of the New Slide shortcuts inserts a blank Comparison layout.
The only time this rule doesn’t hold true, is if you use these shortcuts while on the Title slide layout. If you are on the Title Slide layout (for your template), instead of inserting a new Title Slide, the next layout in your slide master will be inserted (most likely a Title and Placeholder layout).
This makes sense too, right?
In a normal presentation you will only have one title slide. So, the New Slide shortcuts are smart enough not to insert a second title slide layout, and instead take you to your first content slide layout.
To expand your knowledge and learn more about how Ctrl+M and Ctrl+Enter are different, read our guide here .
63. Open the Save As dialog box
Hit the F12 function key to save your presentation with a different name, in a different location on your computer, or in a different file format.
Save As Shortcut Pro Tip
The Save As shortcut is the secret to quickly converting your presentation into the PDF file format as we discuss here , or turn your presentation into a picture presentation as we discuss here .
64. Open the Save As options in the File area
Hitting CTRL + F12 will immediately open the Save As dialog box to open a file on your computer, without having to navigate through the back-stage view.
65. Open the Find & Replace dialog box
This shortcut opens the Find and Replace dialog box, allowing you to quickly replace text throughout your presentation. Be careful when using the ‘Replace All’ option, as it not only will cycle through the Normal View of your presentation, but all your Slide Master Views.
66. Repeat the last find action
If you have closed the find dialogue box and now want to repeat the last find action, hit SHIFT + F4 .
67. Capture a clipping of the screen as an image
To take a screen capture of the current screen to the clipboard, hit the PrtSc (Printscreen) key.
68. Capture the entire screen as an image
To copy the picture of a selected window, hit ALT + PrtSC (Printscreen) .
69. Launch the Print dialog box
To launch the Print dialog box, hit CTRL + P . If you don’t need to adjust the settings, you can immediately hit EN TER to print your presentation.
The print shortcut works across the entire Microsoft Office suite (and most other software programs you use). So I HIGHLY recommend learning this one.
To learn how to print multiples slides on one page in PowerPoint, read our guide here .
Note: A common printing mistake you can avoid is printing your files collated and then manually uncollating the documents.
The reason this is a mistake is because Microsoft Office can automatically print your files uncollated, saving you from a bunch of tedious work.
To learn more about the difference between collated vs. uncollated printing, read our guide here .
70. Open the Header & Footer dialog box
ALT + SHIFT + D
This dialog box allows you to add and remove your date and time, slide numbers and footers.
PowerPoint Slide Number Pro Tip
To properly add your headers and footers to your slides, you need to add them in twice.
Once on your Slide Master and once in the Normal View using the Header and Footer dialog box. For help navigating your headers, footers and slide numbers like this, see our detailed blog post here .
71. Close an active presentation
This PowerPoint shortcut closes the active file you are using, without closing the PowerPoint application itself. This is an operating system shortcut and works in all the Microsoft Office programs.
72. Close PowePoint
This is a Windows-level operating-level shortcut and can be used with any program you are running on your computer. After closing out of all your active applications, this shortcut can shut down or restart your computer too.
To expand your knowledge and learn other important Windows 10 shortcuts, see our guide here .
Newer PowerPoint Shortcuts (2013, 2016, 2019 and Microsoft 365)
Use the following shortcuts for the given tasks in the new PowerPoint 2013 version. Note, these PowerPoint 2013 shortcuts all work in PowerPoint 2016 as well.
73. Increase / decrease the font size
Hit CTRL + ] to increase the font size
Hit CTRL + [ to decrease the font size
Although these are new shortcuts, the old font size shortcuts still work: CTRL + SHIFT + , to decrease the font size and CTRL + SHIFT + . to increase the font size. However, because the shortcuts above work in a wider variety of programs, I recommend memorizing them instead.
74. Show / hide the Notes pane
75. Duplicate an active presentation
To make a copy of your current open presentation in PowerPoint 2013, you need to hit CTRL + SHIFT + N .
76. Add a section to your presentation
To add a new section in your presentation, hit CTRL + , (comma) .
77. Zoom out of a slide in Slideshow View
To zoom out of a slide or to see all slides in Slideshow View, simply hit CTRL + – (minus) . Once zoomed out, you can use your Arrow keys to navigate around.
78. Zoom into a slide in Slideshow View
To zoom into a slide in Slideshow View, simply hit CTRL + = (equal) . Once zoomed in, you can use your Arrow keys to navigate around.
79. Hide the Ribbon
Hitting Ctrl + F1 once collapses your Ribbon commands into the top of your screen, giving you more uncluttered workspace in PowerPoint. Hitting CTRL + F1 a second time un-collapses your Ribbon commands.
This is Microsoft Office shortcut, so it works in PowerPoint, Word, Excel, Outlook, etc.
80. “Distraction-Free Mode” – Auto-hiding the Ribon
CTRL + SHIFT + F1
The NEWEST shortcut to hit the Microsoft Office suite delivering Distraction-Free Mode. Hit this keyboard shortcut to auto-hide your Ribbon commands, giving you a 100% clean working space. When you want to see all your Ribbon commands again, just hit this shortcut a second time.
Other Important PowerPoint Shortcuts
While the following shortcuts didn’t make our top 80 favorite PowerPoint shortcuts list, these shortcuts are still extremely value to know (and use).
We consider these MANDATORY shortcuts for any knowledge worker because you they work across the entire Microsoft Office suite (and just about every software program you will ever use).
Copy shortcut
Selecting an option (or group of objects) in PowerPoint and hitting Ctrl + C will copy them, allowing you to reuse them in other parts of your presentation.
This is MUCH faster than trying to recreate and format objects in PowerPoint.
To expand your knowledge and learn all about the Copy shortcut, and how it is different than the Cut shortcut, read our guide here.
Paste shortcut
After you copy an object in PowerPoint, you can then use the Ctrl + V shortcut to paste the object on your slides.
Remember, your goal in PowerPoint is to finish your slide deck, not remake everything from scratch. So, to the extent that you can Copy and Paste objects, slides, and formatting… the more time you will save and the better off you will be.
To expand your knowledge and learn more about the Paste shortcut, and how to use it to control your formatting as you paste into new Microsoft Office documents, read our guide here .
Cut Shortcut
The cut shortcut allows you to pick up (and move) an object.
This is a variation of the Copy Shortcut as instead of copying an object, you cut it out of your presentation that you can then Ctrl + V to paste somewhere else.
To expand your knowledge and learn more about the Cut shortcut (and how to use it), read our guide here .
Note: If you are trying to delete a table from your presentation, it is often easier to Cut the table out using this Ctrl + X shortcut (and never paste it in anywhere) rather than trying to select the table and delete it.
PowerPoint Shortcuts Conclusion
So that is our list of our 80 favorite PowerPoint shortcuts to speed up your workflow.
Shortcuts are the fastest way to DOUBLE your productivity in PowerPoint. That’s why if you use PowerPoint daily, I highly recommend committing to your keyboard shortcuts.
If you enjoyed this in-depth post and want to learn more about our PowerPoint Speed Training courses and other resources, visit us here .
What’s next?
Related articles.
- What is a broken link chart in PowerPoint (and how to fix it)?
- Bar chart trick: Right aligning categories (PPT, Word, and Excel)
- PowerPoint settings: program level vs. presentation level
- What is a linked Excel chart in PowerPoint?
- Set Up Slide Show: Customize how your PPT presentations run
About The Author
Popular Tutorials
- How to Strikethrough Text (l̶i̶k̶e̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶s̶) in Word, Excel & PowerPoint
- How to Make Animated Fireworks in PowerPoint (Step-by-Step)
- Strikethrough Shortcut (l̶i̶k̶e̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶s̶) for Word, Excel & PowerPoint
- How to Create a Flash Card Memory Game in PowerPoint (Like Jeopardy)
- Keyboard Shortcuts Not Working: Solved
PowerPoint Tutorial Categories
- Strategies & Opinions
- Presentation Design
- Pictures, Icons, Videos, Etc.
