Do you want to insert content from a PDF file into your PowerPoint presentation, but don't know how? No problem, in this article we'll show you 5 easy ways to insert content from a PDF into PowerPoint.

PDF files are read-only . This means that once created, they are difficult to edit. Read on to learn how you can still insert the content into your PowerPoint presentation and edit it further.

What is a PDF?

PDF stands for "Portable Document Format" and was developed in 1993 by Adobe Systems. A PDF file can contain an image and/or text. To open a PDF document, you need a suitable program, such as Adobe Acrobat Reader. This software is not free.

However, there are also free alternatives, such as "PDFCreator". This installs itself as a printer driver , meaning that any program with access to printer options will create a PDF file for you instead of a printout when you click on it.

The freeware "Bullzip PDF Printer" also creates PDF files via the print dialog. You can find other free alternative programs here .

A defining characteristic of a PDF file is that the original layout is preserved. This means that after saving, further editing is not easily possible, and therefore the PDF looks the same on every computer system. For this reason, many government agencies and companies rely on PDF files.

Inserting PDF into PowerPoint: Your options

The following options are available for inserting a PDF file into Microsoft PowerPoint:

• Insert PDF as image
• Insert PDF as object
• Linking PDFs in PowerPoint
• Using the Snipping Tool to insert content
• Convert PDF online

Not all methods of inserting your PDF into your PowerPoint presentation produce the same result: Depending on the method chosen, you will either only see a single page of your PDF document or you will have access to the entire file.

All the options are explained in more detail below.

Option 1: Insert the PDF as an image into the PowerPoint presentation.

The simplest and fastest method to insert a PDF file into your PowerPoint presentation is via "drag and drop".

1. Open your presentation and the folder containing the desired PDF file in two adjacent windows.
2. Select the PDF file and drag it onto the open slide of your PowerPoint presentation . The first page of the PDF file will then appear as an image in your presentation.
3. Do you want to edit the image? No problem, simply click on the image and select " Image Format" from the tab that appears.

Tip: If you only want to insert a specific section of an image directly into your presentation, you can select it using the screenshot function and manually insert it as an image. To use this option, proceed as follows:

1. Open the PDF file.
2. Make sure the open file is the last open window before proceeding to the next step. Do not minimize the PDF window.
3. Make sure that everything you want to include as an image is visible in the PDF window. You may need to adjust the zoom function accordingly.
4. Now, in PowerPoint, select the slide on which you want the PDF content to appear.
5. Click on the "Insert" tab and then on "Screenshot" in the "Pictures" button.

1. Your PDF file is now displayed as the first thumbnail in the list of available windows.
2. Select "Screenshot" below the thumbnails to view parts of the PDF.
3. The screen now appears frosted, and the pointer looks like a crosshair.
4. Draw a frame around the desired part of the image . When you stop dragging the frame, the selected area will appear as an image in your PowerPoint slide.
5. If you want to edit the image, proceed to step 3 under "Drag and Drop" .

Option 2: Insert the PDF as an object into the PowerPoint presentation.

You have the option to embed your PDF file as an object in your PowerPoint presentation . This allows you to quickly access a multi-page PDF file, even though only one object is visible on the PowerPoint slide. This works in just a few steps:

Warning: This method will reduce the quality of the PDF file! However, if you double-click the image containing the PDF file in normal view, you will see the entire PDF.

Note: This option is not available to Mac users.

Select the PowerPoint slide where you want to insert the PDF file.

1. Click on the "Insert" tab. Then, in the "Text" section, select the "Object" option.

2. A window will open. Here, in the "Insert object" field, select the "Create from file" option .

3. Use the "Browse" command to search for your PDF file . Then confirm with "OK".

Option 3: Link the PDF in the PowerPoint presentation

Using an embedded link, you can easily access the entire PDF file during the presentation. We'll show you how:

1. Enter the text into your presentation that you want to click later to open the PDF file.
2. Next, in the "Insert" tab and the "Link" button, select the "Insert link " option.

3. In the window, enter the link to your PDF file and confirm with "OK".

4. Now, if you click on the selected text, the PDF document will open in another reading program ( e.g., Adobe Reader).

Option 4: Cut out the contents of the PDF file using the Snipping Tool and paste them into the PowerPoint presentation.

If you are a Windows user , the "Snipping Tool" is pre-installed on your computer. With this tool, you can easily create screenshots. You can use this tool to copy, crop, or save sections of your PDF file. Here's how it works:

1. Open the PDF file you want to take a screenshot of.
2. Locate the Snipping Tool on your computer and then, once the program has opened, select "New " in the top left corner.
3. The screen background appears matte. Now , use your mouse to drag out the area you want to cut out .
4. Save the image crop as a PNG file by clicking the save icon in the top right corner of the Snipping Tool. Save the file in a location where you can easily find it again.
5. Next, insert the image under the "Insert" tab and the "Pictures" button, selecting the "Pictures" option.

If you are a Mac user , you can use the screenshot function just as easily, which you can access with the keyboard shortcut Shift, Command, and 4. The image area is automatically saved as a PNG file and can then be easily inserted into the presentation.

Option 5: Convert PDF online

This method allows you to convert your PDF document directly into a PPTX document . You will need (online) software for this. From this software, you can build your presentation around your PDF document.

We will be using the (paid) online converter "Smallpdf" below. Only use this if you do not intend to use confidential data, as you will need to upload your file there.

1. Go to the "Smallpdf" page.
2. Select the tile “PDF to PPT”.
3. Next, click "Select file" and choose your PDF file. Confirm with "Open".
4. It may take a moment for your file to be converted. Afterwards, click "Download file" to save the converted PDF document.
5. In the window that opens, select "Save file" and confirm with "OK". The file is now located in your computer's Downloads folder.
6. When you open the converted file, you'll have a PowerPoint presentation containing all the data from your PDF document. You can now create the rest of your presentation from here .

Final tip: Display the PDF file with a mouse click.

Do you want your inserted PowerPoint PDF to not appear directly on the slide ? Then set the option to open it with a mouse click . This works as follows:

1. Insert your PDF file as an object as described above under Option 2.
2. Next, select "Action" from the "Insert" tab and the "Left" button.

3. In the dialog box, configure the action settings . On the "Mouse Click" tab, enable the option to open your PDF file with a mouse click.

Conclusion: Inserting a PDF into PowerPoint? No problem!

As the presenter of a PowerPoint presentation, your goal is to deliver high-quality information on your business topic . Often, PDF files are used, which – once saved – are write-protected and therefore not easily modified.

In our article, we showed you five easy and quick ways to insert your PDF into PowerPoint . Why not try one of them in your next presentation?

Do you have questions about inserting PDFs into PowerPoint? Feel free to contact us by email at becker@presentationload.de. We're happy to help!

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