This article is for people who use a screen reader program such as Windows Narrator, JAWS, or NVDA with Microsoft 365 products. This article is part of the Microsoft 365 screen reader support content set where you can find more accessibility information on our apps. For general help, visit Microsoft Support.
Use PowerPoint with your keyboard and a screen reader to add and read speaker notes in your PowerPoint presentation. We've tested it with Narrator, JAWS, and NVDA, but it might work with other screen readers as long as they follow common accessibility standards and techniques. You'll learn how to use speaker notes to add reminders or talking points for the presenter, and use comments to give your colleagues feedback about their presentations.
Notes:
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New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.
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To learn more about screen readers, go to How screen readers work with Microsoft 365.
In this topic
Add speaker notes
Add speaker notes in your presentation to tell a story to your audience beyond the slide content. You can use the speaker notes as private reminders of the slide content, too.
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To display the Notes pane, in the Normal view, press Alt+W, P, N.
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On the slide where you want to add notes, press F6 until you hear: "Slide notes."
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Type your notes.
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To exit the Notes pane, press F6.
Read speaker notes
You can hear whether a slide has notes and listen to the notes.
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In the Normal view, press F6 until you hear: "Thumbnails."
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Press the Up or Down arrow key until you hear the title or number of the slide and its position in the list of slides. If there are speaker notes on the slide, you hear: “Has notes.”
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To display the Notes pane, press Alt+W, P, N.
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Press F6 until you hear “Slide notes,” and then press the SR key+R to listen to the note.
Add a comment
You can add comments on slides if you're, for example, reviewing someone else's work.
If you want to comment on a specific piece of text or an object, select it first. To find out how to select in PowerPoint using keyboard shortcuts, refer to Use keyboard shortcuts to create PowerPoint presentations.
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On a slide, in the Normal view, when you hear a piece of text or an object you want to comment on, press Alt+R, C. The Comments pane opens.
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Type your comment and press Ctrl+Enter to save it.
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To exit the Comments pane, press Esc.
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To close the Comments pane, press Alt+R, P, P.
Read comments
You can hear whether a slide has comments and listen to the comments.
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In the Normal view, press F6 until you hear: "Thumbnails."
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Press F6 and the Up or Down arrow key until you hear the title or number of the slide and its position in the list of slides. If there are comments on the slide, you hear: “Has comments.”
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To open the Comments pane, press Alt+R, P, P. You hear: “Comments on slide.”
If the Comments pane is already open, press F6 or Shift+F6 until you hear: "Comments on slide."
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Press the SR key+Right or Left arrow key to move through the comments. Your screen reader reads the comments as you land on them.
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To close the Comments pane, press Alt+R, P, P.
See also
Use a screen reader to add and format text in PowerPoint
Use a screen reader to save your presentation in PowerPoint
Use a screen reader to show your presentation with PowerPoint
Use keyboard shortcuts to create PowerPoint presentations
Use keyboard shortcuts to deliver PowerPoint presentations
Basic tasks to create a presentation in PowerPoint with a screen reader
Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365
Use PowerPoint with your keyboard and VoiceOver, the built-in macOS screen reader, to add and read speaker notes and comments in your presentation.
Notes:
-
New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.
-
This topic assumes that you are using the built-in macOS screen reader, VoiceOver. To learn more about using VoiceOver, go to VoiceOver Getting Started Guide.
In this topic
Add speaker notes
Add speaker notes in your presentation to tell a story to your audience beyond the slide content. You can use the speaker notes as private reminders of the slide content, too. You can add the speaker notes in the Normal view if you're adding only short notes, or in the Notes Page view if you're planning to write more notes per slide.
Add speaker notes in the Normal view
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On the slide where you want to add speaker notes, press Shift+F6 until you hear: "Notes pane."
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Type your speaker notes for the slide.
Add speaker notes in the Notes Page view
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On the slide where you want to add speaker notes, in the Normal view, press Command+3. You hear: "Notes page, checked."
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In the Notes Page view, press the Tab key until you hear: "Entering slides notes text box, Edit text." Then type your speaker notes.
