Problem: When creating a presentation in PowerPoint, you use new fonts from the internet or your company's corporate font. However, during the actual presentation, the font suddenly looks completely different and may even ruin your slide layout.
Explanation: You are using a non-standard font that is only installed on your PC and not on the presentation computer. The computer in the conference room doesn't recognize the foreign font and simply tries to replace it with the next best one.
Solution: Embed the PowerPoint font: The new font must be embedded in your PowerPoint file before the presentation.
Custom font as a unique selling point
Every presentation should have a framework that is both content-related and visual . Content-wise, this means not only presenting individual facts convincingly and in a way that everyone can understand, but also conclusively bringing the overarching theme to a satisfying conclusion. Visually, it means both structure and consistency .
A professionally designed presentation slide can be visually captivating or even more persuasive. Besides the overall color scheme and a logically structured layout, the typography is particularly crucial.
A consistent typeface with appropriate font, size, alignment, and dimensions always conveys a professional and organized image. Many companies use their own corporate fonts as a unique selling point. These generate indirect branding effects and increase overall brand recognition .
Therefore, it makes sense to use this corporate design font in all relevant presentations. This is precisely where the initial problem resurfaces: the company's own font is often not recognized on other PCs and causes unpleasant problems during the next presentation. We'll show you how to avoid this in this article.
Embed PowerPoint font
Disclaimer: For licensing reasons, embedding some fonts is not possible or permitted. Typically, companies and individuals do not purchase fonts themselves, but rather the rights to use them . For further questions, please contact your font provider directly. Information regarding licensing can often be found in the FAQs on the corresponding website.
If you plan to use a new font in your next PowerPoint presentation that is installed on your PC but most likely not on the computer you will be presenting from, you will need to change the font in Embed it in your PowerPoint file . It doesn't matter whether the font comes from the internet, your corporate design, or other sources.
Tip: We explain how to get new, unusual fonts further down in the article.
PowerPoint: Embed font
- Start Microsoft PowerPoint (2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, Microsoft Office 365 etc.) and open the presentation in which you want to embed a specific font .
- Now click on the "File" tab.
- On the new page, open the “options” .
- In the new window, open the "Save" category, which is listed on the left side of the screen. Then, check the box next to "Embed fonts in the file" and confirm with "OK" .
Tip: Here you can freely choose whether you want to embed only the letters, numbers, and symbols actually used in your presentation, or simply all characters of the new font. While the latter increases the file size, it allows you to make as many changes or corrections to the text as you like at any time.
Quick fix: Use standard Windows fonts
Nowadays, there is not only a wide range of different operating systems, but also a multitude of different versions within the market leader, Windows. The situation is similar with PowerPoint . Microsoft has released over 25 different versions of its highly successful presentation software to date.
This makes it all the more likely that different households, offices, or business partners will use different operating systems or PowerPoint versions.
To ensure a specific font in your presentation looks consistent across different computers and potentially different PowerPoint versions, you need to embed new PowerPoint fonts, as described above. To save yourself the hassle, time, and problems caused by licensing restrictions or font availability, there's a quick fix:
Alternatively, you can opt for standardized fonts from the outset. These standard fonts are pre-installed on all Windows configurations worldwide and ready to use immediately. The likelihood of a font issue across different PCs is therefore virtually nonexistent. Our agency's design team recommends the following standard fonts:
- Arial
- Garamond
- Tahoma
- Verdana
- Calibri
Find and insert new fonts
If you're finding it difficult to choose the right font for your presentation, don't worry. We as designers are always on the lookout for new, affordable fonts for engaging PowerPoint presentations. There are several websites online that can be very helpful in this regard. We've compiled a small selection of reputable service providers and listed them here:
- Fontshop.com : mostly paid fonts, some free fonts.
- Myfonts.de : mostly paid fonts, some free fonts.
- fonts.google.com: English language, all fonts are free.
- dafont.com/de : many fonts are free and organized into categories.
Alternatively, there is also a large selection of free fonts available for download from Google . To use these fonts, you must follow the steps below.
Google Fonts – Download and use free fonts
Microsoft provides its users with a free library of new fonts. These so-called " Google Fonts " come in a variety of styles and with many application possibilities. Google Fonts can be implemented quickly and easily in all Office applications.
They give your presentations a fresh, modern, and above all, individual look. They are free and available anywhere there is an internet connection. Since all Google Fonts are stored in the cloud, they are also frequently called " cloud fonts ."
Note : All Google/Cloud Fonts are available from PowerPoint 2019 and Microsoft Office 365 onwards. Because all Google fonts are stored on the internet, they don't necessarily need to be embedded to be used on other computers. As long as the presentation computer has an internet connection, PowerPoint will automatically download and install the missing font in the background. Your presentation will therefore remain visually unchanged. All Office programs automatically recognize Cloud Fonts. As a user, you can identify Cloud Fonts by a small cloud icon.
You now have a selection of over 1000 font groups, which can be further refined and categorized using filter and search options. The five main font categories are Serif, Sans Serif, Display, Handwriting , and Monospace.
All Google Fonts can be found here .
The Sans Serif category (French for "without serifs") includes fonts without serifs and are generally best suited for PowerPoint presentations. They are easily legible, exude a modern feel thanks to their minimalist design, and don't distract from the content. Further information on choosing a font for your presentation can be found in this article .
For titles, we like to use large, eye-catching fonts from the Display category. They stand out particularly well in large font sizes and give your presentation a contemporary look.
The correct combination of multiple fonts is a science in itself in the design industry. Once you've chosen a font, the " Popular Pairings " feature helps you find other suitable fonts to combine with it.
Caution: Too many different fonts can quickly look cluttered or like they've been copied and pasted together. As a rule of thumb, you should primarily work with a maximum of two fonts – one for headings, one for body text.
Instructions: Download and install Google Fonts / Cloud Fonts
- Go to fonts.google.com.
- Browse for new fonts you like. You can even type in your own sample sentences to see the font in action.
- Select the new font and then click on “+”.
- In the drop-down menu, you can check your current shopping cart. If you are satisfied with your selection of Google Fonts, click "Download all" .
- You now need to extract the ZIP file on your PC. The relevant files are in TFF format . These are TrueType fonts , which can be distorted to any degree without loss of quality.
- In the Windows search bar, type "Fonts" and press Enter. You can now easily add the new fonts to the others by dragging and dropping them.
- The fonts you just downloaded and installed, or Google Fonts, are now available in all Office 365 applications on your computer. Enjoy!
Conclusion: Finding, installing, and embedding fonts
Embedding a PowerPoint font can be very useful : You're creating an important presentation that you absolutely want to make a lasting impression. For this, you might use your company's corporate font or other special fonts from the internet to create a beautiful, captivating presentation.
When you transfer your presentation from the USB stick to the conference computer at your client's office, you're in for a rude awakening: all the text looks different. The font is different, and some text blocks are greatly enlarged, covering diagrams or extending completely beyond the screen.
The problem is that the conference computer simply doesn't recognize the new, exciting font you used. Instead, PowerPoint tries to replace the text with a more or less similar font on its own. However, this often goes wrong.
To avoid this hassle, you need to embed the new font . You could learn how to do that in our blog.
Should you require personal assistance embedding PowerPoint fonts, finding the right font for your next presentation, or have any other PowerPoint-related questions, please do not hesitate to contact us. As a renowned PowerPoint agency, we are always available by email at becker@presentationload.de .
You might also be interested in these articles: