how to make a presentation file smaller

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How to reduce the file size of a powerpoint presentation.

Need to chip off some KB from your presentation's file size? Try some of these handy tips.

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Convert your presentation to the pptx format, insert your pictures—don’t copy and paste, do image edits in an image editor—not in powerpoint, compress all of the images in your presentation, don’t use embedded fonts, link to files instead of embedding them, don’t store a thumbnail for the presentation, remove personal and hidden information from your presentation, turn off autorecover, copy everything into a new presentation, a possibility: unzip the presentation and compress it.

Considering that Microsoft PowerPoint presentations are generally accompanied with tons of images, gifs , embedded videos , charts , graphs, and other content, it’s no surprise that you get some pretty big files. Here are a few steps you can take to reduce a presentation's file size.

Large files can be annoying. They take up loads of precious disk space, slow down playback performance, and can cause emails to bounce back due to exceeding the file size limit. You can prevent all of these things by reducing the file size of your presentation.

We’ve mentioned it before, but the first thing you’d think of when considering file size reduction is images—and for a good reason. Image files can be quite large. There are steps you can take to reduce the size, such as compressing the images in the presentation. If you suspect the reason your PowerPoint file is so large is due to images, then be sure to read the article we’ve written on how to reduce the size of Office documents that contain images .

Related: How to Reduce the Size of a Microsoft Word Document

We do have some additional tips to add if you followed these steps but still need to reduce your presentation’s file size.

Microsoft released the PPTX format in Office 2007. Still, it’s not uncommon to see PPT files floating around. So what’s the difference between a PPT and PPTX  file? The PPTX version compresses all of the content within the presentation. If you have a PPT file and convert it into a PPTX file, you’ll notice a decrease in the file size.

Converting the file is as simple as pressing a button and choosing the file type. Go ahead and open your PPT file, head over to the “File” tab, and then click “Convert.”

Windows File Explorer will appear. You’ll notice the Save As type is set as "PowerPoint Presentation." This is the PPTX file type. Click “Save.”

Your PPT file will now be converted to a PPTX file. As you can see, the size of the file has been reduced.

HTG Presentation 2 is our PPT file, and HTG Presentation 3 is our PPTX file. Merely converting the file type reduced the size by 335 KB.

While this isn’t a breathtaking drop in file size, we managed to reduce a Word document file size from 6,001 KB to 721 KB. It all depends on what’s inside the file. With any luck, this will be the only step you need to take. If not, keep reading.

It’s tempting to copy and paste an image in PowerPoint instead of using the insert function. This won’t be an issue if you’re not concerned about file size, but if you are, then beware of copy and paste—it may reformat your image to BMP or PNG. Why is this an issue? Both of those file formats are larger than JPG.

You can see in the above screenshot that the PNG file is 153KB compared to the 120KB JPG file of the same image. Each time you copy and paste a JPG file to PowerPoint, and it gets converted to PNG, you’re adding a bit of unnecessary file size to the presentation. Using the insert function will ensure your images are inserted as intended.

When you insert an image in PowerPoint, it’s best to make sure that it doesn’t need any edits. If it does require edits, you’re better off doing it in an image editor. Why? When you use PowerPoint to edit your image, it stores all of those edits as part of the presentation. For example, when you change an image to black and white, PowerPoint retains the full-color image as well. That’s a lot of extra bites being stored.

If you don’t have an image editor ( you do ) or you simply must use PowerPoint, be sure to tell PowerPoint to discard all of that excess data saved from the edits . It won't save you as much space as working in a dedicated editor, but it will help.

You can compress images in PowerPoint one at a time or all at once. If you’re looking to do the latter, here’s how.

Open your presentation, head over to the “File” tab, and then select “Save As” in the left-hand pane.

Next, select “More Options,” which you'll find under the area where you would name your file and choose the file type.

The “Save As” window will appear—this time with a few extra options available to you. Next to the “Save” button, click “Tools.”

In the drop-down menu that appears, select “Compress Pictures.”

The “Compress Pictures” window will appear. Here, you can choose the resolution type of the images (based on PPI) in the presentation. You’ll also notice that you’re not able to select the “Apply only to this picture” option in the “Compression Options” group. That’s because, due to the way we accessed this tool, this option isn’t available.

Note:  If you do want to compress a single picture, select it and then head to Picture Tools Format > Compress Pictures.

Once you’re happy with your selection, click “OK.”

Be sure to save your presentation afterward.

We get why you might want to embed fonts—you might be making a Star Wars themed presentation and, as a result, anyone you may be sharing the presentation with is not likely to have those special fonts available to them. Embedding the fonts in your presentation could prevent issues down the line, but it comes at the cost of increased file sizes.

In general, unless you are sure you need to display a particular font, we recommend turning off font embedding.

Head over to the “File” tab and select “Options” at the bottom of the left-hand pane.

On the “Save” tab, untick the “Embed fonts in the file” checkbox and then click “OK.”

We saved a copy of our presentation with all fonts embedded, without fonts embedded, and with only the fonts used in the presentation embedded. Look at the difference if file sizes:

Convinced yet?

Consider the difference in file size if you embed an entire YouTube video in your presentation instead of linking back to it. Embedding an entire video will significantly increase the size of your presentation. There are certainly some valuable benefits when embedding a file vs. linking to it (such as when the recipient might not have internet access to play the video), but if the file size is an issue, just don’t do it.

Way back when Office let you save thumbnail images of your presentation so that you could get a sneak preview of the file when searching for it in File Explorer. Windows has grown to be more sophisticated, so it no longer requires the help of Office applications to do this. But, the option is still available.

We ran a little test to see the difference in file size with and without this option enabled. Here are the results:

With the thumbnail option enabled, our file size was 2,660 KB. Without the option enabled, the file size was reduced to 2,662 KB, saving a total of 7 KB.

This is a pretty small save, but when we tested it with a Word document, the difference was significant, showing 721 KB without the option enabled, and 3,247 KB with the option enabled.

While this is a large gap between applications and it’s not exactly clear why the difference is so large, it’s still an option worth exploring. To disable the feature, open your presentation, head over to the “File” tab, and then select “Properties” found on the right-hand side, then “Advanced Properties.”

You’ll now be in the “Summary” tab of the “Properties” window. At the bottom of the window, uncheck the box next to “Save preview picture,” and then click “OK.”

Microsoft Office will store your personal information (such as author name) and hidden properties within your presentation. Getting rid of this information can save you a bit of space.

Open your presentation, head over to the “File” tab, select the “Check for Issues” option, then select “Inspect Document."

The “Document Inspector” window will appear. Make sure the “Document Properties and Personal Information” box is checked, and then click “Inspect."

In the next window, select “Remove All.” The information will now be removed, saving you a few KB of space.

We don’t necessarily recommend this, and it should only be used as a last resort effort. AutoRecover is an essential tool in Office, and if you’ve ever lost a document before saving, then you understand precisely what we mean.

Each time Office uses AutoRecover, it adds a little to the size of the file. To turn AutoRecover off, head over to the “File” tab and select “Options” found at the bottom of the left-hand pane.

In the “Save” tab of the “Options” window, uncheck the box next to “Save AutoRecover information ever xx minutes.”

If you save and exit out of the presentation immediately, you won’t notice a difference. Over time though, as you continue to progress through the presentation, the AutoRecover feature will add KB to your file.

While you’re creating your presentation, PowerPoint will save various things in the background to help you out. We’ve mentioned how to turn off a lot of these features, delete data PowerPoint saves, and so on, but there’s always a chance something slipped through the cracks, and PowerPoint stored some information you don’t need. Copying your content over to a new presentation may be a good solution to the problem.

This may be a bit of a hassle though as, with PowerPoint, you’ll need to copy and paste each slide (and master slides). Once you do though, the new presentation won’t have any of the previous background saves, AutoRecover information, or previous versions of the file. As a result, you should see a change in file size.

While we can’t tell you exactly how much this will reduce your file size since each presentation will be different, it’s worth a shot.

As we mentioned earlier, a PPTX file is a compressed file (which is why the size is much smaller than an old-school PPT file). This means you can open it with a tool such as 7-Zip or WinRar, extract all the files from your PPTX, add them to a compressed archive, and then rename the archive to a PPTX file extension.

We had some issues here, though.

In Rob’s testing with his Word document, it successfully reduced the size of the file from 721 KB to 72 KB. However, it corrupted the file in the process. In my testing with my 2,614 KB file, it didn’t corrupt it, but it only reduced it to 2,594KB—a total of only 20 KB. We’re unsure what’s at play here, so if you want to give this a go, be sure to have a backup copy of your file before doing so.

That’s all the tips we've got for reducing the size of your PowerPoint presentation. We’re always looking for new and interesting ways to reduce the size of our files, so if you have any tips, let us know in the comment section, and we’ll be happy to test them out!

