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12 Best Presentation Software for 2024

By Krystle Wong , Jan 12, 2024

Whether you’re a student, professional or entrepreneur, having access to the right presentation tools can make all the difference.

When you craft a well-executed presentation , your message becomes more memorable. You’re not just sharing information; you’re weaving a story, painting a picture and leaving a lasting impact on your audience’s minds. 

We’re living in the age of information overload, where attention spans are shorter than ever. A good presentation slide takes this into account, breaking down complex information into bite-sized chunks. It guides your audience through a logical flow, allowing them to digest information effortlessly and retain key points without feeling overwhelmed.

To help you stay ahead of the game, I’ve compiled a list of the 12 best software for presentations. These PowerPoint alternatives offer a combination of user-friendly interfaces, stunning visuals, collaboration features and innovative functionalities that will take your presentations to the next level. 

Let’s dive in and explore these top presentation software picks!

1. Venngage 

Allow me to be a little bit biased here but my top pick is none other than, you guessed it — Venngage! Venngage goes beyond just presentations to focus on data visualization and transforming complex information into visually appealing and engaging visuals. 

One of the standout features of Venngage as a presentation software is the extensive library of infographic elements. Gain access to a wide range of pre-designed elements such as icons, charts, maps as well as illustrations to simplify the process of creating data-driven and visually appealing presentations.

You don’t have to be a pro when designing with Venngage. Venngage’s drag-and-drop interface allows you to customize your presentations by simply dragging and dropping elements onto the canvas. You can tweak sizes, colors and layouts with ease, making your presentations visually cohesive and personalized, even if you’re not a design wizard. 

Just so you know, some of our features and templates are free to use and some require a small monthly fee. Sign-up is completely free, as is access to Venngage’s online drag-and-drop editor. Here’s how Venngage’s presentation maker can become your secret weapon in the quest for presentation success.

Vast selection of templates

Venngage boasts an extensive library of professionally designed templates, catering to a wide range of industries and presentation purposes. Whether you’re creating a marketing report, educational presentation or business pitch, Venngage’s presentation tool offers templates that provide a solid foundation for your designs. 

Save 20+ hours of designing with Venngage’s fully customizable, pre-designed infographic templates. These presentation templates provide a good foundation with well-structured layouts and visually appealing aesthetics. 

Data visualization made easy

Venngage simplifies the process of data visualization, making it accessible to users of all backgrounds. With a few clicks, you can transform dull statistics into visually engaging charts and graphs that tell a compelling story.

Seamless real-time in-editor collaboration tools

Venngage brings teamwork to the next level with our seamless collaboration tools designed to foster collaboration across teams, departments and the entire organization. Whether you’re in the same room or across the globe, Venngage enables real-time collaboration that makes working together becomes a breeze. 

Consistently brand your designs with smart Autobrand features

Effortlessly infuse your presentation slides with your brand’s colors, fonts and logos with Venngage’s My Brand Kit . Upload your brand assets and create engaging presentations by applying your branding to any template you create on Venngage.

Who is it for

Marketers, designers, educators and businesses that require data-driven and visually appealing presentations.

Key features 

Infographic elements, data visualization tools, collaboration options, customizable templates.

Create your first 5 designs with Venngage for free and upgrade to a premium or business plan for $10 USD/month per user and $24 USD/month per user to enjoy premium features. For larger teams who need extra support, controls and security, the enterprise plan starts from $499 USD/month for 10+ seats.

Additionally, there are also plans available for classrooms priced at $99 USD/year for up to 35 students per instructor. Non profit organizations can also apply for a nonprofit discount to any Venngage plan.

2. Microsoft PowerPoint

Source: Screenshot from Microsoft PowerPoint

Even with dozens of presentation software and tools out there, PowerPoint presentations have stood the test of time as one of the best presentation software. In fact, 89% of people still use PowerPoint presentations over competitor services . 

Whether you’re a student, teacher, business professional or just a creative soul, PowerPoint’s user-friendly interface allows both beginners and experienced users to create presentations with ease.

PowerPoint delivers captivating and engaging presentations through its advanced animation and transition effects. You can create interactive PowerPoint presentations by captivating your audience and guiding them through your content with seamless transitions and eye-catching animations. 

Seamless integration with other Microsoft Office tools is another significant advantage of PowerPoint as a presentation software. As part of the Microsoft Office suite, PowerPoint effortlessly integrates with other familiar applications such as Word and Excel. This integration allows you to incorporate charts, graphs and written content from these tools directly into your presentation. 

However, collaboration features in PowerPoint can be somewhat limited compared to dedicated collaboration platforms. While you can share and co-edit presentations with others, the collaboration options may not be as robust as those offered by specialized presentation tools.

Suitable for individuals, students, educators and businesses of all sizes.

Customizable templates, multimedia support, extensive slide editing options, robust animations and transitions.

You can subscribe to PowerPoint as part of your Microsoft 365 subscription with various plans tailored for businesses, ranging from $6 to $22 USD/month. Additionally, there is also the option to purchase an unbundled PowerPoint account separately, priced at $159.99 USD.

3. Google Slides

Source: Screenshot from Google Slides

Unlike PowerPoint which requires file sharing and manual syncing for teamwork, Google Slides enables real-time collaboration and easy access from any device with an internet connection. 

Google Slides shines in its seamless collaboration capabilities. Multiple users can work on the same presentation simultaneously, enabling real-time editing and fostering efficient teamwork. The integrated commenting feature on Google Slides allows for shared feedback and discussions, enhancing collaboration even further.

Google Slides’ cloud-based storage and auto-saving feature ensures that your work is constantly saved, minimizing the risk of losing progress or important changes. No more panicking over unsaved slides and changes. 

But that also means that Google Slides heavily relies on an internet connection for full functionality and access is more limited compared to desktop-based software. Although an offline mode is available, Google Slides has certain limitations and may not provide the same level of functionality as when connected to the internet.

Templates and customization features-wise, Google Slides also have fewer design options compared to other presentation tools. This may limit the level of visual creativity and flexibility for those seeking intricate designs or specialized effects.

Ideal for remote teams, educators, students and anyone looking for easy collaboration and access from any device.

Real-time collaboration, shared commenting, offline mode and built-in sharing options.

Google Slides is accessible to all individuals with a Google account at no cost, providing all users with access to its full range of features. However, for businesses and teams looking for additional organizational capabilities, there are subscription plans available ranging from $6 to $18 USD/month.

4. Keynote (for Mac users)

Source: Screenshot from Keynote

For Apple users, Keynote is a presentation tool designed exclusively for your Apple devices and is available on macOS, iOS and iPadOS. Keynote is known for its sleek and intuitive interface, reflecting Apple’s design aesthetics. 

It offers visually appealing templates, animations, and transitions, allowing users to create polished and modern-looking presentations. Keynote users can seamlessly incorporate images, videos, audio files and interactive elements into their presentations. The presentation software also includes a wide range of animations and transitions, enabling smooth and cinematic effects that bring slides to life.

Keynote presentations is known for its seamless integration within the Apple ecosystem. It works effortlessly with other Apple applications, allowing users to combine different elements and data from various sources. Presentations created in Keynote can be easily shared and accessed across Apple devices, ensuring a consistent experience for both the presenter and the audience.

Additionally, Keynote as a presentation software offers collaborative editing capabilities, enabling multiple users to work on the same presentation simultaneously. Users can share their presentations with others, who can then provide feedback, make edits and contribute to the project in real-time.

That said, since Keynote is exclusively designed for Apple devices, it may not be accessible or fully compatible with non-Apple platforms. Hence, sharing presentations created in Keynote with users on different platforms may require exporting or converting the files to a compatible format, which can lead to potential formatting issues or loss of certain features.

Mac users, creatives, professionals, educators and anyone who wants visually stunning presentations.

Elegant templates, advanced multimedia options, cinematic transitions and collaborative editing.

Keynote is available for free on Apple devices, including macOS, iOS, and iPadOS. As it comes pre-installed with these devices, users can access and use Keynote without any additional cost.

Source: Screenshot from Prezi

Known for its distinctive zooming presentation style, Prezi revolutionizes the way you create presentations by offering a visually engaging and non-linear approach. 

One of Prezi’s renowned features is its unique zooming and transition effects, allowing presenters to navigate through a virtual canvas seamlessly. This dynamic presentation style enhances engagement by creating a sense of movement and spatial relationship between ideas.

Moreover, Prezi offers cloud-based collaboration, making it easy for multiple users to collaborate on a presentation in real-time. This feature facilitates seamless teamwork, enabling users to collectively develop and refine their presentations regardless of their physical locations.

Prezi presentations also include interactive elements, such as embedded videos, images and hyperlinks. Utilizing these elements would allow presenters to create interactive presentations and engage their audience on a deeper level.

However, Prezi has a steeper learning curve compared to more traditional presentation tools. Users may require some time and practice to become proficient in navigating the canvas, creating smooth transitions and effectively utilizing all of Prezi’s features.

Creative professionals, educators and individuals who want to create visually captivating and non-linear presentations.

Zooming presentation style, interactive elements, cloud-based collaboration and reusable templates.

For individuals & business professionals

Basics: Create and share up to 5 visual projects for free

Standard: Starting at $5 USD/month

Plus: Starting at $12 USD/month

Premium: Starting at $16 USD/month

Teams: Starting at $19 USD/month per user (billed annually)

For Students & Educators

EDU Plus: Starting at $3/month

EDU Pro: Starting at $4/month

EDU Teams: Enquiry required with Prezi sales team

Source: Screenshot from Canva

One of the great things about Canva as a presentation tool is its user-friendly interface, which makes it super easy to use even if you’re not a design pro. You can simply drag and drop elements to create your presentation slides without breaking a sweat.

Canva’s vast collection of pre-designed templates caters to various purposes and occasions. The availability of these templates allows users to jumpstart their design projects with professional-looking layouts, saving valuable time and effort.

For businesses or educational institutions working on group projects or marketing campaigns, Canva also offers collaboration features that enhance teamwork and co-creation. Users can invite team members or clients to collaborate on a design project, enabling real-time feedback and efficient design processes. 

While Canva does offer some basic slide transition effects, the range and customization options for transitions may be limited compared to dedicated presentation software like Microsoft PowerPoint or Apple Keynote. 

Individuals, students, small businesses and startups seeking professional-looking marketing materials and presentations.

Extensive template options, intuitive drag-and-drop interface, ability to share presentations as downloadable files or online links and built-in multimedia support for adding videos , images, and audio to slides.

The free version of Canva provides a wide range of features and resources, with the only limitations being the use of premium resources that can be acquired either through separate purchases or by subscribing to the Canva Pro plan. The Canva Pro plan is available for $12.99 USD per month or $119.99 USD per year.

For collaborative purposes, Canva Teams is available at a price of $14.99 USD per month, with an additional charge of $14.99 USD per month for every team member beyond the initial five.

7. Adobe Express

Source: Screenshot from Adobe Express

As part of the Adobe Creative Cloud suite, Adobe Express is a presentation software that offers a simplified and user-friendly interface. With its intuitive interface, Adobe Express allows users to create visually stunning presentations with ease. Users can access both design professionals and individuals without extensive design experience.

One of the notable advantages of Adobe Express is its seamless integration with other Adobe products, such as Photoshop and Illustrator. This integration enables users to leverage the power of these industry-standard design tools within their presentations, providing access to advanced design features and a vast library of high-quality assets. 

Adobe Express is also great for creating interactive presentations. Its extensive multimedia support, allowing users to incorporate videos, audio files and interactive elements to keep your audience engaged.

That being said,  some of its advanced features may require familiarity with other Adobe tools, which can be challenging for beginners who are not already familiar with the Adobe Creative Cloud ecosystem.

Designers, creative professionals, individuals and businesses seeking professional-grade presentation design.

Professional design options, multimedia support, easy integration with other Adobe products and cloud-based collaboration.

While the free version for Adobe Express includes all the core features, users can gain access to premium templates and features when they upgrade to the Premium subscription for $9.99 USD/month. 

For businesses and teams, Adobe provides tailored plans that include additional features like collaboration tools, centralized license management and enterprise-level support. The pricing for these plans depends on the number of licenses and the specific needs of the organization. It’s best to consult with Adobe or their authorized resellers to get accurate pricing information for business plans.

8. Haiku Deck

Source: Haiku Deck

Haiku Deck is all about visual storytelling, offering a simple and minimalist approach to designing presentations. With its clean and minimalist templates, Haiku Deck makes it a breeze to create presentations that focus on eye-catching images.

Haiku Deck is a user-friendly presentation software that offers a straightforward and intuitive interface. It’s designed to be easily accessible on both computers and mobile devices, giving you the flexibility to create quick and practical presentations on the go.

Plus, the presentation tool seamlessly integrates with image search engines, making it a piece of cake to find and add high-quality visuals that enhance the overall look and feel of your presentation.

However,if you’re looking for advanced features like complex animations or interactive elements, you might not find them here. While the clean and minimalist templates are gorgeous, they don’t offer as much flexibility for customization.

Educators, individuals and professionals who appreciate the power of visual storytelling and minimalist design.

Image-focused templates, easy-to-use interface, cloud-based collaboration and seamless image search integration.

Haiku Deck offers a free trial that allows you to experience the software with one presentation. If you decide to upgrade, they have different pricing plans available. Additionally, Haiku Deck also offers special pricing to qualifying nonprofit organizations, students and educators.

The Pro plans are available at $9.99 per month with annual billing or $19.99 per month with monthly billing. For those seeking advanced features, the Premium plans are priced at $29.99 per month.

Source: Screenshot from Ludus

Ludus brings together the best of both worlds by offering the traditional slide deck format along with interactive and multimedia elements that take presentations to a whole new level.

The presentation software is rich in multimedia capabilities, allowing users to seamlessly integrate videos, audio and elements to create interactive presentations that captivate the audience.

Ludus offers unique presentation tools that enable users to incorporate interactive elements like clickable buttons, hover effects and embedded web content, enabling a more dynamic and engaging presentation experience. 

This makes Ludus a great choice for designers, creatives, marketing professionals, and anyone who wants to create interactive and visually appealing presentations that leave a lasting impression. Collaboration is another area where Ludus excels. The software offers collaborative editing, allowing multiple users to edit presentations simultaneously. 

However, it’s worth mentioning that Ludus has relatively limited templates compared to some other presentation software options. While the customization options are vast, users might find themselves starting from scratch or investing more time in creating the initial design. Additionally, for individuals new to the platform, there might be a learning curve involved in fully harnessing all of Ludus’ features and capabilities.

Designers, creatives, marketing professionals and anyone looking for interactive and visually appealing presentations.

Interactive and multimedia elements, collaborative editing, extensive design customization, real-time comments and feedback.

Ludus offers a starting price of $14.99 USD/month per user for teams consisting of 1-15 members with all features included. For larger teams requiring additional licenses, Ludus encourages reaching out for more information on pricing. It’s worth noting that Ludus provides a 30-day free trial, allowing users to explore the platform and its features before committing to a subscription.

10. Slidebean

Source: Screenshot from Slidebean

Slidebean offers a unique approach to slide design by automating the process and simplifying the creation of well-designed presentations. With its automation features, Slidebean streamlines the design process, saving users valuable time and effort.

The highlight of Slidebean is its automated slide design functionality. Using artificial intelligence (AI), the software generates visually appealing slide layouts based on the content provided. Slidebean also offers collaboration options, allowing multiple team members to work on a presentation simultaneously. 

Another advantage of Slidebean is its AI-powered content suggestions. The software intelligently analyzes the presentation content and provides helpful suggestions for improving the messaging and overall flow. This feature ensures that users can effectively communicate their ideas and engage their audience. 

Unlike Ludus, Slidebean may not cater to users who prefer extensive customization and control over their slide layouts. Certain advanced features are only available in premium plans, which may require an upgrade for those seeking more advanced functionality.

Startups, entrepreneurs, small businesses, and individuals who want to create polished presentations quickly.

Automated design, content suggestions, collaboration tools and pitch deck-specific templates.

The free version offers limited functionalities, but it provides a sufficient opportunity to experience Slidebean’s capabilities and understand its workflow. However, to export your presentation and access advanced features, upgrading to a higher plan is necessary. 

The all-access plan is available at $228 USD/year, while additional services such as startup expert consultations and pitch deck and financial model services are available for separate purchase. 

11. Beautiful.ai

Source: Screenshot from Beautiful.ai

Beautiful.ai aims to simplify the process of creating visually stunning and professional-looking slides with minimal effort. One of the notable strengths of the presentation software is its collection of smart templates and design suggestions. 

Their templates are intelligently designed to provide visually appealing layouts, saving users valuable time and effort in creating presentations. Unlike other types of presentation software, the platform leverages AI-powered technology to offer layout optimization, ensuring that slide elements are positioned optimally for maximum impact.

Beautiful.ai also offers time-saving features that streamline the presentation creation process. The software automatically adjusts the layout and formatting as users add or modify content, eliminating the need for manual adjustments. 

As the software provides smart templates and design suggestions, customization options may be somewhat limited. Users may find that certain design elements or layout adjustments are not as flexible as they would like. 

Individuals, startups and professionals who want visually impressive presentations without extensive design skills.

Smart templates, automated design suggestions, AI-powered layout optimization and easy slide customization.

Beautiful.ai provides two subscription options for users. The Pro plan is available at a monthly cost of $12 USD /month, while the Team plan is priced at $40 USD/month. Both plans are billed annually. You can also subscribe to the monthly subscription for ad hoc projects and gain access to all pro features for $45 USD/month (billed monthly). 

There is a 14-day free trial period that allows users to thoroughly test and explore the features and capabilities of the tool before committing to a subscription.

Source: Screenshot from Pitch

Pitch is a modern video presentation maker that stands out with its collaborative and iterative approach to presentation creation.

One of the key strengths of Pitch lies in its collaborative features. The presentation software provides robust collaboration tools that allow team members to work together in real-time. This makes it easy for users to collaborate on presentation content, provide feedback and make revisions collectively.

Pitch boasts an extensive slide library, offering a wide range of professionally designed templates to choose from. These templates serve as a foundation for creating visually stunning presentations while providing a starting point that saves time and ensures a polished look.

The availability of diverse templates caters to different industries, topics and presentation styles, allowing users to create presentations for their needs.

Seamless integration with project management tools is another advantage of Pitch. The software integrates well with popular project management platforms, enabling users to streamline their workflow by syncing tasks, deadlines and other project-related information with their presentations. 

For teams, startups and businesses that value collaboration, feedback and the ability to iterate on their presentations

Collaboration tools, version control, project management integration and template library.

Users can create unlimited presentations and enjoy the starter plan for free or upgrade to Pro for $8 USD/month, billed annually. 

There you have it — the top 12 best presentation tools for the year! Whether you value simplicity, collaboration, automation, design versatility or data visualization, these presentation software examples have a solution out there for your future presentations.

Got your mind set on your to-go presentation software? Great! Now it’s time to start creating your slides and ace that presentation. 

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Presentation software helps business professionals create and conduct slide show presentations. It comes with tools to present information in an engaging format, using text, images, audio, video, and graphs. Businesses and professional organizations use presentation software to educate, inform, persuade, and motivate both internal and external audiences. This demonstrates professionalism and communicates the intended message clearly and concisely.

This guide explains the features and benefits of presentation software to help you find the best solution for your business.

Here’s what we’ll cover:

What is presentation software?

Common features of presentation software, what type of buyer are you, benefits and potential issues, key consideration for presentation software, market trends to understand.

Presentation software is used to create slides to display information in the form of a slide show to increase its impact for the audience. Product tools such as templates, media libraries, and text editors make it easy to create presentations, add or modify information, and utilize it for engagement throughout various media channels.

Most presentation software products offer similar features to create and display slide shows. The following are typical components of presentation software:

Presentation software helps individuals, professionals, and organizations create and conduct presentations. Choosing the right solution starts with identifying the products and features that best fit your needs.

Single users

Freelancers and other users who work independently typically only need the basic functions of a presentation software tool, such as the media library, customizable templates, and animations and transitions.

Dispersed teams

Teams featuring remote workers, telecommuters, and freelancers tend to choose presentation software that includes real-time collaboration features. Screen sharing, chat, and comment features make it easy to work collaboratively, even if team members are in different locations.

Small businesses

Companies with fewer than 100 employees and no design department benefit from presentation software that is customizable and includes a content-rich media library. Most products offer tiered pricing levels, allowing companies to add additional features as their needs change.

Midsize businesses

Companies that have between 100 and 1,000 employees have a steady customer base and large product portfolio. They should select presentation solutions that optimize presentations with media-rich digital content and customizable templates. Collaboration tools and offline functionality allows teams to work together without being connected to a network.

Enterprises

Companies with over 1,000 employees should look for presentation software that includes additional features, such as analytics, real-time audience questions and answers, and advanced animations.

Presentation software blends the power of words and images to help companies express themselves in a creative and concise manner. Consider the primary benefits, suitability, and cost of software options before committing to a product.

Slide show presentations increase audience engagement: Well-crafted presentations demonstrate professionalism and communicate the intended message clearly and concisely.  Images provide a visual support to what you are communicating, while bullet points and charts present information in a clear and logical manner.

Presentation software promotes team member collaboration: Remote work is a growing trend, and collaboration tools make it easy to share presentations with numerous participants, regardless of their location. Team members can contribute using comment, edit, and review features, allowing for real-time communication and development of collaborative ideas.

Here is one thing to keep in mind as you evaluate presentation software:

Pricing may vary based on the types of supported features and customizations: Many presentation tools have free versions of their software, with increasing price points, based on the number and complexity of included options. Select a solution that supports a broad range of forms, and compare the cost and features of a software solution to business requirements to decide between paid and free presentation software.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is streamlining slide design and production time: Presentation tools driven by AI make it easy to prepare a polished, effective presentation in a limited time. These design tools can learn a user's requirements, apply design rules, and build impactful presentation slides.

Immersive technologies fuel audience engagement: Virtual reality (VR) technology allows the audience to interact with other individuals and life-like objects in a customized visual environment. This immersive storytelling technique leads to greater audience engagement and enhanced content retention. Putting on a VR headset and being “teleported” into the presentation may eventually replace the use of video presentation software.

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The 10 Best Presentation Software for 2023: Complete Guide

There are literally hundreds of presentation software tools in the market today and keeping track is getting increasingly hard. Most of them have been optimized for a specific purpose or type of user from a wide range of possibilities, and it's very likely that THE ideal tool for you is actually one that you've never heard of.

