Digital Accessibility for PowerPoints
Learn how to ensure your presentations are accessible for all
PowerPoint Accessibility Checker
Whether you are giving a presentation or distributing it digitally, incorporating accessibility into your design allows everyone to have equal access to the information.
Microsoft PowerPoint provides a built-in accessibility checker that will identify accessibility errors, warnings, and tips to make your document more accessible. In addition, this feature offers “how-to” instructions to fix accessibility issues.
If your PowerPoint has images the checker will ask you to write alternative text for them. For more information see our Guide to Writing Alternative Text.
Tutorials on Designing PowerPoints
- Article: Accessibility Best Practices in PowerPoints
- Video Series: Accessibility Best Practices in PowerPoints
- Sign Up For Accessibility Training through Deque University
- Includes courses on PowerPoint
Tips for Giving Accessible Presentations
- If possible, provide the digital version of the PowerPoint to participants ahead of time
- Say all of the information shown aloud
- Avoid phrases like "as you can see."
- Provide accurate captions for all video content. See our Captioning page for more information.
Exporting PowerPoints
When sharing a PowerPoint presentation, use the original PowerPoint file whenever possible. If you need to provide a PDF version, make sure the PowerPoint is accessible before exporting and follow the steps below to preserve accessibility features when exporting:
- Use File > Save As or File > Save a Copy to create the PDF.
- On Windows, select PDF as the file type and select Save.
- On Mac, select PDF as the file format and make sure Best for electronic distribution and accessibility is selected, then select Export.
- Do not use Print or Save as Adobe PDF to create the PDF.