Creating clean, organized slides helps your audience understand your message faster. Two simple tools to improve your text layout are indents and line spacing. Here’s a clear guide to using both in PowerPoint.

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What Are Indents and Line Spacing?

• Indents move your text inward from the left margin. They help structure lists or set paragraphs apart.
• Line spacing controls how much space appears between each line of text. It can improve readability or help you fit more content.

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How to Indent Text in PowerPoint

1. Use the Tab Key

• Place your cursor at the beginning of a line.
• Press Tab to increase the indent.
  
  
  
  
• To decrease, press Shift + Tab.

2. Use the Indent Buttons

• Click the line you want to indent.
• Go to the Home tab.
  
  
  
• Click Increase List Level to indent.
• Click Decrease List Level to reverse it.

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Indenting Lists vs. Paragraphs

• