Use a screen reader to explore and navigate PowerPoint

This article is for people who use a screen reader program such as Windows Narrator, JAWS, or NVDA with Windows tools or features and  Microsoft 365 products. This article is part of the Accessibility help & learning content set where you can find more accessibility information on our apps. For general help, visit Microsoft Support.

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Use PowerPoint with your keyboard and a screen reader to explore and navigate the different views and move effectively between them. We have 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.

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.
To learn more about screen readers, go to How screen readers work with Microsoft 365.

Navigate the main view

To navigate in PowerPoint and to cycle through the main screen elements, press F6. The elements are, in order:

The active slide
The status bar
The ribbon tabs
The Notes pane (if it's open)
The Thumbnails pane

Navigate inside a screen element

To cycle within the current screen element, press the Tab key (forward) or Shift+Tab (backward). For example, press the Tab key to switch between the text fields of the active slide.
To select an item, press Enter.
To browse within menus or lists, press the arrow keys. For example, to move between the slide thumbnails in the Thumbnails pane, press the Down and Up arrow keys.
To exit a menu or mode, press Esc.

Tip: To quickly move the focus to the first floating shape, such as a text box or an image, press Ctrl+Alt+5. Then, to cycle through the floating shapes, press the Tab key. To return to the normal navigation, press Esc.

Navigate the Quick Access toolbar

The Quick Access toolbar at the upper-left corner of the screen contains, for example, the Save button.

To navigate to the Quick Access toolbar, press Alt+H. You hear: "Home tab."
Press the Up arrow key. The focus moves to the Quick Access toolbar.
To navigate the toolbar, press the Left and Right arrow keys.

Navigate to the App controls

The App controls at the upper-right corner of the screen include, for example, the Minimize and Close buttons.

To navigate to the App controls, press Alt+H. You hear: "Home tab." Then press the Up arrow key. The focus moves to the Quick Access toolbar.
Press the Tab key until you hear "Ribbon display options," and then press the SR key+Right arrow key until you hear the button you want.

Navigate the ribbon tabs

The ribbon tabs group options by different categories. The tabs in PowerPoint include, for example, the Home tab with options for formatting text, the Insert tab for inserting new slides or images, the Design tab for changing the appearance of the presentation, the Slide Show tab for setting up and starting your slide show, and the View tab for changing to a different view.

To navigate to the ribbon tabs, press F6 or Shift+F6 until you hear the currently selected ribbon tab, for example: "Ribbon tabs, Selected, Design tab."
To move between the ribbon tabs, press the Left or Right arrow key until you hear the tab you want. The tab is selected, and the ribbon is displayed below the tab.
You can also use the keyboard shortcuts to move to and select a ribbon tab. For more information, refer to Use keyboard shortcuts to create PowerPoint presentations.

Navigate the ribbon

The ribbon sits below the row of ribbon tabs (JAWS calls it the "lower ribbon"). When you select a tab, a tab-specific ribbon appears below the tab. Each ribbon includes options organized into groups. For example, if you select the Insert tab, you can pick different items, such as pictures or charts to insert into your slide from the ribbon.

To move to the ribbon from the selected ribbon tab, press the Tab key. You hear the first option on the ribbon.
To navigate the ribbon and move between the options on the ribbon, press the Tab key.
To select an option, press Enter or Spacebar.
To expand a collapsed menu, press Alt+Down arrow key.
Alternatively, you can use the keyboard shortcuts to work with the ribbon. For more information, refer to Use keyboard shortcuts to create PowerPoint presentations.

Switch between views

In addition to the main view, PowerPoint has the following commonly used views:

The File menu, which contains options, for example, for creating a new presentation, and opening or saving an existing presentation.
- To open the File menu, press Alt+F. You hear: "File, info."
- To navigate the File menu, press the Up or Down arrow key until you hear the menu item you want, and then press Enter to open the tab with further options.
- To navigate inside the further options tab, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear the option you want.
- To exit the File menu and return to the main view, press Esc.
The Options window, which contains PowerPoint settings, such as personalization, ease of access, proofreading, and language preferences.
- To open the Options window, press Alt+F, T. You hear: "PowerPoint options window." The focus is on the option categories pane.
- To navigate the option categories, press the Down arrow key until you hear the name of the category you want.
- To move the focus to the options of the selected category, press the Tab key.
- To navigate the options, press the Up and Down arrow keys until you hear the option you want and then press Enter to select it.
- To exit the Options window and return to the main view, press the Tab key until you hear "OK," and press Enter. To return to the main view without making changes, press Esc.

