{"id":25367,"date":"2023-02-07T19:11:28","date_gmt":"2023-02-08T00:11:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/?post_type=biws_kb&#038;p=25367"},"modified":"2024-09-25T17:50:22","modified_gmt":"2024-09-25T22:50:22","slug":"tables-in-powerpoint","status":"publish","type":"biws_kb","link":"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/kb\/powerpoint\/tables-in-powerpoint\/","title":{"rendered":"Tables in PowerPoint: Full Video Tutorial, Samples, and Practice Exercise"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_81 counter-flat ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Tables in PowerPoint: Full Video Tutorial, Samples, and Practice Exercise<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/kb\/powerpoint\/tables-in-powerpoint\/#Tables_in_PowerPoint_Key_Shortcuts_for_Inserting_and_Formatting_Them\">Tables in PowerPoint: Key Shortcuts for Inserting and Formatting Them<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/kb\/powerpoint\/tables-in-powerpoint\/#Navigating_Tables_in_PowerPoint\">Navigating Tables in PowerPoint<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/kb\/powerpoint\/tables-in-powerpoint\/#Practice_Exercise_for_Tables_in_PowerPoint_The_%E2%80%9CManagement_Assumptions%E2%80%9D_Slide\">Practice Exercise for Tables in PowerPoint: The \u201cManagement Assumptions\u201d Slide<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/kb\/powerpoint\/tables-in-powerpoint\/#More_Advanced_Features_of_Tables_in_PowerPoint_Merging_and_Splitting_Cells_and_Combining_Shapes_with_Tables\">More Advanced Features of Tables in PowerPoint: Merging and Splitting Cells and Combining Shapes with Tables<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<br \/>\n<strong>Tables in PowerPoint<\/strong> are useful for displaying text <em>more visually<\/em> without creating annoying alignment and distribution issues.<\/p>\n<p>PowerPoint handles all the alignment and distribution for you because it ensures that each cell in a table lines up perfectly with the other cells in the same row and column.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Video Table of Contents:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>0:51:<\/strong>\u00a0Why Tables?<\/p>\n<p><strong>6:02:<\/strong>\u00a0Inserting and Formatting Tables<\/p>\n<p><strong>13:20:<\/strong>\u00a0Exercise: \u201cManagement Assumptions\u201d Slide<\/p>\n<p><strong>20:47:<\/strong>\u00a0Recap and Summary<\/p>\n<p>[Click the <strong>&#8220;Files &amp; Resources&#8221; tab<\/strong> to get all the PowerPoint files for this lesson.]<\/p>\n<div class='code-block code-block-6' style='margin: 8px 0; clear: both;'>\n<div class=\"kb-adinsert-modal\">\n    <div class=\"kb-adinsert-top\">\n      <div class=\"media\">\n          <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-28448\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/22172833\/Power-Point-Pro.png\" alt=\"PowerPoint Pro\" width=\"128\" height=\"128\" \/>\n      <\/div>\n      <div class=\"content\">\n          <h3>Become a PowerPoint Pro With the <strong>BIWS PowerPoint & VBA Course<\/strong><\/h3>\n      <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n    \n    <div class=\"full_text\">\n    \t<ul>\n        \t<li>\n            \t<h4>Become a presentation machine<\/h4>\n              <p>Master the key shortcuts and commands for \u201cwarp speed\u201d slide creation<\/p>\n\t\t\t    <\/li>\n          <li>\n          \t<h4>Acquire the skills with dozens of practice exercises<\/h4>\n            <p>Learn by doing \u2013 and check your work against the solutions<\/p>\n\t\t\t    <\/li>\n          <li>\n          \t<h4>Save hours with our full macro package (25+ macros)<\/h4>\n            <p>Automate formatting, tables, alignment, drawing guides, and more\n\n<\/p>\n\t\t\t  <\/li>\n      <\/ul>\n        \n      <a class=\"cta-link orange-button-medium\" href=\"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/powerpoint-pro\/\" target=\"_blank\">Full Details<\/a>\n      \n      <a class=\"cta-link orange-button-medium bg-blue\" href=\"https:\/\/biws-support.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/Course-Outlines\/PowerPoint-Pro-Course-Outline.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Short Outline<\/a>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>Tables in PowerPoint are most common in investment banking and finance-related presentations when:<\/p>\n<p><strong>1) You are laying out the assumptions<\/strong> for a valuation, forecast, or other financial analysis, and you want something more interesting than bullets or paragraphs of text.<\/p>\n<p><strong>2) You want to summarize deal or investment terms<\/strong> with a bit of visual flair to avoid the \u201clong boring blobs of text\u201d syndrome.<\/p>\n<p><strong>3) You are creating \u201ctimelines\u201d <\/strong>for product launches, deal processes, or other future events, and you want to display calendars or use a mix of shapes and tables to create better visuals.<\/p>\n<p>Here&#8217;s a quick example of a table in PowerPoint based on real bank presentations and our own materials:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25368 size-full\" title=\"Tables in PowerPoint for Selected Valuation Methodologies\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074950\/PPT-02-05-Image-01.jpg\" alt=\"Tables in PowerPoint for Selected Valuation Methodologies\" width=\"1012\" height=\"757\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074950\/PPT-02-05-Image-01.jpg 1012w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074950\/PPT-02-05-Image-01-300x224.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074950\/PPT-02-05-Image-01-768x574.