Creating tables in PowerPoint supports conveying data, financials or information about products, sales, services, or almost anything. The most effective use of a table in PowerPoint is its ability to compare information at a glance. At the same time, creating large, hyper detailed tables in a presentation can backfire and generate frustration since most presentations move quickly or are projected at a distance making it harder to read quickly. The most effective use of a table in a presentation is as a summary of simple comparative information.

There are the four methods that PowerPoint provides to add tables into a presentation. Let’s take a look at each method.

First Method

1. Open a new slide using the Table and Content slide. Enter the Title of the slide, then click on the Insert tab.
   
2. Select the Table button and drag the cursor over the number of rows and columns you want to use in the slide. The table will now appear in the slide, colored in the presentation theme colors.
   1. Type the information into the table.
   2. If you wish to add an extra row, a short-cut way is to place the cursor in the bottom right, last cell and press the tab key. A new row is now created in the table.

Second Method

1. Another way to insert a table in a PowerPoint slide is to go to Insert tab and insert a new slide.
2. This time click on the small table icon in the center.
   • Alternatively, select Insert tab, Table button, Insert Table option and a dialogue box opens.
     
3. Once the Insert Table dialog box opens, enter the number of columns and rows for the table, click OK.
   
4. A new, empty table will open in the center of the slide ready for data input. Notice two new tabs opened in the menu above the ribbon as well; Table Design and Layout. Here styles can be changed, shading, SmartArt, and boarders, as well as a host of other table layout options to change a table to suite the presentation best.

Third Method

1. The third way to create a new table is go to Insert tab, Table button, select Draw Table option and the cursor becomes a pencil.
   
2. Hold down the left mouse button and drag the pencil cursor to fit the size of table desired within the slide.
   
3. Once the table is created, PowerPoint opens the two additional tabs; Table Design and Layout.
4. The Table Design tab contains options to change the table style, effects, shading, boarders and WordArt styles.
   
5. The Layout tab allows you to work on the rows and columns, merge cells, change cell size, alignment, the table size and arranging the table position.
   1. Tables function the same in PowerPoint as they do in Word with creating, entering data, changing layout or colors or boarder styles.
   2. A table in PowerPoint can also be treated like an object or graphic and brought forward, back, or rearranged like a drawing through the Arrange group.

Fourth Method

1. The last way to create a table in PowerPoint is to select the Excel table option in the Insert, Table, Excel Spreadsheet in the dropdown menu.
   
2. Excel opens within PowerPoint giving access to the functions available in an Excel spreadsheet. This way calculations, formulas and functions can be used to create a table within PowerPoint without the need to import a table from Excel. Start typing information and data into the Excel table.
   
3. Along with entering information to be included in the table, you can create formulas, or use other Excel functions in a spreadsheet.
   
4. When the table is complete, click outside of the table area onto the slide and the table will be converted back into a PowerPoint table view.
   
5. If data in the Excel table needs editing, double click on the table and it will open Excel again allowing editing.
6. This table, or any of the tables, can be moved or resized like other objects in an Office program to match the scale needed for the presentation.

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