How to start a PowerPoint slideshow from the current slide

Presenting smoothly starts before you speak. Launching the slideshow from the right slide, and controlling it with the keyboard, keeps you looking confident.

Step by step

1. Select the slide you want to start from.
2. Press Shift+F5 (or F5 to start from slide 1).
3. Use the arrow keys, Space or N to move forward and P to go back.
4. Press Esc to end the slideshow.

Tips & troubleshooting

• Type a slide number and press Enter to jump straight to that slide during a show.
• Press B for a black screen or W for a white screen to pause and draw attention to yourself.

Keys to use while presenting

• Right Arrow, Down Arrow, N, Space or Enter: next slide or animation.
• Left Arrow, Up Arrow, P or Backspace: go back.
• A number then Enter: jump to that slide.
• Home and End: first and last slide.
• G: show a grid of all slides and pick one.
• B or W: black or white screen. Press again to return.
• Ctrl+L: turn the mouse pointer into a laser pointer.
• Ctrl+P: draw on the slide with a pen. E erases the ink.
• Plus and Minus: zoom in and out of the slide.
• Esc: end the show.

Other ways to start

• The Slide Show tab has From Beginning and From Current Slide buttons.
• The small screen icon at the right of the status bar starts from the current slide.
• Alt+F5 starts in Presenter View, with your notes on your screen.
• For a show that runs inside a window instead of taking over the screen, choose Slide Show, Set Up Slide Show, Browsed by an individual (window). This is handy when presenting through Teams on a single monitor, because you can share just that window.

Before the audience arrives

• Start the show once from slide 1 and click through every slide, so fonts, videos and animations are loaded and you know they work.
• Hide slides you don't want to show: right-click the thumbnail and choose Hide Slide. You can still jump to one by its number.
• Note the numbers of key slides so you can jump to them during questions.
• Plug in the charger and silence notifications.

On a Mac

In PowerPoint for Mac, Cmd+Return starts from the current slide and Cmd+Shift+Return starts from the beginning.