How to Change Slide Size in PowerPoint Correctly

How to Change Slide Size in PowerPoint in Under 2 Minutes

Changing size of slide in PowerPoint is a critical step as it directly affects how your presentation looks on different screens. The wrong slide size can make text unclear and images stretched, which affects your audience's experience and makes your presentation unprofessional. PowerPoint provides built-in options like Widescreen (16:9), Standard (4:3), and custom dimensions to match your specific needs.

Today, I’ll share methods and their step-by-step instructions on how to change slide size in PowerPoint for quick and correct results, so your slides display properly in every scenario.

Let’s start our discussion with an overview of the same.

What Is Slide Size in PowerPoint?

Before jumping into the steps, I want to clarify what slide size means.

Slide size in PowerPoint refers to the aspect ratio and dimensions of your slides. It determines how wide and tall your slides appear.

By default, most modern versions of PowerPoint use:

Widescreen (16:9)

Older versions of PowerPoint used:

Standard (4:3)

However, depending on your use case, you might need a different size, such as A4, Letter, or a custom dimension.

When Should You Change Slide Size?

PowerPoint have its default slide size, but still in many scenarios, users want to change their slide size when presenting on:

A wide TV or modern projector (16:9 is best)

Older projectors or monitors (4:3 may be needed)

When preparing slides for printing as handouts

Convert PPT to Google Slides

A poster, infographic, or banner in PowerPoint

Convert slides to PDF with specific dimensions

If you are preparing slides and want to present at these places or devices, then you have to change the slide size to ensure everything is clearly visible, not only text, but visuals also.

Without any further ado! Next, I’ll explain how to do so.

How to Change Slide Size in PowerPoint?

According to the different slide sizes, here are the five methods which will help you to achieve your goal in minutes. So, let me explain the first one:

#Method 1. Standard Options

PowerPoint offers standard options. After selecting it, the setting will apply to your entire slide deck. To do so:

Open the PowerPoint presentation.

Click on the Design tab in the top menu.

On the right side, click Slide Size.

You will see two main options:

Standard (4:3)

Widescreen (16:9)

Select the option you need.

What happens next?

Now, PowerPoint will ask you:

Maximize: Keep content large automatically.

Ensure Fit: Resize content to fit the new slide size.

I personally recommend choosing the Ensure Fit option if you already have content on your slides, because it maintains the text and images automatically.

#Method 2. Set Custom Slide Size

Sometimes the default 4:3 or 16:9 is not correct for every scenario. In such cases, use the Custom Slide Size option:

Go to Design.

Click Slide Size.

Click Custom Slide Size.

A new window will open with several settings.

Here, you can customize:

Slides sized for:

On-screen Show (default)
Letter Paper
A4 Paper
Overhead
Banner
Custom

If you need specific dimensions, choose Custom and manually enter:

Width

Height

For example, set:

Width: 13.33 inches

Height: 7.5 inches

Then click OK and choose Ensure Fit or Maximize.

If you are also working on visual branding, you can later align this with your custom theme in PowerPoint so your layout matches your chosen slide size.

#Method 3. How to Change Slide Size in PowerPoint for Printing

Many users don’t realise that they can format PowerPoint slides specifically for printing (A4 or letter). If you want to print slides neatly on paper, follow these steps:

Go to Design.

Click Slide Size.

Select Custom Slide Size.

In “Slides sized for,” choose:

A4 Paper

Letter

Click OK and select Ensure Fit.

These guidelines ensure that the slide content aligns properly with the page when printed.

#Method 4. Change Slide Size for All Slides vs. Single Slide

PowerPoint applies slide size changes to all slides by default. In simple words, PowerPoint does not allow different slide sizes within the same presentation.

If you ever need, you have to:

Create two separate PowerPoint files, or

Export slides as images/PDF and combine them elsewhere.

If you originally designed your slides in Canva, you can first convert Canva presentations to PowerPoint, and then apply any of the slide size methods above inside PowerPoint.

#Method 5. How to Change Slide Size in PowerPoint via AI

Another approach I rely on, especially when building a new presentation, is changing slide size through an AI-powered solution. Instead of creating slides first and adjusting dimensions later, define the slide size upfront using MagicSlides AI PPT Maker and let it generate content that already fits those proportions.

When you create a deck with this, specify your preferred slide size at the beginning, such as 16:9, 4:3, or a custom dimension. The AI then structures and formats all generated slides based on that size, which minimises layout issues later.

So try this now for free, and follow the steps to create a new deck or change only slide size:

Open the solution and start a new presentation.

Enter your topic, with preferred slide size or upload content, and the AI generates slides formatted to that size.

Download the generated file and open it in PowerPoint.

You can also export data as an image, PDF, or Google Slides.

Best Slide Size Recommendations

Don’t get confused while changing the slide size; just select any of these according to your preferences:

Modern presentations: 16:9 (Widescreen)

Older projectors: 4:3 (Standard)

Printing handouts: A4 or Letter

Digital posters: Custom size based on requirements

If you want to go beyond just size and make your deck visually stronger, check out how to improve slide design for presentations.

Author’s Verdict

Changing slide size is one of the most important PowerPoint settings to look professional. Now, you clearly know how to change slide size in PowerPoint with the most appropriate methods step by step. Additionally, all the discussed techniques I personally used are tried and tested, so you can opt for any without any ifs and buts.