Creating a PowerPoint presentation is usually not the hard part. The frustrating bit comes when your slides look like they were thrown together five minutes before the meeting.
You have the content. You have the images. Maybe you even know roughly how you want the presentation to look. But getting everything to sit nicely on the slide can take a surprising amount of time. That is where PowerPoint Designer comes in.
PowerPoint Designer, also called Design Suggestions in some newer versions of PowerPoint, is a built-in feature that uses AI to suggest layouts and visual treatments based on the content already on your slide. You add text, pictures, lists, or other supported content, and PowerPoint gives you different design options to choose from.
In this blog, we will look at what PowerPoint Designer can do, how to get and enable it, how to use Design Ideas, and a few simple ways to get better suggestions from it.
What PowerPoint Designer Can Do for You
PowerPoint Designer is mainly there to save you from spending ages arranging individual elements on a slide. Once you add content, it looks at what is there and suggests ways to present it visually.
Here are some of the things it can do.
- Suggest Professional Layouts
Suppose you add a heading, a paragraph, and an image to a blank slide.
Instead of manually moving everything around, Designer can suggest different arrangements for the content. You might get an image-focused layout, a split-screen design, or another arrangement that gives the slide a cleaner structure.
You simply pick the one you like.
- Recommend Matching Colors and Fonts
A slide can have all the right information and still look messy if the colors and fonts do not work together.
Designer helps with this by suggesting visual combinations that fit the content and the presentation’s existing design. It can also use colors from images to create a more coordinated look across the slide.
This is particularly useful when you are not confident about choosing colors yourself.
- Turn Images Into Graphic-Rich Designs
Adding a photo to a slide does not mean dropping it in the middle and calling it a day.
Designer can take an image and suggest different ways of displaying it. It may place the photo prominently, combine it with your text, or use it as part of a more visual composition.
This can make a basic photo slide look much more intentional without requiring you to manually build the layout.
- Convert Lists and Steps Into Visuals
Long bullet lists are one of the easiest ways to make a presentation feel dull.
When PowerPoint recognises certain types of lists, processes, or timelines, Designer can suggest visual treatments, including SmartArt-style graphics.
So instead of showing five steps as five lines of text, you may get a visual sequence that makes the information easier to scan.
- Update Suggestions as Your Slide Changes
Designer does not only work when you first create a slide.
As you add or change supported content, it can generate suggestions based on what is currently on the slide. This means you can make your edits first and then look at the available designs instead of trying to plan every visual detail beforehand.
- Reduce Manual Design Work
This is probably the biggest reason to use Designer.
Without it, you might spend several minutes adjusting image sizes, moving text boxes, changing colors, and trying different arrangements.
Designer does much of that initial design work for you.
You still have control over the final slide. You are simply starting from a design that already has some thought behind it.
How to Get PowerPoint Designer?
PowerPoint Designer is available as part of Microsoft PowerPoint, but access depends on the version you are using.
For desktop PowerPoint, Microsoft currently lists Design Suggestions as a paid Microsoft 365 subscriber feature. The feature is also available in PowerPoint for the web, where Microsoft says it is available to everyone.
If you are using an older desktop version of PowerPoint and cannot find Designer, checking your Microsoft 365 subscription and updating Office is a good place to start.
How to Enable PowerPoint Designer
If Designer is not automatically appearing when you add content, you can check its settings.
- Open PowerPoint and go to File > Options.
- Select General from the sidebar.
- Look for the PowerPoint Designer or Design Suggestions section.
- Make sure Automatically show me design ideas is enabled.
- Click OK.
Once it is enabled, PowerPoint can start offering suggestions as you add supported content to your slides.
How to Use PowerPoint Designer?
Using the powerful Design Ideas tool is simple. Just follow these steps:
- Select the Slide You Want to Improve
You can use Designer on a new blank slide or an existing slide that already contains content. - Add Your Content
Add your title, text, images, or other elements before looking through the suggestions. - Open Design Ideas
Go to the Design tab and select Design Ideas.
- Look Through The Suggestions
A panel will appear on the right side of PowerPoint.
t with different design options. - Choose a Design
Click on a suggestion to apply it to your slide.
- Make Your Own Changes
You can still edit the text, change images, adjust fonts, or move elements after applying the design.
Pro Tip: If you modify or add significant content to your slide, click the Refresh icon in Design Ideas to get new recommendations optimized for the revised information!