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How to Reduce Powerpoint File Size

Last Updated: March 29, 2022

This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer, Jack Lloyd . Jack Lloyd is a Technology Writer and Editor for wikiHow. He has over two years of experience writing and editing technology-related articles. He is technology enthusiast and an English teacher. This article has been viewed 976,033 times. Learn more...

This wikiHow teaches you how to lower a PowerPoint presentation file's size by compressing its images on a Windows or Mac computer, or by clearing the editing data on a Windows computer. There is currently no option to delete the editing data of PowerPoint presentations on a Mac.

Compressing Images on Windows

• If your PowerPoint file isn't yet open, first open it by double-clicking it.
• It doesn't matter which picture you double-click, since all of them will open the appropriate tab.

Compressing Images on Mac

Removing Edit Data on Windows

Expert Q&A

• Using JPEG files rather than other file formats will cut down on your presentation's overall size. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
• When formulating a presentation, using the default plain backgrounds in your slides will make your file smaller than if you upload detailed backgrounds. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
• If you can't get your PowerPoint file to shrink down enough to send it via email, you can upload it to a cloud service (e.g., Google Drive) and send an email with a link to the file instead. Your recipient will be able to download the file from Google Drive. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

• Reducing your images' quality will make a noticeable difference in your PowerPoint's overall quality. Thanks Helpful 1 Not Helpful 1

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Reduce-your-file-size-631d1d48-a56b-4fd4-ad66-091dd201db10?ui=en-US&rs=en-US&ad=US&fromAR=1#bmpp
• ↑ http://www.isumsoft.com/it/reduce-powerpoint-file-size-in-office-2016/

About This Article

1. Double-click an image. 2. Click Compress Pictures . 3. Remove the check mark from “Apply only to this picture.” 4. Select a lower DPI. 5. Click OK . 6. Click File . 7. Click Options . 8. Click Advanced . 9. Click Discard editing data . 10. Click OK and save the file. Did this summary help you? Yes No

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Tech troubles got you down? We've got the tips you need

How to compress a PowerPoint file so that it loads faster and doesn't take up as much space

• You can easily compress a PowerPoint file's size, which makes it easier to share and save.
• When you compress your PowerPoint, you'll have to reduce the quality of any music, videos, or pictures you have in your slideshow.
• Once you've compressed your PowerPoint, it will load faster, but the media in it may not look as good.
• Visit Business Insider's Tech Reference library for more stories .

At some point in your slideshow-creating life, you've probably saved a PowerPoint presentation and realized that the file size is entirely too large. 

Larger file sizes make PowerPoints more difficult to send and save, and they also make each slide take longer to load.

One of the easiest ways to quickly reduce a PowerPoint presentation's file size is to compress it. When you compress a PowerPoint, you'll reduce the quality and size of every media file in the presentation. This includes videos, audio clips, animations, and photos.

If you compress them down to an appropriate size, your file size will be much smaller. However, your photos, videos, and other media probably won't look or sound as sharp.

Here's how to compress your media files in PowerPoint on a Mac or PC.

Check out the products mentioned in this article:

Apple macbook pro (from $1,299.00 at apple), acer chromebook 15 (from $179.99 at walmart), how to compress a powerpoint file on a pc.

1. In the ribbon or menu bar at the top of the screen, click "File." Make sure that "Info" is selected in the left sidebar.

2. Click "Compress Media." Depending on whether your version of PowerPoint was made before or after 2016, this button will either be next to the label "Multimedia" or "Media Size and Performance."

3. Choose one of the three options for media quality from the dropdown menu. These will differ based on which version you have as well, but they boil down to: 

• Select the highest quality option if you want to maintain high quality media for in-person presentations. 
• Select the middle option for quality akin to media found on the internet. 
• Select the lowest quality option if your file needs to be as compressed as much as possible — for example, if you need to send it via email.

How to compress a PowerPoint file on a Mac

In the Mac version of PowerPoint, you can only reduce the file size of images, not videos or music.

To do this:

1. Open your PowerPoint slideshow and click "File" in the menu bar at the top of the screen. If you only want to compress specific images, select them before clicking "File."

2. In the dropdown menu, click "Compress Pictures..."

3. You'll be shown a "Compression Table," which lists all the different ways you can compress the file. You'll have three main options:

• "Printing" will keep your pictures at the highest quality possible.
• "Viewing on screen" will reduce the quality of your pictures by about 30 percent.
• "Sending in an e-mail message" will compress them by another 30 percent or so.

You can also pick the fourth and last option, which will keep each picture's current resolution, but try to reduce the file size in other areas.

4. Select whether you'd like to delete parts of your pictures that have been cropped out — doing so will help reduce the file size.

5. Choose whether you'd like to compress every picture in the slideshow, or just the ones that you selected beforehand. Once you've decided, click "OK."

Related coverage from  Tech Reference :

How to add a border to slides in powerpoint, and give your slideshow a sleek design, how to embed a youtube video into your microsoft powerpoint presentations using a mac or pc, how to convert google slides to a powerpoint presentation in 4 easy steps, how to convert a powerpoint to google slides in 2 different ways, how to copy or duplicate a powerpoint slide and put it anywhere in your slideshow.

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Blog > Compress PowerPoint to reduce the file size

Compress PowerPoint to reduce the file size

02.12.20   •  #powerpointtips.

Sometimes, the file size of your PowerPoint presentation can get very big. In some cases, that can be annoying, e.g. when trying to send the slides via email, but not being able to do so because the file is too large. Usually, pictures and videos are the reason why presentations become too big. The good news are that you can easily compress pictures and embedded media files by following the steps listed below.

Compress images

Compress videos and audios.

• Convert PPT into a PDF file
• Get rid of 3D-models

Compress PPT as ZIP- file

PowerPoint offers the option to compress all images at once or choose single pictures to reduce their file size. Keep in mind, that compressing an image will automatically reduce its quality as well. If you don't need to reduce the file size, better use the highest quality resolution as possible.

There are two ways to compress images within your PPT file which nearly work the same way:

Compress selected pictures

• Select the image you want to compress or any picture if you wish to reduce the size of all graphics
• Navigate to the Picture Tools Format tab and select Compress Pictures

• A new menu pops up. Choose your compression options and make sure to check "Delete cropped areas of pictures" and uncheck "Apply only to this picture" (if you want to compress all images)
• High fidelity: preserves quality of the original picture
• HD (330 ppi): good quality for high-definition (HD) displays
• Print (220 ppi): excellent quality on most printers and screens
• Web (150 ppi): good for web pages and projectors
• E-mail (96 ppi): minimize document size for sharing
• Use default resolution

Compress all images while saving the PPT file

• Open your presentation. Go to File in the PowerPoint menu
• Click Save as and then Browse
• In the window that opens, click on Tools (right beside Save )
• Select Compress Pictures and choose the resolution you need To save even more space, you can additionally choose Delete cropped areas of pictures to remove the parts of pictures which you cropped in PowerPoint.
• Click OK and then Save

Video and audio files can increase your PPT size a lot. It's a good idea to compress those if you want to make some space. Some PowerPoint versions make it possible to decrease the media size in PPT but if this option is missing in your program, online video compressors are the solution.

Compress videos and audios in PPT

• Go to File in the PowerPoint menu
• Open the Compress media drop down
• Choose a compression file size. Don't reduce the quality too much and check if the appearance of your media doesn't look too grainy on the actual projector you will be presenting on

Online video compressor

There are plenty of online video compressors which you can use to reduce the video size in advance. For example, the website FreeConvert makes it easy to decrease the file size without having to download anything. This way you can integrate a smaller media file into PPT.

Links instead of videos

Instead of importing a video to your PPT slides, including a link to your PowerPoint presentation can save a lot of space. If your video is somewhere on YouTube or other online video-sharing platforms, include a link and use it when you're presenting. But notice: a link can only be used, if you're connected with wifi. Watching videos online, can take time and a bad connection might give you some unwanted breaks during your presentation. In this case, saving the video on your disk and opening it separately can save time and still reduce the size of the PPT.

Convert PPT to PDF

By converting a PowerPoint file into a PDF, the size will reduce automatically. During the process, images get compressed and some media (audio, videos, 3D models..) get removed. If you want to change the PowerPoint slides at all time, this method might not be the right one for you, as PDF files can't get edited the way a PowerPoint can. Hence, converting PPT into PDF only makes sense if your presentation will work as a handout and if the PDF files options are enough for you.

• Click Export
• Hit the Create PDF/XPS button
• Choose a location in which you want to save your PDF file
• Click Publish

Get rid of 3D models

The Office 365 subscription makes it possible to add 3D models to your PowerPoint slides. Nevertheless, those media require much space since they transport a lot of information. In order to minimize the PPT file, exchanging the 3D model with a normal image will easily reduce the size of your PowerPoint file.

