This article is for people who use a screen reader program such as Windows Narrator, JAWS, or NVDA with Windows tools or features and Microsoft 365 products. This article is part of the Accessibility help & learning content set where you can find more accessibility information on our apps. For general help, visit Microsoft Support.
Use PowerPoint with your keyboard and a screen reader to share and work together with a friend or colleague on a presentation online. Both regular and real-time co-authoring are possible. The latter option lets you see each other’s changes instantly when they are made. We have tested it with Narrator, JAWS, and NVDA, but it might work with other screen readers as long as they follow common accessibility standards and techniques. You'll also learn how to make copies of your presentations and share them via email in different formats, such as PDF.
Notes:
-
New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.
-
To learn more about screen readers, go to How screen readers work with Microsoft 365.
In this topic
Add an online save location
OneDrive is available immediately when you start using PowerPoint, but you may need to add a SharePoint in Microsoft 365 site manually before you can upload or save files to SharePoint in Microsoft 365.
-
To open the Save as menu, press Alt+F, A. You hear: “Selected, Save As tab item.” In JAWS, you hear: “Save As tab.”
-
Press A to add a save location. You hear: “Add a Place tab.”
-
Press Y, 2 to add a SharePoint in Microsoft 365 site.
-
When prompted, type the email address you use to access your SharePoint in Microsoft 365 site, and then press Enter.
-
When prompted, type your password, and then press Enter.
The site is now available in the Share and Save As dialog boxes in PowerPoint.
Upload and share a presentation with OneDrive or SharePoint Online
Sign in to your Microsoft account in PowerPoint and upload your presentations to OneDrive or SharePoint in Microsoft 365, so you can share them with others. For instructions on how to sign in, refer to the section “Sign in to your Microsoft account” in Basic tasks to create a presentation in PowerPoint with a screen reader.
By uploading your presentations to OneDrive or SharePoint in Microsoft 365, you can also control who edits your file, make sure everyone sees the latest changes straight away, and access your presentations on any of your devices. You can easily upload both older and newer presentations to OneDrive or SharePoint in Microsoft 365.
Upload a presentation to OneDrive or SharePoint
Upload your presentation to OneDrive or SharePoint in Microsoft 365 to share it using the online locations.
You can also use the Save As dialog box to upload your presentation to an online location. For instructions, refer to the section “Save your presentation file” in Use a screen reader to save your presentation in PowerPoint.
-
In PowerPoint, press Alt+Z, S to open the Share dialog box. You hear "Upload locations," followed by the first location, for example, "OneDrive, Microsoft."
-
Press the Down arrow key until you hear the name of the location you want, and then press Enter. You hear: "Naming your document, presentation name."
-
Type a name for your presentation.
-
Press the Tab key until you hear "OK, button," and then press Enter. You hear: "People to share with, editable combo box."
-
Do one of the following:
-
To share the presentation straight away, proceed from step 2 in Share a presentation with OneDrive or Sharepoint.
-
If you want to continue working on your presentation and share it later, press the SR key+Right arrow key until you hear "Close button," and then press Enter. The Share dialog box closes.
-
Share a link to your presentation
You can create a link straight from PowerPoint to your presentation in OneDrive or SharePoint in Microsoft 365 and send it via email or instant message instead of sending a copy of your presentation.
-
In PowerPoint, press Alt+Z, S to open the Share dialog box. You hear: "People to share with, editable combo box."
-
Press the Tab key until you hear "Copy link, button" and then press Enter. You hear: "Link created page."
-
Press the Tab key until you hear "Copy button," and then press Enter. The link has been copied.
To close the dialog box, press the SR key+Right arrow key until you hear "Close button," and then press Enter.
-
Paste the link, for example, to an email or an instant message.
See also
Use a screen reader to work with slides in PowerPoint
Use a screen reader to add and format text in PowerPoint
Use keyboard shortcuts to create PowerPoint presentations
Use keyboard shortcuts to deliver PowerPoint presentations
Basic tasks to create a presentation in PowerPoint with a screen reader
Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365
Use PowerPoint with your keyboard and VoiceOver, the built-in macOS screen reader, to share and work together with a friend or colleague on a presentation online. You can also make copies of your presentations and share them via email in different formats, such as PDF.
Notes:
-
New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.
-
This topic assumes that you are using the built-in macOS screen reader, VoiceOver. To learn more about using VoiceOver, go to VoiceOver Getting Started Guide.
In this topic
Share a link to your presentation
Instead of emailing a copy of your presentation, you can send a sharing link. This way others can see the latest changes in the presentation, without you having worry about email attachment size limits.
-
In PowerPoint, to share a presentation, press F6 until you hear the current tab on the ribbon.