We've created this best presentation software list to shed some light and to give you a comprehensive presentation software list to ensure you make the right call in the platform you select. This article is the result of several weeks of research and review of 50+ presentation tools currently available on the web.

What is a presentation software?

A presentation software is defined as an application built to display information in the form of a slide show. Any presentation tool must have three fundamental functions:

• ‍ A text editor: to input the contents of the presentation.
• ‍ An import function: to insert and manipulate images and other content.
• ‍A slide-show or presenter mode: that displays the content in a nice, formatted way, sometimes synced in real time with the presenter across devices.

Slide shows often consist of a combination of text, video, images and charts. Their primary function is displaying clear, readable and summarized data to an audience.

Most presentations are shared and presented on a larger screen or through a digital projector. In rare occasions, slide presentations are printed out as a replacement for text documents, but this is a really inefficient way to review data, that Garr Reynolds calls ‘ PresDocs ’ (Garr Reynolds is the author of Presentation Zen, one of the most important go-to reference for successful presentations).

Related Read: What Makes Up the Best Presentation Templates?

What makes a good presentation tool?

The functions and results of presentation programs have evolved significantly in the past decades, since the original launch of ‘Presenter’ (the PowerPoint predecessor) in 1984. In 1987 PowerPoint 1.0 was released for the Macintosh and it started a revolution in the way we prepare and consume content in meetings.

For the purposes of this article we are going to classify all presentation tools using 3 variables that we consider extremely important:

Ease of use: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

This rating looks at the learning curve, or time required to learn to use the platform. An easy to use interface is fundamentally important to ensure that users feel confortable working with the platform and doesn’t require complex training to take advantage of its features. This also accounts for the average time it takes to build a presentation.

Customization: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

The ability to customize a presentation to the smallest details. This varies depending on the number of advanced features in the platform, like the ability to set different transitions to each slide, the ability to add customized elements or to design/code the final outcome of the slides to the last font size and color code.

Final result: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

This indicator looks at the outcome of a finished presentation, assuming the user is an average person with basic design skills and intermediate knowledge on the tool itself.

Best PowerPoint Alternatives (Death by Power Point)

As we mentioned before, PowerPoint is the most used presentation builder in the market today. It is distributed by Microsoft as part of their Office Suite, which is estimated to have over 500 million users worldwide. Microsoft has also revealed that approximately 35 Million presentations are delivered every single day, that’s a staggering 400 presentations per second.

But still, PowerPoint’s popularity has decreased significantly in the past few years. Their boring presentation templates, the large learning curve and complexity as well as the terrible slides many users end up making have started the Death to PowerPoint movement.

What presentation software is better than PowerPoint?

For this section, we summarize the top PowerPoint alternatives and examples, that is, presentation tools that work in a fairly similar manner and that provide similar (but significantly better) results. If you are an avid PowerPoint user, then migrating to these platforms should be rather easy for you.

Best 10 presentation software alternative list for 2023

(Updated December 2022)

• Keynote presentation
• Google Slides

1- SLIDEBEAN PRESENTATION SOFTWARE

Ease of use: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ - Fantastic!

Customization: ★ ★ ★ ★ - Very Good

Final result: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ - Fantastic!

Slidebean is an online presentation tool that uses artificial intelligence to design beautiful slides. Simply add content blocks to your presentation without worrying about formatting. Slidebean’s AI finds the best possible design for every element on your slide. This level of automation allows you to create a professional looking presentation in a fraction of the time it normally takes on PowerPoint.

When comparing it to PowerPoint, Slidebean’s interface is much easier to learn and work with, and it lets you create fantastic looking presentations really fast. The platform is web based and allows you to export to both PowerPoint and PDF format. It also lets you track viewer interactions and activity from people you share your slides with!

Slidebean also has a unique advantage which is a rich gallery of presentation outline templates. These are pre-filled decks that work for numerous purposes, like business proposals, classroom decks, thesis presentations and even startup pitch decks : all you need to do is import them and fill in your content.

You can sign up free for Slidebean here

SIGN UP FREE

2- apple keynote.

Ease of use: ★ ★ ★ - OK

Customization: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ - Fantastic!

Final result: ★ ★ ★ ★ - Very Good

Keynote is what PowerPoint should have been all along. Apple's version of the popular presentation tool has improved significantly in the last few years, and has recently included a cloud version that works on any browser on any computer (as long as you have at least one Apple device).

Keynote is basically an improved PowerPoint, it offers the same approach to creating slides, but offers nice and clean customizable templates, a simple interface and great details like smart guides.

The biggest issue with Keynote is the long learning process that it requires. Similar to Microsoft's tool, you'll need to sit down for a few hours to learn to use the platform, and another larger set of hours to make a professional presentation.

More info about Apple Keynote is available here

Final result: ★ ★ ★ - OK

Visme is a web based platform for building presentations. Their familiar interface is similar to PowerPoint, but they have successfully simplified a complex UI to a nicer and more understandable navigation. Still, you'll need to spend a few hours to get a good grasp of where all the customization options can be found.

The platform offers an interesting (but certainly limited) gallery of images, but they succeed at delivering beautiful infographic elements (which they call ‘Charts and Graphs’) that you can use to add some color and make your slides much more dynamic.

You can read more about them here . ‍

4- GOOGLE SLIDES

Customization: ★ ★ - Passable

Google's version of PowerPoint is hosted as part of the Google Apps suite, that you can access from Google Drive or from Google Apps for Work. Sadly, their presentation builder feels like a limited version of PowerPoint, with less features, limited fonts and very little customization options.

Still, Google's platform is available for free, has a lot of integrations and probably one of the best online collaboration systems out there. Checking it out is easy, just visit your Google Drive.

You can find a more detailed review here .

5- FLOWVELLA

Ease of use: ★ ★ - Passable

Customization: ★ ★ ★ - OK

Flowvella is available on the Mac App Store as a desktop application. It provides a simple interface (certainly cleaner than Microsoft PowerPoint and somewhat similar to Apple Keynote) and some very nice design templates, which set good grounds so you can start building a nice looking set of slides on top of them. This is by far their biggest strength! If you want to start from scratch, however, you might feel a little lost creating something that looks good.

We found, however, that the oversimplified interface makes some basic options hard to find, like changing the color of a shape. Also, while running as a desktop app it still requires an Internet connection to download some elements, which can lead to a slower performance than a 100% desktop tool.

Update: We also read recently that they launched a tvOS app for the new AppleTV, making them, as far as we know, the first presentation tool to leverage the new platform.

You can find more details here .

Customization: ★ ★ ★ -

Pitch offers an innovative solution for fast-paced teams looking to quickly create effective, stylish presentations. With a combination of productivity features and design elements, Pitch makes it easy to get professional results—quickly

You can find more information about them here .

Final result: ★ ★ ★ ★ - Very Good!

The premise of Canva is an ‘amazingly easy graphic design software'. It lets you create anything from print design to banners and presentations. They provide an easy to use interface with a huge selection of pre-built designs that you can modify to your liking.

These pre-built elements let you quickly draft a nice presentation even if you have no design skills, but it does require you to drag and drop and arrange the content of your slide, which can become time consuming.

Canva has been gaining significant popularity in the last few years, especially after they hired Guy Kawasaki as a Chief Evangelist. Their platform is beautiful, you can find more about them here .

8- HAIKU DECK

Ease of use: ★ ★ ★ ★ - Very Good

Haiku Deck launched as an iPad app in 2011. They made a big bet towards mobile productivity and came up with a solid iPad application that allowed you to create slides in less time than the then-only alternative of Keynote for iOS.

Haiku Deck has a nice set of custom templates that you can use as a guideline for your slides, and their content input system is clear and easy to learn.

Still, we believe their approach that focused on mobile devices could only take them so far and they've since been working on a web version of their platform that works for any computer. As we mentioned, the personal computer continues to be a much more efficient productivity platform.

'Slides' is a nice website that lets you create and share presentations online. Formerly slides(dot)io and slid(dot)es, they finally settled for slides(dot)com. This startup was founded by Hakim El Hattab and Owen Bossola in Stockholm, Sweden, and it makes use of the reveal.js framework that we mentioned above.

Slides has a nice web interface that encourages you to create a nice and clean presentations, however, it still depends on the user’s ability to manipulate the elements and arrange them in a nice style. Still, their pre-defined formats and their grid system help guide you to a better result.

The platform also allows for custom HTML and CSS coding, which lets experienced users with coding skills, customize their templates even further.

Some more info about them here .

Ease of use: ★ - Bad

Prezi has been around for years and they have had a huge head start compared to any other online presentation tool out there. Their unique zoom styling makes it immediately obvious to the audience that they are looking at a Prezi deck.

Prezi has the advantage of allowing you to create really stunning interactive presentations if you know how to leverage their zoomable, infinite canvas. However, this can become a double edge sword if users overuse the feature and come up with a presentation that is literally capable of making people dizzy.

Still, Prezi's biggest weakness is on its ease of use. There's a long learning curve towards dominating their interface and even if you do, you need to be a designer to make a great presentation on the platform.

This is a huge company that is not going away anytime soon. With 50+ million users, they have proven the world wants and needs a PowerPoint alternative, and we have huge respect for them for doing so.

More information about them here .

‍Which one to pick?

In the world of presentation software, there's a big bunch to pick from. It's kind of like a crowded market with lots of options. And guess what? The best one for you might not even be on your radar.

Our list is here to help you out. We've put together this bunch of presentation software choices after digging into over 50 of them on the internet. We're here to give you the scoop on what's out there, so you can pick the one that suits you best.

Now, remember, presentation software is like your helper to make cool slideshows. These slideshows could be for showing stuff to people, like at school or work. These helpers, or software, should be good at a few things: putting words and pictures on slides, making things look nice, and showing your stuff in a cool way on a screen.

The options we've found have different things they're good at. Some use fancy computer thinking (AI) to make your slides look great without you doing much. Others let you customize your slides a lot, which is nice if you want them to look exactly like you want. And finally, how your slides look when you're done is super important too.

Picking the right presentation tool is a bit like picking the best tool for a job. You wouldn't use a hammer to write a story, right? So, whether you want something easy, something that lets you be creative, or something that gives you good results, our list has got you covered. Your choice will help you make cool presentations that people will remember. Our recommendation is to give Slidebean a try, but is up to you to consider the options. So, pick smart and happy presenting.

Try Slidebean

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The best presentation software

These powerpoint alternatives go beyond the basics..

The latest presentation apps have made it easier than ever to format slides and create professional-looking slideshows without giving off a "this is a template" vibe. Even standard PowerPoint alternatives have updated key features to make it easier than ever to collaborate and create presentations quickly, so you can spend more time prepping for your actual presentation.

If, like me, you've been using Google Slides unquestioningly for years, it's a whole new world out there. The newest crop of online presentation tools go way beyond the classic slideshow experience, with new features to keep your audience's attention, streamline the creation process with AI, and turn slide decks into videos and interactive conversations.

I've been testing these apps for the past few years, and this time, I spent several days tinkering with the top presentation software solutions out there to bring you the best of the best.

Beautiful.ai for AI-powered design

Prezi for non-linear, conversational presentations

Powtoon for video presentations

Genially for interactive, presenter-less presentations

Pitch for collaborating with your team on presentations

Zoho Show for a simple presentation app

Gamma for generative AI features

What makes the best presentation app?

How we evaluate and test apps.

Our best apps roundups are written by humans who've spent much of their careers using, testing, and writing about software. Unless explicitly stated, we spend dozens of hours researching and testing apps, using each app as it's intended to be used and evaluating it against the criteria we set for the category. We're never paid for placement in our articles from any app or for links to any site—we value the trust readers put in us to offer authentic evaluations of the categories and apps we review. For more details on our process, read the full rundown of how we select apps to feature on the Zapier blog .

When looking for the best presentation apps, I wanted utility players. After all, slideshows are used for just about everything, from pitch decks and product launches to class lectures and church sermons. With that in mind, here's what I was looking for:

Pre-built templates. The best presentation tools should have attractive, professional-looking templates to build presentations in a hurry.

Sharing and collaboration options. Whether you plan to share your webinar slides later, or you just want to collaborate with a coworker on a presentation, it should be easy to share files and collaborate in real-time.

Flexibility and customization options. Templates are great, but top presentation apps should enable you to customize just about everything—giving you the flexibility to build exactly what you need.

Affordability. Creating compelling presentations is important, but you shouldn't have to bust your budget to make it happen. With capable free tools on the market, affordability is a top consideration.

Standalone functionality. There's no reason to use multiple tools when one can do it all, so I didn't test any apps that require and work on top of another presentation app like PowerPoint or Google Slides.

Familiar, deck-based UI. For our purposes here, I only tested software that uses slides, with the familiar deck-based editor you expect from a "presentation" tool (versus, for example, a video creation app).

While many apps now offer AI features in one way or another, I found many of these features to be lacking still—they're often slow, struggle to pull in relevant imagery, and yield wildly inconsistent designs. For that reason, I opted not to make AI features a strict requirement (for now!), and I've still included apps that don't offer AI. (Of course, if you opt for one of those, you can still easily get AI-generated images from a separate tool and copy them into your presentation app of choice.)

Beyond that, I also looked for presentation apps that brought something unique to the table—features above and beyond what you can get for free from a legacy solution like PowerPoint or Google Slides. (And I opted not to test any brand new apps that are still in beta, since there are so many established options out there.)

Here's what my testing workflow looked like:

I went through any onboarding or guided tutorials.

I created a new deck, scanning through all available templates, noting how well-designed they were (and which were free versus paid).

I added new slides, deleted slides, edited text and images, and played around with other content types.

I changed presentation design settings, like color schemes and background images.

I reviewed and tested the sharing and collaboration options.

I tested out presenter view (when available).

After my first round of testing, I went back into the top performers to test any unique or niche features like AI, brand settings, interactive content, and more. With that, these are the best presentation apps I found—each one really brings something different or radically easy to the table.

The best presentation software: at a glance

The best free presentation software, canva (web, windows, mac, android, ios).

Canva pros:

Excellent free plan

Tons of amazing templates for all use cases

Feature-rich

Canva cons:

The Magic Design AI tool is still inconsistent and not super impressive

Canva offers one of the most robust free plans of all the presentation apps I tested. The app delays account creation until after you've created your first design, so you can get started building your presentation in seconds. Choose from an almost overwhelming number of beautiful templates (nearly all available for free), including those designed specifically for education or business use cases.

Anyone who's accidentally scrolled too far and been bumped to the next slide will appreciate Canva's editor interface, which eliminates that problem altogether with a smooth scroll that doesn't jump around. Choose from a handful of preset animations to add life to your presentations, or browse the library of audio and video files available to add. And Canva also has a number of options for sharing your presentation, including adding collaborators to your team, sharing directly to social media, and even via QR code.

Present directly from Canva, and let audience members submit their questions via Canva Live. Once you share a link to invite audience members to your presentation, they can send questions for you to answer. As the presenter, you'll see them pop up in your presenter view window, so you can keep the audience engaged and your presentation clear. Alternatively, record a presentation with a talking head bubble—you can even use an AI presenter here—to share remotely.

Canvas has added a number of AI-powered tools , but I wasn't super impressed by them yet. When I asked the Magic Design tool to generate a presentation from scratch, for example, the result was a bunch of unrelated images, inconsistent design, and surface-level copy. These features will likely improve in time, but for now, you're better off starting from one of Canva's many great templates.

Canva pricing: Free plan available; paid plans start at $119.99/year for 1 user and include additional features like Brand Kit, premium templates and stock assets, and additional AI-powered design tools.

The best presentation app for AI-powered design

Beautiful.ai (web, mac, windows).

Beautiful.ai pros:

True AI design

No fussing around with alignment

Still allows for customization

Beautiful.ai cons:

No free plan

Generative AI features aren't great yet

If you're like me, editing granular spacing issues is the absolute worst part of building a presentation. Beautiful.ai uses artificial intelligence to take a lot of the hassle and granular design requirements out of the presentation process, so you can focus on the content of a presentation without sacrificing professional design. If I needed to make presentations on a regular basis, this is the app I'd use.

Many apps have recently added AI design features, but Beautiful.ai has been doing it for years—and they've perfected the UX of AI design, ensuring the tool's reign as the most streamlined and user-friendly option for AI design.

The editor is a little different from most presentation apps, but it's still intuitive—and you'll start off with a quick two-minute tutorial. When creating a new slide, scroll through "inspiration slides" to find a layout you like; once you choose, the app will pull the layout and automatically adapt it to match the design of the rest of your presentation.

With 10 themes, several templated slides, over 40 fully-designed templates, and 23 different color palettes to choose from, Beautiful.ai strikes a perfect balance between automation and customization.

While Beautiful.ai doesn't offer a free plan, paid plans are reasonably priced and offer sharing and collaboration options that rival collab-focused apps like Google Slides. And speaking of Google, you can connect Beautiful.ai with Google Drive to save all your presentations there.

Note: I did test the newly released generative AI feature (called DesignerBot) and felt it wasn't much to write home about. It's great for adding individual slides to an existing presentation—automatically choosing the best layout and matching the design to the rest of the deck—but as with most other apps, it struggled to generate a quality presentation from scratch.

Beautiful.ai pricing: Plans start at $12/month for unlimited slides, AI content generation, viewer analytics, and more. Upgrade to a Team plan for $40/user/month to get extra collaboration and workspace features and custom brand controls.

If you're a founder looking for an AI presentation tool for your pitch deck, Slidebean is a great Beautiful.ai alternative for startups. The app offers a number of templates; a unique, content-first outline editor; and AI design help that you can toggle on or off for each slide. I didn't include it on the list mainly because of the price: the free plan is quite limited, and the paid all-access plan starts at $228/year.

The best presentation app for conversational presentations

Prezi (web, mac, windows, ios, android).

Prezi pros:

Doesn't restrict you to standard presentation structure

Lots of customization options

Prezi Video lets you display a presentation right over your webcam video

Prezi cons:

Steep learning curve

Struggling to squeeze information into a basic, linear presentation? Give Prezi a try. Unlike nearly all other presentation apps on the market, Prezi Present doesn't restrict the structure of your presentation to a straight line. The editor focuses on topics and subtopics and allows you to arrange them any way you want, so you can create a more conversational flow of information.

With the structural flexibility, you still get all the same customization features you expect from top presentation software, including fully-editable templates. There's a learning curve if you're unfamiliar with non-linear presentations, but templates offer a great jumping-off point, and Prezi's editor does a good job of making the process more approachable.

Plus, Prezi comes with two other apps: Prezi Design and Prezi Video. Prezi Video helps you take remote presentations to a new level. You can record a video where the presentation elements are displayed right over your webcam feed. Record and save the video to share later, or connect with your video conferencing tool of choice (including Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Google Meet) to present live.

Prezi pricing: Free 14-day trial and a free plan that includes up to 5 visual projects; paid plans start at $5/month and include additional features like private presentations and Prezi Present.

The best presentation app for video presentations

Powtoon (web, ios, android).

Powtoon pros:

Timing automatically changes based on the content on the slide

Can toggle between slideshow and video

Can orient presentation as horizontal, vertical, or square

Powtoon cons:

Limited free plan

Powtoon makes it easy to create engaging videos by orienting the editor around a slide deck. Editing a Powtoon feels just like editing a presentation, but by the time you finish, you have a professional video. 

You can edit your slides at any time, and when you hit play, a video plays through your deck—the feel is almost like an animated explainer video. Each slide includes the animations you choose and takes up as much time as is needed based on the content on the slide. Powtoon figures the timing automatically, and you can see in the bottom-right of the editor how much time is used on your current slide versus the total presentation. If you ever want to present as a slide deck, just toggle between Slideshow and Movie.

You'll likely need to subscribe to a paid plan to get the most out of Powtoon—like creating videos longer than three minutes, downloading them as MP4 files, and white-labeling your presentations—but doing so won't break the bank. Plus, you'll unlock tons of templates complete with animations and soundtracks.

One of my favorite Powtoon features is the ability to orient your video: you can choose horizontal orientation (like a normal presentation) or opt for vertical (for mobile) or square (for social media). When your presentation is ready, you can publish straight to YouTube, Wistia, Facebook Ads, and any number of other locations.

Powtoon pricing: Limited free plan available; paid plans start at $20/month and include white-labeling, priority support, additional storage, and more.

The best presentation app for interactive presentations

Genially (web).

Genially pros:

Don't need a presenter (it's interactive)

You can set universal branding guidelines

Unlimited creations on the free plan

Genially cons:

Free plan has some limitations worth looking into (e.g., can only make public presentations)

While many presentation apps are built for presenter-led decks, Genially 's interactive features and animated templates make it easy to build a self-led presentation. A variety of interactive buttons allow you to show viewers additional context on hover, have them skip to any page of your deck, and let them navigate to external links.

This presentation program offers a bunch of searchable templates, including some for business proposals, reports, social media presentations, and more (though most of those are available on premium plans only). Genially also includes Smart blocks —templated blocks of content for elements like data visualizations and image galleries.

My favorite feature is the brand settings. Premium users can set universal branding guidelines that include your logo, color scheme, fonts, images, and backgrounds, among other options. Think of them like a custom template, created and customized by you, that the whole team can use. Once set, your team can easily create on-brand presentations that automatically apply your brand settings, without even thinking about it.

Plus, Genially supports additional content like training materials, infographics, and interactive images—all subject to your brand presets.

Genially pricing: Free plan available with unlimited creations and views and access to templates; paid plans start at $7.49/month and include additional download options, privacy controls, offline viewing, premium templates, and more.

The best presentation app for collaborating with your team

Pitch (web, mac, windows, ios, android).

Pitch pros:

Google levels of collaboration

Assign slides to specific team members

Start live video calls straight from decks

Pitch cons:

User interface is a little different than you're used to

Need to collaborate on presentations with your team? Pitch is a Google Slides alternative that gets the job done. As far as decks go, Pitch includes all the beautifully-designed templates, customizability, and ease of use you expect from a top-notch presentation tool. But the app really shines when you add your team.

The right-hand sidebar is all about project management and collaboration: you can set and update the status of your deck, assign entire presentations or individual slides to team members, plus comment, react, or add notes. Save custom templates to make future presentations even easier and faster.

You can also invite collaborators from outside your company to work with you on individual decks. And if you opt for a paid plan, Pitch introduces workspace roles, shared private folders, and version history.