If you need to share your PPT with someone, a ZIP- file format might help you to reduce the size of the PowerPoint. Even though, this method can save some place temporally, it might not be enough to send it via email. Uploading it to file-sharing platforms, such as GoogleDrive, DropBox, OneDrive or other websites and sharing its link to download the PPT, can be the better option. (Using an USB for sharing the presentation without the need to decompress anything would be the best solution)

Here's how to convert a PPT into a ZIP- file format:

• Select the file you want to minimize in the File Explorer
• Right-Click the file and hit Send to
• Choose the Compressed (zipped) folder option

If you want to decompress a ZIP- file into its original PowerPoint format:

• Right-Click on your ZIP- folder
• Select Extract All... or the similar operation of your program
• Choose a File Location to extract your file to, or extract it at the place you are currently at

How can I reduce the size of a PowerPoint file?

There are several ways to reduce the file size of a PowerPoint. You can compress images, videos and audios, convert your presentation into a PDF file, get rid of 3D models or compress the PowerPoint as a ZIP-file. We explained for you how all of this works in our blog.

How do I compress a video in PowerPoint?

To compress videos in PowerPoint, go to "File" in the PowerPoint menu and then click on "Info". Then open the drop-down menu "Compress media" and select the size of the compression file. Be careful not to reduce the quality too much and check that the quality of your video on the projector you will be presenting on is not too bad.

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About the author.

Pia Lehner-Mittermaier

Pia works in Marketing as a graphic designer and writer at SlideLizard. She uses her vivid imagination and creativity to produce good content.

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How to Reduce the File Size of Your PowerPoint Presentation

Learn how to reduce the file size of a PowerPoint presentation without making any major difference to the person viewing it.

A PowerPoint Presentation is a great way to get an idea across. Whether you're pitching a product or teaching kids, you'll find slideshows helpful.

However, if your presentation is long, or you have many visuals, you might find that your PowerPoint file has become too large. That makes it difficult to attach it as an attachment. And it could even take too long to download for your clients.

To solve this problem, here are seven tips to reduce your presentation file size.

1. Use Insert Picture—Don't Drag and Drop

When you want to add a photograph from your hard drive to your presentation, the easiest and most common way is to copy it off File Explorer and paste it onto PowerPoint. Alternatively, you can also drag and drop it from your folder to your slideshow.

However, doing this potentially increases your presentation's file size. That's because when you copy-paste or drag-and-drop a file directly into PowerPoint, it converts your image to either a BMP or PNG file type.

Although these file types allow you to retain transparent backgrounds, like the ones you find in icons, they also increase your photo's file size. But if you use the Insert Picture function, PowerPoint will add your image without changing its file type, thus avoiding larger file sizes.

2. Crop Photos With an Image Editor

There are times when you don't have to use the entire image you just added. You may want to remove a section to make it more impactful. But if you do that, don't crop it using PowerPoint's built-in cropping tool.

When you crop an image inside PowerPoint, the app will simply hide the part of the image you cut out. Although this is helpful if you want to undo the crop you made in the future, if you're final with the cut you made, this just adds to your presentation's file size.

Instead of cropping images in PowerPoint, you can use dedicated image editors. You can use Microsoft's built-in Paint app for simple crops, or you can use free online tools, like Canva. Once you've cropped your photo to your liking, you can then use the Insert Picture tool to add it to your presentation.

Related: How to Use the Canva App: A Beginner's Guide

Remember to save your file as JPG or JPEG, not PNG or BMP. JPG files provide the most compression on your images while retaining reasonable quality. This way, you get to save a few more kilobytes per photo. This adds up to a lot of space when you have many pictures.

3. Edit Images Outside PowerPoint

Building upon the previous point, you should edit your photos using an image editor instead of PowerPoint. While the app does provide relatively advanced photo editing tools, it's still not as powerful as dedicated photo editing software.

You can use Microsoft's built-in basic photo editing function to edit your image. Alternatively, there are several easy-to-use photo editing software to give you advanced edits while remaining simple to use.

You should do this because PowerPoint retains all your photo's information. For example, if you convert an image from colored to black and white, the app will still keep all the color information of your file, thus making it larger. But if you convert it using an image editor, all color information is lost once you save the file, thus making it smaller.

4. Compress Your Pictures

Even if you've done all the above, there is still a way to reduce your presentation's file size further. You can do that by optimizing all your slideshow images for the screen size you expect to show your presentation.

This is because PowerPoint tends to keep your images at the maximum allowable quality. After all, the app is preparing your slideshow for all types of display sizes. It's even considering that you're going to print it. That's why it keeps your photos at the best possible quality.

And while this is a good thing, it does add a lot of size to your presentation. That's why you need to optimize your file for your intended audience.

To do that, click on any image in your slideshow. Then, in the menu ribbon, select Picture Format . Press the Compress Pictures button, and a Compress Pictures window will pop up. Under Compression options: remove the tick mark for Apply only to this picture to compress all images.

Under Resolution: , pick the appropriate points per inch (PPI) for your application. If your presentation is for personal consumption—i.e., for viewing on smartphones, tablets, and computer monitors only—then a 96 PPI resolution is enough.

But if you plan to display it on a medium-sized projector or a screen larger than 50 inches, then you should choose 150 PPI. If you're planning to print your presentation as a handout, then go for 220 PPI. Finally, if you're going to use a large-format projector or LED screen board, go for 330 PPI.

5. Link Videos

Videos are the most significant items in your presentation that will bloat its file size. A typical 1-minute full HD video has an approximate 124MB file size. So instead of embedding your videos into your PowerPoint file, you can link them instead.

Upload your videos on a video hosting website like YouTube, then just link it into your slideshow. Once you've uploaded the video, don't forget to copy its web address to add it to your presentation.

To add it to your slideshow, go to Insert on the menu ribbon, click on Video , and in the dropdown menu, choose Online Videos… . A new window will pop up and in the Enter the address for the online video bar, paste your video link.

Once your selected video has loaded, you'll see a preview of it on the main screen. If you're satisfied that it's the correct video, click on Insert . You will now find your video embedded into your slideshow.

You have to note, though, that your viewer or audience must have an active internet connection for them to see your embedded video. Otherwise, they won't be able to see it.

6. Use the Latest Formats

If you're using the latest version of Microsoft Office, it's best to use the latest file formats. The old file format called PPT, designed for Microsoft Office 2003 and older, uses up more space than the newer PPTX file format.

While older versions of PowerPoint may not be able to open your file, the smaller file size means your presentation would fit in your email as an attachment. Furthermore, those who don't have the latest version of PowerPoint can instead use Microsoft Office Online, or even Google Slides, to view your presentation.

As a last resort, you can compress your presentation's file to reduce its size. You can use several free tools to do just that . They're also widely popular, so your recipient won't have much trouble decompressing your file.

Save on Space

If your PowerPoint presentation is too large to attach to your email, you can reduce its size by following the above steps. They're simple, quick, and easy to do. And if in case you find your presentation's file size bigger than your allocated limits, you still have a couple more solutions.

The first one is to upload it onto the cloud and just share the file's link with your recipient. The second is to cut your presentation into two and then send them in two separate emails. Be sure to add a slide to your first file indicating there's a part two!

But no matter what you choose, reducing your file's size should be the last thing on your mind. Focus on your content and make it your best presentation ever first. All the other things you need to do will soon fall into place once you've finalized your output.

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5 Methods to Reduce the File Size of a PowerPoint Presentation

In some cases, especially when creating large presentations, the file size of your project may go up to a rather large number. This can make it difficult to share your finished presentation, especially if you’re using email services or a USB to store it on.

To help combat this issue,  PowerPoint  comes with options to compress various elements and reduce the file size or projects. You can compress images, videos, convert 3D objects to static images or even use the PPTX or ZIP formats to further optimize file size.

Our article focuses on all the methods to help you compress PowerPoint files and create more shareable presentations.

Jump to Solution

Method 1: compress images in powerpoint, method 2: compress videos in powerpoint, method 3: swap 3d models with static images, method 4: convert your presentation to pptx format, method 5: compress powerpoint presentations as a zip file.

The first way to reduce the file size of your presentations is definitely compressing the images used in your slides. Images with large resolution can quickly start generating large file sizes.

Oftentimes when making a presentation, there’s no need for large images to be displayed on the screen, so compressing your images won’t harm the final outcome. According to our tests, correctly compressed images can help you reduce the file size of your presentation by 17 times.

• Select the picture you want to compress. This will open up the  Pictures Tools Format  tab in the ribbon on top of your screen.
• Click on the  Compress Pictures  button.
• Select the desired picture quality and options. The lower the PPI number, the more compressed your image will be.
• Make sure to check “ Delete cropped areas of pictures ” and choose whether you want to apply the compression to all pictures in your presentation, or selected pictures only.
• Click the  OK  button. You should immediately see the changes in quality and notice the reduced file size.

