Change Slide Layout in PowerPoint 365 for Windows

Imagine you’re building a house. Would you start by arranging the furniture without first deciding where the walls, windows, and doors go? Of course not! The same goes for slides in PowerPoint—before you start adding text, pictures, or charts, you need a good foundation. That’s where PowerPoint slide layouts come in.

So, What Are PowerPoint Slide Layouts?
PowerPoint Layout Types Explained
Step-by-Step: How to Change Slide Layout in PowerPoint
Why Use Slide Layouts?
Restore Deleted Default Layouts

So, What Are PowerPoint Slide Layouts?

Slide layouts are like ready-made blueprints for your slides. They tell PowerPoint where different elements should go, like where your text should sit, where images should appear, and where titles should shine. It’s like getting a superhero suit for your slide—instantly giving it a structure and superpowers.

Now, imagine you’ve got a pizza in front of you—plain cheese. But wait, you’re in the mood for something else—maybe a veggie delight with mushrooms, olives, and peppers. Changing the layout of your slides in PowerPoint is just like swapping out those toppings. Let’s make it happen!

Step-by-Step: How to Change Slide Layout in PowerPoint

Follow these steps to change the layout of selected slides from one to the other in PowerPoint 365 for Windows:

1. Launch PowerPoint—think of this as turning on the oven. You can now open any existing presentation (like grabbing a pizza you already ordered), or use the blank, new presentation that pops up when PowerPoint starts, as shown in Figure 1, below.
2. 
   Figure 1: Blank presentation with one slide
2. Imagine you’re looking at a slice of pizza. Is it a classic Margherita with just cheese and tomato, or is it a veggie extravaganza with mushrooms, olives, and peppers? Each slide within a presentation is based on a Slide Layout. Knowing your PowerPoint slide layout is just like recognizing what toppings your pizza has—it’s super easy once you know where to look. To ascertain which layout your active slide uses, right-click it’s thumbnail within the Slides Pane to bring up a contextual menu, as shown in Figure 2, below.
3. 
   Figure 2: Slide layout is highlighted
4. Within this menu, choose the Layout option. A sub-menu will pop up—this is your layout menu, just like a list of pizza toppings, as shown in Figure 2, above. As you can see, the layout your slide is currently using will be activated, as shown highlighted in red within Figure 2. In this example, the Title Slide layout is highlighted because that’s the layout used by the active slide. It’s like seeing a checkmark next to your favorite pizza flavor.

   Nine or More Slide Layouts?

   Imagine walking into a pizzeria with a menu showing nine classic pizza flavors—Margherita, Veggie Supreme, Mushroom Delight, and so on. But here’s the fun part—this pizzeria has a secret menu that only a few people know about! That’s exactly how slide layouts work in PowerPoint.

   As you can see in Figure 2, previously on this page, there are nine default slide layouts available.

   Sometimes, you’ll see more than nine layouts. Why? Because this isn’t just any ordinary pizza place—your PowerPoint might have some secret toppings because:

   • You’re using a custom theme or template, like a chef’s special recipe.
   • You’ve installed additional language packs for East Asian text or complex scripts—like a secret section of the menu with exotic flavors.
   • Someone added custom layouts—like a chef experimenting with new creations.

   Don’t just settle for the classic nine layouts—if you see a secret menu of extra layouts, feel free to try them out. Also, sometimes you may see less than 9 layouts. That may be because someone may have deleted some of these layouts.

3. To change the layout of the active slide to another type, click on another thumbnail that represents a different layout in the same sub-menu, as shown previously in Figure 2. The moment you click, your slide changes—like your plain cheese pizza instantly becoming a Veggie Supreme!
4. There is another way to change the slide layout of selected slides. Click on the slide thumbnail you want to change—like pointing to the slice you want to add toppings to. Then, go to the Home tab on the Ribbon, and click the Layout button, shown highlighted in red within Figure 3, below.
5. 
   Figure 3: Slide Layouts drop-down gallery
6. Thereafter, in the resultant Layout gallery, click any of the other Slide Layouts available. We selected the Blank Slide Layout, as shown highlighted in green within Figure 3, above.

   When Your Slide Throws a Tantrum

   Ever changed your PowerPoint slide layout and suddenly everything looks like it went through a blender? Don’t panic — it’s not you, it’s the text boxes.

   You May Also Like: Text Boxes vs. Text Placeholders

   Here’s the deal: PowerPoint’s placeholders are like VIP seats reserved for your content. They tell PowerPoint exactly where titles, bullet points, and pictures belong. Text boxes, on the other hand, are the gatecrashers — they look fine at first but don’t follow the rules when layouts change.

   So, if your slide throws a fit when you switch layouts, here’s your quick fix:

   1. Copy your text from those misbehaving text boxes.
   2. Paste it into the proper placeholders (the ones that say “Click to add text”).
   3. Delete the old text boxes — send those rebels packing.
   4. Reapply the layout and watch everything snap neatly into place again.

