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Tabs in PowerPoint – Instructions

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How to Use Tabs in PowerPoint: Video

            The following video lesson, titled “Using Tabs,” shows you how to use tabs in PowerPoint. This video lesson is from our complete PowerPoint tutorial, titled “Mastering PowerPoint Made Easy v.2019 and 365.”

Overview of Using Tabs in PowerPoint:

How to Insert Tabs in PowerPoint:

            To insert tabs in PowerPoint, first ensure you can view the ruler. To show the ruler in PowerPoint, if needed, click the “View” tab in the Ribbon. Then check the “Ruler” checkbox in the “Show” button group.

            Then select the paragraphs in the text-containing slide object for which to set tab stops in PowerPoint. After you click into a text-containing object when the ruler is displayed in PowerPoint, the “Tab” button then appears in the upper-left corner of the slide area in the “Normal” presentation view where the horizontal and vertical rulers meet.

            The “Tab” button is a toggle button that switches between the four types of tabs stops each time you click it. The available types of tabs stops you can set are “Left,” “Center,” “Right,” and “Decimal.” Each time you click the button, it cycles to the next tab stop, in the order listed

            Click the “Tab” button until it shows the type of tab stop to set on the face of the button. To insert a tab stop in PowerPoint after selecting the desired type of tab stop, click into the white part of the horizontal ruler at the position at which to set the tab stop. Doing that creates a tab stop at that location in the horizontal ruler for the selected paragraphs.

How to Delete Tabs in PowerPoint:

            To delete a tab stop in PowerPoint from selected paragraphs, click and drag the tab stop to remove from the horizontal ruler and release it over the slide area. Like Word, you can set tab stops before or after typing paragraph text. Also note that tab stops are set, and can only be changed, on a per-paragraph basis.

How to Use Tabs in PowerPoint:

            After you press the “Tab” key on your keyboard in a paragraph line with tab stops enabled, the insertion mark character moves to the next tab stop location. It then aligns any text you type at that location using the text alignment indicated by the type of tab stop. The “Left” tab left aligns text, the “Center” tab center aligns text, the “Right” tab right aligns text, and the “Decimal” tab aligns numbers by their decimal points.

            When you get to the end of a paragraph that contains tab stops in PowerPoint and press the “Enter” key to create a new paragraph within a text containing object, the current paragraph’s tab stops then also appear for the new paragraph. If you do not wish to continue them for the next paragraph, then you must delete them for the new paragraph.

A picture of the Tab button in PowerPoint and a user typing text using tabs in PowerPoint.

A picture of the Tab button in PowerPoint and a user typing text using tabs in PowerPoint.

Instructions on How to Use Tabs in PowerPoint:

Instructions on How to Insert Tabs in PowerPoint:

  1. To insert tabs in PowerPoint, first enable the ruler, if needed, by checking the “Ruler” checkbox in the “Show” button group on the “View” tab of the Ribbon.
  2. Then select the paragraphs in the text-containing slide object for which to set tab stops in PowerPoint.
  3. After you click into a text-containing object when the ruler is displayed in PowerPoint, the “Tab” button appears in the upper-left corner of the slide area in the “Normal” presentation view where the horizontal and vertical rulers meet.
  4. The “Tab” button is a toggle button that switches between the four types of tabs stops each time you click it. The available types of tabs stops you can set are “Left,” “Center,” “Right,” and “Decimal.” Each time you click the button, it cycles to the next tab stop, in the order listed.
  5. Click the “Tab” button until it displays the type of tab stop to set on the face of the button.
  6. To create a tab stop in PowerPoint after selecting the desired type of tab stop, click into the white part of the horizontal ruler at the position at which to set the tab stop. Doing that creates a tab stop at that location in the horizontal ruler for the selected paragraphs.

Instructions on How to Delete Tabs in PowerPoint:

  1. To delete a tab stop from selected paragraphs in PowerPoint, click and drag the tab stop to remove from the horizontal ruler and release it over the slide area.
  2. Like Word, you can set tab stops before or after typing paragraph text. Also note that tab stops are set, and can only be changed, on a per-paragraph basis.

Instructions on How to Use Tabs in PowerPoint:

  1. To use tabs in PowerPoint, press the “Tab” key on your keyboard in a paragraph line with tab stops enabled to move the insertion mark character to the next tab stop location.
  2. It then aligns any text you type at that location using the text alignment indicated by the type of tab stop. The “Left” tab left aligns text, the “Center” tab center aligns text, the “Right” tab right aligns text, and the “Decimal” tab aligns numbers by their decimal points.
  3. When you get to the end of a paragraph that contains tab stops in PowerPoint and press the “Enter” key to create a new paragraph within a text containing object, the current paragraph’s tab stops then also appear for the new paragraph.
  4. If you do not wish to continue them for the next paragraph, then you must delete them for the new paragraph.
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