It’s not a secret that video files can be huge. If you have videos embedded into your presentations, it’s not uncommon that you’ll end up with a large file size that’s hard to transfer between devices, USB’s and email. To make sure your presentation doesn’t exceed file size limits, you can try to compress the videos in it.

• Open your presentation in PowerPoint, then navigate to the  File  tab and go to the  Info  page within the backstage view.
• When video files are detected in your presentation, you'll be able to see the  Compress Media  button. Simply click on it, then choose the desired quality. In most cases, compressing to  1080p  or  720p  will significantly reduce the file size of your presentation.
• A new window will open up showing the progress of the compression and determining how much space was saved. Wait for the process to finish.
• Check your video and make sure you’re happy with the quality. If you want to undo the compression, navigate back to  File  >  Info  >  Compress Media , and choose to  Undo  the last compression.

(Source: Nuts & Bolts)

While 3D models are definitely useful and give your presentations more visual interest, they definitely increase the file size of the finished product. If you’re working with a limited amount of space, we recommend swapping 3D models with static images. You can use images from the internet, or even take a  screenshot  of the model and insert it manually.

• If you want to replace the 3D model entirely, simply select it and press the Delete button on your keyboard. This will remove all traces of the model from your presentation as soon as you save it, and significantly reduce the file size.
• Insert an image in place of the 3D model by using the  Insert  >  Image  menu. You may choose one from your computer, or look for one online within PowerPoint.

If you want to replace the 3D model with a static image of the model itself, follow these steps.

• Create a new, blank slide with a white background.
• Insert the 3D model you want to use and position it in any way you want to.
• Take a screenshot using the  Windows  +  Shift  +  S  keyboard shortcut. This shortcut allows you to select a region of the screen instead of screenshotting the entire desktop. Select your 3D model on a white background.
• On Mac, you can use the  Command  +  Shift  +  4  shortcut to do the same.
• Delete the 3D model and the blank slide, then insert the screenshot of your model in place of the original.
• If needed, select the screenshot and click on  Picture Format  >  Remove Background . This will get rid of the white background, creating a transparent static image of your 3D model.

Your presentation might be saved in the PPT format. This format is quite large compared to PPTX, which is the format used in files created post-2007, alongside the release of PowerPoint 2007. The optimized format aims to reduce the file size of presentations, making transfer much less of a hassle.

If you saved your presentation in the PPT format, don’t worry. There are plenty of free, online tools you can use to convert a PowerPoint presentation into the PPTX format. Here’s how.

• Open the  Convertio PPT Converter  in your web browser. This is an entirely free-to-use website that allows you to convert a PPT file into PPTX online.
• If your file is over 100 MB, click on the  Sign Up  button and create a free account. Otherwise, proceed to the next step.
• Click on the  Choose Files  button and select your PPT presentation.
• Make sure to select  PPT to PPTX  using the drop-down menus for file types.
• Follow on-screen instructions and convert your presentation into the PPTX format. You should immediately see a decrease in file size.

As a last resort, you can save some space by sharing your presentation as a ZIP file. These compressed files are handy if you want to keep all of your original images, videos, models, and other elements, but still need to reduce the file size.

Here’s how you can convert a PowerPoint presentation into a ZIP on  Windows 10 . Make sure to scroll to the next section if you’re on a Mac system!

• Open the  File Explorer  and navigate to the location of your saved presentation.
• Right-click on the presentation file and hover over the  Send to  option.
• Choose the  Compressed (zipped) folder  option.
• Wait for Windows to finish compressing your file. When finished, you’ll be left with a ZIP file that has a reduced file size and provides better shareability.

The instructions for  Mac  systems are as follows.

• Open the  Finder  and navigate to the location of your presentation.
• Right-click on the presentation and select  Compress “(Presentation name)”
• Wait for the process to finish. You should see a smaller ZIP file with the same name as your original presentation created.

We hope that this article helped you compress PowerPoint presentations and reduce the file size for easier sharing. Show your world the hard work you put into your presentations without having to sacrifice quality!

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Compress PPT Presentations Online

May 8, 2023 by Hung Nguyen

Learn how to reduce the size of your PPT files significantly, at no cost, using Smallpdf. No watermark, no registration, and no installation.

We’ve come across many large PPT files in our years of compressing digital documents, from sales pitches to lecture material and business proposals. Usually, the need to reduce the size of these files comes from having to share them via email, where the file size cap is around 20 MB. Compressing PowerPoint files also comes in handy to save storage space, be it on your local computer or an otherwise pricey cloud service such as Dropbox. You can use our online compress tool to shrink your PPT down significantly and thus make your life easier and save some money.

How to Compress a PPT File for Free

Upload your ppt to the compress tool ., choose “basic compression.”, click on “export as” and choose powerpoint..

Convert, compress, and download your PPT using Smallpdf

You can get started with compressing your PowerPoint presentation for free right away. You don’t need a Smallpdf account—just go to the tool and drop your file in!

Will the Document’s Formatting Remain the Same?

We aim to maintain the layout and quality of your document as close to the original PPT as possible. We actually first turn your PowerPoint into a PDF document; then, our compressor looks for repeating patterns in the data and replaces them with unique identifiers. This is actually what makes your file smaller. This process doesn’t touch attributes like fonts and the layout of your PPT, so they should stay just as they are.

Smallpdf caters to millions of users every month and uses the most reliable software on the internet to convert, edit, and compress files. So, you can trust that we’ll produce only the absolute best conversion quality.

There are extra measures that you can take to be absolutely sure that the final content resembles its original form. You can “embed” the fonts of the text in your PowerPoint presentation. You’ll find this option under “Preferences” in PowerPoint. Doing this will ensure that the fonts remain the same, even when we don’t have the same ones on our servers.

You can repeat the above process for each file if you need to compress multiple PowerPoint files or want to compress images and other formats. Smallpdf accepts all Microsoft Office files and JPG images. If you go Pro, you can also compress files in batches, and we’ll conveniently store them in a zip file for you. Why not sign up for a 7-day free Pro trial before fully committing?

And that’s all there is to it! Enjoy compressing your PPT and be sure to explore the many other tools we offer.

Hurray for smaller presentations!

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Optimize PowerPoint File Size: 5 Tips for Reducing the Size of Your Files!

It is still a common issue in offices today: employees from your company’s overseas branches send you the “latest presentation” via email. However, what arrives in your inbox is a 30-megabyte attachment that not only clogs your email but also slows down your computer when opened.

Furthermore, many companies still impose fixed maximum sizes for email attachments. As a result, there are instances where you may not receive the presentation at all. However, this scenario can be prevented with a few simple measures. Today, we’ll share 5 tips on how to optimize file sizes.

File Size Optimization: Here’s How!

Aim for a target size of approximately 5 megabytes or less for your presentations. This ensures that your PowerPoint file will reach the recipient as an email attachment. Follow these simple tips to reduce the file size of your PowerPoint files:

1. Remove Unused Slides, Pictures, and Videos

This is especially relevant for presentations that are edited by multiple people over an extended period. Often, there are numerous hidden old slides that may still contain images and videos, which can significantly impact the file size.

In such cases, delete all irrelevant slides and content from the presentation and save a new version. This can noticeably reduce the file size.

2. Compress Inserted Images

PowerPoint provides an integrated function to compress images in a presentation. To do this, open the presentation and go to “File,” then select “Save As.” Click on “Browse” in the newly opened window, then click on “Tools” at the bottom and choose “Compress Pictures.”

Select the option “Delete cropped areas of pictures” and set the target output to 150 or 96 ppi. If your recipient plans to print the presentation, leave the target output at 220 ppi. For more information on compressing images in PowerPoint, check our article on the subject.

You can find more information in our articel “ Compress Images “.

3. Discard Editing Data for Images

This option can further reduce the size of presentations. Go to the “File” tab, then select “Options. ” Under “Advanced,” check the box next to “Discard editing data” under “Image Size and Quality.” Keep in mind that after enabling this option, changes made to images cannot be undone.

4. Avoid Creating Image Effects with PowerPoint

Avoid using PowerPoint’s image tools to edit your graphics and photos. For example, the image tools offer the option to apply “Artistic Effects” to your images. However, PowerPoint creates two image files – one for the original and one for the edited image with the artistic effect.

As a result, the overall file size increases with more images attached to the presentation. Instead, use a separate image editing program for effects and other adjustments. Insert the finished edited images into your presentation.

5. Check the Master Slide

When copying a slide from one presentation to another, it’s possible to unintentionally include the master slide from the source presentation in the target presentation, thus increasing its file size. To avoid this unnecessary increase in file size, always paste copied slides into the target presentation using the right-click option “Use Destination Theme.”

After completing your presentation, it’s always a good idea to check the master slide view. There, you can verify if any unnecessary master slides have been inadvertently included through copying and delete them if necessary.