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1012px) 100vw, 1012px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>To understand the value of tables in PowerPoint, think about the image above, but imagine it as a collection of shapes instead:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25371 size-full\" title=\"Valuation Methodologies Slide as Separate Shapes\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074948\/PPT-02-05-Image-04.jpg\" alt=\"Valuation Methodologies Slide as Separate Shapes\" width=\"1016\" height=\"760\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074948\/PPT-02-05-Image-04.jpg 1016w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074948\/PPT-02-05-Image-04-300x224.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074948\/PPT-02-05-Image-04-768x574.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1016px) 100vw, 1016px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s say that you edit it and accidentally change the positions of these shapes, which creates many alignment issues:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-25372 size-full aligncenter\" title=\"Misaligned Valuation Methodologies Slide\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074947\/PPT-02-05-Image-05.jpg\" alt=\"Misaligned Valuation Methodologies Slide\" width=\"1007\" height=\"559\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074947\/PPT-02-05-Image-05.jpg 1007w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074947\/PPT-02-05-Image-05-300x167.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074947\/PPT-02-05-Image-05-768x426.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1007px) 100vw, 1007px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>With a shape-based layout like this, you need to <strong>manually fix and tweak everything <\/strong>because there\u2019s no quick, simple way to make all the shapes line up perfectly.<\/p>\n<p>Various PowerPoint macro packages \u2013 <a href=\"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/powerpoint-pro\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">including our own<\/a> \u2013 can save time and fix <em>some<\/em> of these problems, but nothing\u2019s perfect.<\/p>\n<p><strong>By contrast, if you had set up this slide as a table, you wouldn\u2019t have had any issues with the edits because tables are automatically aligned properly.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>And if the rows and columns in the table are not evenly distributed, you can fix that with a single click in the \u201cLayout\u201d tab after selecting the table:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25373 size-full\" title=\"Table Menu - Distribution Fixes\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074947\/PPT-02-05-Image-06.jpg\" alt=\"Table Menu - Distribution Fixes\" width=\"867\" height=\"154\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074947\/PPT-02-05-Image-06.jpg 867w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074947\/PPT-02-05-Image-06-300x53.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074947\/PPT-02-05-Image-06-768x136.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 867px) 100vw, 867px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>That said, there are some downsides to tables in PowerPoint.<\/p>\n<p>First, they may contain <strong>only text<\/strong>, so there\u2019s no way to \u201cinsert\u201d an image or Excel object and make it follow the table everywhere.<\/p>\n<p>Second, <em>copying text<\/em> to and from tables can be cumbersome because you may have to go cell-by-cell, depending on your source and destination content.<\/p>\n<p>Third, it\u2019s difficult to align <em>tables to other objects<\/em> in PowerPoint, so it can be tricky to create complex layouts using images and shapes.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, formatting tables can be annoying \u2013 unless you\u2019re using <a href=\"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/kb\/powerpoint\/macros-in-powerpoint\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">macros in PowerPoint<\/a> \u2013 because you cannot copy and paste formatting from <em>an entire table<\/em> <em>to<\/em> <em>another entire table<\/em>.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Tables_in_PowerPoint_Key_Shortcuts_for_Inserting_and_Formatting_Them\"><\/span><strong>Tables in PowerPoint: Key Shortcuts for Inserting and Formatting Them<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>The &#8220;Insert Table&#8221; command is within the &#8220;Insert&#8221; (Alt, N) tab in PowerPoint:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25374 size-full\" title=\"Tables in PowerPoint - Key Shortcuts\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074946\/PPT-02-05-Image-07.jpg\" alt=\"Tables in PowerPoint - Key Shortcuts\" width=\"658\" height=\"154\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074946\/PPT-02-05-Image-07.jpg 658w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074946\/PPT-02-05-Image-07-300x70.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 658px) 100vw, 658px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The &#8220;Table Design&#8221; tab appears once you have selected a table or inserted a new table, and it lets you change various formatting elements of the table:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25376 size-full\" title=\"Tables in PowerPoint - Key Shortcuts in the Design Tab\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074945\/PPT-02-05-Image-08.jpg\" alt=\"Tables in PowerPoint - Key Shortcuts in the Design Tab\" width=\"1222\" height=\"131\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074945\/PPT-02-05-Image-08.jpg 1222w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074945\/PPT-02-05-Image-08-300x32.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074945\/PPT-02-05-Image-08-1024x110.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074945\/PPT-02-05-Image-08-768x82.