The "Go live" feature is a personal favorite—with just a click on the camera icon in the top-right, you can start a live video call. Any team members who open the presentation can hop in and collaborate in real-time. 

Pitch pricing: Free plan offers unlimited presentations, custom templates, and live video collaboration; paid plans start at $8/user/month for additional workspace features, presentation analytics, and more.

The best simple presentation app

Zoho show (web, ios, android, chrome).

Zoho Show pros:

Simple and easy to use

Version history and ability to lock slides

Completely free

Zoho Show cons:

Templates are pretty basic

If you're looking for a simple, yet capable presentation app that's a step up from Google Slides, Zoho Show is a great option. It's completely free to use, offers a clean, intuitive editor, and includes a number of great templates.

While the handful of "Themes" offered are on the basic side, Zoho templates boast a more modern and professional design than much of what Google Slides or PowerPoint offer. And I love that you can set the font and color scheme for the whole template, right from the start.

The app doesn't skimp on collaboration or shareability either. You can invite collaborators via email or shareable link, and comments and version history make it easy to work together on presentations. Once you're ready to share, you can even broadcast your presentation to a remote audience right from within Zoho. Plus, you can one-click lock slides to prevent any more editing or hide individual slides to customize your presentation for different audiences.

You can even connect Zoho Show to Zapier , so you can do things like automatically create a presentation when something happens in one of the other apps you use most.

Zapier is the leader in workflow automation—integrating with 6,000+ apps from partners like Google, Salesforce, and Microsoft. Use interfaces, data tables, and logic to build secure, automated systems for your business-critical workflows across your organization's technology stack. Learn more .

Zoho Show pricing: Free

The best presentation app for generative AI

Gamma (web).

Gamma pros:

Creates fully fleshed-out presentations from a prompt

Chatbot-like experience

Can still manually edit the presentation

Gamma cons:

Not as much granular customization

I tested a lot of apps claiming to use AI to up your presentation game, and Gamma 's generative features were head and shoulders above the crowd.

Simply give the app a topic—or upload an outline, notes, or any other document or article—approve the outline, and pick a theme. The app will take it from there and create a fully fleshed-out presentation. It's far from perfect, but Gamma produced the most useful jumping-off point of all the AI presentation apps I tested. 

Here's the key: Gamma is much more geared toward the iterative, chatbot experience familiar to ChatGPT users. Click on the Edit with AI button at the top of the right-hand menu to open the chat, and you'll see suggested prompts—or you can type in your own requests for how Gamma should alter the presentation.

Once you've done all you can with prompts, simply close the chat box to manually add the finishing touches. While you do sacrifice some granular customizability in exchange for the AI features, you can still choose your visual theme, change slide layouts, format text, and add any images, videos, or even app and web content.

Gamma pricing: Free plan includes unlimited users, 1 custom theme, 400 AI deck credits, and basic view analytics; upgrade to the Pro plan ("coming soon," as of this writing) for $10/user/month to get additional AI credits, advanced view analytics, custom fonts, and more.

What about the old standbys?

You might notice a few major presentation players aren't on this list, including OGs Microsoft PowerPoint, Apple Keynote, and Google Slides. These apps are perfectly adequate for creating basic presentations, and they're free if you have a Windows or Mac device or a Google account.

I didn't include them on the list because the presentation space has really developed in the last several years, and after testing them out, I found these behemoths haven't kept pace. If they weren't made by Microsoft/Apple/Google, I might not even be mentioning them. They're pretty basic tools, they're behind the curve when it comes to templates (both quantity and design), and they don't offer any uniquely valuable features like robust team collaboration, branding controls, video, and so on.

Some of these companies (think: Microsoft and Google) are openly working on some pretty impressive-sounding AI features, but they haven't been widely released to the public yet. Rest assured, I'm watching this space, and the next time we update this article, I'll retest tools like PowerPoint and Google Slides to see what new features are available.

In any case, if you're reading this, you're probably looking for an alternative that allows you to move away from one of the big 3, and as the presentation platforms featured above show, there's a ton to gain—in terms of features, usability, and more—when you do.

Related reading:

8 Canva AI tools to improve your design workflow

The best online whiteboards for collaboration

How to share a presentation on Zoom without sharing your browser tabs and address bar

This post was originally published in October 2014 and has since been updated with contributions from Danny Schreiber, Matthew Guay, Andrew Kunesh, and Krystina Martinez. The most recent update was in May 2023.

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Kiera Abbamonte

Kiera’s a content writer who helps SaaS and eCommerce companies connect with customers and reach new audiences. Located in Boston, MA, she loves cinnamon coffee and a good baseball game. Catch up with her on Twitter @Kieraabbamonte.

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Best Presentation Software of 2024

Table of Contents

• Best Presentation Software
• Things To Consider When Buying
• How We Chose

Everyone has a message to share in some form. With presentation software, you can communicate that message a little easier and with more spark. If you don't have design and animation skills, don't worry; apps like Google Slides and Microsoft PowerPoint make it easy to craft a slideshow that helps people understand the concepts you're trying to convey.

Many of the apps in this buyers' guide are geared toward business presentations since that is often the primary use case. However, a few provide some slick tools for educators, entrepreneurs, community groups, and even family members to make a photo slideshow for a family reunion. Read on for the best presentation software available today.

• Best Overall: Google Slides »
• Most Compatible: Microsoft PowerPoint »
• Best For Mac Users: Apple Keynote »
• Most Flexible: Prezi »
• Best Budget: Visme »
• Best For Entrepreneurs: Slidebean »
• Most Powerful: Canva »

Best Overall: Google Slides

Highly integrated With Other Apps

Totally free

Not integrated with Microsoft products

Minimal support

When Google Slides debuted in 2006, it took the world by storm. That’s because it was integrated even back then with Gmail, Google Docs, and other popular Google apps many of us use in business, at school, and in our personal lives.

Google Slides is entirely free, and there are no hidden costs or upgrade plans. What’s surprising, though, about Google Slides is that it is a highly capable app for presentations – easy to use, with plenty of templates, fonts, animation options, and integrations.

Apart from that, the key feature here is real-time collaboration. Other users can join you as you create and edit slides. They can comment and make suggested changes, or simply start editing the slides on their own. (You can decide if other users can suggest changes or make them directly.) You also can view speaker notes on a laptop when you run the slideshow on an HDTV or projector. Google Slides integrates nicely into the online meeting app Google Meet, and it can open Microsoft PowerPoint files and export in that format as well.

Overall, Google Slides wins extra points because of how intuitive it is. There’s hardly any learning curve with the app, and since it runs in a browser window, everything you create and edit will be saved automatically. For business users, teachers, or just about anyone in a hurry to share a complex message, creating a Google Slides presentation is a snap – which is why it is our overall top pick.

Specifications:

• Operating systems are supported: Windows, Mac, Web, iOS, Android, Linux
• Number of templates and designs available: 23
• Integrated apps: Adobe Creative Cloud, Dropbox, Box, LumApps
• Collaboration features: Live editing, suggested edits
• Multimedia supported: Photos, videos, audio, GIFs, and stickers
• Export options: PDF, PowerPoint, Webpage, JPEG
• Customer support options: Google Workspace only
• Added features: Google Duet AI
• Interface enhancements: Real-time editing and collaboration

Most Compatible: Microsoft PowerPoint

Highly compatible

Online and desktop versions

Easy to use

No free version

Templates are not as trendy

Microsoft PowerPoint is the app you want for compatibility with other apps and programs. Released in 1990, this presentation app is well-known in business circles and runs on just about any computer in the world. Because it’s so compatible, you will likely not have any trouble running the app on your phone or a tablet, in a browser, or even on seriously outdated PC laptops and desktops.

While apps like Prezi add slick animations and transitions that make a presentation come to life, PowerPoint is more like a trusted business partner; it works on just about any computer, the interface is well-known and straightforward, and it’s likely that everyone you know and collaborate with is already familiar with the app. Every other presentation app we reviewed also supports PowerPoint in terms of directly opening or importing the file, and exporting as a PowerPoint file.

You'll need a Microsoft 365 Personal Edition subscription to use PowerPoint. It may be an app that’s already installed and included with a new computer, at least for a trial period.

• Operating systems are supported: Windows, Mac, Web, iOS, Android
• Integrated apps: Adobe PDF, Shutterstock, YouTube, and many others
• Multimedia supported: Photos, videos, audio
• Export options: PowerPoint, XML, PDF, JPEG, and many more
• Customer support options: Personal or business support
• Added features: Integrated live camera, Microsoft Teams integration
• Interface enhancements: Microsoft Copilot, speaker coach

Best For Mac Users: Apple Keynote

Exceptional designs

Desktop only

Graphic designers love Apple Keynote, mostly because the included templates and design options are so stellar. Your presentation will really come to life, helping you communicate about even complex subjects with flair and a trendy look.

Using the app feels a bit like you're the late Steve Jobs creating an award-winning presentation that will grab an audience. Jobs had a way of captivating those in the audience, and Keynote helps you do that with some of the best presentation templates around. For example, there are 40 templates to choose from, many of them full of color and using the trendiest fonts. Keynote also includes 100 transitions and animations to liven up a presentation. The app also includes 700 different shapes and icons that will help you enhance your slides.

Apple Keynote is powerful enough for any user, but it’s important to know the limitations. For starters, Keynote only runs on Mac computers. That makes it less compatible with Google Slides or Microsoft PowerPoint. You can export the presentation from Keynote as a PowerPoint file, which is fine, but it means no one can edit the Keynote slides directly; they will have to use PowerPoint.

Keynote also only runs as a desktop app. That means you won’t benefit from the live editing and commenting features of Google Slides, where you can collaborate with anyone in real time on the same file. Instead, Keynote is more static, as slideshows can't be edited as a group in a browser window. It’s still incredibly powerful and intuitive but with a few key downsides.

• Operating systems are supported: Mac, iOS
• Number of templates and designs available: 50
• Integrated apps: FaceTime, WebEx, Zoom, iCloud
• Collaboration features: Collaborate through iCloud
• Multimedia supported: Video, audio, images, 3D objects, stickers
• Export options: PDF, PowerPoint, Movies, animated GIFs, images
• Customer support options: Online help, support communities
• Added features: Cinematic transitions, Keynote Remote on iPhone
• Interface enhancements: Inspectors help with formatting

Most Flexible: Prezi

Unique concept

Trendy visuals

Unique design templates

Harder to learn

There’s something very compelling about Prezi, the presentation app that provides the most flexibility in terms of the message you are communicating. For starters, this is an app that knows it’s all about the message, whether you're an educator, business owner, entrepreneur, or even a scientist or engineer. Instead of a slideshow, you create a “canvas” with topics and subtopics. Think of it as a way to augment what you are saying with animated annotations, swoosh effects, and charts.

Prezi is the best at guiding you to the most powerful design features and giving you the tools to make even a complex subject more interesting and easier to understand. Part of this extreme flexibility has to do with how you're not creating slides at all, but enhancing a topic. Another way to think of Prezi is more like an animated whiteboard; when you show a presentation, it can come to life as you speak through a webcam.

All of this flexibility means you aren't limited to a boring slideshow, although there may be times when you are asked to make a slideshow and nothing more. For example, a school assignment or a boss might dictate that you need to create basic slides, not an animated whiteboard session. This is where you have to decide if Prezi matches the goals of the message you are communicating about.

• Pricing options and plans: Standard ($7/month), Plus ($15/month), Premium ($19/month)
• Operating systems are supported: Windows, Mac, Linux
• Number of templates and designs available: 210+
• Integrated apps: Google Drive, Slack, Canva, Zoom
• Collaboration features: Real-time editing, comments
• Multimedia supported: Photos, icons, video, GIF
• Export options: PNG, JPG, PDF, GIF, and MP4.
• Customer support options: Knowledgebase, online support
• Added features: Offline mode, analytics
• Interface enhancements: Broadcast link, tool tips

Best Budget: Visme

Free version available

Added visual tools

Good overall value

It takes more time to learn

Expensive pro plans

Visme is the best budget option because there is a free version that still provides many of the features you might need. It’s also a good value, because (similar to Canva) you can access all of the graphic design features to create infographics, brochures, logos, and rich documents all without paying for the premium version.

Even more important, Visme is a good value if you do choose the Starter or Pro plans because you can then unlock advanced features you might only find in Adobe Visual products. For example, at the Pro level, you can create an entire brand kit for a company including logos, brochures, and flyers that all have the same look.

While it's called an all-in-one marketing design platform and has hints of Canva, the first tool you would likely use is for creating presentations (e.g., It's the most prominent tool listed on their site). Because everything is geared more toward marketing and sales, Visme templates emphasize things like growth metrics, charts, and bullet points used to explain a product or service. Visme is also meant more for a group of business users. You can collaborate in real-time, leave comments on presentations, and even follow a workflow to mark presentation tasks as in progress or done.

Like Canva, because the Visme app is part of a suite of visual design products, it might take a little more time to learn all of the added tools. The presentation tool is just one of many included, even if this tool alone is easy to learn.

Visme is an extensive product with an upgrade path that unlocks more templates, customer support, and more supported file formats. Overall, it’s a good value because you can still create presentations without having to pay extra.

• Operating systems are supported: Mac, PC, iOS, Android
• Number of templates and designs available: 13,000
• Integrated apps: Google Drive, Vimeo, Dropbox, Survey Monkey, and many more
• Collaboration features: Real-time collaboration, assign tasks
• Multimedia supported: Photos, videos, audio, GIFs, 3D graphics
• Export options: JPEG, PNG, PDF, MP4, GIF, PPTX, HTML5
• Customer support options: Email, chat, in-app
• Added features: AI features, forms
• Interface enhancements: Tool tips, video training

Best For Entrepreneurs: Slidebean

Design for entrepreneurs and salespeople

Unique features

Not as powerful as some

Not as well-known

Most presentation software is flexible and powerful enough for any message and for any purpose. However, Slidebean focuses on a more narrow segment. The app is designed to create a “pitch deck,” which is something an entrepreneur or salesperson uses to pitch a product.

For example, let’s say your company sells a new widget. Using Slidebean, you can explain the features and benefits, include a slide about pricing, and use the tools that are intended more for selling a concept than perhaps merely explaining it.

Once you finish creating the pitch deck, you can share it as a link for others to view. You can then measure how much time people spend viewing the slides, including time spent on specific slides in the presentation. Another major differentiator with Slidebean is that you can work with professional designers and writers (for a fee, of course) who will create the pitch desk and write all of the copy for you.

• Operating systems are supported: Windows and Mac browsers
• Number of templates and designs available: 160
• Integrated apps: None
• Collaboration features: Editing (not simultaneous), sharing
• Multimedia supported: Images, icons, GIFs
• Export options: PPT, PDF, and HTML
• Customer support options: Knowledgebase
• Added features: Consult with experts, finance templates
• Interface enhancements: Startup video lessons

Most Powerful: Canva

Thousand of templates

Integrates with other Canva tools

Limited export options

Known as an “online graphical design platform” for everyday users, Canva provides plenty of tools for creating logos, brochures, postcards, and presentations.

Because these tools are all integrated, Canva is powerful enough for any message you want to communicate. It’s ideal for business, personal use, and schools. If you decide to build a presentation, you can also incorporate logos, fonts, clip art, and animations that are built into Canva. It means the palette for creating a presentation is more flexible because all of the other design tools are right at your fingertips. Let’s say you want to create a pitch deck about a new startup. You can create the logo, choose the colors and fonts, and then create the slideshow. Most presentation apps in our buyers' guide other than Visme don’t provide this level of flexibility and power in one online app.

Canva lets you run the presentation from within Canva itself, or you can export the slides and use them in Microsoft PowerPoint. There are thousands of templates available. Once you select a look and feel for your presentation, you can pivot and use those same graphics, fonts, and designs in a brochure or other material.

With all of this power in terms of visual design software comes a slight learning curve. Canva is intuitive and the interface is well-designed, but there are so many tools available that it takes some time to learn them all.

• Operating systems are supported: PC, Mac, iOS, Android, browser
• Number of templates and designs available: Thousands
• Integrated apps: Google Drive, Dropbox, Slack, HubSpot, and many more
• Collaboration features: Real-time editing, whiteboards
• Multimedia supported : Photos, icons, graphics, data visualizations, media elements
• Export options: PDF, JPG, PNG, PPTX, MP4
• Customer support options: Email
• Added features: Magic Switch, Magic Write, Magic Animate
• Interface enhancements: Search for designs, generate with Magic Design

The Bottom Line

If you're short on time and just need to create a presentation without a lot of hassle, Google Slides is the app for you. It’s completely free without any trial versions of “pro” upgrades, yet it's also quite powerful and intuitive to learn. Google Slides is also our top pick because it integrates into other Google apps like Gmail and Google Docs, is widely used and highly compatible, and still gets the job done when the main goal is to finish a slideshow and share your message.

Things To Consider When Buying Presentation Software

Features and functionality: When it comes to presentation software, it’s all about the templates. As you are considering which app to use, it’s a good idea to evaluate which templates are available and if they meet your needs. We’ve also noted how many templates are included with each app. Beyond that, look for the supported file formats since that will determine who can use and open the presentation. Collaboration features are also important, making it easier to work on a presentation within a group and make comments for everyone to see.

Ease of use and user interface: Creating a presentation shouldn't feel cumbersome. When you start the app, it should be easy to create the first slide from a template, add more slides, fill in the text and images, and finish the entire project without having to learn complex features. Apple Keynote is a good example of an app that's intuitive at first, and then you can always explore more advanced features later on.

Compatibility with different file formats: The most well-known presentation app is Microsoft PowerPoint. So it’s important that the app you choose supports the popular PowerPoint format. Beyond that, look for software that also supports PDF files in case you want a printed version of your slideshow or to share it online.

Collaboration and sharing capabilities: With presentation software, being able to work on a slideshow with a group of people all at the same time can be a time-saver but also produce better results. It should also be easy to leave comments for others to review. Once you're done with the presentation, it should also be easy to share the file or an online version of the presentation with others.

Customization options for design and branding: Visme and Canva allow you to customize the graphics and even make logos and experiment with a variety of fonts. All presentation apps provide ways to edit graphics, resize photos, and even incorporate video into your slideshow. Not every app makes it as easy to edit graphics as Google Slides does, however.

Availability of templates and pre-designed layouts: As with many software programs, templates save time and effort. An app like Microsoft PowerPoint includes pre-designed templates and graphics you can use to enhance a slideshow. Visme is a good example of an app with extensive templates (it has thousands built-in). While Apple Keynote doesn't have as many templates, the ones that are included tend to be more well-designed and trendy.

Pricing and licensing: Most presentation apps offer a monthly subscription to help you get started making a slideshow. In some cases, such as Visme and Slidebean, there’s a basic free version to help you experiment with the app right away. Only Google Slides is entirely free with no extra pricing options. Microsoft also offers a fully licensed version of PowerPoint as opposed to paying for a monthly subscription. The full licensed version costs $159.99.

Customer support and training resources: Microsoft is arguably one of the best companies to choose if you're interested in customer support. Because the product costs a little more – especially if you purchase the full licensed version – it includes extensive technical support. That said, even though Google Slides is free and customer support can be hit or miss, there are so many people using that product that you can usually find answers to questions by doing a simple Google search or asking on public support forums. Also, training videos are more readily available for Google Slides and Microsoft PowerPoint because they're both so popular.

Integration with other software and tools: Integration is key when it comes to presentation software because you want to be able to access important graphics, photos, and videos easily. Canva is perhaps the most integrated option for that reason alone. It's a graphics platform for creating graphics and other design materials, so when you make a presentation, you can easily find what you need.

Security and privacy features: Security and privacy might not be the first concern when it comes to presentation software, since you might be making a simple how-to for employee orientation or a photo slideshow of your vacation. However, for a business creating a new product or for a new startup that has not launched yet, be sure there is a way to protect your presentation from prying eyes.

How We Chose The Best Presentation Software

Our contributor John Brandon poured over specifications and features for the best presentation software around. He’s used presentation apps since the debut of Microsoft PowerPoint and Google Slides. He also consulted with business owners who have started companies and need to communicate about their firms. This includes David Ciccarelli, an entrepreneur who started a company called Voices (an audio and video tech startup) and is the CEO of Lake , a vacation rental business. He also tapped Stephen Gagnon, a web designer with the search engine optimization company Web Scour , who has visual design and branding experience.

WHY SHOULD YOU TRUST US?

John Brandon worked in the corporate world for 10 years, often creating presentations for large teams and at corporate functions. He worked as an Information Design Director at Best Buy Corporation. Since then, he has tested and reviewed thousands of tech products including presentation apps, Wi-Fi routers, televisions, office products, and everything in between. His writing has appeared in Wired magazine, Inc. magazine, FoxNews.com, LAPTOP magazine, and many others.

For anyone who wants to communicate about a new product or service, help new employees with onboarding, or even share photos from a recent vacation, presentation software helps you communicate visually. The basic idea is that you can create a slideshow that augments and enhances what you have to say.

Presentation software is designed to help you communicate a message to an audience, either in a classroom, a conference room, or at home. You create a slideshow, insert graphics, photos, and videos, and then run the slideshow full-screen. When you run the presentation, you can click the mouse button or press the arrow keys on a computer to go back and forth in the slideshow.

Most modern presentation apps charge a monthly fee, usually around $8 or $12 per month. Google Slides is the exception to this rule since it is entirely free. Typically, with higher costs for the pro and premium plans, you gain access to more templates, more graphics, and the ability to export in more file formats, such as HTML or video files. At the high end, Microsoft PowerPoint also offers a fully licensed version, as opposed to a monthly charge.

The classic, tried-and-true presentation apps like Microsoft PowerPoint and Apple Keynote are available as a desktop version you install. In most cases, you will sign up for the app and then download the installation file and run that installer. However, more modern apps like Google Slides and Canva run in a browser window and don't require any installation.

PowerPoint is sometimes included on a Windows laptop. However, if you're looking for a fresh start with new templates and features for animation and video that go beyond PowerPoint and Keynote, you might consider upgrading. Also, presentation tools are now included in apps like Canva and Visme, making them more integrated.

U.S. News 360 Reviews takes an unbiased approach to our recommendations. When you use our links to buy products, we may earn a commission but that in no way affects our editorial independence.

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Presentations

The 11 Best Presentation Software to Use in 2023

The ability to effectively share ideas, illustrate a concept, and convince an audience is invaluable whether you’re a student or a C-level executive. These days, the presentation software you use to create presentations is just as important as your public-speaking skills.