Extra Tip: Use File Size Optimization Tools

There are various tools available that allow you to reduce the size of PowerPoint and other Office files. A popular tool is for example PowerShrink . Both software options allow you to shrink file sizes without any loss of quality. If you want to try out these tools, you can download and test their free trial versions.

Conclusion: Easily and Quickly Optimize Your File Size with Our Tips!

In presentations, file sizes can quickly become too large. To ensure that you and your colleagues can edit and send the presentation without any issues, it’s important to keep the file size below 5 MB. With our tips, you can easily and quickly optimize your file size! Give it a try!

If you have any questions about optimizing file sizes or general questions about PowerPoint, feel free to contact us at [email protected] . We’re here to help!

Are you looking for professionally designed slide templates to support your key message ? Visit our shop for a wide range of slides on various (business) topics available for download. Explore our shop today! ► Go to Shop

You may also be interested in other articles:

• Compressing PowerPoint Images
• Standardizing Image Sizes

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Useful Tips to Reduce a PowerPoint Presentation File Size

PowerPoint presentations generally contain a large number of images, videos, gifs, charts, and other visual content. This makes the files very large and difficult to work with.

Large files take up a considerable amount of disk space, and they push the limits of the data you are allowed to send via email. Even if you put your file in cloud storage, the file can be slow to respond when the recipient uses it.

To get the best performance from a PowerPoint file, you need to keep the document size under control. There are many different ways you can keep the extra, and mostly unnecessary, information from blowing up the size of your presentation.

Also read: 8 Alternatives to Microsoft PowerPoint You Need to Try

Edit Images in an Image Editor

Although PowerPoint gives you the option of editing the images in your presentation within the program, it adds extra bites of information. For example, if you change the color of an image to black and white, the file still contains the color image. If you edit many images in PowerPoint, you can add quite a bit of extra data.

Instead, use an external image editor to make the changes to the image before inserting it into the presentation. There are image editors available online to make these edits. If you add all the pictures before you make any changes, you can tell PowerPoint to discard all the extra data created during the edits.

1. Click on File -> Info.

2. Click “Check for issues.”

3. Select “Inspect Document.”

4. In the Inspect Document window, check at the following boxes at the very minimum:

• Comments, Revisions, Versions, and Annotations
• Document Properties and Personal Information
• Invisible Content
• Hidden Text

5. Click Inspect.

6. After the inspection finishes, click “Remove all” to remove the extra information added through editing the images.

Also read: 14 Useful PowerPoint Templates to Set Up a Digital Planner

Compress Images

Because the images take up a large amount of space in a PowerPoint presentation, you want to make sure they are as small (in data) as possible. To do this, either compress all the images or only the largest ones.

1. Click on the File tab and select “Save As.”

2. Click on “More options” under the File type drop-down box.

3. In the Save as window that appears, click the word Tools next to the Save button.

4. Select “Compress Pictures.”

5. In the Compress Pictures box, choose the resolution you prefer. (150 ppi is best for presenting.) Make sure the box for “Delete cropped areas of pictures” is checked (unless there is a chance you may want to recover the cropped portions from your images..

6. Click OK.

To compress only specific images in the presentation:

1. Click on the image you want to compress.

2. On the menu ribbon click the “Picture Tools -> Format” tab. Click “Compress pictures.”

3. In the window that appears, select your preferred resolution from the low end of the options.

4. Make sure “Delete cropped areas of pictures” is checked.

5. Click OK.

Insert Images

If you copy and paste images into your slide show by using Ctrl + C and Ctrl + V or by dragging and dropping them, PowerPoint may change the format of those pictures to either a PNG or a BMP. These formats are larger than a JPG of the same image.

Tip: Learn more PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts to speed up your workflows.

Insert your images using the Insert image option on the PowerPoint menu.

The image will remain in its original format, possibly saving you some extra data.

Don’t Embed Fonts

Embedding fonts includes special fonts in the presentation as part of the document. Unless the font is of particular importance to the theme of the presentation, consider using standard fonts and turn off the option to embed them.

1. Click on the File tab and click Options at the bottom.

2. In the options box click on the Save tab. Untick the box that says “Embed fonts in the file.”

3. Click OK.

Link to Videos

If you are not sending the presentation to someone else, you can save a large amount of data by linking to videos instead of embedding them. Click on the Insert tab and on the Video button to see your options.

Compress media

Lastly, to reduce the size of the presentation as much as possible, compress the media files using the file menu.

1. Click on “File -> Info.”

2. Click on Media Size and Performance.

3. Select the quality you want from the choices. Internet Quality is usually enough for most presentations.

4. Once you select the quality you want, the compression begins.

The next time you need to create a PowerPoint presentation to share with others, take some or all of these steps to ensure a smaller file size. It will run more smoothly and be easier to send electronically.

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How to Reduce PowerPoint File Size

Learn how to optimize your next presentation

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What to Know

• Crop images or compress them to reduce file size. To compress photos, go to Picture Tools Format >  Compress Pictures .
• To compress media files, select File > Info > Compress Media .
• If some of your slides are content-heavy,  turn a slide into a single image . Then, insert that image onto a slide.

Sometimes PowerPoint presentation files become too large to handle. These large files are difficult to email because many email providers limit the size of email attachments. And, large presentation files may not play properly on older computers. To keep your PowerPoint files in hand, follow these tips and make your PowerPoint presentations as small as possible.

Crop Pictures

Cropping pictures in PowerPoint has two bonuses for your presentation. First, stuff in the picture that's not necessary to make your point is removed. Second, the overall file size of your presentation is reduced. 

• Right-click the image you want to crop and select Crop .
• Drag the cropping handles to select the area you want to crop.
• Select a blank area of the presentation slide to view the cropped photo.

Compress Photos

Compress the photos after they are inserted to reduce their file size.

• Select a photo in the slideshow.
• Go to Picture Tools Format .
• Select Compress Pictures in the Adjust group.
• Clear the Apply only to this picture check box to compress all photos in the presentation.
• Place a check next to Delete cropped areas of pictures .
• Select OK .

Compress Media Files

In PowerPoint for Windows, compress audio or video files in a presentation to make them smaller. When you make media files smaller, you may also lower the quality. When compressing media files, you have these options:

• Full HD (1080p) reduces the file size and maintains overall quality.
• HD (720p)  saves more space and provides quality comparable to media streamed over the internet.
• Standard (480p)  creates a small file that is perfect to attach to an email, but may diminish overall quality.

To compress media files:

• Go to File .
• Select Info .
• Select Compress Media .
• Choose the option you wish to use.

Create a Picture from a Slide

If some of your slides are content-heavy, turn a slide into a single image . Then, insert that image onto a slide.

If you turn an image into a slide and then use that image to make a new slide, you will no longer be able to animate separate objects.

Make Multiple Slideshows

Consider breaking your presentation into more than one file. Create a hyperlink from the last slide in Show 1 to the first slide in Show 2 and then close Show 1. This approach may be cumbersome when you're in the middle of the presentation, but it frees up system resources if you only have Show 2 open.

If the whole slideshow is in one file, your RAM is constantly in use retaining the images of previous slides, even though you are many slides forward. By closing off Show 1 you'll free up these resources.

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How to compress PowerPoint files.

Want to save space on your computer? Learn how to compress a PowerPoint to save space and make your presentation easier to share.

Need to learn how to compress Microsoft PowerPoint files but not sure where to begin? Whether you want to save space on your device or avoid file size issues in an email, compressing your PowerPoint is a great way to keep file sizes to a minimum and make your presentation easier to store and manage.

When is compressing a PowerPoint file beneficial?

While a PowerPoint in its original quality is great for presenting, it may not always be the easiest to share and store on your computer. Compressing PowerPoint files is a great way to save space while keeping your hard work.

Here are a few reasons you may want to compress your PowerPoint:

• Improve shareability over email. Most email platforms limit the file sizes that you can share. If your Powerpoint contains a lot of content, especially photos and videos, it may be more difficult to share over email. Compressing the PowerPoint ensures that the same content is shared, just as a smaller file size.
• Have more storage space on your computer. By compressing your PowerPoint file, you leave room for more important documents to be stored on your computer.
• Boost productivity. By spending less time waiting for a file to upload, you can place your attention on other important tasks.

Steps: How to compress a PowerPoint file.

There are a few different methods you can try within the PowerPoint application and outside of it to reduce your PowerPoint file size and easily be able to share and save your content.

You can reduce the size and quality of any images in the presentation, reduce audio and video content, compress the PowerPoint as a PDF, compress it as a zip file, or swap any 3D models with static images.

Compress a PowerPoint file by reducing the size and quality of your images.

While there’s no way to compress the entire file in PowerPoint, you can reduce the size and quality of all the images to reduce the whole presentation’s size.

