Whether you want to print handouts, notes pages, or slides, you’ve come to the right place.

(If you're looking for handout design information, such as how to set up slide layouts and orientation or how to change your headers, footers, or background, see Create or change a presentation’s handout.)

Handouts with notes

Figure: The "3 Slides" layout for handouts includes lines for taking notes. 

Select a printer

  1. On the File tab, click Print.

  2. Under Printer, click the down arrow and select a printer from the list.

    Pick a printer
    • If you don’t see any network printers listed:   You’ll need to add one, as follows:

      Windows 10:

      Select Start The Windows 10 Start icon  > Settings Settings button on Windows 10 Start menu > Devices > Printers & scanners

      Windows 7 or 8:

      Open Control Panel. Select Hardware and Sound > Add a printer > Add a network, wireless or bluetooth printer > Next

    • If you don't have a network or wireless printer to connect to:    You’ll want to make sure your printer is plugged in to your computer. See your printer’s documentation for details.

Select what and how to print

Under Settings, between four and six rectangles with down arrows appear, depending on the kind of printer you selected in the procedure above. These rectangles give you printing options. 

  1. Choose which slides you want to print:  Under Settings, click the first rectangle's down arrow and choose an option:

    Print Settings

    If you choose Custom Range, then enter the specific slides or range of slides in the Slides box. For example, 1,3,5-12.

    If you have any hidden slides in the presentation, the Print Hidden Slides option is active, and you may select it.

  2. Choose a print layout:  Under Settings, click the second rectangle's down arrow. The thumbnail images you see show a preview of how the pages will look when printed.

    Pick a print layout

    To print slide notes, either for a speaker or as handouts for your audience, select Notes Pages under Print Layout. This option prints one slide per page with all your notes below.

  3. Choose how to organize your printed sheets:  Under Settings, select the down arrow next to Collated or Uncollated and then choose your preference.  

  4. Choose a color scheme for your printout:  Under Settings, click the last rectangle's down arrow, and then select an option.

    Pick a color scheme for your printout

    Tips for printing in color, grayscale, or pure black and white:

    Color Option

    If you choose the Color option, but don't have a color printer

    Grayscale

    If you don’t have a color printer or don’t require a color printout, choosing Grayscale prints all objects on the page in shades of gray. In grayscale, objects such as charts and tables appear crisper and cleaner than if you choose the Color option on a non-color printer.

    Pure Black and White

    This option prints slides in black and white. There are no shades of gray. As a result, some objects in the design theme of the slide, such as embossing and drop shadows, won't print. Text prints as black even if you chose gray as the original color of the text.

  5. Under Settings, if your printer is able, two other options will appear—one-sided versus two-sided printing, and stapled versus unstapled sets of printouts. 

    Some printers can print on either one side of a sheet of paper or both sides.

    The options for stapled and unstapled vary by printer. 

  6. In the Copies box at the top, enter the number of copies you want, and then click Print.

    Click Print

Printed handouts: Add or remove slide numbering

This is a subscriber-only feature This feature is available only to Microsoft 365 Subscribers for Windows desktop clients.

By default, in PowerPoint for Microsoft 365 (beginning with version 1810), printed handouts include a slide number below each slide image.

You can turn this option off for this presentation by going to File > Print. Select the drop down arrow next to the handouts layout you've selected and clear the option named Print slide numbers on handouts.

The Print dialog in PowerPoint showing the option to print slide numbers on handouts.

Print Preview

See Printing and print preview for information about preview features.  

Troubleshooting

If you've having trouble being able to print, see My Print button and some printer settings aren’t available

See also

For more information about printing in PowerPoint, check out the following:

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