Editing presentations can be tedious, especially when you need to make the same text change across multiple slides. Fortunately, PowerPoint provides a handy “Find and Replace” tool to streamline the process. In this guide, we’ll walk through the step-by-step instructions for using Find and Replace in PowerPoint.
Accessing Find and Replace
The Find and Replace feature is easily accessible in PowerPoint:
On Windows:
- Click the “Home” tab and find the “Replace” button in the Editing group
- Or use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + H
On Mac:
- Click the “Edit” menu and select “Find” > “Replace”
- Or use the keyboard shortcut ⌘ + Option + F
This will open up the Find and Replace sidebar or dialog box.
Step 1: Enter the Text to Find
In the “Find what” field, type or paste the text you want to locate. This can be a single word, multiple words, a phrase, or anything else contained in the presentation text.
Enter text to find
Useful Options
- Select “Match case” to find only text with the same capitalization you entered
- Select “Find whole words only” to avoid partial word matches
Step 2: Enter the Replacement Text
In the “Replace with” field below, enter the new text you want to replace the original text with.
Enter replacement text
You can replace the found text with anything – corrected spellings, updated figures, new terminology, etc.
Step 3: Preview and Replace
Click “Find Next” to jump to the first instance of the text in your presentation. Check that it has correctly found the text you want to replace.
If accurate, click “Replace” to change this instance. Click “Find Next” again to skip to the next instance, and repeat as needed.
Preview replace
Step 4: Replace All (Optional)
If you want to replace every instance of the found text with the new text, click “Replace All” instead.
Caution: First check a few examples by clicking “Find Next” and “Replace”. If the find text or formatting is inaccurate, “Replace All” can introduce many unintended changes.
Replace all text
After replacing all, PowerPoint will display an information box summarizing the number of replacements made.
Tips for Effective Use
Here are some tips for getting the most out of Find and Replace in PowerPoint:
Match Case and Whole Words
Use the option checkboxes to match case and find only whole word matches. This improves accuracy by avoiding partial word replacements.
Limit Search Scope
You can restrict the find/replace scope to only certain slides, rather than the entire presentation. Click the “More >>” button to access the search scope options.
Find Special Formatting
Not just text! You can also find and replace specific formatting like font family, size, color, and more. Click “More >>” then “Format” to access these options.
Use Wildcards
For advanced text replacement, you can use wildcards in the Find field. For example, find “Q? 2022” to locate “Q1 2022”, “Q2 2022” etc.
Check Replace All Changes
Visually scan a few sample slides after using “Replace All” to confirm no unintended changes were introduced, especially for very common find text.
Conclusion
The Find and Replace tool makes it easy to implement text changes across an entire PowerPoint presentation. By following the step-by-step guide above, you can quickly locate and replace text without having to edit each slide individually.
Use Find and Replace to correct typos, update figures or names, standardize terminology, and automate many other time-consuming text changes in PowerPoint. Combine with the search scope, formatting, and wildcards options to handle more complex find-and-replace jobs across presentations.