Instead of going through your complete presentation and editing your images one by one (which you can do if you want), there’s an easy way to compress all your image files at once:

• Open the presentation in PowerPoint.
• Click File on the top toolbar and choose Options > Advanced.
• Check “Discard editing data.”
• Uncheck “Do not compress images in file.”
• Select 150 PPI or lower in the Default resolution dropdown menu.

These steps will reduce the file size of all the images in your presentation, effectively compressing the entire PowerPoint. The more pictures you have, the more it’ll compress the file.

Compress a PowerPoint file by reducing the size of audio and video files.

Audio and video content takes up a lot of storage space in a presentation.

You can reduce the size of audio and video files by following these steps:

• Click on the File tab in the upper-left corner.
• Select Info from the dropdown menu.
• Click Compress Media. There are three options for compression.
• Choose your compression option. Click Close once the file is done compressing.

Ensure the file is compressed to your liking. If the compression does not meet your standards, adjust the settings as needed.

Compress a PowerPoint file as a PDF.

An easier way to compress a PowerPoint is to first convert the PPT to a PDF using an online PDF editor like Adobe Acrobat online services. PDF files are smaller and easier to share than PowerPoints.

To convert your PowerPoint to a PDF, follow these easy steps:

• Visit the online PDF converter tool.
• Upload the PowerPoint you want to convert.
• Let the software do its magic.
• Download your new PDF file.

The PDF file should be much smaller than the original PowerPoint, making it easy to store and share. If the file size is still too big, you can reduce it even further by compressing the PDF online .

Compress PowerPoint files as a ZIP file.

By changing the PowerPoint to a ZIP file, the whole presentation size will be reduced.

Use these steps to transform your PowerPoint into a ZIP file:

• Click File in the upper-left corner.
• Choose the Open option.
• Right-click the project you wish to compress. Additional options will appear.
• Choose “Send to” and more options will appear.
• Find the option named “Compressed (zipped) folder.” Choose this option to compress the file.

Compressing PPT files on macOS and Windows.

In the macOS PowerPoint, you can reduce the file size of images but not music or videos.

Here are the steps to compress your PowerPoint on a Mac:

• In PowerPoint, click File. If you only want to compress certain images, select them before you click File.
• From the dropdown menu, click Compress Pictures.
• Printing — highest quality.
• Viewing on Screen — reduces image quality by 30%.
• Sending in an email message — compresses images by another 30% or so.
• Choose whether or not you’d like to delete portions of the photos that have been cropped out. By doing this, you can reduce the file size.
• Decide whether you want to compress every photo in the slideshow or only the ones you already selected. Click OK when done.

For Windows, follow these instructions:

• Click File and make sure Info is selected in the left sidebar.
• Click Compress Media. Depending on the version of PowerPoint, the button will either say Multimedia or Media Size and Performance.
• Choose the highest quality option if you want to maintain the presentation quality for in-person presentations.
• Choose the middle option for a presentation best suited for the internet.
• Choose the lowest quality option for the highest compression so you can easily share the PowerPoint over email.

Tips on how to reduce PowerPoint file size.

There are a few methods that can help reduce your PowerPoint file size.

• Analyze image quality. Presenting high-quality images, audio files, and videos can create a more engaging experience for your audience. Each time you compress images, double-check to be sure they still look presentation-ready.
• Replace 3D models. While 3D models are a unique component of presentations, they take up more storage space. Opting for similar static images may be the best option for sharing your presentation.
• Convert images to JPEG. If your photos are in the PNG format, you may want to make them JPEGs. You can easily do this in PowerPoint by right-clicking the pictures and then choosing “Save as Picture.” From there, under “Save as Type:,” choose the option named JPEG. Save, and you’re done.

More resources to work with your files.

After compressing PowerPoint files, here are additional ways to work with your documents:

• Learn two ways to convert a PDF to Google Slides for presentation.
• Discover how to delete a slide in PowerPoint .
• Learn how to redline documents in Word .
• Discover how to convert a PPT to Google Slides .

Discover what more you can do with Acrobat online services to simplify editing and managing your PowerPoint and PDF files.

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Before you go to the effort of compressing your PowerPoint presentation, ask yourself if you even need to bother?

If you are not having trouble sharing your presentation, or you don’t need to email it to anyone (maybe you can share it on a USB instead), don’t worry about how large your presentation is.

If you’ve added lots of images, videos, graphics, and 3D models, your PowerPoint presentation might be huge. But so what?

Only follow these steps if you find that your presentation is becoming unwieldy or too big to share. And then, only do the minimum required to get to a functional state.

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1. Compress Images in PowerPoint

If you have lots of images in your presentation, you can save a lot of space by compressing them. This is a fast and uncomplicated way to reduce your PowerPoint file size.

You can also save a lot of file space in PowerPoint by converting your PNG images into JPEG images. To learn how to do that before you compress your images, read our guide here .

Notice in the picture above how much space was saved using the different compression options.

The HD (96 ppi) compressed file is 17x smaller than the original presentation. Just make sure when you compress your images that you pay attention to their quality.  The more you compress an image in PowerPoint, the more quality you will lose.

Ideally you want to use the HIGHEST quality resolution as possible, especially if you are presenting on a large overhead projector.

To compress your images in PowerPoint, follow these steps.

1. Open the Picture Format tab

Select a picture in PowerPoint to open the Picture Format tab in your Ribbon and select it.

The Picture Format tab is where all the commands and features related to working with and editing images are located.

For example, to see how to turn an image into a black and white drawing using the Artistic Effect features in PowerPoint, read our guide here .

If you do not see the Picture Format tab in your PowerPoint Ribbon, it means you have not selected an image or photo to work with. The Picture Format tab is contextual and will open only once you have selected an image or picture to work with.

2. Select the Compress Pictures command

Inside the Picture Format tab, find and select the Compress Pictures command.

Depending on your screen resolution and the size of your computer monitor, this command might appear as just an icon.

Either way, the icon should be to the right of the Transparency command.

3. Choose your compression options

You have two main compression options to choose from:

Apply only to this picture : This determines if the resolution you pick is applied only to the picture you have selected or to all the pictures within your presentation.

Most often, your images will require different compression resolutions. That’s why I recommend keeping the Apply only to this picture option selected and working your way through the images in your presentation one by one.

If you know that you want all of the pictures in your presentation compressed to a specific resolution, you can choose to unselect this option.

Delete cropped areas of pictures: Selecting this option removes any cropped areas in your pictures as part of the compression process. This will dramatically decrease the size of any images you have cropped.

However, please note that once you do this, you lose all the parts of the images that you cropped out. This means that you won’t be able to return to the original image and adjust the cropping.

To expand your knowledge and learn how to crop your pictures in PowerPoint to save additional space before you compress them, read our guide here .

4. Choose your resolution

Next, choose the resolution you want your image(s) compressed to. The smaller the resolution, the smaller the size of the images and the smaller the size of your presentation.

The question is, what is the best resolution to pick? This depends on how you plan to give your presentation.

If you’re presenting on a large overhead projector, I recommend choosing a higher resolution like HD (330 ppi) so that all your images are sharp and clear. If you are printing or just showing someone your presentation on your laptop, then Print (220 ppi) is fine.

I don’t recommend going much smaller than these two resolutions as the overall quality of your images will decrease rapidly.

For more help choosing the right resolution when compressing images in PowerPoint, see our guide here .

5. Click OK

Once you have made your compression choices and picked a resolution, click OK and PowerPoint will compress your image(s) for you.

Once PowerPoint finishes compressing your images, I recommend reviewing the quality of the compression to make sure everything looks okay. If you find that your image looks grainy, hit Ctrl+Z to undo and choose a higher resolution.

2. Compress Videos in PowerPoint

Videos and media files (like audio files) can be huge!

So if you have a video or other media files in your presentation, compressing them is another fast way to reduce your PowerPoint file size.  Or better yet, if you realize you are not using a specific video (or rarely use it), remove it.

Using the default video compression options in PowerPoint, I saw the following results, reducing my file size by over 6x.

To compress your videos and other media in PowerPoint, simply follow the following steps.

1. Select the File tab

Click the File tab to open the backstage view of PowerPoint.

Videos and other media are all compressed in the backstage view of PowerPoint, not in the Video Format tab like you might think.

2. Select the Info tab

Find and click the Info tab to access the Compress Media tools.

3. Open the Compress Media dropdown

Inside the Info tab and u nderneath Media Size and Performance, PowerPoint tells you the total size of the media files (video and audio) in your presentation.

Find and select the Compress Media command, which should be at the top of the Info tab. 

If you do not see the Compress Media command, that means that you don’t have any media that PowerPoint can compress.

You can only compress videos and other media inside your current PowerPoint presentation. 

If you have narrated your presentation using PowerPoint’s built-in Record Slide Show command, your narration videos and audio do not require compression. To learn how to narrate a PowerPoint using PowerPoint’s built-in Record Slide Show command, read our guide here .