- New Features
- Miscellaneous
- Charts & Data Viz
We help busy professionals save hours and gain peace of mind, with corporate workshops, self-paced courses and tutorials for PowerPoint and Word.
Work With Us
- Corporate Training
- Presentation & Template Design
- Courses & Downloads
- PowerPoint Articles
- Word Articles
- Productivity Resources
Find a Tutorial
- Free Training
- For Businesses
We help busy office workers save hours and gain peace of mind, with tips, training and tutorials for Microsoft PowerPoint and Word.
Master Critical PowerPoint Shortcuts – Secure Your FREE Training Module and Save Valuable Time!
⌛ Master time-saving expert techniques.
🔥 Create powerful presentations.
🚀 Propel your career to new heights.
We value your privacy – we keep your info safe.
Discover PowerPoint Hacks Loved by Industry Giants - KKR, AmEx, HSBC!
Over 114,880 professionals in finance, marketing and sales have revolutionized their PPT skills with our proven methods.
Gain FREE access to a full module of our premium PowerPoint training program – Get started today!
We hate spam too and promise to keep your information safe.
You are currently viewing a placeholder content from Facebook . To access the actual content, click the button below. Please note that doing so will share data with third-party providers.
PowerPoint Keyboard Shortcuts for Slide Show Presentations
Whether you use a mouse or remote control to navigate through a PowerPoint slide show presentation, one of the best ways to more effectively deliver PowerPoint presentations with greater engagement is to take advantage of handy slide show shortcuts.
Try this selection of PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts for your next in-person or virtual PowerPoint slide show (or watch my video of presentation shortcuts):
- Run a slide show: [F5]
- Run a slide show from the current slide: [Shift] + [F5]
- Help during slide show (displays PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts): [F1]
- Advance to the next slide (any of these): [Right] , [Down] , N (for Next), [Spacebar] , [Page Down] (or click the left mouse)
- Return to the previous slide (any of these): [Left] , [Up] , P (for Previous), [Backspace] , [Page Up]
- Go to the first slide in a presentation: [Home]
- Go to the last slide in a presentation: [End]
- Go to a specific slide number during a slide show: type the slide number and press [Enter]. This is one of my favorite tips to quickly skip past slides or to return to a previous slide. To create a list of slide numbers, print out your presentation as a handout; I choose 9 slides per page. Current versions of PowerPoint display the slide numbers on handouts. If this isn’t available, simply manually add slide numbers to your printout or create a simple hand-written cheat sheet.
- What if you don’t know the slide number? Display the PowerPoint slide selector with [Ctrl] + S
- To show a visual display of slides: press G
- Display a black screen or go back to slide show: B or [Period]
- Display a white screen or go back to slide show: W or [Comma]. (Use carefully as the bright screen can be distracting to an audience).
- To draw on the screen (annotations), press [Ctrl] + P to enable the Pen mode. Use your mouse to draw directly on the slide. To change the pen color or to enable other tools (Laser Pointer, Highlighter) to emphasize your slide content, right-click on a slide and left-click on Pointer Options. From this menu, you can change the ink color.
- To annotate with the highlighter: [Ctrl] + I
- To clear annotations, press [Ctrl] + E to bring up the eraser to remove individual pen or highlighter annotations.
- Erase all annotations: press E to erase at any time. Or, right-click on a slide and left-click on Pointer Options , where you’ll see options for the Eraser or to Erase All Ink on Slide .
- To call attention to slide content with a laser: [Ctrl] + L
- To switch from the Pen (or highlighter or laser) mode back to the Arrow, press [Ctrl] + A or [Ctrl] + U . Or even better, press [Ctrl] + H to hide the pointer or pen to avoid displaying a distracting or moving mouse pointer.
- To turn live subtitles on or off: J . To change subtitles settings, either right-click on your slide show for Subtitles or find these options under the Slide Show Ribbon in PowerPoint.
- Zoom In on a slide: +
- Zoom Out on a slide: –
- End a slide show: [Esc]
More Tips: You can also right-click anywhere on the slide show screen for a shortcut menu with many of these same actions. Although your audience will also see this shortcut menu, this is a handy way to quickly choose presentation options.
Click here to download a handout of PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts and discover more PowerPoint tips and tricks .
© Dawn Bjork, MCT, MOSM, CSP®, The Software Pro® Microsoft Certified Trainer, Productivity Speaker, Certified Speaking Professional
Related Posts
15 More Handy Zoom Keyboard Shortcuts June 11, 2022
10 Handy Zoom Shortcuts April 27, 2022
7 Handy Microsoft Access Editing Shortcuts July 7, 2022
Join Our Tips Newsletter
Receive 477+ shortcuts & more!
- Irresistible Tech Gifts for That Special Dad
- Killer Smartphone Deals We Love
Use Keyboard Shortcuts to Speed up PowerPoint Presentations
Help to put together a slideshow quickly
- Brock University
In This Article
Jump to a Section
- Using a Keyboard Shortcut
General Keyboard Shortcuts
- Using the CTRL Key
- Quick Navigation
- Using the Arrow Keys
- Using the Shift Key
- Using Function Keys
- While Running a Slideshow
When you want to quickly create a PowerPoint presentation and minimize the amount of time you spend with your mouse, learn to use keyboard shortcuts to speed up PowerPoint presentations and make your job easier.
These instructions apply to PowerPoint versions 2019, 2016, 2013, 2010, and PowerPoint for Microsoft 365.
How to Use the Keyboard Shortcut List
When the instructions show the keystroke combination Ctrl + C , for example, it means to hold down the Ctrl key and then press the letter C , holding both at the same time. The plus sign (+) indicates that you need both of these two keys. You do not press the + key on the keyboard.
Certain key combinations are specific to PowerPoint, such as the F5 key to play a slide show. Many other shortcut combinations, such as Ctrl + C and Ctrl + Z, are common to a number of programs. Once you know these common ones, you will be surprised at how often you can use them.
Keyboard Shortcuts Using the CTRL Key
Here is an alphabetical list of all the letter keys that can be used with the Ctrl key as a keyboard shortcut to common tasks in PowerPoint as well as some other shortcuts using the Ctrl key.
- Ctrl + A : Selects all items on the page or the active text box.
- Ctrl + B : Applies bold formatting to the selected text.
- Ctrl + C : Copies the selected text or object to the Clipboard .
- Ctrl + D : Duplicates the selected object.
- Ctrl + F : Opens the Find dialog box.
- Ctrl + G : Opens the Grids and Guides dialog box.
- Ctrl + H : Opens the Replace dialog box.
- Ctrl + I : Applies italic formatting to the selected text.
- Ctrl + M : Inserts a new slide .
- Ctrl + N : Opens a new blank presentation.
- Ctrl + O : Displays the Open dialog box.
- Ctrl + P : Opens the Print dialog box.
- Ctrl + S : Saves the presentation.
- Ctrl + T : Opens the Font dialog box.
- Ctrl + U : Underlines the selected text.
- Ctrl + V : Pastes text and objects from the Clipboard into the presentation.
- Ctrl + W : Closes the presentation.
- Ctrl + X : Deletes the text or object from the presentation and places it in the Clipboard.
- Ctrl + Y : Repeats the last command entered.
- Ctrl + Z : Undoes the last change.
- Ctrl + F6 : Switches from one open PowerPoint presentation to another.
- Ctrl + Delete : Removes the word to the right of the cursor.
- Ctrl + Backspace : Removes the word to the left of the cursor.
- Ctrl + Home : Moves cursor to the beginning of the presentation.
- Ctrl + End : Moves cursor to the end of the presentation.
- Ctrl + Arrow keys: Move from word to word or from object to object on a slide.
Keyboard Shortcuts for Quick Navigation
To quickly navigate around your presentation use these single keyboard shortcuts or shortcut key combinations. Using the mouse can slow you down. These shortcut keys are located to the left of the number keypad on your keyboard.
- Home : Moves cursor to the beginning of the current line of text.
- End : Moves cursor to the end of the current line of text.
- Ctrl + Home : Moves cursor to the beginning of the presentation.