-
Press the Tab key until you hear "Share menu button" and then press Control+Option+Spacebar. You hear: "People to share with, combo box."
-
Press the Down arrow key until you hear "Copy link button" and then press Spacebar. The link has been copied.
-
Paste the link, for example, to an email or an instant message.
See also
Use a screen reader to work with slides in PowerPoint
Use a screen reader to add and format text in PowerPoint
Use keyboard shortcuts to create PowerPoint presentations
Use keyboard shortcuts to deliver PowerPoint presentations
Basic tasks to create a presentation in PowerPoint with a screen reader
Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365
Use PowerPoint with VoiceOver, the iOS built-in screen reader, to share and work together with a friend or colleague on a presentation online. You can also make PDF copies of your presentations and share them via email.
Notes:
-
New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.
-
For touch capabilities in PowerPoint, go to PowerPoint for iPhone touch guide.
-
This topic assumes that you are using the built-in iOS screen reader, VoiceOver. To learn more about using VoiceOver, visit Apple accessibility.
In this topic
Save and share a presentation with OneDrive
Sign in to your Microsoft account in PowerPoint and save your presentations to OneDrive, so you can share them with others. For instructions on how to sign in, refer to the section “Sign in to your Microsoft account” in Basic tasks to create a presentation in PowerPoint with a screen reader.
By saving your presentations to OneDrive, you can also control who edits your file, make sure everyone sees the latest changes straight away, and access your presentations on any of your devices. You can easily save both older and newer presentations to OneDrive.
After a presentation is saved to OneDrive, you are ready to share it with others.
Save a presentation to OneDrive
-
In PowerPoint 2016 for iOS, to save the presentation, tap the top half of the screen with 4 fingers, then swipe right until you hear: "Save and close, button." Then double-tap the screen.
-
Swipe right until you hear "Save, ellipsis, button," and then double-tap the screen.
-
Type the file name.
-
To choose a save location, keep swiping right past "Places" until you hear the name of your OneDrive account, for example, "OneDrive - Personal," and then double-tap the screen.
-
If you want to save in a OneDrive folder, swipe right until your hear the name of the folder you are looking for, followed by "Button, folder, actions available," and then double-tap the screen.
-
To save, swipe left until you hear "Save, button," and then double-tap the screen.
The presentation is saved to OneDrive with the .pptx file extension.
Share a presentation on OneDrive
-
After you have saved the presentation in OneDrive, tap the top half of the screen with 4 fingers. You hear the name of the presentation.
-
Swipe right until you hear "Share menu, button," and then double-tap the screen. You hear: "Share, heading."
-
Swipe right until you hear "Invite people, button," and then double-tap the screen. The Invite People dialog opens.
-
Swipe right until you hear "Type names or email addresses, text field," and then double-tap the screen.
-
Type the email address of the person you want to invite. If you already have the person's contact info stored, you can just enter a name.
Note: A dialog may open asking you if PowerPoint can access your Contacts. Swipe right until you hear either "Don't allow, button" or "OK, button," and then double-tap the screen.
-
Swipe right until you hear: “Can edit, switch button, on.” By default, the people invited can edit your presentation. If you want them to be able to only view the presentation, double-tap the screen to disable the editing option. You hear: “Off.”
-
Swipe right until you hear: "Include message (optional)." If you want to do so, double-tap the screen, and type a message to the recipient.
-
Swipe left until you hear "Send, button," and then double-tap the screen.
The recipient receives an email with the shared presentation information. You are returned to the Share menu.
Save PowerPoint presentations as PDF files
Sometimes you want to share a presentation with people who don’t have PowerPoint, and at the same time, you want to keep the content and formatting intact. In order to do that, you can use PowerPoint to save your presentations as PDF directly to OneDrive.
-
When you have the presentation open in PowerPoint, tap the top half of the screen with 4 fingers. You hear the name of the presentation.
-
Swipe right until you hear "File, button," and then double-tap the screen. You hear: "File, heading."
-
Swipe right until you hear "Export, button," and then double-tap the screen.
-
Swipe right until you hear "PDF," and then double-tap the screen.
-
Type the file name.
-
To choose a OneDrive location, swipe right until you hear the name of your OneDrive account, for example, "OneDrive - Personal," and then double-tap the screen.
Note: If you have previously saved the presentation to OneDrive, PowerPoint remembers it and takes you directly to the OneDrive folder list.
-
If you want to save in a OneDrive folder, swipe right until your hear the name of the folder you are looking for, followed by "Button, folder, actions available," and then double-tap the screen.
-
To save the PDF copy, swipe left until you hear "Export, button," and then double-tap the screen.