On top of that, most companies have transitioned to remote work recently due to the current coronavirus situation, and now need to share their stories online through a virtual conference room with their distributed teams and external audience members.

That’s why we’ve come up with a list of some of the best presentation software available right now, so you can choose a compatible and innovative presentation maker that includes the best presentation tools to suit your specific needs.

Choose the best presentation software by weighing the pros and cons

You’ll see some of the most popular presentation apps: from free to paid subscription platforms, and slideshow applications to full-blown visual design presentation software with interactive features and more.

Each presentation software has its pros and cons, so it’s up to you to figure out which suits your needs best; consider the software learning curve, whether your company is made up of Mac users or Windows users and the software compatibility, if you need an enterprise account or free account, etc.

Let’s dive in!

1. Piktochart

Piktochart is a presentation software that can create a variety of design visuals, from infographics to social media stories.

An area in which Piktochart shines is crafting unique presentations. 

On Piktochart, users can choose from a wide range of professionally-designed presentation templates .

These custom templates include everything from monthly marketing reports to employee onboarding templates.

This broad selection of customizable templates is especially useful for those who don’t have much design experience or know-how but need to create a visually stunning unique presentation in a pinch. 

Piktochart’s presentation maker also makes it easy to edit presentations and include design elements such as lists, timelines, comparisons, graphs, and different types of charts through drag-and-drop tools.

You can even make visual maps and interactive charts to keep your audience engaged throughout your presentation. 

And if your company uses a Piktochart TEAM plan , you can enjoy the platform’s ability to store brand assets , color schemes, and bespoke templates. Here, replicating company-branded visuals is a breeze. 

Piktochart comes with a free version but with certain limitations. Active visuals are capped at five per month and published visuals have a Piktochart watermark.

If you want features such as team template collaboration, project sharing, and annotated commenting, you’ll have to get a Team account. To sum it up:

• Lots of professionally-designed templates 
• Good for both design professionals and non-professionals 
• Easy to store brand assets and bespoke templates for future presentations
• Access presentation tools from anywhere via a web browser
• Free presentation app version available
• Might take some getting used to if you’re used to PowerPoint presentations

Present and collaborate with ease using Piktochart’s presentation templates.

You don’t have to worry about how your presentation will look like. Piktochart’s easy-to-edit templates will take care of the visual aspect for you.

2. Microsoft PowerPoint

Microsoft PowerPoint is often the first presentation software that comes to mind.

Once considered the “O.G.” and best presentation software available, it is still widely used and has a familiar interface—which means most users are comfortable with it. 

This presentation app has everything you need to create a presentation: from animated transitions for interactive presentations to pre-installed fonts and graphic elements.

Users can also upload their own fonts, graphics, and images into their finished presentation.

Lastly, it’s available as part of the Microsoft Office software package; and you can work on your presentations via the web and mobile devices, for offline viewing as well as online. 

However, PowerPoint is no longer considered the best presentation software, as it has very few templates to choose from, and these tend to fall quite flat compared to modern apps and software.

It’s easy to fall back into boring slideshow PowerPoint files if you don’t know what you’re doing.

And because most people use PowerPoint, you’re likely using the same template as the next guy. 

As standalone presentation software, PowerPoint is pricey at US$139.99—and accessible through only one device unless you upgrade your package.

And while PowerPoint is primarily a slideshow application and presentation maker, its strengths are limited to this category. 

So if you’re looking for the best presentation software, and bang for your buck for a robust presentation tool, you might want to look elsewhere. 

• Market leader in slideshow applications to create slides
• Widely used and familiar interface for the presentation process
• Reliable and usable on most devices as well as being a desktop app
• Flat templates
• Limitations with its standalone-presentation software price

3. Google Slides

Google Slides is a slideshow application that is very similar to PowerPoint.  But there are three main differences: it’s fully online (while also allowing for offline viewing), collaborative, and free. 

The great thing about Google Slides (besides the fact that it’s completely free for anyone with a Google account) is that you can log on via your browser or through its official app. 

You can access all Google Slides presentations from any device (mobile, tablet, and desktop), and share them with other people so you can collaborate in real-time. 

Google Drive allows all your presentations to live on the cloud, accessible to all marketing and sales teams, with unparalleled ease of use.

And there’s no need to worry about disruptions as all changes are saved as they happen, as long as you have an active internet connection. 

Additionally, anyone familiar with PowerPoint will be comfortable using Google’s iteration and likely be delighted by Google Drive and the slide library available. 

It’s also a lot simpler, so even those new to presentation-making will find it easy to navigate. 

However, some might find Google Slides too simple as it lacks the wealth of features available on PowerPoint. 

These include embedding videos from sources other than YouTube, plus adding audio tracks and sound effects, limiting the ability to create unique interactive presentations. 

Some users also encounter issues with downloading and exporting to different formats, including PowerPoint. 

Some slides may even turn out completely different from the original version. 

All in all, Google Slides is a great option for those who are looking for a free application and only need to create simple presentations. 

• The free plan supports professional presentations
• Web-based and collaborative to create presentations
• Simple and familiar interface for an online presentation software
• Too simple for advanced presentation making
• Difficult to export to other formats
• Limited templates and customization options for interactive content

You could say Keynote is Apple’s version of PowerPoint. It’s also a slideshow application—but in typical Apple fashion, it comes with a sleek, minimalist interface and is considered one of the best presentation apps on the market. 

There are 30 different themes to choose from, which serve as templates for those who need a quick fix. And it can do most of what PowerPoint can. 

Keynote’s main perk is that it’s part of the Apple ecosystem. 

That means it has built-in iCloud and Apple Watch support so users can control their presentation from their mobile device or even their wrists with just a click. 

This presentation app comes pre-installed on most Mac devices. Otherwise, you can purchase it from the Apple store for just US$9.99 for mobile and US$19.99 for OS X. 

The big downside is that Keynote is exclusive to Mac OS. 

Non-Apple users can create, upload, and sync their own Keynote presentations through their iCloud Drive, but this presentation app is only truly helpful only for those who use multiple Apple devices. 

And if you’re used to working on PowerPoint, you might find Keynote a bit confusing in the beginning, especially when editing presentations. 

• Sleek, minimalist interface 
• Free with most Apple devices
• No access for PC and Android devices except through iCloud

5. SlideDog

Sliding away from straightforward slideshow applications and other presentation apps, SlideDog is a web-based multimedia presentation tool that lets users combine different types of media to create and edit presentations. 

This includes everything from PowerPoint decks to videos and even PDFs that can all be played side by side without any awkward transitions. 

It’s also extremely easy to customize a SlideDog presentation. 

You just need to upload the files into the SlideDog web browser application, and then drag and drop them according to the order in which you want them to play. 

You can control your presentations and playlists from another device, and audience members can view your slideshow on their devices by clicking a link. 

SlideDog has a free presentation app version that provides all of the basic features. 

However, live sharing and premium support are only available with a Pro account that costs US$99 per year, and not via the free version alone.

While SlideDog is technically considered presentation software, you can’t actually create presentations on it. 

You can simply stitch together different pre-made presentations in various formats into what is essentially a playlist. 

Lastly, SlideDog supports only Windows devices, so Apple and Linux users can’t use it. 

• Supports a lot of different media
• Provides live-sharing
• More dynamic compared to the usual slideshow presentation
• Only collates media; doesn’t create them

6. Haiku Deck 

Ever come across presentations with size-eight fonts and blocks of indecipherable paragraphs on each slide? 

You can avoid such an unfortunate scenario with Haiku Deck. 

HaikuDeck is a web and mobile application that favors images over text. 

It works by limiting the number of words users can put on each slide, and allowing them to search for images on their platform related to the slide’s main idea. 

This makes it ideal for those who want to simplify their thoughts and let the images do all the talking. 

Users have over 40 million royalty-free photos to choose from, plus dozens of simple slide layouts on the platform itself. 

While this certainly simplifies the process of creating a visually rich presentation, it can be limiting for those who need to include more information into their slides. 

It’s a great option for someone giving a TED Talk, for example.

But for others who need to pass on more facts and figures, having a built-in word limit might be too restrictive.  

• Simple and easy to use 
• Access to millions of royalty-free stock images
• May be too simple for some
• No Android support
• Limited features

7. Prezi Business

Among the other presentation software on this list, Prezi Business might be one of the most unique presentation tools. 

Rather than offering a regular slideshow format, Prezi looks more like a 3D interactive mind map where viewers jump dynamically from one idea to the next. 

You can zoom in on one “slide” and then zoom out for the next. 

Prezi has over 100 templates to choose from and comes with a very simple interface and a drag-and-drop style of editing. 

It’s compatible with both Mac and PC desktops as well as smartphones. 

It’s also similar to a regular PowerPoint deck in that you can jump back and forth from one “slide” to the next. 

And like SlideDog, you can send viewers the link to the presentation as you’re presenting. 

Also, up to 10 people can work on a Prezi presentation at the same time, one of its main selling points. 

This is great for collaboration, but having so many hands-on deck at once can get messy. 

• Dynamic and immersive presentations
• Highly visual
• Easy to use
• May not be appropriate for all types of presentations

In a world of slides and presentations, standing out is the key. Ludus brings the flair of graphic design into the world of presentations.

At its core, Ludus is the bridge between presentation tools and design software. It enables users to infuse their slides with the kind of design elements you’d typically find in advanced design platforms.

Not only can you import assets from design giants like Adobe, but its seamless integration with tools like Unsplash and Giphy makes sourcing visuals a breeze.

It’s a fairly affordable tool for all its features compared to the other paid options in this list, as users pay 12.49 euros monthly (if billed annually).

However, while Ludus’ robust design capabilities can elevate the look of your presentation, those unfamiliar with design tools might find there’s a learning curve.

• Merges presentation creation with advanced design tools.
• Seamless integration with popular design platforms and visual databases.
• Offers a unique edge in presentation aesthetics.
• Might be a tad overwhelming for non-designers
• Can have a steeper learning curve for those used to more straightforward platforms

9. Slidebean

Crafting a compelling presentation demands not only compelling content but also a design that can captivate your audience. Enter Slidebean.

Slidebean offers an intelligent design solution, using AI to transform raw content into professionally styled presentations. This platform streamlines the design process, allowing you to focus on the message rather than fretting over aesthetics.

The basic plan is free and allows you to create a presentation. But if you want to share or download your presentations, as well as unlock the full suite of features, you’ll need to sign up for the All-Access plan priced at $199 per year.

While it provides a quick and efficient method to produce polished slides, it also offers features for sharing, collaboration, and viewer analytics, adding an edge to your presentation strategy.

However, for professionals who prioritize granular design control, the automated design might feel limiting at times.

• AI-driven design ensures visually appealing presentations.
• Features for collaboration and viewer insights.
• Efficient design process reduces time and effort.
• Might not offer the detailed design customization some users desire.
• Automated choices may not always align with specific branding or style preferences.

10. ClearSlide

Having great visuals to drive your point home can be the difference between getting a sale across the line or customers walking away. ClearSlide stands out in this area as a presentation tool for businesses laser-focused on boosting their sales and marketing game.

At its core, ClearSlide is all about leveling up business presentations. Whether you’re marketing a new product or tracking client engagement, it’s got tools that cater to every need.

Whether it’s a PowerPoint, a PDF, or something from Google Drive or Dropbox, ClearSlide makes it simple to upload and work with these files.

The unique edge? ClearSlide’s virtual meeting space pops open with just a click. It’s all about seamless, professional presentations without the hassle.

Beyond just slides, the platform dives deep into metrics and analytics, ensuring every presentation is backed by data-driven insights. And the tool is available for $35 per month, which isn’t too pricey for medium-sized businesses.

However, its complexity isn’t for everyone. For some, the variety of features might seem a tad overwhelming, and its focus on metrics might be a bit much for those just wanting a basic presentation tool.

• Seamless virtual meetings and presentations
• Integrates with popular platforms
• Offers insightful analytics for sales and marketing
• Might feel complex for some users
• Limited transition and design effects
• Mobile experience could be better

Stepping into the world of animation, Vyond, once known as GoAnimate, allows users to turn their narratives into professional animated videos. For those looking to elevate their content without diving deep into animation complexities, Vyond can be the go-to tool.

This platform is more than just drag-and-drop animations. It integrates AI capabilities with Vyond Go, which transforms text prompts into rough-cut videos.

Fancy a quick draft for your upcoming project? This AI assistant is up for the task. And if perfection is your game, take it to Vyond Studio, filled with an array of characters, templates, and backgrounds.

The Essential Plan at $25 per month is suitable for individuals on a budget. However, if you want to export videos at 1080p and above, have collaboration tools, or different export options, you’ll need to sign up for the Professional Plan at $92 per month.

As robust as the tool is, there are still some kinks to iron out. AI voiceovers might still need some tweaks, and detailed color customizations can be a bit tricky, but the tool’s strengths, especially for businesses, are undeniable.

• Hassle-free video creation for beginners to experts
• Generous library of pre-made assets
• AI-powered video and script creation with Vyond Go
• AI voiceovers might feel a bit robotic
• Some customization limitations for specific props and scenes

The best presentation software is…

 …completely up to you! 

When it comes to presentation software, the world is your oyster. 

Each of these tools either has a free or trial version for you to check out, so you don’t have to commit just yet. 

When it’s time to choose, consider the following aspects to find the right presentation software for you: 

• Ease of use. Is it easy for you to understand or will it require lots of training before you can start creating presentations? 
• Accessibility. Can you access your presentation software from any device or are you limited to carrying your laptop to every presentation? 
• Real-time collaboration. Can multiple people work on the same project or do you have to keep downloading and emailing drafts? 
• Create design tools. Can you create presentations with dynamic design elements or are you stuck with the same kind of slide each time? 
• Template availability. Is this tool only accessible to a design professional or can anyone create stunning presentations through pre-designed and updated templates? 

Piktochart , for example, would be a fantastic presentation software choice among the long list of PowerPoint alternatives for teams looking for a variety of eye-catching designs without requiring much technical know-how. Meanwhile, Microsoft PowerPoint might be the best presentation software for those who are just looking to play it safe. 

Hopefully, this best presentation software list sheds some light on the tools at your disposal. Choose wisely! 

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15 Best Presentation Software for 2021

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On average a presentation takes up to 20 minutes and experts say we make an impression within the first 30 seconds. That is why it’s important to “dress” our great product/idea with an equally exciting design. Most often, presentations are cooked up by non-designers, which creates a specific need – for powerful presentation software, which can help communicate a message beautifully, effectively, and to suit any user’s skill level. We hand-picked 15 of the best presentation software for 2021 , which will help you create presentations online, share them, while shining in your best light. In the meanwhile, check out some useful ideas tips to spice up your presentations .

A web-based presentation tool, which means you can access your presentations wherever you are, with an internet connection. It is known for its animations, cartoons, and infographics, which help the user to create more interactive presentations and explainer-style videos.

Example by Focusky

Best Features:  Very interactive; you can create a unique to your story by combining different “frames” (slides); create your own animations within the presentation Price:  Free, but heavily subscription-based Learning curve:  Very intuitive, nicely organized by categories, but it would require some time to learn the animation controls Available for:  Online Perfect for: Marketing and education

To summarize, this presentation tool is best for marketers and education, where the creator can get the most out of the cool animation and cartoons available. In the last years, there is an increased interest in Powtoon and RenderForest and we expect that more and more people will use them in 2021. No surprise – if you look at our article about Graphic Design Trends in 2022 , everything is moving towards animation, cool 3D-s, cartoons, and illustrations – and these are all things that this software can offer for your presentation.

Prezi is an online presentation software, which resembles a mind map. In comparison, PowerPoint offers a linear way of presenting, whereas Prezi allows you to better show relationships between different elements of your presentation, show details, zoom in and zoom out and show an overall view of your topic. Compared to PowerPoint is more interactive, but with fewer functionalities and a choice of templates.

Example by PreziBase

Best Features:  Interactive presentations and interesting transitions, zoom in/out details Price:  The very basic features are free, but most of the interesting ones are paid, starting from $3/month and reaching up to $59/month. They offer a free trial. Learning curve:  it requires learning and going through a lot of menus and functionalities, similar to PowerPoint Available for:  Online / Limited use for iOS and Android (only viewing, not creating and editing) Perfect for: teachers, businesses, more experienced designers, and specific presentations needs, but not recommended for newbies

Prezi is best in showing relationships between different parts of your presentations. There are some challenges in editing, and viewing across devices and its best features are paid for. We recommend it for quick, mind-map-like presentations without the need for ultra-special design.

3. RenderForest Presentation Maker

RenderForest is an online presentation tool, which is famous for its explainer style and whiteboard animations. The presentation templates often offer various motion/video backgrounds, which helps to grab your audience’s attention. Currently, the company is working on releasing its Graphic Design Software, which will allow users to create printables and beautiful designs for social media. This shows that RenderForest’s team knows the market well and does its best to cater to its needs!

Example by Renderforest

Best Features:  Video holders with text on shapes, cool transitions Price:  There is a free version, the paid ones start at $20.34 per user/month Learning curve:  Relatively easy to use, the simple interface helps the user Available for:  Online / iOS / Android Perfect for:  Education and business

Although not one of the cheapest solutions, it allows you to create engaging and interactive presentations with lots of cool animations. That makes RenderForest a great choice for more educational and marketing explainer-type videos/presentations.

4. Mentimeter

Mentimeter is a very interesting online presentation software. It allows your audience to engage with your presentation in real-time and you can create polls, ask questions, which are then displayed to your presentation. The answers from the audience remain anonymous so people are even more encouraged to participate.

Example by Mentimeter

Best Features:  Launch live, interactive polls, surveys, quizzes and create things like word clouds in real-time Price:  It has a free version, but the paid plans offer most of the attractive features – the basic plan costs $9.99 per user/month and the more advanced plan is $24.99 per user/month Learning curve:  Easy to use; might need to explain to a less tech-savvy audience how to connect to your presentation Available for:  Online / Android / iOS Perfect for:  Educators, speakers, business and competitions

An excellent choice for educators, speakers, and businesses who want to engage the audience in real-time and display the results immediately. Clean, simple designs, that help you focus on the content.

5. Libre Office Impress

Libre Office is free presentation software, an open-source alternative to PowerPoint. As you can expect from a free product, it offers only the main features of its “big brother”, but it’s a good solution for people used to Microsoft’s productivity suite. The interface is very similar to PowerPoint, which again makes it comfortable to use for a certain audience. Users who need collaboration on presentations, clean interface, and more creative design solutions should steer away from this free presentation software because it will simply not cover their needs.

Example by Theodoros Bousios

Best Features:  Free, compatible with older versions (Windows XP for example) Price:  Free Learning curve:  It will take some time to go through all the options and to get familiar with the interface; Available for:  Windows / macOS / Linux / Android / iOS. Perfect for:  people who want to use a free product and people with older operation systems

To summarize, Libre is free, compatible with older versions, it can cover your basic needs for a presentation, but the options are too many and available templates too little.

6. Zoho Show

Zoho Show is also an online presentation software, which has a very friendly user interface and great collaboration features. There are many functionalities, which help you create a beautiful design, but require some time and design knowledge to get it right. The premade templates are limited and this presentation software needs an internet connection to be able to edit and present.

Image by Zoho

Best Features:  Live broadcasting a presentation with live chat and commenting Price:  Zoho Show is free for personal use. For business users, Zoho Show is included in the Zoho Docs enterprise pricing packages – €5 or €8 per user/month Learning curve: Available for:  Online / Android / iOS Perfect for:  non-profits, start-ups, personal use, teachers

To summarize, Zoho offers great collaboration features, but you need a connection to edit and present. It is suitable for quick, non-pretentious presentations, where you need some kind of collaboration.

7. ClearSlide Presenter

ClearSlide is a sales engagement platform, including an online presentation tool. Another online tool – SlideRocket, was acquired by ClearSlide and one of the differences is that ClearSlide is more costly and targeted at larger businesses. It’s a great platform for very specific needs – collaborating between sales and marketing teams, to achieve the company’s goals. It’s clear even by the interface:

Image by ClearSlide

Best Features: Analytics for costumers’ engagement, video conferencing, screen sharing Price:  They offer a free trial and you can see more about the payment plans here. Learning curve:  Clear and simple interface, but it requires some time to get used to the tools Available for:  Online Perfect for: Sales/business, managers (for coaching); not suitable for newbies, teachers, students

To summarize, ClearSide is perfect for presenting sales pitch , graphics, collaborate in larger teams. It is somehow restrictive for a non-designer because the templates are specific.

8. Piktochart

Piktochart allows you to make infographics, presentations, and printables quickly. Primarily known for its easy customizable infographics, Piktochart also has simple presentation templates and the company is constantly trying to update its library.

Example by Piktochart Knowledge Base

Best Features:  Turning data-heavy content into simple visuals; nice transitions between slides Price:  There is a free version and a paid one, starting at $29 per user/month. They offer a free trial. Learning curve:  It requires time to get used to the options available and to navigate through Available for:  Online Perfect for:  Designers, teachers; it does not offer collaboration options, which might be needed by teams, students, etc.

Compared to other online presentation software is a bit costly and we could still ask a bit more from the presentation templates. We’d recommend it to someone who often uses infographics and wants to use a single platform to combine the infographics with a presentation. But why not check our free infographics as well?

Slides is online presentation software, initially aimed at developers and covering their presentation needs. Thus said, it does not offer offline editing, but you can present offline, after exporting your presentation.

Best Features:  It allows you to use your phone as a remote control; Live Present Mode allows you to control what your audience sees; drop in code, iframes, and SVGs with ease. Price:  Free, with paid plans starting at $7.00/month and $14-$18/month for pro and team packages. They offer a free trial. Learning curve:  friendly interface, but too many functions and options, which might overwhelm the average user and beginner Available for: Online Perfect for:  developers, designers, a little bit too specific for newbies

To summarize, it’s a very cool tool, giving you complete design freedom, but that is also why we do not recommend it to teachers, non-designers, or marketers. Developers and design gurus will love it.

Canva is a web-based solution that started with a mission – to make beautiful designed content available to everyone. The whole platform is organized so that a person without any prior design knowledge can easily create graphs, images, and presentations to impress. Although it is not the best tool for data visualization, it scores high in any other category. Needless to say, it has become a popular choice amongst non-designers.