For instructions on how to work with the Slide Show view, go to Use a screen reader to show your presentation with PowerPoint or Use keyboard shortcuts to deliver PowerPoint presentations.

Special considerations for PowerPoint

To make the content easier to read and select, you can increase contrast or invert colors on your computer using the high contrast settings of Windows. To start using a high contrast theme quickly, press left Alt+left Shift+Print Screen, then press Enter to activate the high contrast theme.

Windows offers you several high contrast themes. To find the one that works best for you:

Press the Windows logo key, then type "high contrast" in the search box. The search results are updated as you type.
Press the Down arrow key until you hear "Change high contrast theme," and then press Enter. The High contrast settings window opens.
Press the Tab key until you hear "High contrast theme," followed by the currently selected theme.
Use the Down and Up arrow keys to browse the high contrast themes until you find one that works for you.
Press the SR key+Right arrow key until you hear "Apply button," and then press Enter to activate the selected theme.

Use Search

To find an option or perform an action quickly, use the Search text field. To learn more about the Search feature, go to Find what you need with Microsoft Search.

Note: Depending on the version of Microsoft 365 you are using, the Search text field at the top of the app window might be called Tell Me instead. Both offer a largely similar experience, but some options and search results can vary.

Select the item or place in your document, presentation, or spreadsheet where you want to perform an action.
To go to the Search text field, press Alt+Q.
Type the search words for the action that you want to perform. For example, if you want to add a bulleted list, type bullets.
Press the Down arrow key to browse through the search results.
Once you've found the result that you want, press Enter to select it and to perform the action.

In this topic

Navigate the main view
Navigate the ribbon tabs
Navigate the ribbon
Switch between views

Navigate the main view

To navigate in PowerPoint and to cycle through the main screen elements, press F6. The elements are, in order:

The active slide
The status bar
The Quick Access toolbar
The ribbon tabs
The Notes pane (if it's open)
The Thumbnails pane

Navigate inside a screen element

To navigate within the current screen element, use the following shortcuts:

To move inside a screen element, press the Tab key (forward) or Shift+Tab (backward).
To select an item, press Spacebar.
To browse within menus or lists, press the arrow keys, and then, to make a selection, press Spacebar. For example, use the Down and Up arrow keys to move between the slides in the Thumbnail pane.
To switch between the text fields of the active slide, press Caps lock+Right or Left arrow key.
To exit a menu or mode, press Esc.

Navigate the Quick Access toolbar

The Quick Access toolbar at the upper-left corner of the screen contains, for example, the Save button.

To navigate to the Quick Access toolbar, press F6 until you hear: "AutoSave, on, switch."
To navigate the toolbar, press Control+Option+Left or Right arrow key.
To select an item, press Spacebar.

Navigate the ribbon tabs

To navigate to the row of ribbon tabs, press F6 until you hear the currently selected tab, for example, "View, selected, tab."
To move between the ribbon tabs, press Control+Option+Left or Right arrow key.
To select a tab, press Spacebar.
You can also use the keyboard shortcuts to work with the ribbon tabs.

Navigate the ribbon

The ribbon sits below the row of ribbon tabs. When you select a tab, a tab-specific ribbon appears below the tab. Each ribbon includes options organized into groups.

To move from the selected ribbon tab to the ribbon, press Control+Option+Right arrow key until you hear the tab name, followed by "Tab commands." For example, if you've selected the Animations tab, you hear: "Animations, Tab commands."
To move between the options on the ribbon, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab.
To select an option on the ribbon, press Spacebar.
Alternatively, you can use the keyboard shortcuts to work with the ribbon.

Tip: To move to the Apple menu bar for further formatting and tools options at the top of the screen, press Control+Option+M. To move on the menu bar, press Control+Option+Left or Right arrow key. To select, press Spacebar.

Switch between views

In addition to the main view, PowerPoint has the following commonly used views:

The Preferences window, which contains PowerPoint settings, such as editing, proofreading, and security preferences.
- To open the Preferences window, press Command+Comma (,). You hear: "PowerPoint preferences."
- To navigate the option categories, press Control+Option+Left or Right arrow key. To select a category, press Spacebar.
- To navigate the options window, press Control+Option+Left or Right arrow key.
- To exit the Preferences window and return to the main view, press the Tab key until you hear "OK," and press Spacebar. To return to the main view without making changes, press Esc.
The Slide Show view, for sharing your presentation with an audience. For instructions on how to work with the Slide Show view, go to Use a screen reader to show your presentation with PowerPoint or Use keyboard shortcuts to deliver PowerPoint presentations.