- Ctrl + End : Moves cursor to the end of the presentation.
- Page Up : Moves to the previous slide.
- Page Down : Moves to the next slide.
Keyboard Shortcuts Using the Arrow Keys
Keyboard shortcuts often use the arrow keys on the keyboard. Using the Ctrl key with the four arrow keys makes it easy to move to the beginning or end of a word or paragraph. These arrow keys are located to the left of the number keypad on your keyboard.
- Ctrl + left arrow : Moves cursor to the beginning of the previous word.
- Ctrl + right arrow : Moves cursor to the beginning of the next word.
- Ctrl + up arrow : Moves cursor to start of the previous paragraph.
- Ctrl + down arrow : Moves cursor to start of the next paragraph.
Keyboard Shortcuts Using Shift Key
- Shift + Enter : Creates a soft return to force a line break inside a paragraph. In a bulleted list, this creates a new line without a bullet.
- Shift + another key: Selects a single letter, a whole word, or a line of text.
- Ctrl + Shift + Home or Ctrl + Shift + End : Selects text from the cursor to the beginning or end of the document.
- Shift + F5 : Starts a slideshow that begins with the current slide.
- Shift + left arrow : Selects the previous letter.
- Shift + right arrow : Selects the next letter.
- Shift + Home : Selects text from the cursor to start of the current line.
- Shift + End : Selects text from the cursor to the end of the current line.
- Shift + Ctrl + Home : Selects all text from the cursor to the beginning of the active text box.
- Shift + Ctrl + End : Selects all text from the cursor to the end of the active text box.
Using Function Keys as Keyboard Shortcuts
The function keys or F keys as they are more commonly known are located above the number keys on the regular keyboard.
- F1 : Opens the Help pane.
- F5 : Starts the slideshow at the first slide and displays it in full-screen mode.
- Shift + F5 : Starts the slideshow at the current slide.
- F7 : Runs spellcheck.
- F12 : Opens the Save As dialog box.
Keyboard Shortcuts While Running a Slideshow
While the slideshow is running, you may need to pause to answer questions from the audience, and it is helpful to insert a simple black or white slide while you are talking. This gives you the complete attention of the audience.
Here is a list of several useful keyboard shortcuts to use during a slideshow. As an alternative choice to keyboard shortcuts, simply right-clicking on the screen will show a shortcut menu of options.
Spacebar or click the mouse: Move to next slide or next animation
Number+ Enter : Goes to the slide of that number (for example 6 + Enter goes to slide 6).
B (for black): Pauses the slideshow and displays a black screen. Press B again to resume the show.
W (for white): Pauses the show and displays a white screen. Press W again to resume the show.
N : Moves to the next slide or next animation.
P : Moves to previous slide or animation.
S : Stops the show. Press S again to restart the show.
Esc : Ends the slideshow.
Tab : Goes to the next hyperlink in a slideshow.
Shift + Tab : Goes to the previous hyperlink in a slideshow.
Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day
- The Best Windows Keyboard Shortcuts in 2024
- Control Safari Windows With Keyboard Shortcuts
- Essential Windows Keyboard Shortcuts
- Loop a PowerPoint Slide Show
- The 30 Best Gmail Keyboard Shortcuts for 2024
- Keyboard Shortcuts: Google Chrome for Windows
- The Best Mac Shortcuts in 2024
- How to Insert PDF Files Into PowerPoint Presentations
- How to Use Portrait and Landscape Slides in the Same Presentation
- How to Make a Slideshow on PowerPoint
- Add Hyperlinks to PowerPoint Presentations
- End Powerpoint Presentations With a Black Slide
- Use This PowerPoint Template for a Multiple Choice Quiz
- Change the Case of Text in PowerPoint Presentations
- Tips for Memorial PowerPoint Presentations
- 3 Ways to Delete a Blank Page in Word
PowerPoint Slide Show Shortcuts (50+ Keyboard Shortcuts)
Deliver a PowerPoint Presentation in Slide Show or Presenter View using Keyboard Shortcuts
by Avantix Learning Team | Updated September 14, 2023
Applies to: Microsoft ® PowerPoint ® 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021 and 365 (Windows)
You can use PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts when you are running a slide show to quickly move around in your PowerPoint presentation. Using your keyboard, you can move from slide to slide, jump to a specific slide or even change the screen to black or white.
Recommended article: 10 PowerPoint Slide Show Tips and Tricks
Do you want to learn more about PowerPoint? Check out our virtual classroom or live classroom PowerPoint courses >
Run a slide show
In Normal View or Slide Sorter View, to start a slide show from the beginning, press F5. To start a slide show from the current slide, press Shift + F5.
Exit a slide show
Move to the next slide or animation during a slide show.
To go to the next slide or animation, press the right arrow, down arrow, spacebar, Page Down or N.
Move to the previous slide or animation during a slide show
To go to the previous slide or animation, press the left arrow, up arrow or Page Up or P.
Move to a specific slide during a slide show by title
To go to a specific slide by title during a slide show:
- In Slide Show mode, press Ctrl + S. A dialog box appears with slides and their titles (as they appear in the title placeholders).
- Use the up and down arrow keys to navigate to the desired slide in the dialog box.
- Press Enter to select the slide.
Move to a specific slide during a slide show by number
In Slide Show mode, type the number of the slide you wish to display and press Enter.
Make your screen black or white during a slide show
In Slide Show mode, press B for black screen or W for white screen. Press any key to return to the slide show.
Show or hide the mouse pointer or laser pointer
In Slide Show mode, to display the mouse pointer or arrow, press Ctrl + A. To hide the mouse pointer, press Ctrl + H.
To display the laser pointer, press Ctrl + L. Press ESC to hide it.
Show or hide the pen, highlighter or eraser
In Slide Show mode, press Ctrl + P to display the pen or Ctrl + I to display the highlighter. Drag over the slide to draw (ink annotation). Press ESC to turn them off.
Press Ctrl + E to display the eraser and you can drag over the ink annotation to erase it. You can also press E to erase all.
Show or hide ink markup
To show or hide ink markup, press Ctrl + M.
Zoom in or out
In Slide Show mode, to zoom in or out, press = or – on the top right of the keyboard. The = key is also the + key on the top right of the keyboard.
Access the context menu during a slide show
To access the context menu during a slide show (comparable to right-clicking):
- Press Shift + F10 (some users may need to press Shift + Fn + F10) or press the Context button on your keyboard (if you have one). The Context button usually appears near Ctrl and Alt on some keyboards.
- Use the up or down arrow keys to navigate through the menu or type the underlined letter of the command you want to select.
- Press Enter to select menu items if you have used the up and down arrows to navigate.
The Context key appears as a box with lines on some Windows keyboards:
Jump to hyperlinks during a slide show
To go to the first or next hyperlink on a slide, press Tab.
To go to the last or previous hyperlink on a slide, press Shift + Tab.
To perform a hyperlink action (perform the mouse-click behaviour), press Enter while a hyperlink is selected.
Play, pause and stop audio or video during a slide show
To start a video (assuming it is not set to start automatically), press Alt + P or Ctrl + spacebar.
To stop video playback, press Alt + Q.
To toggle between play and pause, press Alt + P.
To go to the next bookmark in a video, press Alt + End.
To go to the previous bookmark in a video, press Alt + Home.
To seek forward 3 seconds, press Alt + Shift + Page down.
To seek backward 3 seconds, press Alt + Shift + Page up.
To seek forward 0.25 seconds, then pause, press Alt + Shift + right arrow
To seek backward 0.25 seconds, then pause, press Alt + Shift + left arrow
To increase the volume, press Alt + up arrow.
To decrease the volume, press Alt + down arrow.
To mute the sound, press Alt + U.
To toggle the audio and subtitles menu, press Alt + J.
If you take some time to learn these PowerPoint slide show shortcuts, you'll be able to run your shows without a mouse and focus on your presentation.
Start and work in Presenter View
To start the presentation in Presenter View, press Alt + F5.
To cycle between Presenter View regions including the Header, tools below the slide and the Notes pane, press F6.