4. Choose a compression file size

In the Compress Media dropdown, choose one of the three compression options for your videos and other media:

• Full HD (1080p)
• Standard (480p)

If you are not sure which compression option to choose, I recommend at least compressing using the Full HD (1080p) option. In my compression tests, the Full HD (1080p) reduced the size of my original video by half.

Full HD (1080p) works great for any overhead projector or monitor you will be presenting on. If you need to save more space, you can test out one of the smaller formats. But be careful. Just like when compressing images and photos, the more you compress your videos (or other media) the lower the quality of your video.

As a best practice when building presentations, use the highest compression rate you can without sacrificing the quality of the videos (or other media).

5. Wait as PowerPoint compresses your videos

After choosing a compression size, PowerPoint will begin compressing all the videos in your presentation. When it’s done, a dialog box will show you how much space you saved with each compressed video.

For example, for a raw video I inserted and compressed in PowerPoint, I saved 872.5 MB. That is A LOT and it allows me to share my presentation more easily.

To expand your knowledge and learn how to embed a video in PowerPoint (and learn how it is different than embedding a YouTube video), read our guide here .

3. Clean out the Master Views in PowerPoint

Before you worry about compressing any of your images or videos, see if you can reduce your file size by removing hidden and unused elements in your presentation.

One of the culprits of a large PowerPoint file size (especially if you don’t feel like you have that many slides in your presentation), is hidden graphics on one or more of the following masters in PowerPoint:

• Slide Master (most common)
• Handout Master
• Notes Master

It’s common to find excessively large graphics or things you can eliminate to reduce file size in your different master views. That said, you do not want to just delete anything you find there. That is because someone might have set them up for a reason in the first place. Double-check before you start deleting things, but this is a common way to cut down the size of your deck

A. Slide Master - Hidden graphics

To navigate to the Slide Master view to spot check your child slide layouts, simply:

• Navigate to the  View tab
• Select  Slide Master
• Spot check your  Child Slide layouts

Here you want to look at your Child Slide layouts and see if there are any with extremely large pictures or media files that you are not using.

Then you can decide whether to compress them (as mentioned above) or delete them.

You might also find a lot of duplicate  Child Slide  layouts that you can simply remove. This happens when people copy and paste between presentations that don’t have a consistent or well-built PowerPoint template. To expand your knowledge and learn how to create your own custom PowerPoint template from scratch, read our guide here .

B. Handout Master - Hidden graphics

To navigate to the Handout Master view of your presentation, simply:

• Select  Handout Master  in your Ribbon
• Spot check your  Handout Master

Here you are looking for excessively large company logos or graphics that you can compress or remove.

PowerPoint shapes such as rectangles, lines and text boxes are fine. Removing them will not impact the size of your presentation.

Formatting your  Handout Master is a fantastic way to create customized slide handouts of your presentation, but if there are excessively large graphics here, compressing or removing them can help you decrease the size of your presentation.

C. Notes Master - Hidden graphics

To navigate to the Notes Master view of your presentation, simply:

• Navigate to the  View Tab
• Select  Notes Master  in your Ribbon
• Spot check your Notes Master

If you find any excessively large images, or multi-media elements here, removing them will reduce your overall file size. You don’t have to worry about any shapes, lines, or text boxes (these will never increase the size of your presentation). You are looking for unnecessarily large graphics, or graphics that are placed outside of the Notes Master area (as those will never appear on your handouts anyway).

Formatting the Notes Master is a terrific way to create branded handouts for your speaker notes. However, if there are large graphics here that you are not using, compressing, or removing them can help reduce the size of your presentation.

To learn more about your Notes Master and how it affects the formatting and layout of your speaker notes in PowerPoint, read our guide here .

To expand your knowledge and learn how to professionally print your speaker notes in PowerPoint, read our guide here .

4. Swap out 3D Models and Other Media

If you have the Office 365 subscription ( check it out here ), you can now add 3D models and graphics into your presentations from the Insert Tab, 3D Models dropdown.

• Click the Insert tab
• Open the 3D Models dropdown
• Select the location source for your 3D model

Below are examples of animated 3D models you can insert into PowerPoint. I’ve selected the rhinoceros.

These 3D models can be quite large and there is currently no way to compress them. Notice in the picture below how adding just one animated 3D model adds over 26 MB to the PowerPoint file.

So if you need to reduce the size of your presentation, try to replace any 3D models with a static image. For example, instead of using the 3D rhinoceros, use a picture of a rhinoceros instead.

Notice that the picture of the rhinoceros is 7x smaller than the 3D model on the left.

If you want to keep the 3D look of your model, you can also Copy ( Ctrl+C ) and Paste Special ( Ctrl+Alt+V ) your 3D model as a PNG image. That will retain the 3D look of the model in your presentation without its size. To expand your knowledge and learn more about the Paste Special shortcut (which is also the trick to pasting formatting in Excel), read our guide here .

5. Convert PowerPoint to PDF

If you don’t need to present using PowerPoint, instead of trying to compress your presentation, you can simply convert it to the PDF file format.

That’s because the PDF conversion process automatically compresses images and removes any videos, 3D models, etc.

To convert your presentation to the PDF file format, simply:

• Hit  F12  to open the  Save As dialog box
• Change the  File Type  to PDF
• Click  Save

Just be aware that not everything in your presentation will properly convert to the PDF file format. You will lose quite a few things, such as animations and transitions.  To learn all the ins and outs of converting a PowerPoint presentation into a PDF file format, read our guide here .

6. Compress PowerPoint as a ZIP File

As a last resort, you can also try to reduce the size of your presentation by compressing it into a ZIP file.

While this technique compresses everything in your presentation, it doesn’t always save you a ton of space.

For example, notice in the picture below how my file size has only been reduced by 4MB using this ZIP folder technique.

If you need to keep all of your videos, graphics, and 3D models as they are, this might be your best bet Just keep in mind that it might not save you a ton of space and you may be  better off using something like OneDrive, Google Drive or Dropbox.

How to create a compressed (zipped) folder

To compress your PowerPoint presentation into the ZIP file format, simply:

• In File Explorer,  Right-Click  your file
• Select  Send to
• Choose the  Compressed (zipped) folder  option

Selecting the Compressed (zipped) folder , PowerPoint compresses your presentation as much as possible. How much room it saves depends on what is in your presentation. If you have already compressed your images and other multi-media files, then you will not save much space.

Below you can see the dialog box showing you that your presentation is being compressed.

How to extract a compressed (zipped) folder

To decompress a zipped file, simply:

• Right-Click the zipped folder
• Select  Extract All…
• Choose a  File Location  to extract your folder to
• Click  Extract

Extracting your file turns your zip folder into a normal folder with your original PowerPoint file in it. Instead of just zipping your PowerPoint file, you can add additional files to a folder and ZIP the entire folder. In this way, you can reduce the overall file size of a number of files or documents you want to share with a client or colleague.

Compressing the different elements of your presentation is a great way to reduce your overall PowerPoint file size.

Just remember that compressing your PowerPoint presentations is an optional step. If you are not having any trouble sharing it with other people, don’t bother.

That’s because while reducing your file size can make it easier to share with others, it can also decrease the quality of the images and media.

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How to Compress Images in PowerPoint to Reduce File Size (10 Strategies)

10 Strategies to Compress Images in Large PowerPoint Presentations

by Avantix Learning Team | Updated July 21, 2020

Applies to: Microsoft® PowerPoint® 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019 and 365 (Windows)

There are many strategies you can use to compress images in PowerPoint presentations to reduce file size. It's common to use built-in compression features in PowerPoint to make large files smaller but you can also reduce image size before you insert pictures on your slides. If you're using 365, 3D models can cause a significant increase in file size.

The following are 10 ways to compress images in PowerPoint presentations:

• Compress pictures using Compress Pictures on the Ribbon
• Compress pictures when saving a PowerPoint file
• Change default compression settings in PowerPoint Options
• Insert pictures instead of copying and pasting
• Use image files at a lower resolution
• Convert images to a different file type
• Replace 3D models with 2D alternatives
• Save a copy of images with picture effects
• Discard editing data
• Link to images

Note: Buttons and Ribbon tabs may display in a different way (with or without text) depending on your version of PowerPoint, the size of your screen and your Control Panel settings. For PowerPoint 365 users, Ribbon tabs may appear with different names. For example, the Picture Tools Format tab may appear as Picture Format.

To view file size in PowerPoint:

• Click the File tab in the Ribbon.
• Click Info. In the Properties area, file size is listed beside Size.

Once you've completed the following strategies, close and save the PowerPoint file, reopen it and check the file size again. You can also view file size in Windows 10 File Explorer or Windows Explorer in older versions of Windows.

Recommended article : PowerPoint Slide Show Shortcuts (50+ Shortcuts)

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1. Compress pictures using Compress Pictures on the Ribbon

One of the most common ways to reduce file size is to compress one or all of the pictures in your PowerPoint file using Compress Pictures. You may want to try this with one picture at a time to be sure you are satisfied with the result after compression.