Image by Iconfinder

Best Features:  Plenty of beautiful templates to choose from and Canva school has plenty of tutorials and tips for free. It offers more free functionalities compared to other competitors. Price:  Free, the offer different subscription plans, starting at $9.95 per user/month Learning curve:  Very easy to use, most of the actions can be performed by drag-and-drop Available for:  Online / iOS / Android Perfect for:  newbies, marketers (who need a unified look across all their social media), non-profits, and teachers

Canva is becoming one of the most popular tools amongst non-designers for creating beautiful unified content. You can create entire presentations, flyers, and other materials with a single drag and drop.

11. Slidebean

Slidebean is the go-to online presentation software for last-minute projects, that look original and professional. Slidebean offers clean and easy-to-use templates and keeps track of your audience’s engagement.

Source Slidebean

Best Features:  It allows you to arrange your content with the help of AI, which saves time creating a beautiful layout. You just pick a template, upload content, and let the AI offer you a nice layout. Premade animations, effects, and alignments are automatically applied to your content and create a cohesive look. Price:  Free, paid versions starting from $8/month Learning curve:  very easy to use since everything is made to fit the premade templates Available for:  Windows / Mac / Android / iOS Perfect for:  financial, academic, pitch, marketing, sales; everything quick with a clear structure

To summarize, if you are in a hurry, Slidebean will offer several layouts for your slides and speed up the process of creation. The platform targets primarily sales, marketing, and financial fields, and the available templates reflect that.

12. Google Slides

Google Slides is part of the G Suite business application. Its popularity has increased in the last years since it’s a web-based platform, allowing you to store, edit, and share your presentation, without the need of installing presentation software on your computer. All you need is a Google account and you are good to go.

Image by G Suite Updates blog

Best Features:  It’s free for personal use, and offers great paid features for business – for example, seamless collaboration and commenting on a presentation, converting other presentations to Google Slides. Some other great features are the wide variety of fonts available (GoogleFonts, not need installing), easy embedding, plus it’s super intuitive and easy to use! Price:   It’s free for individual use. For business use, the price starts at $5/user/month and plans of $10 and $25/user/month, for unlimited cloud storage and extra features Learning curve:  Simple interface, but it will require some time to pick up. Similar to PowerPoint, only a bit lighter. Available for:  Windows / Mac / Online Perfect for:  businesses, freelancers, who need a user-friendly app with elementary features; great for collaborating teams, not so perfect for complex designs and tools, required by big enterprises

Perfect for personal use, well synchronized across different devices, similar to PowerPoint. Maybe you are a teacher and you like GoogleSlides because it is free and easy to use? Well, we’ve gathered some awesome FREE GoogleSlides and PowerPoint templates , specially made for education needs.

If you need something along the lines of PowerPoint but need the option for collaboration – a paid plan for GoogleSlides is your go-to choice.

13. Keynote

Keynote is an Apple product, very similar to Google Slides. All you need to do is create an iCloud account (similar to a Google account) and start using Keynote from there. Running Keynote on Windows also requires an internet connection and a modern browser. The latest version can also import and export PowerPoint formats if needed. All this sends Keynote higher in the list regarding the accessibility and shareability of this presentation software.

Image by Envato tuts+

Best Features:  Simplicity of design, great drag and drop functions, polished transitions and animations, easy image editing/cropping; works great with multimedia; design templates with better aesthetic than an average slide deck; Price:  Free for macOS and iOS Learning curve:  Pretty easy to use for Mac users, a bit of learning curve for users, having experience with other software. Available for:  Mac / Windows / Online Perfect for:  businesses, marketers, people with not much of a design experience

Bottom line, if you are a Mac user, you love the sleek design and you are looking for cool aesthetics – Keynote is simple to use and free, why not use it?

14. Adobe Spark

Adobe Spark is a web and mobile-based media creation application, which helps you create social graphics, short videos, and web pages. What is immediately noticeable is the clean, crisp, simple, and modern designs, which focus you on the content. If you are looking for a funky, ornate design – Adobe Spark is not the right pick for you.

Example by Cikeys

Best Features:  Beautiful templates, user-friendly interface, step-by-step creation, you can add audio to your slides (narrating) Price:  There is a free version, the paid on starts at $9.79. The best templates, as with the competitors, are paid. They do not offer a free trial. Learning curve:  Easy to use Available for:  Online / iOS / Android Perfect for:  quick presentations, teachers, basic presentations without jamming them with too much cool stuff.

Adobe Spark eliminates the cluster of design options and leads you step-by-step in creating elegant, simple presentations. Ideal for basic presentations, not the best for sales and marketing.

15. PowerPoint

PowerPoint certainly is a “classic” – it’s has been the most popular tool for creating presentations so far. What first started as a component of the Microsoft Office suite, now has improved shareability and accessibility. It can be used on the web (as part of Office on the web), works with Android, and iOS, and there is a Mobile app, as well as presentation software for mac.

Example by Abris DC

Best Features:  Many people are familiar with the software, a wide variety of templates; improved accessibility across platforms; extensive tools and options Price: If you want to enjoy the full features of PowerPoint, you’ll need to subscribe to Microsoft 365 – they have payment plans for personal or business use. The price for personal use starts at $5.99/month or $59.99/year, and business plans start at $12.50 per user/month with an annual commitment. You can find more information here . The mobile applications are completely free to use, of course with some limitations. You can compare the available features across different platforms  here. Learning curve: Due to the variety of options and the complexity of the menus, it might take some time to master all of its features. Something that could take a lot of time is editing the text, arranging the visuals, and picking the right transitions – overall, is time-consuming. Still, the interface remained easy to navigate over time and if you trust your design sense, you can achieve satisfying results. Available for: Windows / Mac / Online Perfect for: business, medical, accounting and students; creating concise presentations; but not so suitable for teachers, educators, start-ups and marketers who want to create more interactive and story-based presentations.

To this date, PowerPoint is keeping the lead as the most popular tool for creating presentations. Some of the downsides are that sometimes it can be time-consuming to come up with a good design and PP doesn’t offer collaboration tools and compared to other platforms. But we have a solution for at least one of your problems – we’ve selected 31 Modern PowerPoint templates to set the right tone for your presentation. 

We made a quick summary for you…

Ok, not that we’ve looked at the 15 best presentation software for 2021, we decided to go one step further and compare them by price and popularity. Let’s have a look first at the new-comers:

As you can see, the leaders from the uprising platforms are Canva and Mentimeter, with relatively low prices and with huge success amongst users . Powtoon, Piktochart, and Renderforest are a bit costly , but they are popular since they offer a lot of animation and interactive elements. Hey, but maybe some of the other tools are right for you? We encourage you to go on their websites, contact their support team, and see what they have to offer.

Then, let’s see how the veterans are ranking:

It’s no surprise that PowerPoint and Google Slides are at the top – people are used to their products, have familiar interfaces, and offer a lot of functionalities at a good price. Although, for quick, unpretentious results, their competitors are a very attractive solution.

Final words

We can conclude that there are many useful tools to help you create beautiful presentations. Some of them are well-known and have been here for a while, while others are uprising… No matter the case, we notice a trend for presentation tools catering not only to the designers’ needs but also to the newbies, marketers, and teachers. That way, enabling everyone to create stunning presentations in no time and share them easily.

We hope this presentation software list shed some light on different options out there and that we helped you evaluate quickly what would work for your situation best.

You may also be interested in these related articles:

• 12 PowerPoint Presentation Tips To Dramatically Boost Your Efficiency
• 35 Free Google Slides Infographic Templates to Grab Now
• 23 Online Collaboration Tools for Your Remote Team

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Bilyana Nikolaeva

Bilyana is an inspiring content writer and illustrator at GraphicMama with years of experience in art and design. When she’s not busy writing for the blog, you will usually see her working hard on new illustrations and graphic resources.

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Whether you’re a student or a working professional, everybody has to make presentations from time to time and that usually involves presentation software. But when you’re frantically Googling around to refresh your PowerPoint knowledge, it’s only natural to wonder what is really the best presentation software out there. Yes, everybody knows that Microsoft’s the biggest player in the slideshow game but there are actually a lot of alternatives to explore. If you expand your horizons, you may find another app that makes more sense for you. Expand your office app horizons and see how the best presentation software can make your job a little easier.

Best overall: Microsoft PowerPoint

Best for professionals: canva, best for zoom: prezi.

• Best for Mac: Apple Keynote  

Best for students: Beautiful.ai

Best budget: google slides, how we chose the best presentation software.

As a journalist with over a decade of experience, I know how to present information to all sorts of audiences effectively and efficiently. Over the years, I’ve worked with a variety of clients to craft copy for presentations, as well as the slideshows themselves. I’ve used the best software in the business, as well as quite a lot of the bad stuff, so I know what will work for you and your needs. 

In making this list, I relied on my own firsthand experience with presentation software, as well as consulting professional tutorials and critical reviews. I also personally created a number of sample slideshows using prebuilt templates and custom layouts of my own in order to put the programs through their paces. I used both the stalwart software suites that everyone knows, as well as a number of lesser-known alternatives that have emerged over the past few years. If an impressive new program hits the block, we will update this list accordingly once we get some hands-on time with it.

Things to consider when buying presentation software

There has been an explosion of presentation software over the past few years, and each of the program’s developers has their own pitch to lure people away from PowerPoint. The most important things to consider when choosing presentation software will vary from person to person. A small business owner putting together a professional presentation with original branding may need different tools to make an appealing pitch, versus a student building a last-minute slideshow for a group project to present the results of their research in Econ class.

There are a wide variety of bells and whistles that presentation building programs boast as their killer features, including brand kit integration, easy social media sharing options, offline access, seamless collaboration, AI suggestions, and analytics. These extra features will seem very helpful to enterprise customers, but the average person should realistically prioritize more traditional factors like ease-of-use, customizability, and cost. There are, however, a few elements that every single person who uses presentation software needs, so let’s walk through the fundamentals.

Ease of use

No one wants to spend hours learning how to make a basic slideshow. While all of these programs take time to master, some of them are easier to pick up quickly than others. An intuitive piece of software grabs your attention and allows you to perform basic actions like adding slides and assets without time-consuming tutorials. The more professional-grade programs out there might take a little more time to master, but they’re rarely difficult to use.

Prebuilt templates

The number one thing that you want from a presentation software is a good-looking final product, and templates help you achieve that goal quickly and easily. All of the competitive presentation software suites out there have a library of pre-built templates that let you plug in information quickly. Quality and quantity separate the good programs from the great ones, though. Some apps have more templates than others, and some templates look better than others. On top of that, some programs lock their best templates behind a premium subscription, which leaves you relying on the same basic structures over and over. 

The truly professional-grade software also includes a selection of prebuilt art assets to help you bring a personal touch to the presentation. If a program doesn’t have an impressive set of templates, it isn’t worth using.

Customizability

While most people want to start building their presentations with a template, you need to change some things around if you want to keep things looking fresh. Professionals, in particular, will probably want to customize every aspect of their slideshows, from the color of the background to the exact pixel position of images. This obviously increases the amount of time it takes to craft a presentation, so it’s important that the systems for making those tweaks are intuitive and easy to use. Not every user is going to need the level of customizability, but it’s definitely something worth considering.

Who’s it for?

Every presenter needs to build a slideshow for their audience. They should probably ask that question when they pick which presentation software to use as well, as it can help determine what software they should use. Students might need the expansive collaboration tools of certain platforms but might not need the pinpoint design controls in others. While the presentation software listed below can all make a great slideshow with enough time and effort, your own use case and the intended audience will have a big impact on your choice.

Cost & affordability

Very few presentation builders have a simple, one-time price tag. Most operate on a subscription model, where you can buy a month’s use for a certain amount, or save money by buying a year at a time. A few are free, though many appear to only offer a free trial or stripped-down version that will allow you to put together something basic before quite literally buying in.

If you’re looking to build just one or two presentations a year, it’s probably best to stick to one of the free options. However, if you have to build slideshows on a regular basis, it’s probably worth sinking your money into a subscription to the program you really like.

Generally speaking, as you might expect, the more impressive and in-depth software costs more than the more traditional fare. However, because many of the most popular programs in the space (such as Microsoft PowerPoint) come as part of a suite, you will need to weigh the benefits of not only the presentation software but also the other programs that come along with it. If you’re a die-hard Microsoft Word user, for example, you’re already paying for the Microsoft Office suite, but the calculus gets more complicated if you prefer Google Docs.

The best presentation software: Reviews & Recommendations

By now, you probably have a good idea of what you should be looking for in presentation software, so now we’ll get into the interesting part. As mentioned above, we’ve broken down our picks based on a few common use cases, as well as the criteria we mentioned above. Regardless of which one you decide on, all of these programs are powerful tools that can produce a slick slideshow with a little time and effort, and you’d be well served by any of them.

MobiSystems

Why it made the cut: Whether you’re a broke student or a busy professional, Microsoft PowerPoint can do whatever you need. It’s also reasonably priced.

• Platforms: Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, Web
• Suite or standalone: Microsoft Office 365 Suite
• Special features: Designer, MS Office integration
• Free version: Yes
• Well-known interface imitated by competitors
• Powerful and accessible
• Good templates
• Part of a popular software suite
• Slight learning curve

Even after testing more than a dozen programs, Microsoft PowerPoint remains the go-to presentation software for most people. Setting the industry standard, it offers great templates, an accessible interface, an impressive library of prebuilt art assets, and plenty of tools for building a slick slideshow. It also supports real-time collaboration, offline editing, and third-party content embedding. At $70 a year, PowerPoint is significantly cheaper than most of its competitors and it’s part of Microsoft Office, a software suite that most companies pay for and workers can’t live without. 

Of course, it isn’t perfect. PowerPoint makes it very easy to make a basic presentation, but it will likely take you longer to make something that looks polished and professional in PowerPoint than with design-forward programs like Canva or Prezi. Even top-flight presentations are achievable, though, in a reasonable timeframe. PowerPoint might not be the best presentation program for every situation, but it’s certainly the best for the average person.

Why it made the cut: Canva creates beautiful, professional-grade presentations faster than its rivals, and it’s easier to use than most.

• Platforms: Web, Windows, iOS, Android
• Suite or standalone: Standalone
• Special features: Amazing templates, very customizable
• Excellent free version
• Extremely easy to use
• Makes beautiful presentations fast
• Eye-catching templates
• Harder-to-use advanced features
• Limited offline use

If you need to make a striking business presentation in an hour, Canva is absolutely the software for you. Designed from the ground up for business professionals who don’t want to have to use another program (i.e., Photoshop or GIMP) to create visually compelling content, Canva delivers on this promise in spades. 

Canva’s gorgeous templates are the best of any of the programs we tested, and its free version is far more robust than you’d expect for a costless trial. Unlike many of these other programs, it creates virtually any marketing material you can imagine, including videos, logos, social media posts, and even resumes. It also includes splashy features that most people won’t use, like brand kit support and easy sharing to social media.

Canva’s simplicity has drawbacks, too, though. It can be a bit difficult to get it to make complicated charts, tables, or diagrams, and it lacks the familiar (but clunky) customizability of PowerPoint. However, if you’re looking to make the most beautiful presentation you can, Canva is a great choice for your business.

Why it made the cut: Prezi is a strong program that structures its basic features in a completely different manner than its competitors. It also has very good Zoom integration.

• Platforms: Web
• Special features: Zoom integration, unique structure
• Free version: No (Two-week free trial)
• More creative structure than competitors
• Intuitive interface
• Expansive feature set
• Doesn’t work for everyone
• Must pay more for advanced features

If you’re really tired of the straight-line structure mandated by other presentation software, Prezi gives you a little more freedom to build things your way. Prezi uses a topic-oriented form that allows you to easily string your ideas in an order that makes sense to you. The basic idea behind Prezi is that you create bubbles of individual content, and then you thread a path through those ideas to create a presentation with a physical form that’s more enticing and conversational than just a linear succession of slides.

While this unique approach makes Prezi a worthy alternative on its own, the app also boasts plenty of specialized features you’d want in a premium program, including a large asset library, social media integration, and collaboration support. 

Though any presentation software can work with Zoom via the screen-share function, Prezi features a very useful video call-focused mode, Prezi Video, which allows you to build a presentation as an overlay that appears in your Zoom window so people can see you and your slides.

Prezi’s freeform structure isn’t going to work for everyone, but if Powerpoint feels stifling, it might open new doors for you.

Best for Mac: Keynote

Why it made the cut: Apple’s answer to PowerPoint might not be as popular as its competitor, but it’s still pretty powerful in its own right.

• Platforms: macOS, iOS, Web
• Suite or Standalone: Apple Software Suite
• Special features: iCloud support, multiple formats
• Free version: Yes (with an Apple account)
• Familiar to most Mac users
• Better asset library than most
• No-frills feature set
• Lacks unique selling points

If you’re a Mac user , you’ve probably at least considered using Keynote to put a presentation together. While all of the other programs on this list work on a Mac as web apps, Keynote is the only app made specifically for the platform.

Like PowerPoint, Keynote is a wide-reaching program designed to help anyone make a sharp-looking presentation, from students to professionals. It has a more robust feature set than other PowerPoint competitors–including better default templates, a bigger asset library, and desktop support. It doesn’t quite have the versatility of enterprise-facing apps like Canva, but you can put together a great-looking slideshow for school or a recurring meeting.

On the other hand, it can be a little tricky to pick up: The interface isn’t quite as intuitive as Google Slides, which is also free. If you have access to both, you get a choice: Build a more striking presentation in Keynote, or put something together quickly in Slides.

Beautiful.ai

Why it made the cut: Beautiful.ai’s AI-powered presentations allow you to make a sharp slideshow in no time flat, and its generous free trial gives time to try it out.

• Special features: AI integration
• Clean interface
• Modern features
• Simple and effective
• Expensive for what it is
• Limited assets and templates

Looking to build a clean, modern presentation in as little time as possible? Beautiful.ai uses AI to help you build a visually stunning presentation in no time flat. While it’s less of a household name than our other picks, it’s the choice of many tech companies for its uncluttered interface, eye-catching templates, and overall no-fuss approach. 

Compared to PowerPoint or Canva, Beautiful.ai does not have a rich feature set or an infinite variety of template options. What the content library lacks in volume, it makes up for in style, though. Its appealing, elegant content elements lend themselves to clean, modern presentations. More importantly, the program’s AI assistant knows how to use those assets. It automatically tailors your slideshow’s design to fit the information you want to present, so you’ll wind up with something thoughtfully prepared before you know it.

Why it made the cut: Google Slides is not only an excellent presentation program—it’s also one of the only ones actually free with no strings attached.

• Platforms: Web, iOS, Android
• Suite or standalone: Google Workspace
• Special features: Easy collaboration, Google integration
• Free for anyone with a Google account
• Familiar interface
• Easy to share and collaborate
• Decent templates
• Somewhat basic in functionality
• Clunky for some users

When it comes to software, there’s “free to use,” and then there’s free. Most of the software on this list offers either a restricted free mode or a time-limited trial. Google Slides is actually free, fully free, for another with a Google account. And it holds its own, even compared to its premium competitors.

Google Slides feels like a simplified version of PowerPoint. It’s a little easier to learn the basics, but also offers fewer templates, screen transitions, and content. It also lacks a built-in asset library to fill dead space, though the program’s Google Drive integration makes it easy to add your own. Like most Google programs, it also supports add-ons that give it enhanced features, like the ability to solve equations within the slideshow.

If you’re looking to make an extremely sharp presentation, Google Slides will take a bit more effort than most. If you need to make a basic slideshow and you grew up on earlier versions of PowerPoint, you’ll feel right at home using Slides.

Q: What are the three most popular presentation software options?

Based on our research, the three most popular programs are Microsoft PowerPoint, Google Slides, and Keynote, roughly in that order. PowerPoint is far more popular than the other two, though. All three are good options, depending on what you’re looking for. All things being equal, though, we recommend PowerPoint.

Q: How much does presentation software cost?

Generally, most of the programs listed here cost between $7 and $15 a month for their premium packages. However, Google Slides and Keynote are free, so we recommend those for customers on a budget.

Q: Is Canva better than PowerPoint?

Canva and PowerPoint are both great programs that offer about equal value. It’s much easier to create a beautiful, eye-catching presentation in Canva, but PowerPoint’s advanced features give you more options. If you need to make slick-looking professional presentations on a frequent basis, we recommend Canva for its superior ease-of-use.

Q: Does Adobe have presentation software?

Adobe had its own competitor to PowerPoint, Adobe Presenter. The company recently ended support for Presenter on June 1, 2022.

Final thoughts on the best presentation software

While everyone wants to use the best program for the job, the truth is that all presentation builders have a lot in common with each other. If you’re familiar with one, it often makes sense to stay put. Despite all the similarities, it can take some time to learn a new system. If you’re constrained and frustrated, or are using presentation software for the first time, you should consider a wide range of options beyond PowerPoint.

Though alternatives like Beautiful.ai, Canva, or (especially) Prezi cost a bit more, they each have strong features that may work better for your purposes. That said, sometimes the most popular presentation software options are the best. If you don’t have specific expectations or need to clear a high bar for design, PowerPoint and free options like Google Slides should work well, and have the benefit of wide adoption in corporate workplaces.

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Best free presentation software of 2024

Find an alternative to PowerPoint

Best overall

Best for speed, best for functionality, best for collaboration, best user interface.

• How we test

The best free presentation software makes it simple and easy to create presentations as an alternative to subscribing to Microsoft PowerPoint.

1. Best overall 2. Best for speed 3. Best for functionality 4. Best for collaboration 5. Best user interface 6. FAQs 7. How we test

While PowerPoint is the market leader when it comes to presentation software, some people may be unwilling to subscribe to a Microsoft 365 subscription, especially if they don't expect to need to use it very often.

However, there are plenty of great alternatives to PowerPoint available for free that you can use. While these won't have the same advanced features as PowerPoint, they still offer a very competent platform to design most any presentation that you need.

To help you choose, we've listed below the best free presentation software currently available.

Add images to your presentations using the best free photo editor .

<a href="https://gsuite.google.com/pricing.html" data-link-merchant="gsuite.google.com"" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"> Google Workspace : Collaboration + productivity apps There are many different presentation software packages but Google Workspace formerly known as G Suite remains the original cloud office software and one of the best business office suites, offering a huge range of features and functionality that rivals can't match, especially when it comes to presentation software. <a href="https://gsuite.google.com/pricing.html" data-link-merchant="gsuite.google.com"" data-link-merchant="gsuite.google.com"" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"> Try it free for 14 days .

The best free presentation software of 2024 in full:

Why you can trust TechRadar We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.