To cycle through tools within a Presenter View region, press Tab.
To scroll down one line in the Notes pane, press Ctrl + down arrow.
To scroll up one line in the Notes pane, press Ctrl + up arrow.
To scroll down one screen in the Notes pane, press Ctrl + Page Down.
To scroll up one screenful in the Notes pane, press Ctrl + Page Up.
To read the next line in the Notes pane, press Alt + A.
To read the previous line in the Notes pane, press Alt + Z.
To read the elapsed time, press Alt + W.
To read the next slide, animation or end of show, press Alt + Q.
To close Presenter View, press ESC.
Turn on live subtitles or captioning (365)
In Slide Show mode, press J.
PowerPoint will use artificial intelligence to create subtitles or captions. You will need PowerPoint 365 to use this feature. It does involve some setup to have the subtitles work well.
Press J again to turn off subtitles.
This article was originally published on April 10, 2016 and has been updated for clarity and content.
Subscribe to get more articles like this one
Did you find this article helpful? If you would like to receive new articles, JOIN our email list
More resources
How to Highlight Text in PowerPoint (5 Ways)
How to Hide and Unhide Slides in PowerPoint
How to Embed a YouTube Video in PowerPoint
Where to Find Free Images for Your PowerPoint Presentations
How to Insert Video in PowerPoint (from a File on Your PC of Shared Drive)
Related courses
Microsoft PowerPoint: Introduction
Microsoft PowerPoint: Intermediate / Advanced
Microsoft PowerPoint: Design for Non-Designers
Microsoft PowerPoint: Animations Bootcamp
VIEW MORE COURSES >
Our instructor-led courses are delivered in virtual classroom format or at our downtown Toronto location at 18 King Street East, Suite 1400, Toronto, Ontario, Canada (some in-person classroom courses may also be delivered at an alternate downtown Toronto location). Contact us at [email protected] if you'd like to arrange custom instructor-led virtual classroom or onsite training on a date that's convenient for you.
Copyright 2024 Avantix ® Learning
You may also like
10 Keyboard Shortcuts in PowerPoint's Outline View
The outline has been an integral part of Microsoft PowerPoint for many years. It is dynamically linked to slide placeholders and is organized in a hierarchical way.
How to Change the Thumbnail for a Video in PowerPoint (using the Poster Frame Tool)
If you have inserted a video on a PowerPoint slide, you can display a custom thumbnail (or Poster Frame) for the video during a slide show. The thumbnail will display when you run a PowerPoint slide show and disappears when you start the video. For most videos, the thumbnail that displays is the first frame of the video clip. You can use the Poster Frame command to display a different frame in the video clip or a picture from another source as a thumbnail. A picture thumbnail could be either an image or an icon.
How to Use the Built-in Laser Pointer in PowerPoint (with Shortcuts)
During a PowerPoint slide show, you can change your mouse into a laser pointer to focus attention on a specific area on your slide. You can show or hide the built-in laser pointer using keyboard shortcuts or by using the context menu.
MORE POWERPOINT ARTICLES >
Microsoft, the Microsoft logo, Microsoft Office and related Microsoft applications and logos are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in Canada, US and other countries. All other trademarks are the property of the registered owners.
Avantix Learning |18 King Street East, Suite 1400, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1C4 | Contact us at [email protected]
Our Courses
Avantix Learning courses are offered online in virtual classroom format or as in-person classroom training. Our hands-on, instructor-led courses are available both as public scheduled courses or on demand as a custom training solution.
All Avantix Learning courses include a comprehensive course manual including tips, tricks and shortcuts as well as sample and exercise files.
VIEW COURSES >
Contact us at [email protected] for more information about any of our courses or to arrange custom training.
Privacy Overview
Pin it on pinterest.
- Print Friendly
The Best Microsoft PowerPoint Keyboard Shortcuts
Microsoft Office PowerPoint is still commonly used for creating graphic presentations in corporate and education all over the world. Millions of people use it on a daily basis. Although it’s fairly software, creating a presentation takes time. So why not speed up the process and use Powerpoint keyboard shortcuts to improve your workflow?
The list of shortcuts presented here is only a small portion of all the shortcuts available. In this article, we try to keep only to the most frequently used keyboard PowerPoint shortcuts. Other shortcuts might be more task-specific and useful in only a handful of situations, so we won’t bother with them.
Keep in mind that these shortcuts will work in all PowerPoint versions. You don’t have to install the latest version in order to use them.
That said, make sure to also check out our articles on the best Microsoft Word keyboard shortcuts and the best Microsoft Excel keyboard shortcuts to become a Microsoft Office power user.
1. General PowerPoint Keyboard Shortcuts
These PowerPoint shortcut keys will help you navigate the ribbon, open and close presentations, or switch between multiple presentations. You might already be familiar with some of them as they are the same as the shortcuts used in other apps or web browsers.
2. Selecting and Navigating through PowerPoint Presentation
This group of shortcut keys will help you quickly move through the whole presentation and select the text, boxes, slides, or only certain objects within the slides. Instead of using your mouse, opt for keyboard shortcuts, it will save you a lot of time.
3. Formatting and Editing the PowerPoint Presentation
After you are done creating a presentation, you can concentrate on making it look good. Format your PowerPoint presentation or edit it quickly with these keyboard shortcuts. Also, remember you can always get started with a professional PowerPoint template to save even more time.
4. Delivering Your Presentation
Once you’re satisfied with how your PowerPoint presentation turned out, it’s time to deliver it to your coworkers, boss, or teacher. These keyboard shortcuts will help you look professional.
Use Keyboard Shortcuts
Keep in mind the PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts above are primarily for Windows machines. However, most of them are similar on the Mac as well. While on Windows you need to press Ctrl for most shortcuts, on Mac you will press the Cmd (Command) key instead.
PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts are essential for improving the efficiency of your workflow and you should learn at least the basic ones. However, you will, in time, remember the ones you use the most.
If you find it helpful, you can even print out this list of Powerpoint keyboard shortcuts, and keep it handy next to your workstation. That way you can cast a glance and use the appropriate shortcut at any time.
Nicolae is a Jack of all trades technology writer with a focus on hardware, programming languages, and AI image-processing software. Over the last five years, he has ghostwritten numerous tech how-to guides and books on a variety of topics ranging from Linux to C# programming and game development. Nicolae loves everything that has to do with technology and his goal is to share his knowledge and experience with others. Read Nicolae's Full Bio
Read More Posts:
- Generative AI
- Office Suites
- Collaboration Software
- Productivity Software
- Augmented Reality
- Emerging Technology
- Remote Work
- Artificial Intelligence
- Operating Systems
- IT Leadership
- IT Management
- IT Operations
- Cloud Computing
- Computers and Peripherals
- Data Center
- Enterprise Applications
- Vendors and Providers
- Enterprise Buyer’s Guides
- United States
- Netherlands
- United Kingdom
- New Zealand
- Newsletters
- Foundry Careers
- Terms of Service
- Privacy Policy
- Cookie Policy
- Copyright Notice
- Member Preferences
- About AdChoices
- E-commerce Affiliate Relationships
- Your California Privacy Rights
Our Network
- Network World
Handy PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts for Windows and Mac
Whether you’re creating a presentation or giving one, you can do it more efficiently with the help of keyboard shortcuts in the microsoft powerpoint desktop app for windows or macos..
PowerPoint’s Ribbon interface is great for finding everything you might ever want to do in the presentation package — particularly things you don’t do frequently, like using the rehearse timing feature.
But if you’re looking to do common tasks fast, you’ll find keyboard shortcuts far more useful. Why bother to lift your hands from the keyboard if you want to open or close a presentation, apply formatting, or start a presentation?
There are keyboard shortcuts to accomplish a vast array of tasks in the PowerPoint desktop client, in both the Windows and Mac versions. (Fewer shortcuts are available for the Mac, but you can create your own custom keyboard shortcuts if you like.)
