PowerPoint add-ins are apps (or extensions) that you can install to complement the capabilities of Microsoft’s presentation maker. The best add-ins can simplify the process of building professional slide decks, help you add interactive features to the slides, and give you access to high-quality graphic assets.
But with a multitude of add-ins to choose from, it could be tough finding ones that are actually useful for slide creation and presentations. So we’ve done the legwork and put together a list of 6 add-ins that add unique functionality to PowerPoint and help you build better slide decks.
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1. Plus AI is the best PowerPoint add-in for creating professional, AI-generated presentations
Plus AI is a PowerPoint add-in that can create a presentation for you in minutes.
Plus AI offers several ways of creating slide decks. The easiest — and the best if you’re not sure where to start — is to enter a prompt describing your presentation’s topic. That said, if you have plenty of material on the presentation’s subject matter, you can upload a doc (or copy-paste), and Plus AI will use this information to create your slide content.
Note that Plus AI’s focus isn’t solely on the slide content. This slide maker delivers professional presentations you can use in a work or educational setting without worrying about awkward formatting, poor color choices, or boring graphics. You get to pick from a collection of elegant templates, then add corporate logos, custom fonts, and colors as needed.
Plus AI also helps you format and revise the slides after it makes them, and you can also use its editing features on existing PowerPoint presentations.
Plus AI costs $10-20 per month and let you create unlimited PowerPoint presentations with AI using prompts and text. All plans come with a 7-day free trial.
2. Mentimeter is the best add-in for interactive PowerPoint presentations
If you ever have to give an interactive presentation, you’ll find Mentimeter an invaluable little helper. This add-in integrates seamlessly into PowerPoint to create an array of question-and-answer format slides, such multiple choice, wordcloud, scales, and others. You can populate the content as needed based on the question you wish to ask the viewers and set the response parameters to your liking. The design of Mentimeter’s slide will automatically match your slide deck’s theme, but you’re free to customize it, too.
When it’s time to present, folks in the audience can access the survey or quiz by scanning the QR code on the slide and answer the question from the mobile device. Their answers will show up in real time on the screen. The only downside to Mentimeter — and it’s a small one — is that it only works in the desktop PowerPoint app, as the web version is not yet supported.
Mentimeter’s pricing comes in three tiers. The free version allows you to quiz up to 50 participants at a time, but you can have an unlimited number of respondents once per month. The Basic version costs $11.99/month, but comes without restrictions on the number of participants and enables you to export questionnaire results to Excel. Finally, the $24.99/month Pro plan has all the same features as the Basic version, but also allows corporate branding and collaboration between teamworkers.
3. Pexels gives you easy access to a catalog of graphic assets
Pexels is the best PowerPoint add-in for getting free image assets. The well-known stock photography provider gives you a quick and easy way to search for images right in PowerPoint — no need to navigate to Pexels.com. Once you’ve found an image you like, you can download it and insert it into PowerPoint. You can even let PowerPoint’s Designer function infuse the image into the slide’s background like we did above.
The one minor inconvenience of the Pexels add-in is that you need to download the photos before inserting them into the slide if you’re using the web-based PowerPoint app. That said, you can drag-and-drop the image directly into the slide if you’re working with the desktop version of PowerPoint.
4. Web Viewer lets you access the web right from a slide
Microsoft’s Web Viewer add-in may seem simplistic at a glance, but it affords you great functionality if you ever need to use a live website during your presentation. This is a useful feature if you’re showcasing a website as part of your presentation — for instance, if you’re pitching your e-commerce business to prospective investors.
Any secure website — one starting with “https” — should work, apart from search engines. Just insert the add-in into the target slide, then enter the website URL, hit Preview, and the site will appear. When you present, the slide with the Web Viewer add-in should show the website. You will be able to navigate the website in presenter mode — just the way you would through a browser.
The Web Viewer add-in is completely free to use in PowerPoint.
5. Emoji Keyboard equips your slides with emojis and other symbols
Emoji Keyboard is a minimalistic yet handy add-in that lets you jazz up your presentation with emojis for free. This app only has two functions. First, it lets you browse through a library of emojis. This selection is quite vast, with smileys and other icons suitable for any occasion. All you need to do is scroll through this catalog and pick out emojis that suit the context — or sentiment — of your slides. Secondly, you can select the size of the emoji before it shows up on the slide. Sizes range from XS (16 pixels) to XXL (1024 pixels). It’s a brilliantly simple way to add some emotion to your presentation!
6. Todo List Pro helps you track progress as you design the PowerPoint presentation
If you like to make checklists to track a project’s progress, Todo List Pro is the add-in for you. It’s a free, straightforward app that allows you to create custom checklists for your presentation. You can use these checklists to make sure that all the t’s are crossed and the i’s are dotted, and the slide deck is presentation-ready when you’re done with it. For example, you could include simple items surrounding best practices for slide creation, like formatting checks, or more complex items, like citing important sources or adding key bits of info into the presentation. Once you’ve built out the checklist, go ahead and tick off each item as you work on the slide deck.
How to install a PowerPoint add-in
The web-based and desktop PowerPoint apps have slightly different procedures for installing add-ins.
If you’re using the web application:
- Go to Home and click the Add-ins button on the ribbon.
- Find the add-in you need. You can look up an add-in in the search bar or scroll through the popular add-ins below.
- Click “Add” next to the add-in you want to install. Some add-ins will install right away, while others will need you to register or choose a pricing plant. Once installation is complete, all add-ins will show up under “My Add-ins.”
That’s it, you’re done!
Now, if you use the desktop PowerPoint version:
- Go to Insert > Add-ins > Get Add-ins.
- Look up add-ins and install ones you like by clicking “Add”.
- To access your add-ins, go to Insert > Add-ins > My add-ins.
- Your add-ins will show up; simply click on the one you wish to use.
How do I make my PowerPoint attractive?
If you’re not an expert presentation creator, making an attractive presentation from scratch might not be the easiest job. Instead of laboring over your next PowerPoint manually, you can use an AI presentation maker like Plus AI. Plus creates presentations automatically based on your prompts and choice of template, so you don’t have to worry about the consistency of colors, fonts, or other formatting elements.
How can I spice up my PowerPoint presentation?
Here are a few easy ways to spice up a PowerPoint presentation:
- Structure the presentation as a story: Presenting the information you want to deliver as a narrative will help you keep viewers’ attention.
- Sprinkle in a few interactive elements: Engage with the audience by asking them to participate in surveys or quizzes during the presentation.
- Use real-life examples: Inject a few real-life examples or anecdotes connected to the slide subject matter into the speech.
- Insert funny visual elements: Graphics like GIFs and memes help the viewers relate to the presentation and jazz up the presentation with unexpected moments of humor.
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