Our expert review:

Reasons to buy

Reasons to avoid.

Prezi turns the traditional approach to presentations on its head. Instead of creating slide after slide, this presentation software gives you a single giant canvas. You can add blocks of text or images, or even create miniature slides. During your presentation, you can seamlessly fly around the canvas and zoom in to look at individual chunks of content.

For how complex Prezi seems, it’s impressively simple to use the platform. The only major divergence from Microsoft PowerPoint is that you need to add animated paths from one part of the canvas to another. The tools for this are fairly straightforward, especially if you’ve ever used an animation or video editing software.

Of course, this type of presentation structure isn’t always ideal. Prezi makes it hard to visualize structured data like financials, which can make it difficult to use in business applications. Some viewers also might not appreciate the fly-around animation style that’s inherent to the presentation software.

Read our full Prezi review .

• ^ Back to the top

Canva is perfect for making speedy presentations right in your web browser. This software offers a handful of free layouts to help you get your slideshow started, and it’s easy to customize the templates to fit your needs. There isn’t a huge variety of content elements to add to your presentation, but Canva makes up for this with a searchable library of more than 1 million images you can use.

Your Canva presentations live online, which makes it extremely easy to collaborate. You can invite colleagues to edit your slideshow (although simultaneous editing is not supported) or seamlessly share your finished presentation. However, beware that Canva can’t import presentations from Microsoft Powerpoint or export finished work to a Powerpoint-editable format.

Read our full Canva review .

3. LibreOffice

LibreOffice is a free alternative to Microsoft Office, and it includes a Powerpoint equivalent called Impress with nearly all of the same functionality. The only big difference you’ll find between the two slideshow creation tools is the LibreOffice lacks some modern features like built-in collaboration and integration with Microsoft OneDrive.

However, Impress does have a few advantages of its own. The software can import files from Keynote, the default presentation software on Mac computers. Plus, there are hundreds of free templates that you can download for free. Even better, there’s no limit on what fonts you can use with Impress, so it’s easy to change the look of your presentation from what Powerpoint typically allows.

On the whole, LibreOffice Impress is about as close as it gets to simply replicating Microsoft Powerpoint for free.

Read our full LibreOffice review .

4. Google Slides

Google Slides is part of Google Workspace (formerly G Suite), and it does a nice job of matching a number of PowerPoint’s capabilities. This free presentation software supports embedding videos, creating diagrams, and adding animations to your slides. While the selection of templates is somewhat limited, you can easily import hundreds of additional templates for free or create your own.

Even better, Google Slides supports the collaboration tools users have come to expect from Google. Multiple people can work on a slideshow simultaneously, and there’s a built-in group chat so you can keep track of what everyone is doing. It’s also nice that you can play your presentation in presenter mode, which allows you to preview how it will look to your audience and rehearse timing.

The only downside to Google Slides is that bloated slideshows can experience some loading delays. Also beware that while you can move between Slides and Powerpoint, the conversion often messes with the layout of your slides.

Read our full Google Slides review .

5. WPS Office Free

WPS Office Free is a Microsoft Office look-alike that fully support PowerPoint files without any layout issues during import. The WPS Presentation tool has all of the same capabilities of PowerPoint, including tons of animations, slide transitions, content effects, and video embedding. The selection of included presentation templates is also very impressive for a free software.

One of the best things about this presentation software is that the user interface will feel incredibly familiar if you’re coming from Microsoft. All of the tools are displayed in a top ribbon, with your slides shown on the left side of the screen for easy navigation. It’s simple to display your presentation right from WPS Presentation, which means there’s no unexpected troubleshooting when it’s time to show off your work.

There’s not much to dislike about WPS Presentation. However, keep in mind that the software is supported by ads. Some users find the ads annoying, but they’re not overly in the way.

Read our full WPS Office Free review .

We've also featured the best free office software .

Best free presentation software FAQs

Which alternative to powerpoint is best for you.

When deciding which alternative to PowerPoint to download and use, first consider what your actual needs are, as sometimes free platforms may only provide basic options, so if you need to use advanced tools you may find a paid platform is much more worthwhile. Additionally, free and budget software options can sometimes prove limited when it comes to the variety of tools available, while higher-end software can really cater for every need, so do ensure you have a good idea of which features you think you may require.

How we test the best free presentation software

To test for the best free presentation software we first set up an account with the relevant software platform, whether as a download or as an online service. We then tested the service to see how the software could be used for different purposes and in different situations. The aim was to push each software platform to see how useful its basic tools were and also how easy it was to get to grips with any more advanced tools.

Read how we test, rate, and review products on TechRadar .  

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Michael Graw is a freelance journalist and photographer based in Bellingham, Washington. His interests span a wide range from business technology to finance to creative media, with a focus on new technology and emerging trends. Michael's work has been published in TechRadar, Tom's Guide, Business Insider, Fast Company, Salon, and Harvard Business Review. 

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The Best Presentation Software and Slideware Apps

Posted by Belinda Huckle  |  On January 20, 2020  |  In Presentation Training, Tips & Advice

In this Article...quick links

1. Beautiful.ai presentation software

3. storydoc, 4. canva presentation software, 5. slidebean, 7. flowvella, 8. slidedog presentation software, 9. preseria, 10. haiku deck, 11. clearslide, 13. powtoon, 14. google slides presentation software, 15. zoho show, 16. genially, 17. wps office presentation software, 19. customshow presentation software, and follow us on social media for some more great presentation tips:.

Editor’s note: this post was updated with new content on 7 Sept 2022. When it comes to creating business presentations, PowerPoint and Keynote have long been the go-to choices. But if you’re looking to give your presentation decks a fresh look and feel with enhanced graphics or animation, you may find that these standard presentation software tools fall short.

There are a host of slideware apps and software that can help you create professional, original and impactful slides with surprising ease. But without trying them all, how can you know which is the best programme to use to develop your next presentation?

To help you narrow it down, we’ve put together an overview of the top choices from the most commonly used presentation software. So read on to find out which is the best match for you and your team.

Whether you have an eye for design and detail or not, the beautiful templates, intuitive features and easy to use interface of beautiful.ai allow you to create slides that are professional and visually impactful . Your presentations are created online and can be shared (privately or publicly) or exported to PDF or PowerPoint. There is a free ‘Basic’ package available or you can upgrade to the paid ‘Pro’ plan to access extra slides, fonts and editing features.

If you want your presentations to stand out from the pack, Prezi presentation software is definitely worth considering – especially if the information you want to share is 3-dimensional or spatial in some way. It includes features that allow you to have fun with your content and really capture the attention of your audience with your slides – these include panning across and zooming in and out of images and graphics. On top of this, it’s really easy to use. Prezi includes designer templates and can be uploaded to PowerPoint. There is a ‘Basic’ free option, or you can upgrade to various paid subscriptions to access more design, editing and privacy features.

Canva is widely used as a design tool to create social media graphics – but it’s also great for designing presentation slides. There are lots of presentation layouts to choose from and it’s fast and easy to customise your background, font and images to suit your style and audience. There is a free version available, or if you are looking for more features you can opt for a Canva Pro paid subscription.

If you’re not overly keen on spending time finessing the design aspect of your slides, slidebean might be the solution you’ve been waiting for. The software utilises AI to arrange your content automatically, which allows you to focus on the information and message you are trying to convey. There are two levels of paid subscription available, ‘Starter’ and ‘Premium’ so you can choose the level of features you need.

Visme is simple to use, which means the learning curve for your team is really low. What’s unique about Visme is besides charts, video and audio, you can also add maps to your presentation. If interactive presentations are what you’re after, Visme is worth a try.

You can choose from hundreds of templates or custom design your slides from scratch. It’s then easy to add your preferred images , fonts, graphics and audio and then download or share online. There are paid plans available for both individuals and teams, and they also offer a discount to students, teachers and non-profits.

FlowVella presentation apps give you the ability to create interactive presentations that include videos, GIFs, links and more. There is also a function that allows you to create detailed presentations where you can drill deeper into the topic as needed. This is great for providing the presenter with flexibility regarding how much detail to share with an audience. There’s a free trial available so you can test it out, plus a number of paid subscription plans which include enhanced functions and capabilities.

With the ability to use different file formats, then create a playlist that seamlessly switches from one to the other, you can create presentations that stand out and are very smooth from a  tech perspective. One of the best features of  SlideDog is that it allows you to engage participants through interactive polls, live chat and audience feedback. So this is great for larger audiences. You can opt for the free download (but your slides will have a watermark) or go for the paid ‘Pro’ version which includes extra features.

If you’re coordinating presentations for a conference or workshop, Preseria should be on your radar. With the web application you can organise your presentations and invite others to upload theirs too. You can also use the desktop software to create presentations or the publishing solution to publish your conference presentations to the web. There is a free trial available and the price of the paid version depends on your needs, such as the number of conferences you will be running.

Haiku Deck has an uncluttered and user-friendly interface with professional-looking templates. If you tend to heavily lean on images, Haiku deck’s USP is their library featuring millions of free-to-use creative commons images (they claim to have over 40 million free images). While most presentation software follows a desktop-first approach, Haiku deck say their mobile-first approach makes it easy for iPad and tablet users to put together presentations on the go.

You can add your own personal touch by selecting one of the many fonts, images and layouts that are available and achieve great results fast. There is a free trial option with limited capabilities, or ‘Pro’ and ‘Premium’ subscriptions that are billed annually or monthly.

Formerly known as SlideRocket, ClearSlide is a complete package, offering presentation software combined with the content management capabilities that provide customer analytics, screen share conferencing and more. There are three levels of paid subscriptions depending on your needs, and each offers a free trial so you can try it out before you commit. A great option for the presentation pro.

Emaze is a cloud-based solution that can help you create visually stunning slides. You can start with their templates and pre-designed slides, then add your content, images and videos. There is also an option to create animation or 3D presentations for maximum impact.

It’s one of the few presentation platforms that offer 3D and video presentation templates. Start with the free plan (which has limited features) and if it matches your needs you can consider upgrading to one of the three paid versions available.

With an array of templates ready for you to drag and drop your content and images, Powtoon makes it possible to create really slick video-style presentations in as little as 20 minutes. Certainly worth a look for corporate presentations and standard sales and product/service information decks. You can use it for free or select one of three paid plans for extra features and to have the branding removed.

Google Slides is available for free for personal use, or as part of the G Suite for business with enhanced security and control for teams. There are lots of templates, themes and fonts, and you can also add animations and embedded video to really give your presentation a boost. Other features include automatic save, collaboration tools, compatibility with PowerPoint, and the flexibility to create and edit presentations on the go.

With Zoho Show you can create clean, contemporary slides quickly and easily in a few simple steps. The best part is, it integrates with Confluence and Jira, so you can create, collaborate on, and deliver presentations within these project tracking platforms (if you use them).

Pick your theme, add your content, and the smart user interface will guide you along to help you create slides that look the part and get your message across. You can also collaborate with others and broadcast remotely, which is a handy feature. There is a free version available for up to three users or you can upgrade to a paid plan too.

With this platform you can create all sorts of visual communications and interactive content, including presentations. Besides presentations, Genially also has the option to create learning experiences. So if you’re looking for an easy-to-use tool to create interactive training material, this platform is simple to use and includes several learning experience templates to help you achieve the right look. You can choose from the basic ‘Free’ plan, or opt for the ‘Pro’, ‘Master’ or ‘Team’ paid subscriptions depending on your needs.

Rated by some as the best free presentation software, WPS Office suite includes a range of tools and templates to help you effectively communicate your message. The cloud-based platform means you can access your files when you want on any device and the application is compatible with Microsoft Office, Google Docs and Adobe PDF. There’s the option of a free download or you can pay for a premium version with additional features.

Designed specifically for sales teams, Scaura’s content management system ensures sales content is automatically synchronised and sent to your sales managers. That means everyone’s presentations are consistent and up-to-date. You can also track who is using the sales decks and how often via the comprehensive analytics dashboard. There are two subscription options available that are billed monthly or annually.

Marketing and sales teams from some of the biggest companies across the globe use CustomShow to create presentations that are on-brand and make an impact. With features that are tailored for collaboration, flexibility and measurable results, this is a great choice if you’re serious about creating slides that convert . You can request a free demo, or contact their sales team for a customised quote.

There are many other slide apps and presentation software options out there. But these are our 18 favourites. If you haven’t explored the world outside PowerPoint and Keynote we certainly encourage you to broaden your horizons.

With the right app, and a team of confident and capable presenters, your business presentations can have the wow factor audiences expect. But, without clear and persuasive presentation skills required to create the story, craft the narrative and nail the delivery, even the best slideware will fail to impress.

Improve your online presentations with our online training programmes

For nearly 20 years we have been the Business Presentation Skills Experts , training & coaching thousands of people in an A-Z of global blue-chip organisations. All our online programmes consist of live video-coaching modules , incorporating personalised feedback, advice and guidance to take business presenters further than any pre-recorded content ever can. To find out more, click on one of the buttons below:

Written By Belinda Huckle

Co-Founder & Managing Director

Belinda is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of SecondNature International. With a determination to drive a paradigm shift in the delivery of presentation skills training both In-Person and Online, she is a strong advocate of a more personal and sustainable presentation skills training methodology.

Belinda believes that people don’t have to change who they are to be the presenter they want to be. So she developed a coaching approach that harnesses people’s unique personality to build their own authentic presentation style and personal brand.

She has helped to transform the presentation skills of people around the world in an A-Z of organisations including Amazon, BBC, Brother, BT, CocaCola, DHL, EE, ESRI, IpsosMORI, Heineken, MARS Inc., Moody’s, Moonpig, Nationwide, Pfizer, Publicis Groupe, Roche, Savills, Triumph and Walmart – to name just a few.

A total commitment to quality, service, your people and you.

Home / Presentation Software

Updated on: April 7, 2024

Presentation Software

• Buyer's Guide
• Grid Report

• AI-Powered (4)
• Upto $10 (20)
• $10 - $20 (10)
• $20 - $30 (2)
• $30 - $40 (2)
• Above $40 (5)
• Content Library It is a catalog of resources that serves as a lead generating tool (51)
• Collaboration Helps you safely share data with only those who matter and enhances your teamwork (46)
• Templates Templates are patterns that help to provide the layout to build and design a website quickly. (44)
• Video Helps to incorporate or to embed videos in the presentation (44)
• Search Search words or texts from your content (37)
• Audio Facilitates incorporating audio or sound elements into the presentation video. (33)
• Offline Presenting Helps doing offline presentation (32)
• Animation Helps doing motion design and animate the transitions for making UI elements lively (27)
• Offline Editing Helps to make changes and to edit the presentation content or data in an offline mode (24)
• 3D Helps to add an illusion of depth or three-dimension perception to enhance the presentation video quality (11)
• Zoom (Pan) Helps changing the angle of view or allows enlarging a certain portion of the displayed data for better and prominent view (11)
• 96 - 100 (4)
• 91 - 95 (7)
• 86 - 90 (10)
• 81 - 85 (11)
• 70 - 80 (17)
• Installed - Windows (11)
• Installed - Mac (9)
• SaaS/Web/Cloud (59)
• Mobile - Android (10)
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98 % SW Score The SW Score ranks the products within a particular category on a variety of parameters, to provide a definite ranking system. Read More

Google Slides

What is Google Slides and how does it work?

Google Slides is a presentation editor in the Google Productivity site where one can create, edit and collaborate a presentation with others on-the-go. It functions as a slide that is presented in a fixed fashion where slides appear in a given order. Google Slides also allows its users to choose from pitches, portfolios and other pre-made presentations, making the result much better and efficient. The presentations are stored in the Cloud and associated with a Google account, thus allowing the users to access them from any platform or device. Additionally, all the changes are being saved automatically as users proceed with their editing. You can also have access to revision history to have a view of the old versions of the same presentation, sorted by date and the person who made the corrections. Google Slides also provides its users with hassle-free conversions of the slides they prepare. Users can easily export their creations into two preferable formats, namely, PowerPoint or PDF.

SW Score Breakdown The SW Score breakdown shows individual score for product features. Read More

• Features 99%
• Reviews 97%
• Momentum 68%
• Popularity 68%

Google Slides Pricing

• Free Trial Not Available
• Starts at $12.00. Offers Free-forever plan.

What is Piktochart and how does it work?

Piktochart as a comprehensive tool lets users create infographics, presentation slides, posters, flyers and more without needing extensive knowledge in graphic designing. Its cleverly designed interface is easy to use and is trusted by top brands worldwide like Disney, United Nations, Bed Bath and Beyond, CitiBank, among others. Piktochart is laden with a variety of exclusive features that make designing fun and engaging. The ease of use offered by this platform lets users create visual content in any format of their choice. Users can promote their own brand, customise reports by incorporating a logo, font and a theme of their own. Also, businesses can upload a custom colour palette accordingly. Moreover, Piktocart offers a free library inclusive of a plethora of images, design elements, and templates that enable users to create visually pleasing content in an instant. They can also depend on the software to create dynamic and impressive data visualisations that are attention-grabbing and easy to interpret at the same time. Users can even link their work with Microsoft Excel or Google Sheet through a seamless third-party integration facility provided by the same.

• Features 94%
• Reviews 90%
• Momentum 71%
• Popularity 93%

Piktochart Pricing

• Starts at $14.00. Offers Free-forever and Custom plan.

97 % SW Score The SW Score ranks the products within a particular category on a variety of parameters, to provide a definite ranking system. Read More

What is Mentimeter and how does it work?

Mentimeter presentation software not just comes with essential presentation features but also brings audience response features. With the help of this software, doing offline presentation and offline editing are also possible. Videos and audio can be added to the presentation. It supports collaboration among team members. Mentimeter comes with a content library, search & zooming facility, templates & animation features. To gather & measure audience response appropriately, the software comes packed with suitable features like feedback collection, PowerPoint integration, live result tracking, and gamification. Through Q & A feature, their queries can be responded on an instantaneous basis.

• Reviews 81%
• Momentum 67%
• Popularity 92%

Mentimeter Pricing

• Free Trial Available
• Starts at $9.99. Offers Free-forever and Custom plan.

96 % SW Score The SW Score ranks the products within a particular category on a variety of parameters, to provide a definite ranking system. Read More

What is Emaze and how does it work?

Emaze is an online presentation and website building platform that helps individuals and businesses to generate beautiful content in minutes. It comes with an easy to use interface that allows users to create complex and attractive presentations at their convenience. Developers can select their own colours, fonts and even import PDF and PowerPoint files or take help from its auto-design technology while creating content. Emaze helps businesses to know how their team is performing at all times through live CRM updates and complete event reports related to team performance. Further, Emaze remote presenting tool, helps users connect with their audience by sending a single link and controlling presentations without deploying any other platform. Also, it helps to improve the conversion rates and teach users about their prospects, track results of employees success ratio or account-based progress. With Emaze, team members can easily collaborate with each other in real-time.

• Features 100%
• Reviews 76%
• Popularity 88%

Emaze Pricing

• Starts at $5.00. Offers Free-forever and Custom plan.

95 % SW Score The SW Score ranks the products within a particular category on a variety of parameters, to provide a definite ranking system. Read More

What is Haiku Deck and how does it work?

Haiku Deck is an online presentation software that helps you to create beautiful presentations without having the need to hire a professional designer. Haiku Deck allows its users to choose from a wide range of Fonts, Layouts and Image Filters, providing them with a professional finish in their presentations. The app offers features like readymade decks and a variety of unique templates, and the users can get a wide range of ideas to work as per their creativity, and thus they can have an idea of the finished product. Haiku Deck also comes with stock photos from professional backgrounds like Getty Images along with the option to resize them as per the demands of the slides. The users can also add images of their choice. All the presentations are stored in the Cloud, thus allowing you to share them easily and preserve their privacy. Haiku Deck lets you follow the best practices of presentation designing. These include simplifying your message along with keeping the formatting styles consistent and clean, and adding relevant images to have an emotional impact on the target audience.

• Features 96%
• Popularity 86%

Haiku Deck Pricing

• Starts at $4.99.

What is Powtoon and how does it work?

Powtoon is a powerful presentation and video software.It is a cloud-based so no special installation is necessary as it can be accessed online at anytime and from anywhere.Incredible animated videos and presentations can be created to captivate and engage audiences more.This highly creative authoring software enables people with negligible design and technical know-how also craft impressive presentations.The software comes with ready made drag-n-drop templates to further ease your task. Powtoon presentation platform offers offline presenting, audio, content library, zoom, animation etc. The software comes with video editing and video management functionalities as well.

• Features 97%
• Reviews 86%
• Momentum 63%
• Popularity 91%

Powtoon Pricing

• Starts at $19.00. Offers Free-forever and Custom plan.

94 % SW Score The SW Score ranks the products within a particular category on a variety of parameters, to provide a definite ranking system. Read More

What is Slidebean and how does it work?

Slidebean AI is a go-to management tool for users who generally spend their workdays preparing presentations. It enables users to design highly professional presentations within seconds. This is made possible through a design platform that is complemented by a powerful behind the scenes Artificial Intelligence. It also comes packed with various elegant templates that provide instant outlines for even the most comprehensive presentations. With a ‘fill in the blanks’ designing structure, users can prepare presentations within no time. This saves them a lot of time, money, and resources. With a simple and sleek platform that cuts down on all the distractions, Slidebean goes a step ahead of traditional presentation designers. The AI system can instantly evaluate thousands of slide designs to pinpoint the perfect slide design as per the requirements of the user. The algorithm also takes care of arrangements in a way that boosts readability and aesthetic appeal.

• Features 95%
• Reviews 75%

Slidebean Pricing

• Starts at $194.00. Offers Free-forever plan.

93 % SW Score The SW Score ranks the products within a particular category on a variety of parameters, to provide a definite ranking system. Read More

What is Slides and how does it work?

Slides is a place for creating, presenting and sharing slide decks. Slides is a suite of modern presentation tools, available right from the browser. Unlike traditional presentation software, there's no need to download anything. Working with collaborators to make an awe-inspiring presentation has never been easier.

• Reviews 64%
• Momentum 70%
• Popularity 80%

Slides Pricing

• Starts at $5.00.

What is Pitch and how does it work?

Pitch software is a Collaboration platform used to manage activities, tasks of a team. Create online or offline presentations. The software offers a library of custom-crafted templates for presentations. Share your presentations to a client or at a conference. Freelancers, Small and Medium companies make use of the software.