In this topic

Navigate the main views and screen elements in PowerPoint
Navigate the ribbon tabs
Navigate the ribbon
Switch between views
Use the VoiceOver Rotor

Navigate the main views and screen elements in PowerPoint

To navigate in the PowerPoint editing and Home views, swipe left or right with one finger.
To cycle through screen elements, for example, the slide content area, swipe left or right with one finger.
To explore the screen content, drag a finger across the screen.
To select an item, double-tap the screen.
To browse within menus or lists, swipe left or right, and then, to make a selection, double-tap the screen.
To open the context-sensitive menu (when available), double-tap the screen with two fingers.

Elements in the Home view

When you open the PowerPoint app, you land on the Home view, listing your Recent files. In this view, you can search for and open an existing presentation. You can also access the options for creating a new presentation and changing the app settings. The main elements of the Home view are, in order:

Account menu button in the upper-left corner of the screen
Search field at the top of the screen
List of your most recent presentations organized in categories, such as Recent
Toolbar at the bottom of the screen

Elements in the editing view

In the editing view, you can add content to your slides, change their appearance, and add new slides to your presentation. The main elements of the editing view are, in order:

Toolbar at the top of the screen
Slide content area
Notes pane (if it's open)
Slide thumbnails
Context-sensitive toolbar at the bottom of the screen

Navigate the ribbon tabs

The context-specific ribbon tabs group options by different categories. The tabs in PowerPoint include, for example, the Home tab with options for formatting text, the Insert tab for inserting new slides or images, the Design tab for changing the appearance of the presentation, and the Slide Show tab for setting up and starting your slide show.

To go to the ribbon tabs, swipe left or right until you hear "Show ribbon, button," and then double-tap the screen. The currently selected ribbon tab opens. You hear the tab name, for example, "Home tab."
To expand the ribbon tabs menu and navigate to another ribbon tab, double-tap the screen. Then swipe left or right until you hear the tab you want, and double-tap the screen.

Depending on what is selected in the main content area, more tabs appear. For example, when the focus is on a table, the Table tab is displayed in the menu. Double-tapping the menu list items opens new editing options.

Navigate the ribbon

The ribbon sits below the row of ribbon tabs. When you select a tab, a tab-specific ribbon appears below the tab. Each ribbon includes options organized into groups.

To browse through the options on the ribbon and in the submenus, swipe left or right.
To select an item, double-tap the screen.

Switch between views

In addition to the main views, PowerPoint also has other commonly used and useful views. To work efficiently and optimize PowerPoint, you need to move from one view to another.

Switch from the editing view to the Home view

If you need, for example, to open another presentation or access the PowerPoint settings while editing a slide, you need to move from the editing view to the Home view.

If the ribbon is active, swipe left or right until you hear "Hide ribbon," and then double-tap the screen.
Swipe left until you hear "Done, button," and double-tap the screen.
Swipe left until you hear "Close file, button," and double-tap the screen.

Switch to and navigate the More options menu

The More options menu contains useful options such as Save a Copy, Print, and Properties.

In the editing view, swipe left or right until you hear "More options, button," and double-tap the screen. You hear the name of your presentation.
To browse through the options in the More options menu, swipe right or left until you hear the option you want, and then double-tap the screen.
To return to the editing view, swipe left until you hear "Done, button," and double-tap the screen.

Switch to and navigate the account menu

In the account menu, you can access your account info, app help, and PowerPoint settings.

In the Home view, swipe left until you hear your account address, followed by: "Navigation pane, button."
To browse through the options in the account menu, swipe left or right until you hear the option you want, and then double-tap the screen. To return to the Home view after selecting, for example, the Settings option, swipe left until you hear "Close, button," and double-tap the screen.
To close the account menu and return to the Home view, swipe right until you hear "Dismiss, button," and double-tap the screen.

Use the VoiceOver Rotor

You can also use the VoiceOver Rotor to navigate PowerPoint. For instructions, refer to About the VoiceOver rotor on iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.