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To move to the notes on another slide, in the Notes Page view, press Option+Control+Shift+Up arrow key until you hear: "Out of notes page view, layout area." Press Esc once, and then press Option+Right or Left arrow key until you hear the slide you want.
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To return to the Normal view, press Command+1.
Read speaker notes
You can listen to the notes on your headset and then deliver them verbally to your audience, or let VoiceOver read the notes out loud. You can listen to the speaker notes either in the Normal view or the Notes Page view when you're creating or editing your presentation. When you're delivering a slide show, you can use the Presenter View.
Read speaker notes in the Normal view
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On the slide, press Shift+F6 until you hear: "Notes pane."
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In the Notes Pane, press Control+Command+Right arrow key. You hear "Edit text, insertion at beginning of text," followed by the speaker notes text.
Read speaker notes on a Notes Page view
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On a slide, press Command+3. You hear: "Notes page, checked."
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In the Notes Page view, press the Tab key until you hear "Edit text," followed by the speaker notes text.
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To move to the notes on another slide, in the Notes Page view, press Option+Control+Shift+Up arrow key until you hear: "Out of notes page view, layout area." Press Esc once, and then press Option+Right or Left arrow key until you hear the slide you want.
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To return to the Normal view, press Command+1.
Read speaker notes in the Presenter View
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To switch to the Presenter View, on a slide in the Normal view, press Option+Return. You hear: "Now in PowerPoint presenter view."
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In the Presenter View, press Control+Option+Left or Right arrow key until you hear: "Notes pane, layout area."
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To read the notes text, in the Notes pane, press Control+Option+Shift+Down arrow key. VoiceOver reads the speaker notes text. To stop reading, press Control once.
Add comments
You can add comments on slides if you're, for example, working together with others on a presentation or you're reviewing someone else's work.
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On the slide where you want to add comments, press F6 until you hear the name of the current tab on the ribbon.
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Press Control+Option+Left or Right arrow key until you hear "Review tab," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar.
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On the Review tab, press the Tab key until you hear "New comment button," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar. The Comments pane opens, and the focus moves to the comment text field in the pane.
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Type your comment.
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To insert your comment, press Command+Return.
Reply to a comment
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Open the Comments pane and read the comments as instructed in Read comments.
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When on a comment you want to reply to, press Control+Option+Right arrow key until you hear "Reply, edit text," and then type your reply.
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To insert your reply, press Command+Return.
Resolve comments
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Open the Comments pane and read the comments as instructed in Read comments.
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When on a comment you want to resolve, press the Tab key until you hear "More thread actions button," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar.
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To resolve the comment, press the Down arrow key until you hear "Resolve thread," and press Control+Option+Spacebar.
Read comments
You can use VoiceOver to listen to others' comments and to check who's commented on your presentation and when.
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In the Normal view, press F6 until you hear the current tab on the ribbon.
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Press Control+Option+Left or Right arrow key until you hear "Review tab," and press Control+Option+Spacebar.
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On the Review tab, press the Tab key until you hear: "Show comments menu button."
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To open the Comments pane, press the Up or Down arrow key until you hear "Comments pane," and press Control+Option+Spacebar. If you hear "Check mark, Comments pane," the Comments pane is already open. In that case, press Esc and proceed to the next step.
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On a slide, press F6 until you hear: "Comments, selected tab."
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In the Comments pane, press the Tab key until you hear: "Entering comment thread." The focus is now on the first comment of the thread. To read the comment, press the Tab key. VoiceOver also announces the time when the comment was added and who wrote it.
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To move to the next comment thread, press Option+Control+Shift+Up arrow key. You hear: "Out of comment thread." Then press the Down arrow key until you hear the next thread.
See also
Use a screen reader to add and format text in PowerPoint
Use a screen reader to save your presentation in PowerPoint
Use keyboard shortcuts to create PowerPoint presentations
Use keyboard shortcuts to deliver PowerPoint presentations
Basic tasks to create a presentation in PowerPoint with a screen reader
Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365
Use PowerPoint with VoiceOver, the built-in iOS screen reader, to add and read speaker notes and comments in your presentation.
