Change One Shape to Another in PowerPoint 365 for Windows

Like many things in life, shapes can often look very similar to one another. This similarity can lead to accidentally using the wrong shape for a project, which can translate to a loss of time and frustration. For example, you may create a 5-pointed star when you need a star with 4 or 8 points. Or you may have worked on a shape and applied effects, animations, and fills to it, only to later realize that you used the wrong one or that the client wants a different shape. In cases like this, you may think it’s best to delete the existing shape and start over again. Well, there is an easier option to change existing shapes.

Follow these steps to change any existing shape to another, in PowerPoint 365 for Windows:

1. Select the shape which you want to change, as shown in Figure 1, below.
2. 
   Figure 1: 10-Point Star Shape selected
2. Doing so activates the Shape Format contextual tab of the Ribbon, as shown highlighted in red within Figure 2, below. Within this tab, click the Edit Shape button, as shown highlighted in green within Figure 2.
3. 
   Figure 2: Edit Shape button




Contextual Tabs

The Shape Format tab is a contextual tab. Contextual tabs are special tabs in the Ribbon that are not visible all the time. They only make an appearance when you are working with a particular slide object which can be edited using special options.
3. Doing so brings up a drop-down menu, as shown in Figure 3, below. From this menu, choose the Change Shape option, as shown highlighted in red within Figure 3, to bring up a variant of the Shapes gallery. In this gallery, choose the shape you want to change your selected shape to.
4. 
   Figure 3: Choose a shape to change to
4. Clicking on another shape in the Shapes gallery changes the selected shape on your slide into a new shape, as shown in Figure 4, below. The new shape will have the same fill, animation, outline, effect, and hyperlink attributes as the earlier shape. If the original selected shape didn't have any animation or hyperlink applied, then the new changed shape also won't have any animation or hyperlink attributes.
5. 
   Figure 4: One shape changed to another
5. Save your presentation often.