We’ve listed the shortcuts we’ve found the most useful below. Most work whether you’re using a subscription (Microsoft 365/Office 365) or non-subscription version of PowerPoint. For even more shortcuts, see Microsoft’s Office site, which lists shortcuts for creating and delivering a presentation.
Note: On Macs, the ⌘ key is the same as the Command or Cmd key.
Useful PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts
Looking for more help with PowerPoint for Windows? If you have Microsoft 365 or Office 365 subscription, see “ PowerPoint for Microsoft 365 cheat sheet .” If you have a non-subscription version of Office, see “ PowerPoint 2016 and 2019 cheat sheet .” We’ve also got cheat sheets for an array of other Microsoft products , including older versions of Office.
Related content
What we're expecting from ios 18, siri, and genai, windows 11 insider previews: what’s in the latest build, office 365: a guide to the updates, google spaces cheat sheet: how to get started, from our editors straight to your inbox.
Preston Gralla is a contributing editor for Computerworld , a blogger for ITworld, and the author of more than 45 books, including NOOK Tablet: The Missing Manual (O'Reilly 2012) and How the Internet Works (Que, 2006).
More from this author
Windows 11: a guide to the updates, windows 10: a guide to the updates, most popular authors.
Show me more
Privacy policies have gone insane. doubt it consider instacart.
Within two years, 90% of organizations will suffer a critical tech skills shortage
Google partners with Magic Leap on mixed reality development
Podcast: Why computing now feels like ‘disposable technology’
Podcast: The AI hype squad hits some major bumps
Why are people still bad at video calls?
Why computing now feels like ‘disposable technology’
The AI hype squad hits some major bumps
Microsoft PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts
Below is a listing of common shortcut keys in Microsoft PowerPoint . See the computer shortcuts page if you're looking for a list of shortcut keys used in other programs. Please be aware that some shortcuts may not work in all versions of Microsoft PowerPoint.
If the device you are using does not have function keys (F1-F12) on its keyboard, like a Chromebook , certain shortcuts are unavailable to you.
Some Microsoft PowerPoint shortcut keys listed below may not work in PowerPoint 365.
Also utilize the mouse to perform some common actions. The following section contains examples of mouse shortcuts.
Related information
- Microsoft Word keyboard shortcuts.
- Microsoft Excel keyboard shortcuts.
- Top 10 keyboard shortcuts everyone should know.
- Microsoft PowerPoint help and support.
How-To Geek
How to start a powerpoint slideshow.
Let the slideshow begin!
Quick Links
Start a slideshow in powerpoint's desktop app, start a slideshow in powerpoint's web app, start a slideshow in powerpoint's mobile app, key takeaways.
To start a PowerPoint slideshow on your desktop, open your slideshow and click "Start Slide Show" in the "Slide Show" tab. If you're using the web app, select "From Beginning" in the "Slide Show" tab. On mobile, simply tap the Monitor icon at the top of your screen.
There's nothing quite like finishing a presentation after spending hours getting it just right. Now, show off your hard work by starting your Microsoft PowerPoint slideshow on desktop, web, and mobile using the methods below.
Related: How (and Why) to Start Microsoft PowerPoint from the Command Prompt
To play a slideshow in PowerPoint's desktop app, all you have to do is click an option or press a shortcut on your keyboard .
Start the process by opening your presentation with PowerPoint. Then, in the app's ribbon at the top, select the "Slide Show" tab.
In the "Slide Show" tab, from the "Start Slide Show" section, choose "From Beginning" (or press F5). Now your presentation will play from the very first slide.
If you'd like to start the slideshow from your current slide, choose the "From Current Slide" option. Alternatively, press Shift+F5 on your keyboard.
While your presentation is playing, you can perform various tasks, like moving to the next slide or ending the show. You can reveal these options by right-clicking anywhere on the slide.
Alternatively, you can use the following keyboard shortcuts while viewing your slideshow:
- Spacebar or Right Arrow Button: Go to the next slide in the presentation.
- Left Arrow Button: Go to the previous slide in the presentation.
- Esc: End the show.
- W: Hide your current slide and display a white screen. Press the same key again to bring back the slide's content.
- B: Hide your current slide and display a black screen. Revert back to the slide's content by pressing the same button.
- Ctrl+Left Mouse Button: Activate the laser point tool to point at things in your slides.
- Ctrl+P: Launch the pen tool to annotate your slide's content during your show. You can choose if you'd like to keep these annotations when you end the show.
- Ctrl+i: Access the highlighter tool to highlight items in your slides.
If you'd like to jump to a specific slide while presenting, press that slide's number on your keyboard and hit Enter. For example, press 12 and hit Enter to access that slide quickly.
To access the Presenter view, where you can see the upcoming slides and other options, right-click anywhere on your slide and choose "Show Presenter View."
With these options, you can start a slideshow and have it play exactly how you want.
To play a slideshow on the web, launch your preferred web browser and access PowerPoint on the web . Then, open your presentation.
From PowerPoint's ribbon at the top, select the "Slide Show" tab.
In the "Slide Show" tab, start your slideshow from the first slide by clicking the "From Beginning" option. To have your show play from your current slide, choose "From Current Slide."
Your presentation is now playing.
To reveal the options for moving slides, annotating items, and using Presenter Coach , bring your cursor to your screen's bottom-left corner. Then, click the appropriate icon.
Related: How to Practice Your Presentations with PowerPoint's Presenter Coach
To start a slideshow in the PowerPoint mobile app , launch the app on your phone and open your presentation.
On the presentation screen, at the top, tap the Monitor icon to play the slideshow.
Your presentation has now begun.
To move to the next slide, swipe left on your screen. To go to the previous slide, swipe right.
You can reveal PowerPoint's presentation options, like annotation and black screen tools, by tapping at the top of your presentation. Then, choose the option you'd like to use.
And that's it. Happy presenting!
Want to learn a few tips to help you make the best PowerPoint presentations ? If so, check out our guide.
Related: 8 Tips to Make the Best PowerPoint Presentations
Stack Exchange Network
Stack Exchange network consists of 183 Q&A communities including Stack Overflow , the largest, most trusted online community for developers to learn, share their knowledge, and build their careers.
Q&A for work
Connect and share knowledge within a single location that is structured and easy to search.
How to assign a keyboard shortcut for a powerpoint macro
I had written a VBA code for powerpoint to go to a specific slide while editing the slides.
However, I was unable to bind that to a shortcut key (I wanted to bind it to Ctrl+G ).
Now I have pulled the macro to Quick Access Toolbar(QAT) for quick access - which I do not like. In order to keep it consistent with Excel, I want to use a general shortcut (especially Ctrl+G ) to navigate to a particular slide
- microsoft-powerpoint-2013
- This helped me call a PowerPoint macro from the Quick Access Toolbar button or keyboard hotkey: stackoverflow.com/a/27524016/470749 – Ryan Jun 2, 2019 at 20:10
2 Answers 2
You can assign macros to ALT + Number (Alt + 1, Alt + 2, ...)
On PowerPoint go to "Customize quick access toolbar"
Customize quick access toolbar
Choose "More commends"
On the top middle part under "Choose Commands from" change form "Popular commends" to "Macros".
Choose the macro you'd like to use and click "Add >>"
Now, change the order of the list on the right with the up/down buttons on the right.
If you put your macro on the 2nd place (for example) then after clicking Ok, you'll be able to use it with ALT + 2
- Thanks this is amazing! – luisgepeto May 6, 2020 at 22:40
- Possible to make such macros work & shortcut-launchable also in presentation mode? – FlorianH Jul 3, 2021 at 8:51
PowerPoint does not support this, unfortunately. There exists at least one commercial AddOn that adds the shortcut capability (see this post ).
Otherwise, you could use a scripting tool like AutoHotkey (Windows only) to send a sequence of key strokes that would invoke your macro. For instance, this script will invoke a macro called "setFontCalibri" whenever Ctrl-G is pressed:
Just make sure the Developer Tab is visible in the Ribbon and it should work... The Sleep lines are necessary, otherwise keystrokes are sent too fast. But you can try changing 50 ms to more or less, depending on your machine's responsiveness.