   Fun fact: Placeholders aren’t just about order — they also make your presentation more accessible. Screen readers know how to read them properly, so everyone — including those using assistive tech — can follow your message.

   Think of it like PowerPoint’s housekeeping rule: keep everything in its rightful room, and your slides will stay neat, tidy, and audience-friendly!

4. When you click a new layout, your slide instantly changes, just like your plain pizza changing to a pizza masterpiece. In Figure 4, below, you can see that what was originally a Title Slide Layout (think of it as a classic Margherita) has been swapped out for a Blank Layout (a plain pizza crust, ready for your custom toppings). Compare this with Figure 1, where you can see the original Title Slide Layout—like your starting pizza flavor.
5. 
   Figure 4: Slide with changed Slide Layout

So, why would you want to change the Slide Layout? That’s because some layouts are more appropriate for the content of your slide. We already explored some examples for choosing slide layouts earlier on this page.

Why Use Slide Layouts?

Well, this is a trick question, because you cannot create a slide in PowerPoint that doesn’t use one of the layouts. So, the question to ask is why you should explore slide layouts and consider changing them?

Here are some reasons:

1. Instant Organization: Like arranging furniture in the right rooms, everything falls into place with the proper slide layout.
2. Consistent Design: It’s like having a color-coordinated wardrobe—your slides look stylish and connected.
3. Effortless Changes: Change the layout anytime without messing up your content—like switching a pizza topping without remaking the whole pizza.

Restore Deleted Default Layouts

So, what if you open one of your presentations, and find that the nine default layouts, or at least some of them do not exist, as can be seen in Figure 5, below? Compare with Figure 3, shown previously on this page, where you can see all the default slide layouts.

Figure 5: Missing Slide Layouts

PowerPoint layouts are not merely visual frameworks — they contain embedded metadata, placeholder definitions, and structural identifiers that govern how content interacts with the slide master. When these default layouts (for example, the Title and Content layout) are altered or deleted, or when placeholders are removed, PowerPoint’s internal mapping can become inconsistent. This often results in “orphaned” layouts or duplicated slide masters, particularly when slides are copied or imported across templates. The same issues frequently arise in presentations received from external sources where default layouts have been modified or deleted.

To add the missing default layouts, you can use three options. We will look at all three of them in this section.

1. Apply Available Templates or Themes

Follow these steps to apply an easily accessible template or Theme within PowerPoint:

1. If this presentation uses a template or Theme that’s available to you, then apply it again and all the missing layouts will come back. For example, the Theme used in our presentation is Office Theme, as can be seen highlighted in red within Figure 5, above.
2. Access the Design tab of the Ribbon, as shown in Figure 6, below. The first thumbnail within the Themes gallery, highlighted in red within Figure 6 represents the active template or Theme applied to the active presentation. In this case, our active presentation has only four of the nine default slide layouts available, as seen in Figure 5, previously on this page.
3. 
   Figure 6: Active Theme of the presentation
3. The Theme with limited slide layouts may be the active Theme, but you may easily locate the original template of Theme. Hover over other thumbnails in the Themes gallery, and you will see a tooltip of the Theme name as you hover over its thumbnail, as shown highlighted in red within Figure 7, below. Make sure that this is the same template or Theme name, as used in the active presentation and click on the thumbnail to reapply it again to your presentation. This step sort of resets your slide layouts.
4. 
   Figure 7: Tooltip of the Theme name
4. Now, revisit the Home tab of the Ribbon and click on the Layout button, as shown highlighted in red within Figure 3, shown previously on this page. The resultant Layout gallery should now be showing all the nine default slide layouts, like what you saw in Figure 3.

2. Apply External Templates or Themes

Now, what if you cannot find the original template or Theme in the Themes gallery? In that case, you may choose from several options:

• Try to locate the original template or Theme elsewhere on your computer.
• You can also contact your company’s system administrator if this is a company template.
• If you have another presentation (not the template or Theme) that includes all layouts, then you can also apply an existing presentation as a Theme.

Follow these steps to apply an external template, Theme, or a presentation to your active presentation:

1. Access the Design tab of the Ribbon. Next, within the Themes gallery, click the More button, highlighted in red within Figure 8, below.
2. 
   Figure 8: More button in Themes gallery
2. Doing so brings up the Themes drop-down gallery, as shown in Figure 9, below. Click the Browse for Themes option, highlighted in red within Figure 9.
3. 
   Figure 9: Browse for Themes
3. You will now see the Choose a Theme or Themed Document dialog box, shown in Figure 10, below. Navigate to wherever the given presentation, template, or Theme is located. Select it and click the Apply button, shown highlighted in red within Figure 10.
4. 
   Figure 10: Choose a Theme or Themed Document dialog box
4. Now, revisit the Home tab of the Ribbon and click on the Layout button. The resultant Layout gallery should now be showing all the nine default slide layouts, like what you saw in Figure 3, shown previously on this page.