Word Count in PowerPoint: Slides, Notes and Selected Text
Blog / PRESENTATIONS
In PowerPoint for Windows, open File → Info → Show All Properties and look for Words. Microsoft says this total includes text on slides and notes pages, so it is not automatically a slide-only or speech-script count.
Find the presentation's total on Windows
Open your presentation in desktop PowerPoint. Choose File, then Info, and expand Show All Properties. Read the Words property. Save your changes and check again after editing the presentation.
This is a useful overall measure for a presentation file, but the total's scope matters. If you wrote extensive speaker notes, those notes contribute to the count. Do not label the property as 'words visible to the audience' without checking what is included.
Check PowerPoint on Mac or in a browser
Microsoft's Mac instructions use File → Properties and the Statistics tab to view the presentation's word count. The Windows File → Info path is not a universal instruction for every version.
If you are using PowerPoint for the web and cannot find this property, open the file in the desktop application. Alternatively, copy the text you need into a word counter. A manual copy can answer a selected-text question, but it is not a reliable complete-file count unless you include every relevant area.
Count speaker notes separately
For a notes-only count on Windows, Microsoft's guidance is to export handouts to Word. Use File → Export → Create Handouts, create the Word handout, then select and count the notes you actually intend to speak.
Review the exported document carefully: it may contain slide content or other material as well as notes. Count the selected script rather than assuming the entire exported document is a pure notes total. Check that no notes disappeared during export.
Count one slide or one text box
Select the text inside the slide's text box, copy it and paste it into Top Word Counter. Repeat for other text boxes you want included. Copying a slide thumbnail or screenshot does not give the counter readable text.
If you need a slide-only total for the whole deck, collect all relevant slide text without the notes and count that collected text. Text baked into images requires transcription or OCR elsewhere; the online text counter does not read image text.
Use a script count to estimate speaking time
Speaking time in minutes equals the words you will actually say divided by your measured words per minute. A 600-word script at 120 words per minute takes five minutes before you add pauses, transitions and audience questions. This is an arithmetic example, not a recommended speed for everyone.
Time a rehearsal out loud. Slide titles, labels and repeated bullet points do not necessarily belong in the spoken script. For a strict slot, revise using your rehearsal time rather than padding slides to reach a supposed ideal word count.
Frequently asked questions
Does PowerPoint's Words property include speaker notes?
Microsoft says the presentation count includes words on slides and notes pages. Use a separate notes selection when you need only the spoken script.
Can I count words in an image on a slide?
Not by copying the image into a text counter. Transcribe it or use an OCR tool first, then check the extracted text.