Notes:
-
New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.
-
This topic assumes that you are using the built-in iOS screen reader, VoiceOver. To learn more about using VoiceOver, visit Apple accessibility.
In this topic
Read speaker notes
When you open a presentation in PowerPoint, it opens in the Normal view where VoiceOver can read the speaker notes.
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To navigate to a slide that has speaker notes, swipe right until you hear the slide number and title, followed by "Has notes." Double-tap the screen to select the slide.
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To open the Notes pane, swipe left until you hear "Notes button," and double-tap the screen.
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The Notes pane opens. To read the notes, swipe left until you hear "Slide notes, text box," followed by the speaker notes for the slide.
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To close the Notes pane, swipe left until you hear "Close, button," and double-tap the screen.
Add speaker notes
You can use speaker notes as private reminders of what to say when presenting your slides to the audience.
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On the slide where you want to add speaker notes, swipe right until you hear: "Notes, button." Then double-tap the screen. The Notes pane opens.
Note: If you hear "Notes" instead of "Notes button," the Notes pane is already open.
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To go to the notes text field, swipe right until you hear: "Slide notes, text box, text field."
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Double-tap the screen, and then use the on-screen keyboard to type your notes.
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To close the keyboard, swipe right until you hear "Hide keyboard," and then double-tap the screen.
Read comments
When you open a presentation in PowerPoint, it opens in the Normal view where VoiceOver can read the comments.
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To navigate to a slide that has comments, swipe right until you hear the slide number and title, followed by "Has comments." Double-tap the screen to select the slide.
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To open the comment pane, swipe left until you hear "Comments button," and double-tap the screen.
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The comment pane opens. To read the comment, swipe left or right until you hear "Threaded comment," followed by the name of the person who wrote the root comment and the contents of the comment.
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To read the replies to the root comment, swipe right until you hear "Reply," followed by the name of the person who wrote the reply and the contents of the reply.
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To navigate to the next comment, swipe left until you hear "Next comment," and double-tap the screen. To return to the previous comment, swipe left until you hear "Previous comment," and double-tap the screen.
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To close the comment pane, swipe left until you hear "Close the comment pane, button," and double-tap the screen.
Add comments
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On the slide where you want to add a comment, tap near the top of the screen with four fingers, swipe right until you hear "Show ribbon," and then double-tap the screen. You hear the name of the currently selected tab.
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Double-tap the screen, swipe right or left until you hear "Insert tab," and double-tap the screen.
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Swipe right until you hear "Insert a comment," and double-tap the screen. You hear: "At mention or comment." The focus is on the comment text field.
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Use the on-screen keyboard to type your comment.
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To insert your comment, swipe right until you hear "Post comment, button," and then double-tap the screen. The comment pane opens. You hear: "Close the comment pane."
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To close the comment pane, double-tap the screen.
Reply to a comment
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Open the comment pane and read the comments as instructed in Read comments.
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When on a comment you want to reply to, swipe right until you hear "At mention or reply," and then double-tap the screen.
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Use the on-screen keyboard to type your reply.
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To insert your reply, swipe left until you hear "Post reply," and double-tap the screen.
Resolve a comment
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Open the comment pane and read the comments as instructed in Read comments.
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When on a comment you want to resolve, swipe right until you hear "More thread actions," and then double-tap the screen.
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To resolve the comment, swipe right until you hear "Resolve thread," and double-tap the screen.
See also
Use a screen reader to work with slides in PowerPoint
Use a screen reader to show your presentation with PowerPoint
Use keyboard shortcuts to create PowerPoint presentations
Basic tasks to create a presentation in PowerPoint with a screen reader
Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365
Use PowerPoint for Android with TalkBack, the built-in Android screen reader, to add and read speaker notes or comments in a presentation. With speaker notes, you can add reminders or talking points for the presenter. With comments, you can give your colleagues feedback about their presentations.
Notes:
-
New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.
-
This topic assumes that you are using the built-in Android screen reader, TalkBack. To learn more about using TalkBack, go to Android accessibility.
In this topic
Add speaker notes
You can use speaker notes as private reminders of what to say when presenting your slides to the audience.