• Momentum 64%
• Popularity 90%

Pitch Pricing

• Starts at $8.00. Offers Free-forever plan.

92 % SW Score The SW Score ranks the products within a particular category on a variety of parameters, to provide a definite ranking system. Read More

What is ClassPoint and how does it work?

ClassPoint is the most comprehensive integrated teaching and classroom quiz tool in the education market today. Perfect for any professor using PowerPoint, ClassPoint provides a suite of handy annotation tools and digital whiteboards to allow for removal of the need to switch to other applications. By using ClassPoint, professors are able to achieve all that’s necessary for interactive classrooms right inside PowerPoint. ClassPoint is packed with features that make teaching even more effective. It’s easy to quickly and accurately create polls, quizzes, and surveys that are engaging and work for any device. With the digital whiteboard feature, professors can give a more personal touch to lectures by making use of different colors, shapes, and images to create interactive slides. The annotation tool makes it easier for everyone to collaborate and collaborate in real-time.

• Reviews 60%
• Momentum 65%
• Popularity 87%

ClassPoint Pricing

• Starts at $8.00. Offers Free-forever and Custom plan.

What is Zoho Show and how does it work?

Zoho Show online presentation software comes featured with an array of suitable features like animation, audio and video, templates, offers collaboration, contains content Library etc. Being cloud-based, you can create and craft your presentation from anywhere and at anytime.With this software, you do not need to bear any upfront cost, comes with easy setup and also requires almost no maintenance at all. Zoho Show is compatible with .PPTX files, PowerPoint and other formats. It also features a platform-independent file format that goes easy on bandwidth.The software enables you to insert presentation video in your website at ease, without any need for plugins or download.

• Reviews 83%
• Popularity 71%

Zoho Show Pricing

• Zoho Show Offers Free-forever plan.

91 % SW Score The SW Score ranks the products within a particular category on a variety of parameters, to provide a definite ranking system. Read More

What is CustomShow and how does it work?

CustomShow is a cloud-based presentation software that supports multi-platform delivery.The tool helps designing stunning presentations, and deliver seamless presentations both online and offline. You can also update and manage content globally, ensure real-time collaboration, arrange web meetings etc. The software also notifies your sales team the moment your presentations are viewed online and provides a comprehensive slide-by-slide viewing metrics, usage metrics etc.These help taking more informed marketing and promotion decisions. CustomShow comes combined with an enterprise-level library and a well-featured slide builder. You can share, personalize and track your presentations.

• Popularity 76%

CustomShow Pricing

• Starts at $26.00.

90 % SW Score The SW Score ranks the products within a particular category on a variety of parameters, to provide a definite ranking system. Read More

What is Visme and how does it work?

Visme is a cloud-based visual content creation and collaboration platform that lets users create attractive graphics, infographics, charts, reports, flowcharts, on-brand presentations, and visual communications. The platform assists the users to create professional and branded content quickly irrespective of their design background. The platform centralizes all media assets into a single easily-accessible location, thus helping the teams and individuals scale and control their content creation. Visme enables the users to unify their entire content creation process in a single intuitive platform, thus creating the content, storing it, and publishing it virtually in any format or sharing it. Users can access thousands of easy-to-use and easy-to-edit templates, images and icons, charts, maps, and data widgets. They can easily add a video or audio from the platform or upload their own. Visme lets the users create branded templates that can be reused, thus maintaining the asset library. With this platform's help, users can transform simple branded visuals into fully interactive content by enabling them to add animated assets and clickable content.

• Reviews 79%
• Popularity 85%

Visme Pricing

• Starts at $15.00. Offers Free-forever and Custom plan.

89 % SW Score The SW Score ranks the products within a particular category on a variety of parameters, to provide a definite ranking system. Read More

Prezi Business

What is Prezi Business and how does it work?

Prezi Business is an advanced presentation software for business professionals, enabling them to create and share exclusive visual content that can have a better impact on clients. The software helps to deliver ideas and thoughts through remote connections by making them more personal, impactful and meaningful. It allows users to make a face-to-face connection using live or recorded content for remote meetings, product demos, training and more. Users can also highlight vital information by making memos, announcements and updates that can be shared and viewed anytime. Prezi Business helps to increase trust and credibility between businesses and customers by providing them with video conferencing tools, such as Zoom or Webex. Moreover, companies can generate quality leads and improve customer experience with product demos, live and engaging sales videos and webinars on social media platforms. Users can create helpful presentations using charts, maps and graphics that grab the viewer's attention besides delivering information correctly.

• Reviews 89%
• Momentum 60%
• Popularity 61%

Prezi Business Pricing

• Starts at $3.00. Offers Free-forever and Custom plan.

What is Decktopus and how does it work?

Decktopus as a platform helps individuals to create instant professional presentations, online. 100,000+ users get to utilise a myriad of templates offered by this platform. From creating business presentations and online courses to feedback forms and brochures, Decktopus has it all covered. Also, users can prepare the perfect proposal on this platform in a few steps. Decktopus, unlike other tools, helps users select a page layout with elements. Individuals have to enter their content on this platform and its intuitive tools will design the particular for them, instantly. After designing the proposal/content, Decktopus provides users with a link so that the latter can share the same online. Individuals can also download the respective document in PDF & PPT format. Furthermore, this professional presentation tool offers contact forms, embedded feedback and rating elements to make the proposals even more interactive. Decktopus offers real-time access to millions of icons, GIFs, images and quotes in real-time. Also, with the help of this tool people can record their voice on pages and present it accordingly.

• Features 98%
• Reviews 68%
• Popularity 81%

Decktopus Pricing

• Starts at $7.00. Offers Free-forever and Custom plan.

Microsoft Sway

What is Microsoft Sway and how does it work?

Microsoft Sway is a presentation creating and a visual storytelling app using which, users can create attractive and interactive newsletters, presentations, reports, documents, and personal stories within very less time. Users can easily add photos, videos and other multimedia to their presentations from any place at any time, thus saving time. The software gets easily integrated with the user’s devices and the web. Its efficient and effortless designs create a beautiful combination out of the user’s content. The user just needs to put on some final touches to get the style they actually desire. The software offers an online canvas, which looks great on any screen and dynamically adapts itself to any platform as per the needs of the user. One can share or co-edit the online canvas using a simple URL. The software allows users to share the document they have created with other team members, who can edit it according to their needs.

• Features 93%
• Reviews 69%

Microsoft Sway Pricing

• Microsoft Sway Offers Custom plan.

What is Slidesgo and how does it work?

Are they a professional looking to spruce up their presentations? Look no further than Slidesgo! They offer a wide selection of free Google Slides and PowerPoint templates to help them make their presentations stand out. With these templates, they can disseminate their information in a visually engaging way, creating a more powerful impact on their audience. Now, with the latest website updates, new features, and tools, they can make the most out of the Slidesgo experience. This platform ensures that all of these slides are easy to customize so they can add their own branding and get creative with animations, transitions, and content. With these unlimited template options, there is something available for any topic, and they can find what they need quickly and efficiently. So what are they waiting for? Start using Slidesgo today for beautiful and impactful presentations that their audience won't forget!

• Features 91%

Slidesgo Pricing

88 % SW Score The SW Score ranks the products within a particular category on a variety of parameters, to provide a definite ranking system. Read More

What is Presbee and how does it work?

Presbee is a virtual designing tool that can be used to create, customise and share effective ideas. It is a platform full of innovative templates, allowing users to bring out their creative instincts and implement their best. From quirky presentations to social media posts and videos, Presbee makes designing and related tasks a lot easier than it traditionally is. Further, teams can share, images, templates, folders, colour palettes and fonts in a secured way, guarded by pristine passwords. Real-time viewer analytics enables users to review their content, the number of times they have been viewed and how much time has been spent on each slide in case of a presentation. Real-time collaboration is also supported by Presbee and it allows team members to work on a single project at the same time. Like Powerpoint, Presbee offers a range of conventional as well as trendy transitions for users to incorporate in their videos and presentations alike. Streamed videos can be edited according to the user’s desire, backed by a simple drag-and-drop tool that facilitates seamless animation.

• Reviews 66%
• Popularity 74%

Presbee Pricing

• Starts at $10.00. Offers Free-forever and Custom plan.

87 % SW Score The SW Score ranks the products within a particular category on a variety of parameters, to provide a definite ranking system. Read More

What is Panopto and how does it work?

Panopto is a cloud-based presentation software that can be accessed and used round the clock from any place.The software can be easily run on multiple platforms like Mac, windows, Android Native, iOS Native etc. Apart from a few presentation functionalities, the software comes enriched with an array of diverse useful features like content management, digital asset management and video management features as well. Several academic organizations use the tool to capture and record live stream events and lectures.It comes designed with video search, webcasting and recording, integration & APIs etc. You can use it for employee training, enterprise YouTube and employee onboarding.

• Features 74%

Panopto Pricing

• Panopto Offers Custom plan.

What is SlidesAI and how does it work?

SlidesAI is a revolutionary tool that allows users to create professional and engaging presentation slides in seconds using artificial intelligence. SlidesAI aims to simplify this process by using AI to generate slides from any text input, saving the valuable time and effort. Simply paste the text into SlidesAI and let the AI do the rest. It will automatically create a presentation tailored to the topic, making it perfect for both personal and professional use. Moreover, the app currently supports all major languages and is translated into English, Spanish, French, Italian, Japanese and Russian. This allows users from different linguistic backgrounds to benefit from the AI-powered slides creation tool. Try it out today and experience the convenience, efficiency, and professionalism of AI-powered presentations.

• Popularity 70%

SlidesAI Pricing

• SlidesAI Offers Free-forever and Custom plan.

Buyer's Guide Read Buyer's Guide

Typical Features

• It is a catalog of resources that serves as a lead generating tool Content Library
• Helps you safely share data with only those who matter and enhances your teamwork Collaboration
• Templates are patterns that help to provide the layout to build and design a website quickly. Templates
• +8 more

23% software offer free trial

59% software offer freemium model

Software in Spotlight

Powermode ai.

Pricing Insights for Presentation Software

The Average Cost of a basic Presentation Software plan is $10 per month.

23% of Presentation Software offer a Free Trial Allows users to try out the software for a limited period before making a purchase decision. , while 59% offer a Freemium Model Allows users to access basic features at no cost. .

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Things that look visually attractive captures and sustains attention. Presentation, in simple words, suggests presenting a particular topic to the audience. Your audience will focus on the content or message you deliver only if it is presented in an exciting and organized manner. A presentation software helps you attractively presenting a topic/data, in the form of a slide show.

A pool of options awaits you when you set out for buying a presentation software. A few factors are presented below to help you know how to narrow down the options available and select the best

• Requirement:  Before purchasing any software, it is essential to analyze and realize what your actual automation needs are. Your choices and conditions need to match with each other.
• Features:  If the presentation software lacks in many useful presentation features or does not include a few functionalities to assist in other related fields, then it is a worthless one. 
• Online Customer Support:  Regardless of how user-friendly a specific software is, if it is not backed with online customer support thoroughly then you will face utter difficulties.
• Online Reviews:  Conduct thorough online search and do research to find the ones that come with positive customer reviews. Customer testimonials help a lot in avoiding the sub-standard ones.

Content Library

It is a catalog of resources that serves as a lead generating tool

Collaboration

Helps you safely share data with only those who matter and enhances your teamwork

Templates are patterns that help to provide the layout to build and design a website quickly.

Helps to incorporate or to embed videos in the presentation

Search words or texts from your content

Facilitates incorporating audio or sound elements into the presentation video.

Offline Presenting

Helps doing offline presentation

Helps doing motion design and animate the transitions for making UI elements lively

Offline Editing

Helps to make changes and to edit the presentation content or data in an offline mode

Helps to add an illusion of depth or three-dimension perception to enhance the presentation video quality

Helps changing the angle of view or allows enlarging a certain portion of the displayed data for better and prominent view

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Chapter 9: Microsoft® PowerPoint®

What we’ll cover >>>, presentation software, microsoft powerpoint, slide formatting, slideshow design, transitions, review and distribution.

Presentation software  is designed to allow the user to present information in an engaging way with text, pictures, sound, and video. It is a way to communicate ideas in a powerful, organized manner. It utilizes sequences of  slides  that accompany an audio  presentation . The presentation may also be recorded and posted online. The slides are consolidated in virtual files  called slide decks.  Communication skills are necessary for many careers. Presentation software can help to deliver a message online or in-person to a large audience or small group. The goal is to create a presentation that will leave an impression on the audience, and not distract them from the message you are delivering. The ultimate goal is to create dynamic, interesting presentations that engage your audience.

Presentation software can be part of an integrated suite of tools, or be stand-alone. It can be installed on a computer for full and robust features and integration with other resources; it can be accessed on the web in a light format, and it can be a basic utility tool, like text editing applications. Some programs/suites are payware, such as those used in many workplaces; others are shareware or freeware. Information in this chapter should offer you transferrable skills for use in any word processing application.

Common presentation software programs

• Microsoft PowerPoint : Available across many platforms including mobile devices for ease of use. Integrates well with Microsoft Office.
• Apple Keynote : Included with most Apple devices. Real time collaboration. Use Apple Pencil on your iPad to create diagrams or illustrations that bring your slides to life.
• Google Slides : Integrates with other Google Apps, Q&A feature, Advanced web publishing features.
• Smartphone apps that allow for quick use and editing on-the-go.
• Word processing apps in free/open source office suites.

Since Microsoft® PowerPoint® (MS PowerPoint, PowerPoint) is widely used in business, and we are using Windows, we will focus on this presentation software. There are many similarities across presentation software, so the skills we are learning can be translated to other systems. Some of the tasks in PowerPoint may seem familiar because they were used in other applications. The following Try Me activities are designed to be completed using Microsoft PowerPoint in Office 365 on a PC with Windows 10 or higher.

DEMO EXAMPLE follow-through

Accessing powerpoint.

• In your Computer, use the relevant start menu to open MS PowerPoint (look for little red icon ). On a PC this is a start button on the keyboard, and/or menu on the lower left of the screen. On a Mac, this should be in the top-screen Menu option.
• PowerPoint will open with options to create a blank slideshow, open an existing file, and use templates.
• Observe the various Menu ribbons to learn what they offer.

The User Interface (UI) menus

In PowerPoint, the user interface contains several menu tabs ( tab ), with ‘Ribbons’ ( ribbon ) that display icons (like buttons) with text descriptions of various activities related to a task. On a ribbon, you will often see groups ( group ) of icons for tasks that relate to one another, like the Home ribbon’s Font group, Paragraph group, etc. Some of these icon buttons will do a simple task in one step, while others may open a panel ( panel ) which is a detailed, multi step or tab window of options. Sometimes you may instead see a context dropdown ( dropdown ) menus of options. Shown (in the program’s order) are:

• File : Accesses the program backstage area for various options. Set your preferences for workflow and productivity.
• Home : Basic text functions –  formatting, positioning, styles
• Insert : tables, images, shapes, charts, page sections
• Draw : For more effects your can add to a slide, like “circling” an important point.
• Design : Layout of the slides – margins, themes, colors, etc.
• Animations : Transitions and sound.
• Slideshow : For timing and practice.
• Record : For audio recording the slideshow, and for exporting the show to video.
• Review : Spelling, language, tracking, etc.
• View : screen views, rulers, gridlines, windows.
• Additional add -in/specialty tab menus : These are dependent on having MS Word-related add-ins like Acrobat, a reference manager, etc.
• Contextual tab menus : These are contingent on a specific item in the program’s workspace being activated. For instance, clinking on an image, table, or header / footer will activate a context menu/ribbon on the right side of the UI that shows a menu dedicated to actions that can be done specifically for the active item (picture editing).

About Presentations

Presentations are a multi-page slideshow used to present a cohesive set of information/images. They are routinely used to support other documentation, not be the primary report or documentation. This means that a slideshow should focus attention on a few key points with a few bulleted supporting points, not use long paragraphs of text. Use a consistent layout, color palette, image layout/type, and transition style for professionalism.

• Information to be shared should be highlights of main points, which are shared in small amounts that can support a more detailed audio presentation with report and other print handouts. The slideshow highlights, it doesn’t act as the main word-processed document,
• Customary is Title Page, Title and content pages, and Image/Caption pages, with as-needed comparison pages and blank pages with a specific image/content design you need for the show.
• Use rulers and guides to help align your work.
• Presentations can be short to very long, use audio media, and be timed for a specific flow of information.
• Create transition slides for large section transitions.
• Use section and subsection titles to break up information in long shows.
• Use an easy-to-read font/color/style for excellent contrast info reading. Using a good sized-font at every hierarchy level makes the whole slideshow readable, even from the back of a room.

Slideshows are made up of slides with content. Their common MS PowerPoint native (editing) file extension is . ppt x , and their PowerPoint show file extension is .ppsx . They can contain:

• Text paragraphs and lists.
• Images, tables, and clip art.
• Headings, subheadings, captions, and paragraph text.
• Transitions, animations, media, and timed content.

Slideshow Workspace

The default workspace for slideshows is a left-hand pane of slide thumbnails, the active slide being edited in the workspace, and a Notes pane below the workspace.

You can navigate through your slides by clicking on the thumbnails, or scrolling down the main workspace.

MedAttrib: author-generated. MS PowerPoint user interface thumbnails, workspace, notes pane.

Views – View Tab

• You can see different views as part of the main interface – lower right-hand side of the user interface, and also from the View tab’s ribbon.
• You can set rulers on or off.
• You can also set guides for aligning text and images.
• You can choose the window view you like to work in, such as normal, outline, slide sorter, notes page, or reading view layouts.

Preferences – File tab

Like MS Word and MS Excel, PowerPoint has a File tab Backstage area which lets you save slides in different formats, prepare them for print, and change the program’s options. You can set your PowerPoint program preferences for slides and program workflow, for smoother productivity, in the ‘backstage’ area of the program.

Same layout as Word, Excel, and Access and allows personalizing, print, save, and publish settings.

Slideshows are saved in the native editing format of PPTX, and when a show is meant to be actually shown when it opens, it is saved as a PPSX (show) format. They can also be saved in PDF format, and individual slides can be saved in image formats.

• You can set a slideshow up for printing out using the Print preview screen. Open the Print Preview screen to see the similar layout to Word and Excel.
• Go into the Info screen to inspect the slideshow for Accessibility and compatibility, and to protect a slideshow.
• Go into the File tab Options section, which you can use the change program settings.

MedAttrib: author-generated. MS PowerPoint user interface screen.

Text placeholder fields

In slideshows, you input text into editable fields (placeholders), with headings, paragraphs, lists, tables, images, etc. Text formatting includes indenting, spacing, and alignment. For instance, the alignment of text can be left, right, centered, or justified alignment; this paragraph is in Left alignment .

These fields also guide the kind of content you might put in them. Gor instance, a slide might have placeholders that state “Click to add title”, “click to add subtitle”. Etc.

Placeholder fields let you add text, and they also offer the option to add other items instead by showing icons that represent a table, an image, a video clip, and more.

Also, when you use a placeholder field for text, the text will routinely be added already in bulleted format. To decrease the level of the text, you need to click tab for an indented second-level of bulleted text. The thing to keep in mind here is that the bulleted text can get smaller quickly, so it is useful to look at your text formatting, make the bulleted text large enough to read, and to make the sub bulleted text, and sub-sub bulleted text, also sized to be readable.

Creating new text

If you don’t yet have text to work on yet when creating a document and setting paragraph formatting to use later as a saved style, consider using Lorem Ipsum, or one of its variants. Fun text fillers can include KittyIpsum, BaconIpsum, or ZombieIpsum. You can find Ipsum generators free online and copy/paste gibberish paragraphs into your document so you can play with some chunks of text. Let’s try some KittyIpsum now!

[Nap all day cat dog hate mouse eat string barf pillow no baths hate everything but kitty poochy. Sleep on keyboard toy mouse squeak roll over. Mesmerizing birds. Poop on grasses licks paws destroy couch intently sniff hand. The dog smells bad gnaw the corn cob.]

Home tab – Clipboard Group

At the very left of the Ribbon is the same clipboard group as we worked on in the Word and Excel chapters, which is a small set of tools you can use in relation to when text, images, and styles have been saved to the clipboard as you work. Clipboard-related activities include copy, cut, paste, and the format painter.

Home tab – Slides group

Every slide can be the same, or a slideshow can use a mix of pre-designed slide formats.

The slide text fields indicate what kind of slideshow page you are working on. A fully designed slideshow might have a title slide, title and contents pages, section header pages, comparison tables, image slides, and/or content (or a picture) with caption slides. You also can choose a blank slide without the editable regions on it fir full flexibility. The Slides group gives you the common slide layouts to choose from.

Home tab – Font Group

“Fonts” refer to the letters (characters) used in text. Font formatting includes resizing, changing the font family, adding bold or emphasis, adjusting spacing between letters, and more. You can right-click on a word or cluster of words for the contextual menu, or use the Home Tab’s font group options. These include font style, size, color, effects like bold / italics / underline, highlighting, and spacing formatting.

MedAttrib: author-generated. MS PowerPoint Fonts panel.

Home tab – Paragraph Group

You can modify your slide text paragraphs/bulleted lines in several ways. You can right-click on a piece of text, and choose “Paragraph” from the contextual menu. You can instead select some text, and use the Home ribbon’s one-touch paragraph group icons. You can also select some text, and choose the Home Tab’s paragraph group panel opener. With any of these, you can do alignment, spacing, indents, lists (bullets and numbers), shading, and borders.

Paragraph panel

The paragraph panel, which you can open from the lower right corner of the Home ribbon’s paragraph group, reveals a panel with several tabs of options: spacing before and after bulleted lines, specific indents, and line spacing.

MedAttrib: author-generated. MS PowerPoint Paragraph panel.

Inserts are basically anything you can insert into a slideshow that supplements your text content. You use the Insert Ribbon to choose what you want to add into a document: pictures, online art, icons, shapes, SmartArt, media, and text-related effects like WordArt.

Options for inserts – Insert tab

Just like Word and Excel, you can modify inserts using a contextual menu designed for the specific insert type: size, color, theme, position, etc. These Tab menu options only appear when you select an inserted item you want to modify.

ACTION: MS PowerPoint Try Me Activity #1

Let’s create a new slideshow, and then learn a few slide formatting tasks.

• Open PowerPoint.
• Open a blank presentation.
• Before you do anything else, save the new file into your Examples / MS_PowerPoint folder as PP _ formatting . pptx .