To compress a picture:

• In Normal View, display the slide with the image or picture you want to compress. You can't compress shapes that draw in PowerPoint.
• Select the image or picture on the slide. You can Shift-click multiple images if they are on the same slide.
• Click the Picture Tools Format or Picture Format tab in the Ribbon.
• In the Adjust group, click Compress Pictures. A dialog box appears.
• Select the check box to Apply only to this picture if you want to compress only the current picture or uncheck this option if you want to compress all pictures in the presentation.
• Select the check box to Delete cropped areas of pictures if you have cropped images and want to permanently delete the areas you have removed by cropping.
• Choose the desired document resolution.

Select the target output resolution that is most appropriate for the way you want to use the file. Select E-mail (96 ppi) for maximum compression. Use Web (150 ppi) if you plan to post your presentation online or project it. Choose Print (220 ppi) if you intend to print. HD options (such as 330 ppi) are available in newer versions for high-definition displays.

If a picture has already been compressed, higher-resolution compression options may not be available. For example, if you've saved a presentation and the default 220 ppi compression in PowerPoint options is set, you won't be able to compress an image again using 330 ppi (HD). Use Document Resolution refers to the resolution specified the Set Up Slide Show settings on the Slide Show tab . Normally, this resolution is the same as your computer screen.

Images that are downloaded from the internet may already be compressed so higher-resolution compression options may not be available for an image. Also, although PowerPoint will allow you specify compression settings for CMYK images, it won't actually compress them.

Don't forget to check pictures in Slide Master View (click the View tab in the Ribbon and then click Slide Master) as you may want to compress those images as well.

2. Compress pictures when saving a PowerPoint file

You can also compress all images when you save a PowerPoint file.

To save a PowerPoint file and compress images:

• Choose Save As. If necessary, click Options or More Options. A dialog box appears.
• Navigate to the desired location and name the file with a different name (such as OurServices2).
• Click Tools. A drop-down menu appears.
• Click Compress Pictures. A dialog box appears.
• Select the desired resolution.
• Click Save.

3. Change default compression settings in PowerPoint Options

PowerPoint compresses pictures by default based on settings in PowerPoint Options. If you set the default to a lower resolution, this should reduce file size. It's important to note that the compression settings are applied when you save the PowerPoint presentation and only for the current file.

To change automatic compression settings:

• Click Options. A dialog box appears.
• In the categories on the left, click Advanced.
• In the Image Size and Quality settings, choose an option for Default resolution. If you turn off compression completely, your file size would not be compressed.

Below is the PowerPoint Options dialog box with resolution settings in 365 (resolutions are different depending on version):

Higher resolution options are not available in older versions of PowerPoint. You can change the automatic picture compression for the current file only so it's best to change compression settings when you first create a PowerPoint file.

4. Insert pictures instead of copying and pasting

It's best to insert pictures, rather than copying and pasting (or dragging and dropping) into the PowerPoint file. When you copy and paste (or drag and drop) an image into a presentation, it can lose compression, change file type and also bring in other data that can increase file size.

To insert a picture onto a PowerPoint slide:

• In Normal View, display the slide where you want to insert a picture.
• Click the Insert tab in the Ribbon and click Pictures (2013 and later versions) or Picture (2010). You can also click the Pictures or Picture icon in a placeholder on a slide. A dialog box appears.
• Navigate to the location of the picture.
• Select the picture and click Insert or double-click the picture.

You also have the option of linking to a picture file by clicking the arrow beside Insert in the Insert Picture dialog box and then choosing Link to File. However, the picture is not actually "in" the file (which reduces file size) and if you email the document, the pictures will not be included. If you use this strategy, it's best to copy the picture to the same folder as the PowerPoint presentation and be sure to bring the entire folder with you when you deliver the presentation.

5. Use image files at a lower resolution

It's best to insert pictures in smaller sizes to reduce the size of your PowerPoint files. For example, if you are inserting pictures from a stock photo site, select the lowest resolution possible at the quality level you require. It you're taking pictures with a phone, save or send images at a lower resolution and insert the lower resolution images into your PowerPoint decks

You can also open an image in an image editing program (such as Microsoft Picture Manager or Adobe Photoshop) and then save it at a lower resolution.

6. Convert images to a different file type

You can save pictures in PowerPoint, delete them, and reinsert them into the PowerPoint file. For example, you could save a TIFF (Tagged Image File Format) image as a JPG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) or PNG (Portable Network Graphics) and reduce the size of the image.

To save an image in a different format and reinsert it into PowerPoint:

• Right-click the picture. A drop-down menu appears.
• Select Save As Picture. A dialog box appears.
• Navigate to the folder where you want to save the image.
• Enter a name for the file and select a format such as JPG or PNG (PNG supports transparent backgrounds).
• In the PowerPoint presentation, delete the original image.
• Click Insert and then click Picture(s).
• Navigate to the location with the image you saved.
• Double-click the image.

7. Save a copy of images with picture effects

When you apply picture effects, including artistic effects, to an image, PowerPoint retains two copies of the image (the original and a copy with the picture effects). This allows the user to reset the image but can significantly increase file size. Compressing pictures also doesn't normally have any effect on images where you have applied artistic effects.

If you have applied picture effects  (such as blur ) to an image, you can reduce file size using the following method:

• Right-click the image with the picture effect(s). A drop-down menu appears.
• Enter a name and select a file type (such as JPG or PNG).
• In the PowerPoint presentation, delete the image with the picture effect(s).
• Navigate to the location with the image you saved with the artistic effect.

8. Replace 3D models with 2D alternatives

In PowerPoint 365, you can insert 3D models which can be very large in size. Although 3D models are not inserted as pictures but rather as 3D models, they are images. One model we inserted took 17 MB of space. You can't compress 3D models like other types of images so you may need to delete them or use a picture instead if file size is an issue.

To replace a 3D model with a 2D picture:

• Right-click the 3D model. A drop-down menu appears.
• In the PowerPoint presentation, delete the 3D model.

Below is an example of a 3D image saved as a picture:

The 3D model is on the left and the image on the right has been saved as a PNG file and then inserted back into PowerPoint.

You also have the alternative of cutting the 3D model and pasting it back onto the slide as a picture.

To replace a 3D model with a 2D picture by cutting and pasting:

• Click the 3D model.
• Press Ctrl + X to cut it.
• Press Ctrl + Alt + V. The Paste Special dialog box appears.
• Click a picture format (such as JPG, PNG or Enhanced Metafile).

If you use either method, you will lose the 3D functionality so you may want to store a copy of the 3D model in another file (or a copy of the file).

9. Discard editing data

You can also discard the copy of images that PowerPoint retains if you want to reset an image.

To discard editing data:

• In the Image Size and Quality settings, select Discard editing data.

This setting is applied only to the current presentation.

Below is the PowerPoint Options dialog box with Discard editing data selected:

10. Link to images

If you are creating presentations for a conference, large company event or a social event (such as a graduation) with hundreds of pictures, you can link to the picture files instead of copying them into your presentation. If you copy hundreds of images into a presentation, PowerPoint may crash if it hits the memory limit for Office so consider linking instead.

To link pictures:

• Click the Insert tab in the Ribbon.
• Click Picture(s).
• Click the picture. A dialog box appears.
• On the bottom right of the dialog box, click the arrow beside Insert.
• Select Link to File.
• Repeat for other pictures.

If you choose to link to images, it's a good idea to keep the images in a folder in the same folder as the presentation and then copy the entire folder if you are going to present on another device.

For more ways to reduce presentation size, check out How to Compress PowerPoint Presentations to Reduce File Size (10 Ways).

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Zip a presentation file

When you want to send your PowerPoint presentation to others, it’s easier to do when the file size isn’t too big. You can compress, or zip , the file in Windows, which shrinks the size of the file but retains the original quality of your presentation. You can also compress the media files within the presentation so they're a smaller file size and easier to send.

Compress (zip) a presentation with Windows Explorer or File Explorer

Open Windows Explorer (Windows 7) or File Explorer (Windows 8, Windows 8.1, Windows 10, and Windows 11) in one the following ways:

Use the Windows Start menu: Right-click the Windows Start button, and select Open Windows Explorer (Windows 7) or File Explorer (Windows 8, Windows 8.1, Windows 10, and Windows 11). If you don’t see the Start button, move your mouse to the bottom-left corner of the screen.

Browse to the presentation you want to compress.

Right-click the presentation, and select Send to > Compressed (zipped) folder .

Windows creates a new zip file and gives it an identical name as the PowerPoint file.

Send the compressed file to your intended recipient, who can then decompress the file just by clicking it.

Compressing media files in presentations

If your presentation contains audio or video content, you can reduce those media file sizes to make your overall file size smaller. Follow the steps at Compress your media files .

Reduce the file size of a picture

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