Create and format table in PowerPoint

One of the most powerful data representation techniques is the use of tables. Tables allow information to be separated making them easy to read. PowerPoint has features that let you add tables in slides and also format them to enhance their visual effects. What's more, these tables are also compatible with Microsoft Excel, so you can basically take a spreadsheet or a section of a spreadsheet and paste it into a slide as a table.



  • Go to Tables group under Insert ribbon
  • Click on the dropdown and select your table dimension from the matrix
  • If you require more than 10 columns or 8 rows click on "Insert Table" to open the Insert Table dialog where you can specify the column and row count.




PowerPoint table is a simple table that does not support the mathematical features of an Excel spreadsheet. If you want to carry out some calculations you can insert an Excel spreadsheet instead of a regular table by choosing the option Excel Spreadsheet.

The PowerPoint table formatting features have been grouped under two ribbons: Design and Format. The sections below discuss the features under each ribbon. To access these ribbons you must select the table first.





Design Feature

Fetures Sub Features Description
Table Style Options Header Row Adds a different shade to the first row to distinguish it
Total Row Adds a different shade to the last row to distinguish it
Banded Rows Shades alternate rows in the table with the same color
First Column Adds a different shade to the first column to distinguish it
Last Column Adds a different shade to the last row to distinguish it
Banded Columns Shades alternate columns in the table with the same color
Table Styles Shading Offers different shades to be added to selected table/ row/ column/ cell. You can pick from solid shade, texture, image or gradient shading
Border Offers different border options for the table. You can edit the border color, thickness and style
Effects Offers the ability to create table shadow or reflection. You can also create bevels for individual cells
Word Art Styles Text Fill Allows you to change the color of the text within the table
Text Outline Allows you to add an outline to the text within the table and change the outline color, weight and style
Text Effects Allows you to add special effects (like reflection, shadow etc.) to the text within the table
Quick Styles Contains a list of pre-defined Word Art styles that can be applied to the selected text within the table with a single click
Draw Borders Pen Style Defines the style of the table border when you draw it
Pen Weight Defines the thickness of the table border when you draw it
Pen Color Defines the color of the table border when you draw it
Draw Table Allows you to append new rows, columns, cells to existing table, split existing rows, columns or cells and draw brand new tables
Eraser Allows you to delete table borders and merge cells, rows or columns




Format features:

Feature Sub Features Description
Table Select Allows you to select the entire table or the row(s) or column(s) depending on your cursor position
View Gridlines Toggle the gridline display within the table
Rows & Columns Delete Allows you to delete selected row(s) or column(s) or the entire table
Insert Above Inserts a row above the row where the cursor is currently. If you haven't placed the cursor within the table, it adds a new row at the top of the table
Insert Below Inserts a row below the row where the cursor is currently. If you haven't placed the cursor within the table, it adds a new row at the bottom of the table
Insert Left Inserts a column to the left of the column where the cursor is currently. If you haven't placed the cursor within the table, it adds a new column to the left of the table
Insert Right Inserts a column to the right of the column where the cursor is currently. If you haven't placed the cursor within the table, it adds a new column to the right of the table
Merge Merge Allows you to merge cells, rows or columns. This is enabled only if you have selected more than one cell, row or column
Split Cells Allows you to specify the number of rows and columns into which the current section of cell(s) need to be split
Cell Size Height/ Width Define the height and width of the selected cell. You must realise that usually if you change these aspects for a single cell it would affect the entire row or column too
Distribute Rows Equalises the height of all the rows to fit the current table height
Distribute Columns Equalises the width of all the columns to fit the current table width
Alignment Horizontal Alignment Allows you to align the selected text to the left, right or center of the cell
Vertical Alignment Allows you to align the selected text to the top, bottom or middle of the cell
Text Direction Allows you to change the direction of the selected text within the cells
Cell Margins Allows you to define the margins within the cell
Table Size Height Allows you to adjust the table height - it retains the relative heights of the individual rows while changing the overall table height
Width Allows you to adjust the table width - it retains the relative widths of the individual columns while changing the overall table width
Lock Aspect Ratio Checking this box will ensure the ratio between the table height and width is maintained when one of these is changed
Arrange Bring Forward Allows you to move the table up by one layer or right to the top
Send Backward Allows you to move the table down by one layer or right to the bottom of the slide
Selection Pane Toggles the Selection and Visibility sidebar
Align Allows you to align the entire table with reference to the slide