In the blank slideshow, you should see a single page, It shows placeholder text boxes that PowerPoint uses to help creators guide slide content creation and display. You type into them with your content, and PowerPoint styles the content – per the in-use theme – by hierarchical bulleted lists.

Before adding any text, let’s add more blank slides.

• On the Home ribbon, Slides group, click the New Slides , which gives a dropdown of possible slide layouts.

MedAttrib: author-generated. MS PowerPoint new slides panel.

Since the new slideshow already opens with the Title Slide, lets add a few pages that represent other slide layouts.

• In the New Slide dropdown, choose Title and Content .
• Add another slide using the New Slides icon: Two Content .
• Add another slide using the New Slides icon: Content with Caption .
• SAVE your work: CTRL S / MAC CMD S.

You should have mostly blank 4 slides in your show now – blank except for the placeholder fields.

When using the editable fields, PowerPoint’s default is to offer common heading and subheading styles, text styles, and bulleted hierarchy styles. This design becomes more important when using animations in a show, and how they are prioritized during a finished presentation.

• Go to the first slide. In the first placeholder that reads Click to Add Title, click inside and type First Show .
• In the second placeholder, type By YourName .
• Go to the second slide. In the first field, which reads Click to add title, type Slide Basics .

TIP: Slide Title placeholders. The placeholders that are for adding titles don’t mean that ever slide with one needs the title of the whole slideshow added there. They can also act as titles for a page, or within a section, to help a slideshow’s organization seem more cohesive.

The second placeholder is multi-purpose. You can immediately start typing text in it and use it in that way. However, a semi-transparent set of icons is also in the placeholder, which indicates that you can instead click on one of them to add content that the respective icon represents.

MedAttrib: author-generated. MS PowerPoint placeholder content field options.

In this slide, we’ll just add text to see how it works.

Type these lines, pressing your keyboard’s Enter key after each:

• Supporting point
• Third-level point
• Paragraph text
• Place your cursor in from of the line Supporting point, and press Tab.
• Place your cursor in from of the line Third-level point, and press Tab twice.

Observe how PowerPoint “demotes” the bullet levels so that they get smaller. This is a good time to learn that using more than one or two levels of bullets is as far as a viewable presentation should use, although you can also enlarge the size of the text of each bullet.

• Place your cursor in front of the line Paragraph text.
• On the Home ribbon, Paragraph group, click the Bullets icon to ‘turn off’ the bullet on this line. This demonstrate that you do not have to use bullets.

Go to the third slide, which has 3 placeholders. This is a standard comparison slide, which simply describes that you can have two sets of information side-by side. These could be text and graphic, table and graphic, two fields of text, etc.

• In the 1 st placeholder, type Comparison Slide .
• In the 2 nd placeholder (left one), type Item Description .
• In the 3 rd placeholder (right one), click the Online pictures icon , and use the search field that opens to search for (and insert) an image you like.

Go to the fourth slide, which has 3 placeholders. This is a standard content with caption slide, which simply describes that you can have captioned information side-by side with a table, a graphic, etc.

• In the 1 st placeholder, type Text header .
• In the 2 nd placeholder (left one), type Add some text here .
• In the 3 rd placeholder (right one), click the Table icon , and use the dialog box that opens to type 3 in the Number of columns, and 4 in Number of rows.

Now we have a basic slideshow with components we can practice manual font formatting.

Like in Word and Excel, formatting options happen mostly in the Home ribbon, with the Font group and Paragraph group.

Go to the first (Title) slide.

• Select the title text and use the Home ribbon Font group to make the text Bold, and dark blue .
• Select the subtitle text (your name) and use the Home ribbon Font group to make the text italicized .

Go to the second slide. Let’s make the content text larger.

• Select the 1 st bulleted item, and use the Home ribbon Font group to make the text 36 pts .
• Select the 2 nd bulleted item, and use the Home ribbon Font group to make the text 3 2 pts .
• Select the 3 rd bulleted item, and use the Home ribbon Font group to make the text 2 8 pts .
• Select the paragraph text, and use the Home ribbon Font group to make the text 32 pts .

Go to the third slide. Let’s edit the image.

• Click on the image. Like in Word and Excel, an activated image (or other insert) opens a new contextual menu/ribbon. For this image it is a Graphics Format ribbon .
• With your online image active, use the Graphics Format ribbon, Size group, to make the image 6 inches wide.
• Use your cursor to click and drag the image to make it seem more centered, if the resizing moved or altered its centered appearance.
• Click the image, and use the Graphics Format ribbon, Accessibility group , to add accessibility content.
• Click the Alt Text icon , which will open a docked Alt Text panel on the right of your workspace.
• In the Alt Text field, you may already see some text. However, replace it with: “Stock image of a (whatever the image is of).” This tells a screen reader that there is an image and what the image is.

Go to the fourth slide.

• Make the Text Header line bold and a medium-dark gray .
• Use the Home ribbon Font group to make the paragraph text below the Text Header 24 pts in size.

Let’s work on the table. Like in Word and Excel, tables should have a header row, and PowerPoint defaults to adding formatting form one to an inserted table.

• Click in the table’s first cell, which should be in a darker colored row – the header row.
• In the 1 st header cell, type Fave Weekday .
• In the 2 nd header cell, type Fave Activity .
• In the 3 rd header cell, type Saturday F un .
• If you’d like, you can fill in your faves in the table cells below.

Click on the table, and observe that a Table Design ribbon and related layout ribbon to its right appear.

• In the Table Layout ribbon, Table Styles group, choose a different table color and intensity.
• SAVE your work , and close the file. POWERPOINT ACTIVITY #1 FINISHED.

MedAttrib: author-generated. MS PowerPoint example 4-slide show with edits.

Now we’ve had a good introduction to new slides and basic manual font formatting.

Text and paragraph formatting are parts of what happens in a slide. This section is about the overall slideshow itself – how it will present when given as an active animated slideshow, printed out, and consumed by users. Slideshow formatting is characterized by actions that can affect the whole document, and in so doing, add efficiency and steps-saving to general text and paragraph formatting. These include document layout, themes and styles, headers and footers, and some use of sectioning. Much of this will seem familiar from Word and Excel.

Master Slides – View tab

In the View tab Master Views group, you can access a slide master view to show all the potential pages that you can use in a slideshow theme. This is useful, and a good first step to using a theme, so that you can add footer information, make sure your show’s title usage is consistent and correct throughout the show, and make specific style changes to the actual master pages of the show’s theme. You want to minimize having to touch individual slide designs.

The footer section in the slide master lets you add a page number, date, other footer content, and style it so that it appears the same way each time that slide is used.

One thing to not, and this is a reason why the master slides are considered more intermediate in skill; each and every possible style page in the master view needs to be edited for consistency, or else you may insert slides from your modified theme and still see some differences. For instance, if you change the size and content of a slide’s footer in one master view page, you need to make the same change to all the master view slide variations.

MedAttrib: author-generated. MS PowerPoint Slide Master interface.

Setting up slideshows – Design tab

The Design tab allows you to set the physical format of your slideshow, which is a good first starting step in developing a slideshow. This determines how large the slides will be, the orientation of the document, etc. In the Design tab Customize group, the Slide size icon dropdowns lets you choose an existing size or set a custom slide size.

MedAttrib: author-generated. MS PowerPoint themes, and color / font palettes.

Designing documents – Design tab

Themes apply decorative styles to your PowerPoint document (just like in Word and Excel), such as fonts, colors, effect options, paragraph spacing, etc. They can give a slideshow a consistent and attractive appearance and efforts look more professional. In business, they are best used as part of a “package” of documents, such as a slideshow accompanying an annual report with Excel graphs and charts inserted. They can enhance what you want to communicate by adding company branding colors and fonts. You can also:

• Make your slideshow more readable than just black-and-white text
• Tie consistent inserts, like shapes and borders, together with the rest of the document’s “look”
• Use different colors and font styles to punctuate headings from text
• Help your reader respond and/or act in the way you need, and
• Easily update the whole look of your document just by changing the color or font variants

Design: Theming / Design Tips

Like Word and Excel, using themes can be a double-edged sword. While they can add attractiveness to your documents, they can also, if misused, make your work look confusing, be hard to read, and muddy your communication message. Certain types of work should not use themes, like cover letters and resumes, which are routinely expected to be plain and standardized and which the receiver will likely scan into a program for database acquisition.

• Choose theme colors that make sense for the product, service, or idea(s) you are trying to communicate
• Choose theme backgrounds that have good contrast and allow text to be very easy to read
• Choose fonts for readability, based on need for headlines, lots of paragraph texts, easy bulleting, etc.
• Remember that less is more – more colors and font variations in one document can look unprofessional and take away from your message.
• Use themes only when you have full control over your own document – if you have an instructor or employer who does not want them used, then instead focus on using a template of the required styling.

Design: Theme Variants

Theme variants let you change aspects of a theme you select to apply a different core font family to it, or to change the color palette it will work with.

• Fonts : Font families in themes are designed and sized to be readable and hopefully scannable by screen readers for accessibility use. The style will offer a font for titles/subtitles, and another for general text. Available font families come installed with the computer’s operating system, and may also be accessed from the word processing software’s installation or cloud-based accessories.
• Color Palettes : Like fonts, color palettes are included in a style, and can also be changed independently to modify and create a new style. For instance, the overall design style of a theme may work for you, but the color palette assigned to it may not have enough contrast for your audience, or your company may focus on a different rage of core colors.
• Effects : These are subtle styles that can be attached to some inserted items, like image borders, shapes, SmartArt, etc.

Theme Variants

• Page Color : This allows assigning a color to a slide template, with previews of several colors in the theme’s palette.
• Design : The Design tab has a Designer group, with a Design icon that can help you generate additional layout ideas for your show.

ACTION: MS PowerPoint Try Me Activity #2

Let’s work on slideshow design.

Before you start, you should use your file manager utility to make a copy of the PP _ design . pptx file that is in your DataFiles folder, then paste the copy into your Examples / MS_PowerPoint folder.

• If MS PowerPoint isn’t open yet, open PowerPoint.
• Go to the Tile tab Backstage and Open a file, then use the browser dialog panel to find the PP _ design . pptx file that should be in your Examples / MS_ PowerPoint folder, then open the file.

You should have a show with six slides of different layouts. We’ll use this for slide formatting practice. Our goal is look at Master slides, set a theme, and view the slideshow layout.

• Let’s choose a theme. Use the Design ribbon, Themes group, to pick the Facet theme .
• Scroll through the slideshow to see how the theme affects each slide.
• If you see that some text looks off center, you can drag the text box to center it, and also use the Home ribbon’s Paragraph group to change the alignment of the text (like centering).
• Use the Design ribbon, Variants group, to pick a variant color of the Facet theme that you like.
• If you don’t like the selection, click the small arrow at the lower right-hand corner of the Variants group to open a dropdown menu that offers a colors palette , font palette, and effects options.
• Choose a different color palette from the selection.
• Choose the Effects option from the Variants group dropdown, and pick one you like.

In the last activity, we manually changed the font size of some of the bulleted text. Let’s do that here, using the Slide Master view, so that existing slides, and new ones, have larger body text (first three levels of bullets).

• Go to the View ribbon, Master Views group, and click Slide Master . The Slide Master view will show thumbnails at the left of each kind of page the show has built-in, so that you can touch any of them up and have newly created slides follow these Master Page changes. It also provides a Slide Master ribbon, which has the themes and background options, as well as a button to Close Master View.
• From the Thumbnails, choose the top slide , which has the key styles for all bulleted text for the slideshow. Clicking this thumbnail will place an editable version into your workspace.

Notice that there are several placeholders, including three at the bottom that act as footer information.

• In the Slide Master, select the 1 st line of bulleted text, and use the styles toolbar that opens (or the Home tab Font group options) to change the font size to 2 8 pts .
• In the Slide Master, select the 2 nd line of bulleted text, and use the styles toolbar that opens (or the Home tab Font group options) to change the font size to 2 4 pts .
• In the Slide Master, select the 3 rd line of bulleted text, and use the styles toolbar that opens (or the Home tab Font group options) to change the font size to 2 4 pts .
• Close the Slide Master view.

What this does is enlarge the base size of the overall slideshow text. To get more granular changes to every slide, we would need to touch every master slide.

• SAVE your work : CTRL S / MAC CMD S.
• Let’s find out what the slide size is. Use the Design ribbon, Customize group, and choose the Slide Size .

The Slide size defaults to Standard (4:3), with an alternative of (16:9) and of Custom Slide Size. Do not change the size.

TIP: Changing slide size. When slides change to a new size, but any Master Slide changes will revert to the new size’s Master Slide defaults.

• SAVE your work , and close the file. POWERPOINT ACTIVITY #2 FINISHED.

Transitions are one design item that is unique to PowerPoint. Because a slideshow is meant to be active and engaging, and because it may have many slides, one way to keep viewers from having a jolt from immediate slide changes is to program in transitions. A transition might take a couple of or a few seconds, provide a ‘slide separation’ effect, and help keep a show engaging.

Slide transitions – Animations tab

PowerPoint offers a number of build-in animated transition and layout actions. They can be used for an entire slide transition, or a specific in-slide item transition/animation. These give the feel of interaction and movement in presentations and allow creation of complex animated slideshows that can look like Flash Movies..

• Common animation thumbnails appear in the Transitions ribbon.
• The left-most is the Current animation theme.
• Clicking other thumbnails to the right of the Current  will change to that of the thumb you choose.
• You can also change the transition speed and sound.
• You can set slide advancement timing so that the presenter stays on a specific schedule.
• A transition can be applied to the current slide, or all slides in the show at one time.
• For a professional and non-jittery feel, you can consider applying the same transition to all the slides.

ACTION: MS PowerPoint Try Me Activity #3

Let’s do some work with transitions, and maybe a simple animation.

Before you start, you should use your file manager utility to make a copy of the PP _ transitions . pptx file that is in your DataFiles folder, then paste the copy into your Examples / MS_PowerPoint folder.

• Open a file, and use the browser dialog panel for the PP _ transitions .docx file that should be in your Examples / MS_ PowerPoint folder, then open it.

You should see six formatted slides. A theme has already been selected, and the Master Page has been updated to have larger base fonts. Our task here is to set slideshow transitions, maybe an animation, and to test the slideshow.

Transitions can be applied one page at a time, or on all slides. We’ll start small then learn more efficient practices.

• Go to the first page of the slide show.
• Activate the slideshow as it currently is. We want to observe how the slideshow works. When you start a slideshow viewing, by default it will begin from the slide you are currently on, unless you tell PowerPoint otherwise.
• Using the Slideshow ribbon, Start Slide Show group, choose the From Beginning icon. You can also use the Status bar’s Slide Show icon. The Function 5 key also starts a slide show.

Okay, now we see the first slide. It is just stuck there. What’s up? The default for moving pages along is to press the keyboard enter button, to click the mouse, or the keyboard Page Down button.

• Press the enter button, and the slide show changes pages. Keep pressing Enter, and the slideshow will progress until you reach the last slide, then it will exit back to the Edit mode.

That was nice. It will be nicer if the pages transition with some kind of effect.

• On the first slide, go to the Transitions ribbon, Transition to this Slide group.
• Click the dropdown to open the dropdown transitions selector. Choose Random Bars from the “Subtle” area.

Look at the thumbnails of the slides. The first slide, which we applied a transition to, has a small star to its left – this indicates there is a transition.

• On the Transitions ribbon, a Preview Icon becomes available at the left. Click it once to preview the transition.
• Now, use the Function5 key (F5) to start the slide show.

The slideshow starts with the transition. You need press Enter to advance the show, and. . . there are no more transitions.

• Use the Escape button to escape the slideshow.

A transition needs to be applied to every slide for every slide to use it. You can set transitions on every slide at one time two ways:

• Select all slides by clicking the first thumbnail, pressing the shift keyboard key, and then selecting the last thumbnail. Once all slides are selected, choose the transition, which will apply to all. Or,
• Use the Transitions ribbon, Timing group, and choose Apply to all.

In our case, make sure you are on the first slide which has the transition, then click the Apply to all. Now all the slides have the star icon.

• Use F5 to run the slideshow, and press Enter to advance the slides. Note that the most pronounced version of the transition happens when the show opens; the remaining pages transition more subtly.
• On the first slide, choose a different transition, such as the more “exciting” Honeycomb.
• On the Transitions ribbon, click the Apply to all, so that the new transition replaces the old one.
• Use F5 to rerun the show.

Can we change the time on a transition? Yes. Make sure you are on the first slide

• Using the Transitions ribbon, Timing group, change the Duration to 1.50.
• Add sound by using the Transitions ribbon, Timing group, and clicking the Sound dropdown. Choose the Chime sound (or another you prefer).
• From the First slide, use the Transitions ribbon and click the Apply to all to add the timing and sound to all the slides.
• Use F5 to rerun the show. The show is more dynamic, and seems to run faster.

Can we use some other method to advance the show besides the Enter button or mouse click? Yes!

Be on the first slide again.

• Using the Transitions ribbon, Timing group, and unclick the On Mouse Click. Put a check in the After checkbox, and adjust the time to read 00.03.
• From the First slide, use the Transitions ribbon and click the Apply to all to add this change.
• Use F5 to run the show. The slides will automatically advance every 3 seconds.

Animations are another design item that is unique to PowerPoint. An animation can be as simple as using a transition-like effect on an item, like fading out a picture. Or it can be used to bring in a list of text one bulleted line at a time. You can create an animated and programmable ‘button’ to advance pages on a slideshow with a click. You would use the Animations tab to add and time animation content so that the show feels like a movie. Animations can be applied to text, to pictures, and to ither inserts like shapes, clipart, WordArt, etc.

You can also open an Animation pane in the Animations tab Advanced Animation group. This pane is necessary because if you have multiple animations in a slideshow, and even on the same page, you will need to tell PowerPoint several things:

• What order to serve the animated items. The standard order is that the first things on a slide animate first – BUT, this can mean the first thing created on the slide, not the first thing in the order you ‘see’ the items.
• The timing of and between animation actions.
• The speed of an animated effect.
• How an animation should start – on a mouse click, on a timed delay, etc.
• How you choose to change the order of animations.

Let’s try an animation.

• First, go to the first slide, and then reset the Advance Slide option back to On Mouse Click, and uncheck the After checkbox. Otherwise, the automatic slide timing will conflict with any animation you create.
• From the First slide, use the Transitions ribbon and click the Apply to all to add this change to all the slides.
• Go to Slide 2, and in delete the contents of the right-hand placeholder, so that you can see the icons to add content.
• Choose the Stock Images, and find some vacation image from another country to import. Once the image imports, it will size itself to the size of the placeholder field.
• Click on the image, then go to the Animations ribbon, Animation group, and choose the Fade animation.
• On the Animations ribbon, Preview group, and click Preview.
• On the Animations ribbon, Timing group, and set the Duration to 1.2, then preview again.
• Go to slide 1, and use F5 to run the show. It should need you to press enter or use a mouse-click to advance the slides.
• Advance to slide 2 and stop. Notice that there is no image.
• Click the mouse or press Enter. The image should fade in.
• Press Enter again to continue advancing the show, or press Escape to escape the show.
• SAVE your work.

Shall we try an animated list of text? Go to Slide 3, which has 4 lines of bulleted text. Let’s determine how we can make each of these line appear one at a time from top to bottom.

• Click on the Slide 3 placeholder with the 4 lines of bulleted text.
• Go to the Animations ribbon, and choose Fly in from the Animation pane.
• Use the Go to the Animations ribbon Preview icon to see the animation. This is how the lines should ideally come in, considering timing, etc.

Look at the Placeholder box’s text, and notice that to the left of each bulleted line, a number appears.

MedAttrib : author-generated. MS PowerPoint text slide.

The numbers display the order in which the text will appear. In this case, we do not need to change the order.

• On the Animations ribbon, Timing group, and set the Duration to 1.5 , then preview again. The lines appear more slowly.
• On the Animations ribbon, Timing group, look at the Start field , which shows On Click . There are other options, but we’ll stay with this default.
• Go to Slide 1, then run the slideshow with F5. Use your mouse click or Enter button to advance each slide and animation.

For your own practice, you can try animating the text placeholder contents on slides 4 and 5.

On the final slide, let’s add a large image from your favorite travel place. In this case, you will need to remove the text-only placeholder, and simply import an image in to the page.

• Use the Inserts tab, Images group, Pictures / Online pictures, and search for an image.
• Import the image, and resize it to be about 10 inches wide.
• Use the Picture Format context ribbon to add a predesigned border from the Picture Styles group gallery .
• Click the image, and use the Animations ribbon, Animations group to pick an emphasis animation to apply to the image.
• Use the Animations ribbon, Timing group to change the Duration to 1.25 .
• Run the slideshow from the beginning.
• SAVE your work , and close the file. POWERPOINT ACTIVITY #3 FINISHED.

PowerPoint is about presenting work – in person, as timed online presentations, etc. It is used in meetings, conferences, sales contacts, on websites, in streaming threads, etc. The various illustration, transitions, and animation tools make PowerPoint uniquely capable of having interactive data presentation.

You can also create slide notes, to appear below slides, and/or to be printed out for a separate handout in a meeting.

Output – File tab

Review and distribution of your work is about preparing it for who will be consuming it. Will it stay in a Word document format, be saved as a PDF, printed onto paper, added as website content, populate an add or newspaper article, or be part of a book? Like Word and Excel, a PowerPoint file needs to be:

• Spell checked
• Grammar- and language- reviewed
• Accessibility enabled (alt text, proper use of heading styles, accessibility for screen readers).
• Have versioning considered.
• Have hyperlinks tested.
• Be cited and attributed properly for intellectual honesty.
• Passed for plagiarism and other content integrity needs.
• Presented for readable print viewing.
• Secured for limited/no editing.
• If meant for team collaboration, prepared for making shared/trackable changes, comments, and notes.

Output/distribute work

• You can test and adjust your documents and review your content before it goes live by looking at the File/Print sections Print Preview and settings.
• You can make sure you have added metadata for web/online reference by updating information in the File/Info page.
• Slideshows can be saved in as a slideshow, native slide prepared format, as a template, and in other formats, like images and PDFs.
• You can save files in different formats for distribution in the File backstage areas, like Save As (for current and older versions, RTF, text, and HTML), save as PDF, export, etc.

This should give you a good overview of MS Word skills that you can use in school and as a starter for basic workplace support tasks.

Business Technology Essentials Copyright © 2023 by L.J. Bothell is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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