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1222px) 100vw, 1222px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The \u201cLayout\u201d tab, which also appears once you have selected a table, has the commands for adding and deleting rows and columns, splitting and merging cells, and distributing rows and columns:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-25375 size-full\" title=\"Tables in PowerPoint - Key Shortcuts in the Layout Tab\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074945\/PPT-02-05-Image-09.jpg\" alt=\"Tables in PowerPoint - Key Shortcuts in the Layout Tab\" width=\"1419\" height=\"139\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074945\/PPT-02-05-Image-09.jpg 1419w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074945\/PPT-02-05-Image-09-300x29.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074945\/PPT-02-05-Image-09-1024x100.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074945\/PPT-02-05-Image-09-768x75.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1419px) 100vw, 1419px\" \/><\/p>\n<h3><strong>Key Shortcuts for Inserting Tables in PowerPoint (PC\/Windows):<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><strong>Alt, N, T:<\/strong> Insert Table (no Mac Equivalent)<\/p>\n<p><strong>Alt, JT:<\/strong> Table Design Tab (no Mac Equivalent)<\/p>\n<p><strong>Alt, JL:<\/strong> Table Layout Tab (no Mac Equivalent)<\/p>\n<p><strong>Tab:<\/strong> Move to Next Cell \/ Insert Row at End of Table (also works on Mac)<\/p>\n<p><strong>Shift + Tab:<\/strong> Move to Previous Cell (also works on Mac)<\/p>\n<p><strong>MAC NOTE:<\/strong>\u00a0 If you\u2019re on the Mac, we recommend using a tool like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.acceleratorkeys.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Accelerator Keys<\/a> to replicate these Alt-key shortcuts or a program such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.parallels.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Parallels<\/a> to run the PC\/Windows version of PowerPoint.<\/p>\n<p>If you open a new PowerPoint file and insert a table with Alt, N, T, you can select the number of rows and columns:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-25377 size-full\" title=\"Tables in PowerPoint - Row and Column Selection\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074944\/PPT-02-05-Image-10.jpg\" alt=\"Tables in PowerPoint - Row and Column Selection\" width=\"1413\" height=\"648\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074944\/PPT-02-05-Image-10.jpg 1413w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074944\/PPT-02-05-Image-10-300x138.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074944\/PPT-02-05-Image-10-1024x470.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074944\/PPT-02-05-Image-10-768x352.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1413px) 100vw, 1413px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Once you\u2019ve inserted the table and picked the size you want, you can enter text in the individual cells:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25378 size-full\" title=\"Tables in PowerPoint - Entering Text in the Cells\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074943\/PPT-02-05-Image-11.jpg\" alt=\"Tables in PowerPoint - Entering Text in the Cells\" width=\"704\" height=\"233\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074943\/PPT-02-05-Image-11.jpg 704w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074943\/PPT-02-05-Image-11-300x99.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 704px) 100vw, 704px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>You can then use the \u201cDesign\u201d and \u201cLayout\u201d tabs to change anything from the color scheme to the horizontal\/vertical alignment, text direction, and margins in individual cells:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25379 size-full\" title=\"Tables in PowerPoint - Formatting Changes\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074943\/PPT-02-05-Image-12.jpg\" alt=\"Tables in PowerPoint - Formatting Changes\" width=\"749\" height=\"723\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074943\/PPT-02-05-Image-12.jpg 749w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074943\/PPT-02-05-Image-12-300x290.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 749px) 100vw, 749px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>You can apply most of these changes to <em>each cell individually<\/em> or <em>the entire table<\/em>, depending on what you\u2019ve selected:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25380 size-full\" title=\"Tables in PowerPoint - Changing Individual Cells\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074942\/PPT-02-05-Image-13.jpg\" alt=\"Tables in PowerPoint - Changing Individual Cells\" width=\"738\" height=\"691\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074942\/PPT-02-05-Image-13.jpg 738w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074942\/PPT-02-05-Image-13-300x281.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 738px) 100vw, 738px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>In most cases, you do <strong>not<\/strong> want to format cells individually because it makes tables look very inconsistent.<\/p>\n<p>One <strong>exception<\/strong> to this ability to change individual cell properties is that if you change the \u201ccell size\u201d within the \u201cLayout\u201d menu, <em>every cell in the same row or column<\/em> also changes.<\/p>\n<p><strong>In other words, it\u2019s impossible to change the height and width of just one individual cell \u2013 the only options are:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>1) Change the height of an entire row or multiple rows in the table.<\/p>\n<p>2) Change the width of an entire column or multiple columns in the table.