Printing Handouts in PowerPoint

Handouts are printed pages containing slides from a PowerPoint presentation. They allow an audience to follow the presentation and take notes.

Handouts are useful for:

• Classroom lessons and student notes.
• Business meetings.
• Training programs.
• Seminars and workshops.
• Revision and study materials.

Example: Instead of printing 12 slides on 12 separate pages, you can print 3 slides on each page.

Follow these steps:

1 Open your PowerPoint presentation.

2 Click the File menu.

3 Select Print.

4 Review the print preview.

5 Choose the required layout and printer settings.

In the Print screen, find the print layout dropdown. It may initially display Full Page Slides.

1. Click the layout dropdown.
2. Locate the Handouts section.
3. Choose the number of slides per page.
4. Check the preview before printing.

The available options can vary depending on your PowerPoint version and printing environment.

PowerPoint commonly provides handout layouts such as:

• 2 Slides: Larger slide previews.
• 3 Slides: Three slides with space for notes in common layouts.
• 4 Slides: More slides per sheet.
• 6 Slides: Compact handouts.
• 9 Slides: A space-saving review sheet.

Choose fewer slides per page when the slide text is small or the audience needs to read detailed content.

The three-slides-per-page layout commonly includes lines beside each slide for handwritten notes.

It is useful when:

• Students need to write important points.
• Participants must record meeting decisions.
• Trainees need space for questions and examples.

Tip: Test the print preview to confirm that the selected layout includes the expected note-taking area.

You do not always need to print the entire presentation.

1. Open File and select Print.
2. Find the slide range or print selection field.
3. Choose all slides, the current slide, or a custom range.
4. Enter the required slide numbers if prompted.
5. Check the preview and print.

Page orientation determines how the printed page is arranged.

• Landscape: The page is wider than it is tall.
• Portrait: The page is taller than it is wide.

Choose an orientation that works well with the handout layout. Always review the preview because PowerPoint may arrange different handout layouts differently.

Paper size determines the physical dimensions of the printed page.

• A4: Commonly used in India and many other countries.
• Letter: Commonly used in the United States.
• Other sizes: Availability depends on the printer.

Select a paper size supported by your printer and check that the paper loaded in the tray matches the selected setting.

PowerPoint print settings may include color output options.

• Color: Prints using available colors.
• Grayscale: Converts colors into shades of gray.
• Pure Black and White: Uses black and white output where supported.

Use color for visually rich materials and grayscale when you want to reduce color-ink usage. Check that charts and diagrams remain readable in grayscale.

Depending on the printer and its driver, you may be able to print on one or both sides of a sheet.

• One-sided: Prints on one side of the paper.
• Two-sided: Prints on both sides of the paper.

Two-sided printing can save paper. If your printer does not support automatic duplex printing, a manual process may be available, depending on the printer.

Always check the print preview before sending the job to the printer.

• Confirm the slide range.
• Check the number of slides per page.
• Look for cut-off content.
• Verify the page orientation and paper size.
• Check whether colors and text are readable.
• Confirm that the correct printer is selected.

If you do not want to print immediately, you can create a PDF version of your handouts using the available export or print options.

1. Open the presentation.
2. Go to File and select Print.
3. Choose a handout layout.
4. Select a PDF printer if your system provides one, or use PowerPoint's PDF export options.
5. Check the output and save the PDF file.

Note: Some PDF export workflows offer fewer handout-layout controls than the Print screen. Verify the output before sharing it.

Create a PowerPoint presentation with eight slides about Computer Fundamentals.

1. Open the Print screen.
2. Select Handouts with two slides per page.
3. Review the print preview.
4. Change the layout to six slides per page.
5. Compare the readability of both layouts.
6. Select A4 paper if supported by your printer.
7. Choose grayscale and review the preview.
8. Save a PDF version if your PowerPoint setup supports it.