-
On the slide where you want to add speaker notes, swipe left or right until you hear: "Notes, switch." Then double-tap the screen. The Notes text field opens.
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To go to the text field, swipe right until you hear "Slide notes," and then double-tap the screen.
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Use the on-screen keyboard to type your notes.
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To close the Notes text field when you're done, swipe down-then-left.
Read speaker notes
When you're browsing the list of slides in the Reading view, TalkBack tells you if the slide has notes. You hear the number and title of the slide, followed by "Has notes." To read the notes, you need to open the slide in the Editing view. When you're delivering a slide show, you can use the Presenter View to read your notes.
Read speaker notes in Editing view
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In the Reading view, navigate to a slide that has speaker notes, and then double-tap the screen. You hear: "Edit button." Double-tap the screen. The slide opens in the Editing view.
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Swipe left or right until you hear "Notes, switch," and then double-tap the screen.
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The Notes text field opens. To read the notes, swipe right until you hear "Selected, Slide notes," followed by the speaker notes for the slide.
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To close the Notes text field, swipe left until you hear "Close, button," and then double-tap the screen.
Read speaker notes while delivering a slide show
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In the Reading or Editing view, swipe left or right until you hear "Present button," and then double-tap the screen. The landscape mode activates. Rotate your device to landscape mode.
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Swipe right until you hear the slide you want, and then double-tap the screen.
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To read the speaker notes, rotate your device to portrait mode, swipe right until you hear "Selected, Slide notes," followed by the speaker notes for the slide.
Add comments
You can add comments on slides if you're, for example, working with others on a presentation or you're reviewing someone else's work.
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On the slide content area where you want to add comments, double-tap the screen. The context sensitive menu opens. You hear: "Cut button."
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Swipe right until you hear "New comment, button," and then double-tap the screen. The @mention or comment text field opens, and the focus moves to the beginning of the text field.
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Use the on-screen keyboard to type your comments. When you're done, swipe down-then-left to close the on-screen keyboard.
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To insert your comment, swipe right until you hear "Post comment," and then double-tap the screen. The comment pane opens. You hear: "Close the comment pane." To close the comment pane, double-tap the screen.
Read comments
When you're browsing the list of slides in the Reading view, TalkBack tells you if the slide has comments. You hear the number and title of the slide, followed by "Has comments." To read the comments, you need to open the slide in the Editing view.
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In the Reading view, navigate to a slide that has comments, and then double-tap the screen. You hear: "Edit button." Double-tap the screen. The slide opens in the Editing view.
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Swipe left or right until you hear "Comments, switch," and then double-tap the screen.
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The comment pane opens. To read the comments, swipe right until you hear "Comment thread," and double-tap the screen.
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Swipe right until you hear "Threaded comment," followed by the name of the person who wrote the comment and the comment content.
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To read the replies to the comment, swipe right until you hear "Reply," followed by the name of the person who wrote the reply and the reply content.
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To navigate to the next comment thread, swipe right until TalkBack announces the number of the next slide, followed by "Threaded comment." To navigate to the previous comment thread, swipe left until you hear the number of the previous slide, followed by "Threaded comment."
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To close the comment pane, swipe left until you hear "Close, button," and then double-tap the screen.
Reply to a comment
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Navigate to and read the comments as instructed in Read comments.
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When on a comment you want to reply to, swipe right until you hear "At mention or reply," and double-tap the screen.
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Use the on-screen keyboard to type your reply. When done, swipe down-then-left to close the on-screen keyboard.
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To insert your reply, swipe right until you hear "Post reply," and double-tap the screen.
Resolve comments
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Navigate to and read the comments as instructed in Read comments.
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When on a comment you want to resolve, swipe right until you hear "More thread actions button," and double-tap the screen.
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To resolve the thread, swipe right until you hear "Resolve thread," and double-tap the screen.