Let the AI graphic designer in PowerPoint do the heavy lifting for design upgrades in seconds. But occasionally, the tool needs a nudge.
How to Get Better Design Suggestions in PowerPoint Designer?
Designer works best when you give it content that is reasonably clear.
A few small changes can make a noticeable difference.
- Keep Your Content Clean
Do not throw a huge block of text onto the slide and expect Designer to magically fix everything.
Break your information into shorter sections and use clear headings where possible.
- Use Good-Quality Images
If your slide depends on a photo, start with a decent image. A blurry or poorly cropped picture will limit how good the final design can look.
- Avoid Clutter
Try not to put five different elements on a single slide just because there is empty space.
Give your content some room.
- Write Descriptive Titles
A clear title gives PowerPoint more context about what the slide is about. This can help it understand the type of content it is working with.
- Keep Images Under Control
If a slide already contains too many pictures, the available suggestions can become less useful. In most cases, sticking to one or two strong images gives you more room to work with.
- Refresh After Major Changes
Made a big change to your slide?
Refresh the suggestions.
This is especially useful if you have added new text, replaced an image, or changed the structure of the slide. You want Designer to work with the version you actually intend to present, not the content that was there ten minutes ago.
Why Is PowerPoint Designer Missing?
Sometimes you open PowerPoint and simply cannot find Design Ideas anywhere.
Before assuming something is wrong with the feature itself, try these fixes.
- Update PowerPoint
Designer relies on features available in supported and updated versions of PowerPoint.
Go to:
File → Account → Update Options → Update Now
Install any available updates and then reopen PowerPoint.
- Check Designer Settings
Go to the Design tab and look for the Designer dropdown.
If you see an option called Designer template previews, make sure it is enabled.
- Restart PowerPoint
Fully close PowerPoint and open it again.
If that does not work, restart your computer. It sounds basic, but it can fix temporary issues with PowerPoint features.
- Check Your Internet Connection
PowerPoint Designer relies on cloud-based processing, so you need a stable internet connection for it to work properly.
If your connection is unstable, Designer may not load suggestions or may stop responding.
Present Like a Pro with SlidesAI
PowerPoint Designer is useful, but there is one thing it does not solve.
It mainly helps you design the slides you already have.
You still need to figure out what the presentation should say, organise the information, create the slides, and then use Designer to improve their appearance.
That can still take quite a bit of time.
This is where a tool like SlidesAI can fit into the workflow.
What Does SlidesAI Do?
SlidesAI takes your text or outline and turns it into a complete, editable presentation. Instead of starting with an empty PowerPoint file and building the deck slide by slide, you give it the details you already have and let it create the presentation structure and visual layout for you.
That means the workflow starts earlier.
PowerPoint Designer is useful when you already have a slide and want better design options.
SlidesAI helps when you want to get from text to a complete presentation in the first place.
Create Presentations Easily in Google Slides and PowerPoint
- No design skills required
- 3 presentations/month free
- Don't need to learn a new software
Frequently Asked Questions Related to PowerPoint Design Ideas Tool
How to get design ideas on PowerPoint?
Go to the “Design” tab and click the “Design Ideas” button. PowerPoint will suggest creative layouts, colors, fonts, and graphics to elevate your selected slide.
How to turn on design ideas in PowerPoint?
Design Ideas is on by default. But if disabled, go to Design > Designer > check “Designer template previews” to re-enable it.
How do you apply design ideas to all slides?
You can’t automatically apply Design Ideas to multiple slides at once. But after improving one slide, save it as a template to efficiently format other slides.
Which version of PowerPoint has design ideas?
PowerPoint for Microsoft 365 subscribers has Design Ideas. One-time purchase versions like PowerPoint 2019 do not include it.
Does PowerPoint still have design ideas?
Yes, PowerPoint still has Design Ideas as part of its suite of AI-powered tools. It provides real-time graphic design suggestions to improve your slides.
Why is PowerPoint Design Ideas not showing suggestions?
Design Ideas may not generate suggestions if your slide has too little content, has too many manual design elements, or is created using a custom theme. Ensure you add some text or an image and remove unnecessary shapes or icons.
Why does PowerPoint need the internet for Design Ideas?
The tool uses cloud-based AI to analyze your slide content and generate fresh layouts. Without the internet, it cannot access Microsoft’s design engine.
