Speaker notes let you write reminders that only you see during your presentation

Speaker notes are text you add to each slide that appears on your screen during a presentation but not on the projector or screen your audience watches. They work like a teleprompter — you can write talking points, statistics you want to remember, timing cues, or reminders about what to say next. The notes stay hidden unless you deliberately show them or print them out.

In PowerPoint, the notes section sits below the slide preview by default. You type directly into that space, and the text syncs automatically with that slide. If you're using Google Slides or another platform, the process is similar but the location and menu options differ slightly.

Key Takeaways

  • Speaker notes appear only on your screen during a presentation, not on the audience's display, and you access them through the Notes pane below the slide.
  • You can type notes directly into the Notes section in PowerPoint, or switch to Notes Page view for more space to write longer reminders.
  • Notes print separately from slides if you choose the Notes Pages print layout, so you can have a paper copy during your talk.
  • In Google Slides, notes live in a collapsible panel below the slide, and you toggle them on or off using the View menu.

Adding notes in PowerPoint on Windows or Mac

Open your presentation and click on the slide you want to add notes to. At the bottom of the screen, you'll see a section labeled "Notes" with a text box. Click into that box and type your reminders, talking points, or any text you want to reference during the presentation. PowerPoint saves the notes automatically as you type.

If the Notes pane is too small to work comfortably, switch to Notes Page view for more space. Go to the View tab at the top, then click "Notes Page." This view shows your slide at the top and a large text area below where you can write longer notes. When you're done, switch back to Normal view the same way.

You can also access notes through the View tab by clicking "Notes" directly, which opens a dedicated notes editing mode. This is useful if you're writing detailed speaker notes and want to focus on the text without seeing the slide thumbnail.

Adding notes in Google Slides

Open your presentation and click on the slide you want to add notes to. At the bottom of the screen, click "Speaker notes" (or look for a small arrow or panel icon if the notes section is collapsed). A text box appears where you can type your notes for that slide.

If you don't see the speaker notes panel, go to the View menu at the top and select "Show speaker notes." The panel will appear at the bottom of your screen. Type your notes directly into the text box, and Google Slides saves them automatically.

Viewing your notes during a presentation

When you start a slideshow in PowerPoint, your speaker notes appear on your screen but not on the projector. If you're using Presenter View (the recommended setup), your screen shows the current slide, your notes, a preview of the next slide, and a timer. Your audience sees only the slide itself.

To use Presenter View in PowerPoint, start the slideshow and your notes should appear automatically on your computer screen. If they don't, press Alt+F5 (Windows) or Command+Option+F5 (Mac) to toggle Presenter View on. In Google Slides, your notes appear on your screen during a presentation if you're using the presenter view option — click the three-dot menu during the slideshow and select "Presenter view."

If you're presenting on a single screen with no projector, you can still see your notes by pressing the spacebar or arrow keys to move between slides while keeping the notes visible on your monitor.

Printing your notes

In PowerPoint, go to File, then Print. Under "Settings," find the dropdown that says "Full Page Slides" and change it to "Notes Pages." This prints each slide with its notes below it on the same page. You can then bring the printed notes with you to the presentation as a backup reference.

In Google Slides, go to File, then Print. The print preview shows your slides. To print notes, you'll need to print the presentation as a PDF first (File > Download > PDF Document), then open the PDF and print from there — Google Slides doesn't have a built-in notes printing option like PowerPoint does.

Organizing and editing notes across multiple slides

If you have many slides and want to review or edit all your notes at once, PowerPoint's Outline view is useful. Go to View and click "Outline," which shows all your slide text and notes in a single scrollable list. You can edit notes here and see them all in one place without switching between slides.

In Google Slides, you have to edit notes one slide at a time — there's no outline view that shows all notes together. If you need to work with all your notes at once, consider copying them into a separate document, editing them there, and pasting them back into each slide's notes section.

Tips for writing effective speaker notes

Keep notes brief and scannable. Use bullet points rather than full paragraphs so you can glance at them quickly without losing your place. Write the key phrase or statistic you need to remember, not the entire sentence you'll say — this forces you to speak naturally rather than reading word-for-word.

Include timing cues if you're working within a strict time limit. For example, write "Spend 2 minutes on this slide" or "Move to Q&A at 45-minute mark." This helps you stay on schedule without constantly checking a clock. You can also use notes to flag slides where you want to pause for questions or where you plan to show a video or demo.

If you're sharing your presentation file with others, remember that your notes are part of the file. Anyone who opens it can see your notes unless you remove them first. If you want to keep notes private, save a separate version without notes before sharing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can my audience see my speaker notes during the presentation?

No. Speaker notes appear only on your screen, not on the projector or audience display. Your audience sees only the slide itself. If you're using Presenter View, your notes, timer, and next-slide preview stay on your computer monitor while the audience sees just the current slide on the main screen.

What if I'm presenting on a laptop with no external monitor?

You can still see your notes, but your audience will see your entire screen including the notes. To avoid this, use a second monitor or tablet if possible. Alternatively, print your notes and refer to them on paper during the presentation, or practice enough that you don't need to read them.

Can I add notes to slides in PowerPoint Online?

Yes. Open your presentation in PowerPoint Online, click the slide you want, and look for the Notes section at the bottom. Click into the text box and type your notes. The process is the same as the desktop version, though the interface is slightly different.

How do I delete notes from a slide?

Click into the Notes section for that slide and select all the text (Ctrl+A on Windows, Command+A on Mac), then press Delete. The notes disappear but the slide remains unchanged. You can also click and drag to select only part of the notes if you want to keep some and remove others.

Can I copy notes from one slide to another?

Yes. Click into the Notes section of the slide with the notes you want to copy, select all the text (Ctrl+A or Command+A), copy it (Ctrl+C or Command+C), then navigate to the slide where you want to paste and paste the text (Ctrl+V or Command+V). You can then edit the pasted notes as needed for the new slide.