See also
Use a screen reader to add and format text in PowerPoint
Use a screen reader to insert and edit pictures and tables in PowerPoint
Use keyboard shortcuts to create PowerPoint presentations
Basic tasks to create a presentation in PowerPoint with a screen reader
Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365
Use PowerPoint for the web with your keyboard and a screen reader to add and read speaker notes or comments in a presentation. We have tested it with Narrator in Microsoft Edge and JAWS and NVDA in Chrome, but it might work with other screen readers and web browsers as long as they follow common accessibility standards and techniques. You'll learn how to use speaker notes, to add reminders or talking points for the presenter, and use comments to give your colleagues feedback about their presentations.
Notes:
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If you use Narrator with the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update, you have to turn off scan mode in order to edit documents, spreadsheets, or presentations with Microsoft 365 for the web. For more information, refer to Turn off virtual or browse mode in screen readers in Windows 10 Fall Creators Update.
-
New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.
-
To learn more about screen readers, go to How screen readers work with Microsoft 365.
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When you use PowerPoint for the web, we recommend that you use Microsoft Edge as your web browser. Because PowerPoint for the web runs in your web browser, the keyboard shortcuts are different from those in the desktop program. For example, you’ll use Ctrl+F6 instead of F6 for jumping in and out of the commands. Also, common shortcuts like F1 (Help) and Ctrl+O (Open) apply to the web browser – not PowerPoint for the web.
In this topic
Add speaker notes
Add speaker notes in your presentation to tell a story to your audience beyond the slide content. You can use the speaker notes as private reminders of the slide content, too.
-
To display the Notes pane, in the Normal view, press Alt+Windows logo key, W, P, N.
-
On the slide where you want to add notes, press Ctrl+F6 until you hear: "Slide notes."
-
Type your notes.
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To exit the Notes pane, press Ctrl+F6.
Read speaker notes
You can hear whether a slide has notes and listen to the notes.
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In the Normal view, press Ctrl+F6 until you hear the number of a slide and its position in the list of slides.
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Press the Up or Down arrow key to browse through the list of slides. If there are speaker notes on the slide, you hear: “Has notes.”
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To display the Notes pane, press Alt+Windows logo key, W, P, N.
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Press Ctrl+F6 until you hear “Slide notes,” and then press the SR key+R to listen to the note.
Add comments
You can add comments on slides if you're, for example, reviewing someone else's work.
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On a slide, in the Normal view, when you hear a piece of text or an object you want to comment on, press Alt+Windows logo key, R, C, 1. The Comments pane opens. You hear: "@mention or comment, edit."
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Type your comment. You can press Enter to start a new line.
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To save the comment, press the Tab key until you hear "Post," and then press Enter.
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To exit the Comments pane, press Ctrl+F6.
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To close the Comments pane, press Alt+Windows logo key, R, P, P.
Read comments
You can hear whether a slide has comments and listen to the comments.
-
In the Normal view, press Ctrl+F6 until you hear the number of a slide and its position in the list of slides.
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Press the Up or Down arrow key to browse through the list of slides. If there are speaker notes on the slide, you hear: “Has comments.”
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To open the Comments pane, press Alt+Windows logo key, R, P, P. You hear: “Comments pane.”
If the Comments pane is already open, press Ctrl+F6 or Ctrl+Shift+F6 until you hear: "Comments pane."
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Press the Tab key until you hear: "Comment card." Use the Up and Down arrow keys to move between comment cards, and the Left and Right arrow keys to move through the comments within each card. Your screen reader reads the comments as you land on them.
See also
Use a screen reader to work with slides in PowerPoint
Use a screen reader to add and format text in PowerPoint
Use a screen reader to show your presentation with PowerPoint
Use keyboard shortcuts to create PowerPoint presentations
Use keyboard shortcuts to deliver PowerPoint presentations
Basic tasks to create a presentation in PowerPoint with a screen reader
Technical support for customers with disabilities
Microsoft wants to provide the best possible experience for all our customers. If you have a disability or questions related to accessibility, please contact the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk for technical assistance. The Disability Answer Desk support team is trained in using many popular assistive technologies and can offer assistance in English, Spanish, French, and American Sign Language. Please go to the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk site to find out the contact details for your region.
If you are a government, commercial, or enterprise user, please contact the enterprise Disability Answer Desk.