In this topic

Navigate the main views and screen elements in PowerPoint
Navigate the ribbon tabs
Navigate the ribbon
Switch between views
Use Tell Me

Navigate the main views and screen elements in PowerPoint

You can navigate across all the main views and elements in PowerPoint with touch gestures:

To navigate in the PowerPoint reading, editing, and Recent views, swipe left or right with one finger.
To cycle through screen elements, for example, the slide content area, swipe left or right with one finger.
To explore the screen content, drag a finger across the screen.
To select an item, double-tap the screen.
To browse within menus or lists, swipe left or right, and then, to make a selection, double-tap the screen.
To open the context-sensitive menu (when available), double-tap the screen with two fingers.
To exit a menu, view, or dialog, swipe down-then-left.

Elements in the Recent view

When you open the PowerPoint app, you land on the Recent view. In this view, you can search for and open an existing presentation. You can also access the options for creating a new presentation and changing the app settings. The Recent view has the following elements:

Toolbar at the top of the screen
List of your most recent presentations organized in categories
Toolbar at the bottom of the screen

Elements in the reading view

When you select and double-tap a presentation in the Recent view, the reading view opens. In this view, you can start a slide show, share your presentation, add comments and copy slides. The reading view has the following elements:

Toolbar at the top of the screen
Slides in the presentation

Elements in the editing view

In the editing view, you can add content to your slides, change their appearance, and add new slides to your presentation. The editing view has the following elements:

Toolbar at the top of the screen
Slide content area
Notes pane (if it's open)
Thumbnails
Context-sensitive toolbar at the bottom of the screen

Navigate the ribbon tabs

To go to the ribbon tabs, swipe left or right until you hear "Not checked, More options, switch," and then double-tap the screen. The currently selected ribbon tab opens. You hear the tab name, for example, "Tab menu, Home selected."
To expand the ribbon tabs menu and navigate to another ribbon tab, double-tap the screen. Then swipe left or right until you hear the tab you want, and double-tap the screen.

Navigate the ribbon

The ribbon sits below the row of ribbon tabs. When you select a tab, a tab-specific ribbon appears below the tab. Each ribbon includes options organized into groups.

To browse through the options on the ribbon and in the submenus, swipe left or right.

Note: If an option has a submenu, you hear the option name followed by "Menu."
To select an item, double-tap the screen.

Switch between views

In addition to the main views, PowerPoint also has other commonly used and useful views. To work efficiently and optimize PowerPoint, you need to move from one view to another.

Switch from the editing or reading view to the Recent view

If you need, for example, to open another presentation or access the settings, you need to move from the editing or reading view to the Recent view.

Do one of the following:

In the reading view, swipe down-then-left.
In the editing view, swipe down-then-left. The focus moves to the reading view. Swipe down-then-left again.

You hear "Closing," followed by the name of the presentation. The focus moves the Recent view.

Switch from the reading view to the editing view

To edit a slide, you need to move to the editing view.

In the reading view, swipe left or right until you hear "Edit button," and double-tap the screen.

The editing view opens, and the focus is on the first slide in the thumbnails pane.

Switch to and navigate the PowerPoint menu

The PowerPoint menu contains useful options such as adding a new slide or notes, printing, and saving.

In the editing view, swipe left or right until you hear "Menu," and double-tap the screen.
To browse through the options in the menu, swipe left or right until you hear the option you want, and then double-tap the screen.

Note: You can also access some of the PowerPoint menu options from the reading view.

Switch to and navigate the Settings menu

In the Settings menu, you can access your account info and app help, and toggle the Autosave feature on or off.

In the reading or editing view, swipe left or right until you hear "Menu," and double-tap the screen.
To browse through the options in the menu, swipe left or right until you hear the option you want, and then double-tap the screen.
To return to the reading or editing view, swipe down-then-left.

Use Tell Me

To find a command or an option quickly, use the Tell Me search.

In the editing view, swipe left or right until you hear "Not checked, More options, switch," and then double-tap the screen.
Swipe right until you hear "Tell me button," and then double-tap the screen. You hear: “Tell me what you want to do, edit box.” Double-tap the screen.
Use the on-screen keyboard to type a search word, for example, bullets or table. The list of search results is updated as you type.
To browse the search results, swipe left or right until you hear the command or option you want.

Some commands and options may have submenus with more choices. TalkBack announces the search result, followed by "Menu." To open the menu, double-tap the screen.
To select the option, double-tap the screen.