For instructions on how to run (and optionnaly compile) the script, please refer to Autohotkey's website.
Note: The key combination to execute the macro is to be confirmed, since I use a non-english version of MS-Office 2010, but I think it doesn't vary from a language (or version) to another so it may work as it is.
You must log in to answer this question.
Not the answer you're looking for browse other questions tagged vba microsoft-powerpoint-2013 ..
- The Overflow Blog
- Can software startups that need $$$ avoid venture capital?
- How to prevent your new chatbot from giving away company secrets
- Featured on Meta
- Testing a new version of Stack Overflow Jobs
Hot Network Questions
- A Crossworm Puzzle
- Book about a homeless guy who interacts with an intelligent rat -- new or something from long ago?
- What exactly is a Morita invariant property for rings?
- Semme a Cardiff you go there!
- Wall of Force: how you can entrap moving creatures?
- Why does Egypt want Israel to withdraw from the Gazan side of the Rafah crossing?
- Cellular Automata Rule 30
- How do you determine the price at which it's better to sell this asset instead of renting it out?
- Should order numbers be guessable?
- What are the wires and hardware behind these blank wall plates?
- Is it possible to tell what aircraft this is?
- Are there any *real* reasons not to long hold leveraged ETFS like TQQQ?
- What's the one digit you can fill in this partially hidden Sudoku?
- Do point of use water heaters shut off automatically in the inlet temperature is too hot
- TikZ for reproduceable hex random numbers
- Falsifying Business Records Unanimous Jury
- How can a point source emit spherical EM waves when they are forbidden by Maxwell's equations?
- C++ static vector implementation
- Is my new M5100 rear derailleur bent, or are they not in line by design?
- What is the translation of inline in French?
- How many photons are received per bit transmitted from Voyager 1?
- Can a person be compelled to violate their religious beliefs if those beliefs are racist?
- Safe to remove wall separation between two closets?
- Is it ever more appropriate to use "incessant" over "constant"?
Byte Bite Bit
What Is the Slide Sorter View in PowerPoint? A Guide for Efficient Presentation Management
Slide Sorter View in PowerPoint: A Game-Changer for Presentation Organization
Most of us have been there: staring at a seemingly endless list of slides, unsure how to make them flow perfectly. This is where PowerPoint’s Slide Sorter View comes in handy. Slide Sorter View offers a bird’s eye view of all your slides, neatly arranged as thumbnails , letting you easily drag and drop to rearrange them. It’s accessible via the View tab on the ribbon or the status bar at the bottom of the presentation window.
Imagine trying to sort through a stack of photographs shuffled together. Now imagine having those photos neatly laid out in front of you, allowing you to quickly sort, organize, and even zoom in to examine details. That’s exactly what Slide Sorter View does for your slide deck. Seeing all the slides at once not only helps in identifying logical sequences but also in spotting any redundancies or gaps. In comparison to Normal View, where slides are listed one below the other, this perspective can save significant time and effort.
Whether you’re finalizing a major business presentation or a fun slideshow for a family event, mastering Slide Sorter View can make the process ten times smoother. With the added ability to zoom in and out of thumbnails, we get a more inclusive sense of our presentation’s structure. By utilizing this versatile view, we can ensure our slides are not just a random collection, but a coherent story ready to impress our audience.
- 1.1 Adding and Removing Slides
- 1.2 Organizing Slides into Sections
- 1.3 Renaming and Deleting Sections
- 2.1 Using Slide Sorter to Enhance Design
- 2.2 Leveraging Views for Better Slide Management
- 3.1 Mastering Slide Management with Keyboard Shortcuts
- 3.2 Utilizing Context Menus for Efficiency
- 4 Conclusion
Creating and Managing Slides
In PowerPoint, efficiently managing and organizing your slides is crucial for creating cohesive and impactful presentations. We will cover key aspects such as adding slides, organizing them into sections, and managing these sections effectively.
Adding and Removing Slides
Adding new slides is as simple as a few clicks. We navigate to the Home tab and select New Slide . From there, we can choose our desired layout. Need to duplicate a slide? Right-click and select Duplicate Slide .
Removing slides is just as easy. Click on the slide you want to remove in the left pane, right-click, and choose Delete Slide .
These straightforward actions ensure that we can rapidly update our slide deck as needed without fuss.
Organizing Slides into Sections
Organizing slides into sections can significantly streamline navigation, especially with many slides in the presentation. In the Slide Sorter view, we right-click between slides and select Add Section . This allows us to create sections to logically group content.
Once we have sections, we can rename them to ensure clarity. Click on the section title, type the new name, and press Enter . This helps keep everything organized and easy to find.
Tip: Use sections for different topics or chapters to enhance structure and flow.
Renaming and Deleting Sections
Renaming sections is essential for maintaining clarity. We can rename a section by right-clicking on the section header and selecting Rename Section . Enter the new name and hit Enter .
Deleting sections is just as important for keeping our presentation tidy. To remove a section, right-click on the section header and select Remove Section . This action doesn’t delete the slides within; it simply eliminates the section header.
These tools ensure our presentation remains clean, organized, and professional.
Effective Presentation Design
Creating a compelling presentation involves not only content but also the design and organization of your slides. By incorporating the Slide Sorter view in PowerPoint, we can refine these aspects efficiently.
Using Slide Sorter to Enhance Design
The Slide Sorter view is crucial for effective design. It allows us to see an overview of all our slides as thumbnails, making it easier to identify areas that need improvement.
Imagine a book with chapters out of order – chaotic, right? Similarly, if our slides aren’t logically arranged, the audience may get lost. By dragging and dropping slides into a new sequence, we ensure a smooth narrative flow.
Tip: Use Slide Sorter to preview transitions and animations across slides.
Zooming in and out can also help fine-tune visual elements, ensuring that text and images are consistently aligned.
Leveraging Views for Better Slide Management
PowerPoint offers multiple views to optimize design and organization. The Slide Sorter is our best friend when we need to categorize or group related slides.
We can quickly reorganize content by dragging individual or multiple slides. For instance, if a slide on “market analysis” fits better after the “financial summary” slide, we can simply reposition it.
Task Bar and View Tab options also let us swiftly switch between different layouts, offering a versatile approach to tweaking our slides before the final presentation.
Effective use of these views can transform scattered ideas into a coherent, professional slideshow.
Advanced PowerPoint Features
Optimizing your use of PowerPoint’s advanced features can significantly enhance your presentations. Among these, mastering keyboard shortcuts and utilizing context menus for slide management are critical skills.
Mastering Slide Management with Keyboard Shortcuts
Efficient slide management often hinges on our ability to navigate and modify presentations swiftly using keyboard shortcuts. In PowerPoint 2016, 2013, 2019, and PowerPoint for Microsoft 365, several handy shortcuts streamline our workflow.
For instance, to quickly duplicate a slide, we can press Ctrl + D . This action instantly creates a copy of the selected slide without navigating through multiple menus. Moving slides is also simplified with Ctrl + Up Arrow or Ctrl + Down Arrow to move a slide up or down the sequence.
To quickly jump to the Slide Sorter view, the shortcut Alt + V followed by D works wonders. Once in Slide Sorter, using the Arrow Keys to navigate between slides allows us to maintain our focus without reaching for the mouse.
Knowing these shortcuts not only saves time but also helps us stay organized and focused on the bigger picture of our presentation.
Utilizing Context Menus for Efficiency
Context menus are invaluable for efficient slide management. By right-clicking on a slide, we access a plethora of options tailored to the selected element, reducing the need to dig through menus.
In PowerPoint 2016, 2013, 2019, and PowerPoint for Microsoft 365, right-clicking within Slide Sorter view opens options such as Cut, Copy, Paste , and Duplicate Slide . These contextual options offer a streamlined approach to rearranging and modifying slides quickly.
We can also change the layout of a slide directly from the context menu. Selecting Layout from the right-click menu provides a quick way to apply different templates without navigating to the ribbon.
These context menus help in performing repetitive tasks more efficiently, ensuring our presentations are not only well-organized but also professionally polished.