See also
Use a screen reader to work with slides in PowerPoint
Use a screen reader to add and format text in PowerPoint
Use keyboard shortcuts to create PowerPoint presentations
Basic tasks to create a presentation in PowerPoint with a screen reader
Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365
Use PowerPoint for Android with TalkBack, the built-in Android screen reader, to share and work together with a friend or colleague on a presentation online. When you share your files from OneDrive, you can invite people to view or edit the presentation or send the file as an email attachment, right from your presentation.
Notes:
-
New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.
-
For touch capabilities in PowerPoint for Android, go to PowerPoint for Android touch guide.
-
This topic assumes that you are using the built-in Android screen reader, TalkBack. To learn more about using TalkBack, go to Android accessibility.
In this topic
Save a presentation to OneDrive
Sign in to your Microsoft account in PowerPoint and save your presentations to OneDrive, so you can share them with others. For instructions on how to sign in, refer to the section “Open PowerPoint for Android and sign in” in Basic tasks to create a presentation in PowerPoint with a screen reader. By saving your presentations to OneDrive, you can also control who edits your file, make sure everyone sees the latest changes straight away, and access your presentations on any of your devices. You can easily save both older and newer presentations to OneDrive.
After a presentation is saved to OneDrive, you are ready to share it with others.
-
In the Editing view, swipe left until you hear "Not checked, Back switch," and then double-tap the screen. The focus moves to the Thumbnail view.
-
Swipe left until you hear "File, button," and then double-tap the screen.
-
Swipe right until you hear "Save As button," and then double-tap the screen. You hear: "Save as, File menu closed, Enter a file name <current file name>."
-
If you want to change the file name, double-tap the screen to open the on-screen keyboard. Use the keyboard to first delete the old or default name and then type a new file name. When you are done, swipe down-then-left to close the keyboard.
-
Swipe left or right to browse the save location options until you find your OneDrive account, and then double-tap the screen.
-
Swipe down-then-up. You hear: "Save button." Double-tap the screen to save your presentation. After saving, the File menu closes and the focus returns to the presentation.
Tip: After you have saved the presentation to OneDrive, all changes will be saved there when you select Save, unless you save the presentation to a new location.
See also
Use a screen reader to add and format text in PowerPoint
Use a screen reader to work with slides in PowerPoint
Use keyboard shortcuts to create PowerPoint presentations
Basic tasks to create a presentation in PowerPoint with a screen reader
Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365
Use PowerPoint for the web with your keyboard and a screen reader to share and work together with a friend or colleague on a presentation online. When you share your files using OneDrive, you can invite people to view or edit the presentation, so you can work together at the same time. We have tested it with Narrator in Microsoft Edge and JAWS and NVDA in Chrome, but it might work with other screen readers and web browsers as long as they follow common accessibility standards and techniques.
Notes:
-
If you use Narrator with the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update, you have to turn off scan mode in order to edit documents, spreadsheets, or presentations with Microsoft 365 for the web. For more information, refer to Turn off virtual or browse mode in screen readers in Windows 10 Fall Creators Update.
-
New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.
-
To learn more about screen readers, go to How screen readers work with Microsoft 365.
-
When you use PowerPoint for the web, we recommend that you use Microsoft Edge as your web browser. Because PowerPoint for the web runs in your web browser, the keyboard shortcuts are different from those in the desktop program. For example, you’ll use Ctrl+F6 instead of F6 for jumping in and out of the commands. Also, common shortcuts like F1 (Help) and Ctrl+O (Open) apply to the web browser – not PowerPoint for the web.
In this topic
Download and share a presentation as a PDF
Download a PDF copy of your presentation to your computer so you can safely share it through multiple channels.
-
To open the PDF download dialog box, press Alt+Windows logo key+F, S, P. You hear: "Download as PDF."
-
Press Enter to download. You hear: "All done. Your file is ready to print."
-
Press the Tab key until you hear "Download button," and then press Enter. The file is saved on your computer, in the Downloads folder.
-
When you hear "Dismiss button," press Enter to close the dialog box.
-
Share the file, for example, in an email.
See also
Use a screen reader to work with slides in PowerPoint
Use a screen reader to add and format text in PowerPoint
Use a screen reader to insert and edit pictures and tables in PowerPoint
Use keyboard shortcuts to create PowerPoint presentations
Use keyboard shortcuts to deliver PowerPoint presentations
Basic tasks to create a presentation in PowerPoint with a screen reader
Use a screen reader to create a presentation from a template in PowerPoint
Technical support for customers with disabilities
Microsoft wants to provide the best possible experience for all our customers. If you have a disability or questions related to accessibility, please contact the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk for technical assistance. The Disability Answer Desk support team is trained in using many popular assistive technologies and can offer assistance in English, Spanish, French, and American Sign Language. Please go to the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk site to find out the contact details for your region.
If you are a government, commercial, or enterprise user, please contact the enterprise Disability Answer Desk.
