PowerPoint Shortcuts
Every slide show shortcut in PowerPoint for Windows, presenter keys first. Search the list, print it or download the one-page PDF. It is free, with no signup, and it runs in your browser. Checked against Microsoft’s own list on October 31, 2026.
The 8 keys to learn first
Start and end the show↑ Top
| Keys | What it does |
|---|---|
| F5 | Start the show from the first slide. |
| Shift+F5 | Start the show from the current slide. |
| Alt+F5 | Start the show in Presenter View. |
| Esc | End the show. In Presenter View it closes Presenter View. |
Move between slides↑ Top
| Keys | What it does |
|---|---|
| N or Enter or Page Down or Right Arrow or Down Arrow or Space | Go to the next animation or slide. |
| P or Page Up or Left Arrow or Up Arrow or Backspace | Go to the previous animation or slide. |
| Number+Enter | Type a slide number, then press Enter, to jump to that slide. |
| Home | Go to the first slide. |
| End | Go to the last slide. |
| H | Go to the next slide if it is hidden. Not available in Presenter View. |
| Ctrl+S | Open the All Slides dialog. |
| Tab or Shift+Tab | Tab moves to the next hotspot on the slide, Shift+Tab to the previous hyperlink. Enter opens the selected link. |
Pen, laser and ink↑ Top
| Keys | What it does |
|---|---|
| Ctrl+L | Switch the pointer to the laser pointer. |
| Ctrl+P | Switch the pointer to the pen. |
| Ctrl+A | Switch the pointer back to the arrow. |
| Ctrl+E | Switch the pen to the eraser. |
| E | Erase all the annotations on the screen. |
| Ctrl+M | Show or hide the ink markup. |
Blank screen, pointer and menus↑ Top
| Keys | What it does |
|---|---|
| B or . | Show a blank black slide. Press it again to return to the show. |
| W or , | Show a blank white slide. Press it again to return to the show. |
| Ctrl+H | Hide the arrow pointer and the navigation buttons. |
| Ctrl+T | Show the taskbar. |
| Shift+F10 | Open the context menu. The Windows Menu key does the same. |
| F1 | Open the list of shortcuts inside the show. |
Presenter View↑ Top
| Keys | What it does |
|---|---|
| F6 | Move between the regions of Presenter View. |
| Tab | Move between the tools inside a region. |
| Ctrl+Down Arrow or Ctrl+Up Arrow | Scroll the Notes pane down or up one line. |
| Ctrl+Page Down or Ctrl+Page Up | Scroll the Notes pane down or up one screen. |
| Alt+A or Alt+Z | Read the next or the previous line of the notes (for a screen reader). |
| Alt+W | Read the elapsed time (for a screen reader). |
| Alt+Q | Read the next step (for a screen reader). |
| Esc | Close Presenter View. |
Audio and video in the show↑ Top
| Keys | What it does |
|---|---|
| Alt+P or Ctrl+Space | Play or pause the media. |
| Alt+Q | Stop the media. |
| Alt+Up Arrow or Alt+Down Arrow | Raise or lower the volume. |
| Alt+U | Mute the sound. |
| Alt+Shift+Page Down or Alt+Shift+Page Up | Skip forward or back 3 seconds. |
| Alt+Shift+Right Arrow or Alt+Shift+Left Arrow | Skip forward or back a quarter of a second, then pause. |
| Alt+End or Alt+Home | Go to the next or the previous bookmark. |
| Alt+J | Show or hide the audio and subtitles menu. |
| Alt+X | Change the camera source for a cameo (Microsoft 365 only). |
Rehearse timings↑ Top
| Keys | What it does |
|---|---|
| T | Set new timings while you rehearse. |
| O | Use the original timings. |
| M | Advance by mouse click. |
| R | Re-record the narration and the timing. |
No shortcut matches. Try a shorter word, such as “pen” or “black”.
Source: Microsoft Support, Use keyboard shortcuts to deliver PowerPoint presentations, Windows list, read on October 31, 2026.
How to use the PowerPoint shortcuts sheet
- Search or scroll. Type what you want to do, such as “pen”, “black screen” or “notes”, and the list narrows as you type. The group buttons above the list jump straight to a section.
- Learn the first eight. F5, Shift+F5, B, Ctrl+L, Ctrl+P, E, Ctrl+H and Esc cover most talks. The rest of the list is there for the day you need it.
- Print it or save the PDF. The Print button prints only the sheet. The PDF is the same list on one page, ready to keep next to your keyboard.
- Check inside the show. Press F1 while a slide show runs and PowerPoint opens its own list of shortcuts, a quick way to confirm a key on your version.
The keys act on the PowerPoint slide show window, so that window must have focus when you press them. Click the slide once if a key seems to do nothing.
Which key for which moment?
The same keys, sorted by what is happening in the room. Every key comes from Microsoft’s list, read on October 31, 2026.
| Moment | Press | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| You want every eye on you | B | The screen goes black. Press B again to return to the same slide. |
| You are pointing at a number | Ctrl+L | The pointer becomes a laser pointer. Ctrl+A brings the arrow back. |
| You are underlining a word | Ctrl+P | The pointer becomes a pen. Ctrl+E switches it to the eraser. |
| You are done with the ink | E | All the annotations on the screen are erased. |
| Someone asks about slide 12 | Number+Enter | Type 12, then Enter, to jump to that slide. |
| The pointer is in the way | Ctrl+H | The arrow pointer and the navigation buttons are hidden. |
| You are rehearsing a middle slide | Shift+F5 | The show starts from the current slide, not from slide 1. |
Tips for using slide show shortcuts
- Use B to take back the room. A black screen removes the slide from the audience’s attention while you answer a question or tell a story. Press B again and you are on the same slide.
- Keep the laser for pointing and the pen for marking. Switch with Ctrl+L and Ctrl+P, and press E to clear the ink before you move on, so old marks never sit on the next slide.
- Jump by number during questions. Typing the slide number and pressing Enter is quicker than paging back through the deck in front of people.
- Rehearse from the slide you are editing. Shift+F5 starts from the current slide, so you can run one section ten times without paging from the top.
- Practise in your real setup. Run the show once the way you will present, on the same screens and in the same meeting app, and press every key you plan to use.
Who it is for
Teachers, trainers and speakers
Keep the keys you use rarely, such as the pen and the black screen, on one sheet beside the keyboard. Pair it with the presentation timer so the clock and the slides are both under your hands.
People presenting in meetings
When you share a deck in a call you cannot fumble for menus. The sheet shows the keys that work with one hand, and the Zoom shortcuts sheet covers the meeting side.
Privacy
The sheet runs in your browser. The search filters the list on your device, and what you type is never sent or saved. The site counts visits and tool use in aggregate, such as “search used”, and never your words. The PDF is a plain file with no tracking in it.
Learn more
Draw on PowerPoint while presenting
The pen, laser and eraser keys in context, and what to do when the audience can’t see them.
PowerPoint Presenter View
Read your notes and see the next slide while the audience sees only the show.
Speaker notes in PowerPoint
Add, view and print notes, with examples sized slide by slide.
PowerPoint shortcut questions
Are these PowerPoint shortcuts free?
What is the shortcut to start a PowerPoint slide show?
How do I use the pen or laser pointer in PowerPoint?
How do I turn the screen black during a presentation?
Is there a PowerPoint shortcuts PDF I can print?
Do these shortcuts work on a Mac?
Do the pen and laser work when I share PowerPoint in Teams or Zoom?
Draw over every app, not just PowerPoint
PowerPoint’s pen and laser (Ctrl+P and Ctrl+L) work only inside the slide show, and they are gone the moment you switch to a browser or a demo. SHARA’s Pen, Laser and Arrow are free and draw over any Windows app, and the cursor halo and click flash keep your pointer easy to follow. The Whiteboard and Live Zoom are included free for your first 14 days, then it’s a one-time upgrade.
Free forever: cursor halo, click animation, Pen, Laser, Arrow, Text, Eraser, Screenshot and the Ctrl+Space Wheel. Every Pro tool is free for your first 14 days, with no card and no account. After that, Pro is a one-time purchase ($19.99 in the US).
Mashyo makes SHARA. The PowerPoint shortcut list was checked on October 31, 2026 in Microsoft’s support article. By Mashyo, founder of SHARA. Last updated: October 31, 2026.