<\/p>\n<p>You can see an example of what happens here when we try to change the height of just one cell:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25381 size-full\" title=\"Changing Row Heights and Column Widths in PowerPoint Tables\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074942\/PPT-02-05-Image-14.jpg\" alt=\"Changing Row Heights and Column Widths in PowerPoint Tables\" width=\"1034\" height=\"715\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074942\/PPT-02-05-Image-14.jpg 1034w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074942\/PPT-02-05-Image-14-300x207.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074942\/PPT-02-05-Image-14-1024x708.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074942\/PPT-02-05-Image-14-768x531.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1034px) 100vw, 1034px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>Tables in PowerPoint are collections of shapes that are automatically aligned and distributed into perfect rows and columns.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This is why they work well for &#8220;regular&#8221; layouts in grid structures but not so well for corporate hierarchy charts, maps, and anything else with irregular spacing.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Navigating_Tables_in_PowerPoint\"><\/span><strong>Navigating Tables in PowerPoint<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Typically, the fastest way to navigate cells is to <strong>use the mouse<\/strong> and click the cell you want to edit or click and drag to select the row(s) or column(s) you want.<\/p>\n<p>However, the <strong>Tab<\/strong> shortcut (for both PC and Mac) will advance you to the next cell, and the <strong>Shift + Tab<\/strong> shortcut will take you to the previous cell.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Tab<\/strong> is more useful because if you\u2019re in the last cell of the table and you press it, PowerPoint will add another row to your table:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25382 size-full\" title=\"Tab Key Shortcut for Tables in PowerPoint\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074942\/PPT-02-05-Image-15.jpg\" alt=\"Tab Key Shortcut for Tables in PowerPoint\" width=\"733\" height=\"867\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074942\/PPT-02-05-Image-15.jpg 733w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074942\/PPT-02-05-Image-15-254x300.jpg 254w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 733px) 100vw, 733px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Practice_Exercise_for_Tables_in_PowerPoint_The_%E2%80%9CManagement_Assumptions%E2%80%9D_Slide\"><\/span><strong>Practice Exercise for Tables in PowerPoint: The \u201cManagement Assumptions\u201d Slide<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>In the practice exercise in this lesson, you have to insert a table with the correct number of rows and columns and then format it to match the \u201cManagement Assumptions\u201d slide in <a href=\"https:\/\/samples-breakingintowallstreet-com.s3.amazonaws.com\/PPT-3\/PPT-02-Full-Pitchbook-Reference-Slides.pptx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">the reference slides<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Do not worry about copying and pasting in the text, as that does not require any special knowledge of PowerPoint.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Step 1<\/strong> is to insert a table with 9 columns and 8 rows:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-25383 size-full\" title=\"Inserting a PowerPoint Table\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074941\/PPT-02-05-Image-16.jpg\" alt=\"Inserting a PowerPoint Table\" width=\"1407\" height=\"699\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074941\/PPT-02-05-Image-16.jpg 1407w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074941\/PPT-02-05-Image-16-300x149.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074941\/PPT-02-05-Image-16-1024x509.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074941\/PPT-02-05-Image-16-768x382.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1407px) 100vw, 1407px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>Step 2<\/strong> is to enable <strong>drawing guides<\/strong> (Alt, W, S) and then <strong>resize the table <\/strong>so it fits the width and height of the slide:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25384 size-full\" title=\"Resizing a PowerPoint Table\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074941\/PPT-02-05-Image-17.jpg\" alt=\"Resizing a PowerPoint Table\" width=\"1011\" height=\"757\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074941\/PPT-02-05-Image-17.jpg 1011w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074941\/PPT-02-05-Image-17-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074941\/PPT-02-05-Image-17-768x575.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1011px) 100vw, 1011px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>Step 3<\/strong> is to fix the formatting, such as the fill colors, the font colors, the font sizes, and the borders:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25385 size-full\" title=\"Fixing PowerPoint Table Formatting\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074940\/PPT-02-05-Image-18.jpg\" alt=\"Fixing PowerPoint Table Formatting\" width=\"954\" height=\"676\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074940\/PPT-02-05-Image-18.jpg 954w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074940\/PPT-02-05-Image-18-300x213.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074940\/PPT-02-05-Image-18-768x544.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 954px) 100vw, 954px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We can access most of these shortcuts from the \u201cHome\u201d menu or the Quick Access Toolbar (QAT) that we recommend installing in the PowerPoint course.