By default, a PowerPoint presentation opens in a landscape orientation. However, you may need to switch to portrait when creating vertical content, infographics, mobile-friendly slides, or print layouts.
Want to change your slide direction from landscape to portrait? You’re in the right place to see how to go about it.
In this guide, we’ll explore how to make a PowerPoint portrait across devices, including Windows, Mac, and iPad. You’ll also learn the best scenarios for using portrait orientation for your slides instead of landscape.
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Landscape vs Portrait: When to Change PowerPoint to Portrait
Landscape (horizontal) orientation is great, but it may have some limitations compared to portrait (vertical), and vice versa. The former works best for projectors, wide-screen displays, and many other presentations.
However, you may want to change PowerPoint to portrait when your slides need more height than width, such as when creating long infographics, mobile screenshots, printable posters, or documents you’ll print as single-page handouts.
If you’re designing for mobile screens or social sharing, portrait orientations are more ideal to ensure a native-feeling experience for your audience.
How to Make a PowerPoint Portrait on Windows
Changing PowerPoint slides from landscape to portrait orientation on your Windows device is a piece of cake, but you must be aware of how elements in your presentation will be affected when you make the switch.
The text, images, charts, etc., may go out of fitting and you’ll need to correct them afterwards. Also, note that the interface may differ slightly depending on your PowerPoint version, but the overall process remains similar across updates.
Now, follow these steps to make portrait in PowerPoint on Windows:
Step 1: Open your presentation on PowerPoint and proceed to the “Design” tab.
Step 2: Click on “Slide Size” at the top right and select “Custom Slide Size…“.
Step 3: In the dialog box, locate the “Slides” section under “Orientation” and choose “Portrait“. Then click “OK” to confirm.
Step 4: A prompt will appear with two options: Maximize or Ensure Fit.
- Choose “Maximize” if you want your content to occupy the new vertical space (best for slides with large visuals).
- Choose “Ensure Fit” if you prefer PowerPoint to automatically scale content to prevent it from being cut off.
How to Make PowerPoint Vertical on Mac
Like it is in other applications, the interface of PowerPoint on Mac looks slightly different from the Windows version.
Some buttons or menus may appear in different locations, and older macOS versions might label certain options as “Page Setup” instead of “Slide Size”.
Here’s how to make a PowerPoint presentation vertical on Mac:
Step 1: Open your presentation in PowerPoint and go to the “Design” tab at the top of the screen.
Step 2: Go to “Slide Size > Custom Slide Size“. If you’re using an older PowerPoint version on Mac, go to “File > Page Setup” to find the option.
Step 3: In the dialog box, find the “Orientation” section and select “Portrait” under “Slides“. Then, click “OK” to save your changes.
Step 4: From the prompt that appears, select either “Maximize” or “Ensure Fit“. The former fills up the slide space while the latter fits tightly in it.
How to Make a Portrait on PowerPoint Using an iPad
If you’re making use of PowerPoint on an iPad, you can easily switch to vertical orientation while taking advantage of touch gestures to fine-tune your slides.
Use your fingers to drag, pinch, and resize text boxes or images for a perfect fit. This feature makes editing mobile much easier.
Follow these steps to make a PowerPoint in portrait on an iPad:
Step 1: Open a new or an existing PowerPoint presentation on your iPad.
Step 2: Go to the “Design” tab and click on “Orientation“.
Step 3: Then, click on “Portrait” to change from landscape.
You can use pinch and drag gestures to reposition or resize content as needed for your new vertical slide layout.
Add Portrait PPT Slides to Templates
You can also add vertical slides to your presentations, even if you’re using preset templates. Yes, they may be ready-made, but you can still customize their layouts to match your presentation theme.
If you use tools like AiPPT, you can easily design or adjust portrait layouts before applying them in PowerPoint.
Here’s how to add portrait slides to templates:
Step 1: Open a blank presentation or the one you wish to modify and proceed to the “Design” tab.
Step 2: Click on “Slide Size” and go to “Custom Slide Size“.
Step 3: Check the “Portrait” option under the “Slides” section.
Step 4: A dialog box will appear asking you how you’d like to rescale your content. Choose either “Maximize” or “Ensure Fit“.
Conclusion
Switching your slides to vertical orientation can make your presentation more mobile-friendly, print-ready, and ideal for tall visual content.
Whether you need to make a PowerPoint portrait on Windows, Mac, or iPad, the process is quite similar: Open your presentation > Go to Design > Slide Size > Custom Slide Size > Portrait > Pick Maximize or Ensure Fit. It’s that easy!
You can also follow this procedure to customize PowerPoint templates and make the slides vertical whenever you need. After applying portrait settings, remember to preview on the target device before sharing.
Learn More About Portrait PowerPoint Slides
Still got questions? Time to change that. Below are some questions users frequently ask about switching orientation from landscape to portrait in PowerPoint.
Can you make PPT slides vertical?
Yes, you absolutely can. To switch your PPT slides to vertical orientation:
- Open your PowerPoint presentation and go to the “Design” tab.
- Go to “Customize > Slide Size” and select “Custom Slide Size…”.
- In the dialog box that appears, go to “Orientation > Slides > Portrait”.
- Tap “OK” to apply the settings.
- Then choose “Maximize” or “Ensure Fit” and adjust content. This changes the orientation for the entire presentation.
How to make a PowerPoint presentation portrait on a phone?
Yes, you can make a PowerPoint presentation portrait on your mobile device, whether Android or iOS. To do this:
- Open PowerPoint on your mobile.
- Tap the “Home” tab and select “Design” to open its tab.
- Then, go to “Orientation > Portrait” to finish.
If you can’t find the option, update the PowerPoint mobile app from your Apple or Google Play Store.
Can you mix portrait and landscape slides in PowerPoint?
For now, PowerPoint only supports one slide orientation per presentation. However, you can mix orientations by linking two presentations (one in landscape, and the other in portrait) to display both portrait and landscape slides in one presentation.
You can create action links in the documents to go back and forth between presentations.
