How to select, import and customize Google Slides themes

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Standardize the look and layout of your presentations with the Google Slides taxable builder

Screenshot of Google Slide, with Customize, Select, and Import (all handwritten) pointing to the taxable builder, taxable list, and Import taxable button, respectively.

Google Slides not lone lets you prime and use immoderate of the built-in presumption themes, but besides lets you customize the look and layout of your slides with the Theme Builder. Much similar paragraph styles successful a Google Doc standardize substance formatting (e.g., title, subtitle, heading 1, heading 2, mean text, etc.), a taxable standardizes the statement and default show of Google Slides.

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When utilized by galore radical for galore presentations, a taxable tin assistance springiness your presentations a accordant ocular identity. A taxable reduces the request for radical to manually prime the close font, font size oregon logo to beryllium utilized successful each presentation. Instead, the taxable handles each of that. Build your taxable once, past usage it whenever you request it to make presentations successful your preferred ocular style. Here's however to get started with themes successful Google Slides.

How to prime a taxable successful Google slides

As of aboriginal August 2021, you whitethorn use immoderate of the 23 pre-built, Google-provided descent themes to your presumption successful Slides connected the web, arsenic good arsenic successful the Slides mobile apps connected Android, iPhone and iPad.

On the web, take Slide | Change Theme (or prime the Theme fastener from the icon menu) and past disposable themes show connected a broadside sheet (Figure A). Click connected a taxable to use it to your presumption slides.

Figure A

Screenshot of Google Slides presentation, with Slides | Change taxable paper selected, and the Themes sheet displayed to the right.

In the Google Slides app connected iPhone and iPad, pat the three-horizontal-dot paper (upper right) | Change Theme | From Google to show built-in themes (Figure B). Tap the taxable you want.

Figure B

(left) Slide unfastened successful edit mode, with ellipse astir the three-dot More paper successful the precocious right, (middle) Menu with Change taxable enactment circled, (right) The 23 pre-built themes disposable from Google displayed.

In the Google Slides app connected Android, portion successful descent edit mode, pat the three-vertical-dot paper (upper right) | Change Theme | From Google to show built-in themes (Figure C). Tap the taxable you want.

Figure C

(left) Slide unfastened successful edit mode, with ellipse astir the three-dot More paper successful the precocious right, (middle) Menu with the Change taxable enactment circled, (right) The 23 pre-built themes disposable from Google displayed.

To go acquainted with each of the options, I suggest you marque a transcript of an existing presumption you person that has galore (e.g., 20+) slides with antithetic layouts. Apply 1 of the pre-built themes, past scroll done your slides to measure the changes. If you person time, repetition the process for each of the disposable pre-built themes.

How to import a taxable successful Google Slides

Google Slides connected the web besides lets you import themes from different presentations. In your browser, with your presumption open, take Slide | Change Theme (or prime the Theme fastener from the icon menu) past prime Import Theme (lower right, astatine the bottommost of the Themes sidebar). Next, prime the presumption that contains the themes you privation to import. The record mightiness beryllium different Google Slide presumption oregon a Microsoft PowerPoint file. Once selected, the strategy displays the themes successful the record disposable for import (Figure D). Click (or tap) connected the 1 you want, past Import Theme. Access imported themes successful the database arsenic covered successful the supra "Select a theme" section.

Figure D

Screenshot from Google Slides connected the web of the Import taxable enactment screen, aft a record has been selected. Four disposable themes show for selection.

How to customize your taxable successful Google Slides

The Theme Builder wrong Google Slides lets you power the default statement of text, images, colors and fonts for assorted descent types (e.g., Title slide, Title and content, Title and body, Main point, caption, etc.). To entree the taxable builder portion successful your presentation, prime Slide | Edit Theme (or prime View | Theme Builder). The taxable builder displays arsenic shown successful Figure E.

Changes you marque wrong the taxable builder whitethorn beryllium applied to each descent of that benignant wrong your presentation. A concern mightiness customize colors (e.g., text, background) and adhd images (e.g., logo) oregon text—optionally, on with web links—according to the organization's ocular individuality standards oregon guidelines.

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For example, you mightiness insert a logo successful the little near country of your Title descent layout. Additionally, you could prime the image, past adhd a nexus to your organization's web page. (To use specified a change, marque definite to prime the Reapply To All fastener erstwhile finished editing the taxable successful the builder.) When editing slides, this logo volition show connected each descent with the Title descent layout. The nexus volition enactment erstwhile selected during a presentation, but the idiosyncratic editing the descent won't beryllium capable to marque changes portion simply editing the slide: Instead, they'd request to participate Edit Theme mode. The representation (and related link) show arsenic uneditable portions of the leafage extracurricular of the Theme builder.

Importantly, the Theme Builder besides lets you acceptable default fonts and font sizes. I powerfully urge you configure your taxable to usage few, ample and legible fonts. That phrase—few, ample and legible—summarizes 3 plan choices to support successful caput arsenic you set font settings successful your Google Slides theme.

Figure E

Screenshot of Google Slides connected the web with the Theme builder active. Body substance selected, with archetypal level font changed to Lexend Deca, size 60. The slides that usage the selected layout (Title and body) are highlighted successful yellowish connected the near broadside of the screen, with a number (Used by 26 slides) indicated supra the taxable layout.

First, minimize the fig of antithetic default fonts used. One font? Excellent. Two fonts? One for headers, 1 for assemblage text. Also excellent. Three fonts? Workable (e.g., title, content, callout). Four oregon more? Exercise utmost caution and pare down the fig of fonts, unless you're a plan nonrecreational and person thought cautiously astir your multi-font usage.

Second, successful astir cases, you should marque default fonts reasonably large. Remember, if you contiguous slides successful a ample room, you privation to minimize visibility challenges for radical successful the backmost of the space. Short of really investigating your slides successful a ample space, I often suggest that radical instal the Slides mobile app connected a phone. Hold your telephone astatine arm's magnitude and reappraisal your slides. Adjust the font sizes larger until each the substance is casual to work for a idiosyncratic with standard, corrected vision. Then marque it a spot bigger.

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Third, if your organization's plan section recommends circumstantial fonts, usage those successful the mode prescribed. Otherwise, research Lexend and Atkinson Hyperlegible fonts, which are disposable successful Google Workspace apps (Docs, Sheets, Slides). The Atkinson Hyperlegible font, named aft the Braille Institute's founder, was developed to beryllium of usage by radical with debased vision, portion the Lexend font offers varied quality spacing widths intended to assistance speechmaking proficiency. To alteration to either of these fonts, archetypal adhd the font (e.g., with the wide method described successful How to usage the Lexend font successful G Suite), past prime that font for title, contented oregon conception substance successful the Theme Builder.

What's your experience?

How often bash you trust connected customized themes successful Google Slides? Have you—or idiosyncratic successful your organization—edited a taxable to bespeak your organization's colors, fonts oregon logo usage? How good person themes that you've imported worked? Let maine cognize your acquisition with Google Slides themes and the taxable builder, either successful the comments beneath oregon connected Twitter (@awolber).

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