Slide Sorter view in Microsoft PowerPoint is incredibly useful for organizing our presentations.
We can view all slides at once and quickly rearrange their order by dragging and dropping. This feature isn’t just available on Windows—we also find it in PowerPoint for the web and Mac.
This tool helps us manage large presentations. Whether we’re adding, copying, or removing slides, the process is straightforward.
Visit support pages or watch tutorial videos to get the hang of it. PowerPoint professionals and beginners alike will find this view indispensable for creating polished presentations.
Using the Slide Sorter view effectively can make a big difference. We save time, and our presentations look more cohesive. This view is a game-changer for anyone serious about using PowerPoint.
Related posts:
- How to Do Hanging Indent on PowerPoint: Step-by-Step Formatting Guide
- How to Save PowerPoint as Video: Step-by-Step Guide for Beginners
- How to Make a Picture a Circle in PowerPoint: Step-by-Step Guide
- How to Print Notes in PowerPoint: A Step-by-Step Guide
- How to Embed Excel into PowerPoint: A Step-by-Step Guide
- How to Add Hyperlink in PowerPoint: A Step-by-Step Guide
- How to Add Notes to PowerPoint: A Step-by-Step Guide for Enhanced Presentations
- How to Do Hanging Indent on PowerPoint: Step-by-Step Guide
- How to Make a PowerPoint Slide Vertical: Step-by-Step Guide
- How to Edit Background Graphics in PowerPoint: Step-by-Step Guide for Effective Presentations
- How to Create a Flow Chart in PowerPoint: A Step-by-Step Guide
- How to Create an Org Chart in PowerPoint: A Step-by-Step Guide
Leave a Comment Cancel reply
Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.
Retrace your steps with Recall
Search across time to find the content you need. Then, re-engage with it. With Recall, you have an explorable timeline of your PC’s past. Just describe how you remember it and Recall will retrieve the moment you saw it. Any photo, link, or message can be a fresh point to continue from. As you use your PC, Recall takes snapshots of your screen. Snapshots are taken every five seconds while content on the screen is different from the previous snapshot. Your snapshots are then locally stored and locally analyzed on your PC. Recall’s analysis allows you to search for content, including both images and text, using natural language. Trying to remember the name of the Korean restaurant your friend Alice mentioned? Just ask Recall and it retrieves both text and visual matches for your search, automatically sorted by how closely the results match your search. Recall can even take you back to the exact location of the item you saw.
Note: Recall is optimized for select languages (English, Chinese (simplified), French, German, Japanese, and Spanish. Content-based and storage limitations apply. For more information, see https://aka.ms/nextgenaipcs .
System requirements for Recall
Your PC needs the following minimum system requirements for Recall:
A Copilot+ PC
8 logical processors
256 GB storage capacity
To enable Recall, you’ll need at least 50 GB of storage space free
Saving screenshots automatically pauses once the device has less than 25 GB of storage space
How to use Recall
To open Recall, use the keyboard shortcut Windows logo key +J , or select the following Recall icon on your taskbar:
Your timeline in Recall is broken up into segments, which are the blocks of time that Recall was taking snapshots while you were using your PC. You can hover over your timeline to review your activity in a preview window. Selecting the location on the timeline or selecting the preview window loads the snapshot where you can interact with the content .
Search with Recall
Maybe you wanted to make that pizza recipe you saw earlier today but you don’t remember where you saw it. Typing goat cheese pizza into the search box would easily find the recipe again. You could also search for pizza or cheese if you didn’t remember the specific type of pizza or cheese. Less specific searches are likely to bring up more matches though. If you prefer to search using your voice, you can select the microphone then speak your search query.
By default, results are shown from all apps where Recall found matches. You can narrow down your results by filtering the matches to a specific app by selecting an app from the list.
When the results are displayed, they will be listed under the headings of text matches and visual matches . Matches that are closer to your search are shown first. You’ll also notice that some items are listed as one of the following types of matches:
Close match : Close matches typically include at least one of the search terms or images that are representative of a term in your query.
Related match : Matches that share a commonality with the search terms would be considered related. For instance, if you searched for goat cheese pizza , you might also get related matches that include lasagna or cannelloni since they are Italian dishes too.
Interacting with content
Once you’ve found the item you want to see again, select the tile. Recall opens the snapshot and enables screenray, which runs on top of the saved snapshot. Screenray analyzes what’s in the snapshot and allows you to interact with individual elements in the snapshot. You’ll notice that when screenray is active, your cursor is blue and white. The cursor also changes shape depending on the type of element beneath it. What you can do with each element changes based on what kind of content screenray detects. If you select a picture in the snapshot, you can copy, edit with your default .jpeg app such as Photos , or send it to another app like the Snipping Tool or Paint . When you highlight text with screenray, you can open it in a text editor or copy it. For example, you might want to copy the text of a recipe’s ingredients list to convert it to metric.
Note: When you use an option that sends snapshot content to an app, screenray creates a temporary file in C:\Users\[username]\AppData\Local\Temp in order to share the content. The temporary file is deleted once the content is transferred over the app you selected to use.
Below your selected snapshot, you have more snapshot options. In many cases, you can have Recall take you back to exact location of the item, such as reopening the webpage, PowerPoint presentation, or app that was running at the time the snapshot was taken. You can also hide screenray, copy the snapshot, delete the snapshot, or select … for more snapshot options.
Pause or resume snapshots
To pause recall, select the Recall icon in the system tray then Pause until tomorrow . Snapshots will be paused until they automatically resume at 12:00 AM. When snapshots are paused, the Recall system tray icon has a slash through it so you can easily tell if snapshots are enabled. To manually resume snapshots, select the Recall icon in the system tray and then select Resume snapshots . You can also access the Recall & snapshots settings page from the bottom of this window.
What if I don’t want Recall to save information from certain websites or apps?
You are in control with Recall. You can select which apps and websites you want to exclude, such as banking apps and websites. You’ll need to use a supported browser for Recall to filter websites and to automatically filter private browsing activity. Supported browsers, and their capabilities include:
Microsoft Edge: blocks websites and filters private browsing activity
Firefox: blocks websites and filters private browsing activity
Opera: blocks websites and filters private browsing activity
Google Chrome: blocks websites and filters private browsing activity
Chromium based browsers: For Chromium-based browsers not listed above, filters private browsing activity only, doesn’t block specific websites
To exclude a website:
Select … then Settings to open the Recall & snapshots settings page.
You can also go to Windows Settings > Privacy & Security > Recall & Snapshots to manage Recall.
Select Add website for the Websites to filter setting.
Type the website you want to filter into the text box. Select Add to add it to the websites to filter list.
To exclude an app:
Select … then Settings to open the Recall & snapshots settings page
Select Add app for the Apps to filter setting.
From the app list, select the app you want to filter from Recall snapshots.
In two specific scenarios, Recall will capture snapshots that include InPrivate windows, blocked apps, and blocked websites. If Recall gets launched, or the Now option is selected in Recall, then a snapshot is taken even when InPrivate windows, blocked apps, and blocked websites are displayed. However, these snapshots are not saved by Recall. If you choose to send the information from this snapshot to another app, a temp file will also be created in C:\Users\[username]\AppData\Local\Temp to share the content. The temporary file is deleted once the content is transferred over the app you selected to use.
Managing your Recall snapshots and disk space
You can configure how much disk space Recall is allowed to use to store snapshots. The amount of disk space you can allocate to Recall varies depending on how much storage your PC has. The following chart shows the storage space options for Recall:
You can change the amount of disk space used or delete snapshots from the Recall & snapshots settings page.
To change the storage space limit:
1. Expand the Storage settings.
2. Change the Maximum storage for snapshots limit by choosing the limit from the drop-down list. When the limit is reached, the oldest snapshots are deleted first.
To delete snapshots:
Expand the Delete snapshots settings.
You can choose to delete all snapshots or snapshots withing a specific timeframe.
To delete all snapshots, select Delete all .
To delete snapshots from a specific timeframe, select a timeframe from the drop-down list, then select Delete snapshots.