In this topic

Navigate the main view
Navigate the ribbon tabs
Navigate the ribbon
Switch between views
Use Search

Navigate the main view

To navigate the PowerPoint for the web main view and to cycle through the screen elements, press Ctrl+F6. The elements are, in order:

Slide panel showing the contents of the current slide
Comments pane (if it's open)
Slide Notes pane (if it's open)
Status bar
The top toolbar
Ribbon
Thumbnail pane

Navigate inside a screen element

To navigate in the screen elements of the current landmark, use the following shortcuts:

To cycle through the screen elements, press the Tab key (forward) or Shift+Tab (backward). For example, press the Tab key to switch between the text fields of the active slide.
To select an item, press Enter.
To browse within menus or lists, press the arrow keys. For example, press the Down and Up arrow keys to move between the slide thumbnails in the Thumbnail pane.
To exit a menu or mode, press Esc.

Navigate the ribbon tabs

Notes: To use the keyboard shortcuts effectively in the ribbon navigation, do the following:

Switch off the Simplified Ribbon. Press Ctrl+F6 until you hear: "List of Microsoft services." Press the Tab key until you hear "On, Simplified ribbon," and then press Enter. You hear: "Switch ribbon, OK." Press Enter to confirm.
Switch off the Scan Mode. Press the SR key+Spacebar until you hear: "Scan off."

To move the focus to the currently selected ribbon tab, press Alt+Windows logo key.
To move between the ribbon tabs, press the Tab key.
To select a tab, press Enter.
You can also use the keyboard shortcuts to move to and select a ribbon tab.

Navigate the ribbon

The ribbon sits below the row of ribbon tabs (JAWS calls it the "lower ribbon"). When you select a tab, the tab-specific ribbon appears below the tab. Each ribbon includes options organized into groups. For example, if you select the Insert tab, you can pick different items, such as pictures or charts to insert into your slide from the ribbon.

When you press Enter to select a ribbon tab, the focus moves to the first option on the ribbon.
To move between the options on the ribbon, press the Tab key.
To select an option or expand a collapsed menu, press Enter.
You can also use the keyboard shortcuts to work with the ribbon.

Switch between views

In addition to the main view, PowerPoint has the File menu, which contains options, for example, for creating a new presentation, and opening or saving an existing presentation.

To open the File menu, press Alt+Windows logo key+F. You hear: "Close menu."
To navigate the File menu, press the Up or Down arrow key until you hear the menu item you want, and then press Enter to open the pane with further options.
To navigate inside the further options pane, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear the option you want.
To exit the File menu and return to the main view, press Esc.

For instructions on how to work with the Slide Show view, go to Use a screen reader to show your presentation with PowerPoint or Use keyboard shortcuts to deliver PowerPoint presentations.

Use Search

To find an option or perform an action quickly, use the Search text field. To learn more about the Search feature, go to Find what you need with Microsoft Search.

Select the item or place in your document, presentation, or spreadsheet where you want to perform an action.
To go to the Search text field, press Alt+Q.
Type the search words for the action that you want to perform. For example, if you want to add a bulleted list, type bullets.
Press the Down arrow key to browse through the search results.
Once you've found the result that you want, press Enter to select it and to perform the action.

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.

In this topic

Navigate the main view

Navigate inside a screen element

Navigate the Quick Access toolbar

Navigate to the App controls

Navigate the ribbon tabs

Navigate the ribbon

Switch between views

Special considerations for PowerPoint

Use Search

See also

In this topic

Navigate the main view

Navigate inside a screen element

Navigate the Quick Access toolbar

Navigate the ribbon tabs

Navigate the ribbon

Switch between views

See also

In this topic

Navigate the main views and screen elements in PowerPoint

Elements in the Home view

Elements in the editing view

Navigate the ribbon tabs

Navigate the ribbon

Switch between views

Switch from the editing view to the Home view

Switch to and navigate the More options menu

Switch to and navigate the account menu

Use the VoiceOver Rotor

See also

In this topic

Navigate the main views and screen elements in PowerPoint

Elements in the Recent view

Elements in the reading view

Elements in the editing view

Navigate the ribbon tabs

Navigate the ribbon

Switch between views

Switch from the editing or reading view to the Recent view

Switch from the reading view to the editing view

Switch to and navigate the PowerPoint menu

Switch to and navigate the Settings menu

Use Tell Me

See also

In this topic

Navigate the main view

Navigate inside a screen element

Navigate the ribbon tabs

Navigate the ribbon

Switch between views

Use Search

See also

Technical support for customers with disabilities

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