<\/p>\n<p>The table looks better after changing the colors and fonts everywhere, but we still need to fix the borders:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25386 size-full\" title=\"Fixes for Borders in PowerPoint Tables\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074939\/PPT-02-05-Image-19.jpg\" alt=\"Fixes for Borders in PowerPoint Tables\" width=\"952\" height=\"532\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074939\/PPT-02-05-Image-19.jpg 952w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074939\/PPT-02-05-Image-19-300x168.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074939\/PPT-02-05-Image-19-768x429.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 952px) 100vw, 952px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>To do this, we can start by selecting the entire bottom area of the table, going to Table Design (Alt, JT), and selecting \u201cNo Borders\u201d:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25387 size-full\" title=\"Removing Borders in PowerPoint Tables\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074939\/PPT-02-05-Image-20.jpg\" alt=\"Removing Borders in PowerPoint Tables\" width=\"511\" height=\"193\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074939\/PPT-02-05-Image-20.jpg 511w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074939\/PPT-02-05-Image-20-300x113.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 511px) 100vw, 511px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Then, we can keep these rows selected, return to \u201cTable Design,\u201d change the border formatting (color and style), and set the borders for <em>just this region<\/em> to \u201cInside Horizontal\u201d:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25388 size-full\" title=\"&quot;Inside Horizontal&quot; Borders for PowerPoint Tables\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074939\/PPT-02-05-Image-21.jpg\" alt=\"&quot;Inside Horizontal&quot; Borders for PowerPoint Tables\" width=\"587\" height=\"558\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074939\/PPT-02-05-Image-21.jpg 587w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074939\/PPT-02-05-Image-21-300x285.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 587px) 100vw, 587px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>This gets us close to the finished product <a href=\"https:\/\/samples-breakingintowallstreet-com.s3.amazonaws.com\/PPT-3\/PPT-02-05-Table-Insertion-Formatting-After.pptx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">in the \u201cAfter\u201d file<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The key points are that <strong>you can <em>format<\/em> individual cells, rows, and columns differently<\/strong>, but you <em>cannot<\/em> change the heights and widths of individual cells \u2013 only rows and columns.<\/p>\n<p>And when you resize an entire table, the heights of all the rows and the widths of all the columns also change.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"More_Advanced_Features_of_Tables_in_PowerPoint_Merging_and_Splitting_Cells_and_Combining_Shapes_with_Tables\"><\/span><strong>More Advanced Features of Tables in PowerPoint: Merging and Splitting Cells and Combining Shapes with Tables<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>In our full <a href=\"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/powerpoint-pro\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">PowerPoint Pro course<\/a>, we cover additional features of tables, such as how to merge and split cells and combine them with images, Excel objects, and shapes to create diagrams.<\/p>\n<p>Here are a few examples of slides we create using these features:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25389 size-full\" title=\"WACC Analysis in a Table\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074938\/PPT-02-05-Image-22.jpg\" alt=\"WACC Analysis in a Table\" width=\"764\" height=\"695\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074938\/PPT-02-05-Image-22.jpg 764w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074938\/PPT-02-05-Image-22-300x273.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 764px) 100vw, 764px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25390 size-full\" title=\"Process Timeline in a Table with Shapes\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074938\/PPT-02-05-Image-23.jpg\" alt=\"Process Timeline in a Table with Shapes\" width=\"964\" height=\"556\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074938\/PPT-02-05-Image-23.jpg 964w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074938\/PPT-02-05-Image-23-300x173.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/19074938\/PPT-02-05-Image-23-768x443.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 964px) 100vw, 964px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>To learn about these features and get a crash course on tables in PowerPoint, including <strong>macros to automate<\/strong> your slides, <a href=\"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/powerpoint-pro\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">check out our full PowerPoint Pro course<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In this tutorial, you&#8217;ll learn how to insert tables in PowerPoint, format them, change key settings, and use them to create useful slide layouts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":29346,"template":"","class_list":["post-25367","biws_kb","type-biws_kb","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","kb_category-powerpoint"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/biws_kb\/25367","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/biws_kb"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/biws_kb"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/29346"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25367"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}