Keyboard shortcuts for Recall
You can use the following keyboard shortcuts in recall:, when interacting with a snapshot with screenray, you can use the following keyboard shortcuts:, microsoft’s commitment to responsible ai and privacy.
Microsoft has been working to advance AI responsibly since 2017, when we first defined our AI principles and later operationalized our approach through our Responsible AI Standard. Privacy and security are principles as we develop and deploy AI systems. We work to help our customers use our AI products responsibly, sharing our learnings, and building trust-based partnerships. For more about our responsible AI efforts, the principles that guide us, and the tooling and capabilities we've created to assure that we develop AI technology responsibly, see Responsible AI .
Recall uses optical character recognition (OCR), local to the PC, to analyze snapshots and facilitate search. For more information about OCR, see Transparency note and use cases for OCR . For more information about privacy and security, see Privacy and security for Recall & screenray .
We want to hear from you!
If there's something you like, and especially if there's something you don't like, about Recall you can submit feedback to Microsoft by selecting … then the Feedback icon in Recall to submit feedback on any issues that you run into.
Need more help?
Want more options.
Explore subscription benefits, browse training courses, learn how to secure your device, and more.
Microsoft 365 subscription benefits
Microsoft 365 training
Microsoft security
Accessibility center
Communities help you ask and answer questions, give feedback, and hear from experts with rich knowledge.
Ask the Microsoft Community
Microsoft Tech Community
Windows Insiders
Microsoft 365 Insiders
Was this information helpful?
Thank you for your feedback.
IMAGES
VIDEO
COMMENTS
To do this. Press. Start a presentation from the beginning. F5. Start a presentation from the current slide. Shift+F5. Start the presentation in Presenter View. Alt+F5. Perform the next animation or advance to the next slide.
Press Shift+F5. 3. Start the presentation in Presenter View using a function key. Press Alt + F5. 4. Start a presentation from the beginning using key tips. Press Alt > S > B (press Alt, then S, then B). 5. Start a presentation from the current slide using key tips.
If this happens to you often, these are the PowerPoint shortcuts you need for a quick text alignment before starting your slide show: Use "Ctrl + J" to justify your text. Press "Ctrl+E" to center the text. Use "Ctrl+L" for left alignment. Press "Ctrl+R" to right-align your text.
Frequently used shortcuts. The following table itemizes the most frequently used shortcuts in PowerPoint. To do this. Press. Create new presentation. Ctrl+N. Add a new slide. Ctrl+M. Apply bold formatting to the selected text.
Ctrl+L: Left align a paragraph. Ctrl+R: Right align a paragraph. Ctrl+T: Open the Font dialog box when text or object is selected. Alt+W,Q: Open the Zoom dialog box to change the zoom for the slide. Alt+N,P: Insert a picture. Alt+H,S,H: Insert a shape. Alt+H,L: Select a slide layout. Ctrl+K: Insert a hyperlink.
Open a presentation: Press Ctrl + O to open an existing PowerPoint presentation. Create a new presentation: Press Ctrl + N to create a new presentation. Add a new slide: Press Ctrl + M to add a ...
Action. PowerPoint Shortcuts. Highlight and Promote the paragraph. Alt + Shift + Left Arrow key. Highlight and Demote the paragraph. Alt + Shift + Right Arrow key. Move up paragraph. Alt + Shift + Up Arrow key. Move down paragraph.
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.
Apply Character Formatting. This set of shortcuts will help us to edit our copy text in PowerPoint slides. Open the Font dialogue box: CTRL + T / CMD + T. Apply bold formatting: CTRL + B / CMD + B. Apply an underline: CTRL + U / CMD + U. Apply italic formatting: CTRL + I / CMD + I. Apply subscript formatting: CTRL + = / CMD + =.
PowerPoint Duplicate Slideshow - New Feature A brand new keyboard shortcut in PowerPoint 2013 and PowerPoint 2016 is the CTRL + SHIFT + N shortcut, which creates a new duplicate slideshow, or presentation, of the one you are currently working in. So if you find a presentation that you want to quickly copy and tweak, in PowerPoint 2013 or 2016 (same thing as Office 365) just CTRL + SHIFT + N ...
Shift+F5. To begin the slideshow from the current slide, press Shift+F5. In other words, press the Shift and F5 keys at the same time. 3. Spacebar, N, or Right Arrow. When you are ready to advance to the next slide or perform the next animation, you can press any of the following: the Spacebar, the N key, or the right arrow key. 4.
Hitting Ctrl + F1 once collapses your Ribbon commands into the top of your screen, giving you more uncluttered workspace in PowerPoint. Hitting CTRL + F1 a second time un-collapses your Ribbon commands. This is Microsoft Office shortcut, so it works in PowerPoint, Word, Excel, Outlook, etc. 80.
Run a slide show from the current slide: [Shift] + [F5] Help during slide show (displays PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts): [F1] Advance to the next slide (any of these): [Right], [Down], N (for Next), [Spacebar] , [Page Down] (or click the left mouse) Return to the previous slide (any of these): [Left], [Up], P (for Previous), [Backspace] , [Page ...
Ctrl + X: Deletes the text or object from the presentation and places it in the Clipboard. Ctrl + Y: Repeats the last command entered. Ctrl + Z: Undoes the last change. Ctrl + F6: Switches from one open PowerPoint presentation to another. Ctrl + Delete: Removes the word to the right of the cursor.
To scroll up one screenful in the Notes pane, press Ctrl + Page Up. To read the next line in the Notes pane, press Alt + A. To read the previous line in the Notes pane, press Alt + Z. To read the elapsed time, press Alt + W. To read the next slide, animation or end of show, press Alt + Q. To close Presenter View, press ESC.
Ctrl+Shift+Up Arrow. Move a slide to the beginning of the presentation. Ctrl+Shift+Down Arrow. Move a slide to the end of the presentation. Ctrl+A. Select all slides in a presentation (in slide sorter view), all texts in text boxes, or all objects on a slide. Tab. Move to the next object in the slide, or select it.
Esc or - (hyphen) or ⌘-. (period) Stop or restart an automatic presentation. S. Go to a specific slide. Slide number-Enter. Slide number-Return. Run the next animation or go to the next slide ...
Ctrl + C. Copy selected text. Ctrl + D. Insert a duplicate of the selected slide. Select the desired slide in the thumbnail pane on the left side of the PowerPoint program window, then press the Ctrl+D shortcut keys. Ctrl + E. Align the line or selected text to the center of the slide. Ctrl + F.
Alternatively, you can use the following keyboard shortcuts while viewing your slideshow: Spacebar or Right Arrow Button: Go to the next slide in the presentation.; Left Arrow Button: Go to the previous slide in the presentation. Esc: End the show. W: Hide your current slide and display a white screen. Press the same key again to bring back the slide's content.
In this step-by-step tutorial, learn how to use the best shortcut keys while in slideshow mode in Microsoft PowerPoint.0:00 Introduction1:30 W to set the scr...
Presentation shortcuts. Start presentation mode from the first slide: F5. Start presentation mode from the current slide: SHIFT + F5. Jump to slide in presentation mode: During the presentation, the user can jump to a specific slide without having to exit the presentation or use the up and down key by using the PowerPoint shortcut keys.
5. You can assign macros to ALT + Number (Alt + 1, Alt + 2, ...) On PowerPoint go to "Customize quick access toolbar". Customize quick access toolbar. Choose "More commends". On the top middle part under "Choose Commands from" change form "Popular commends" to "Macros". Choose the macro you'd like to use and click "Add >>".
PowerPoint professionals and beginners alike will find this view indispensable for creating polished presentations. Using the Slide Sorter view effectively can make a big difference. We save time, and our presentations look more cohesive. This view is a game-changer for anyone serious about using PowerPoint.
To open Recall, use the keyboard shortcut +J, or select the following Recall icon on your taskbar: Your timeline in Recall is broken up into segments, which are the blocks of time that Recall was taking snapshots while you were using your PC. You can hover over your timeline to review your activity in a preview window.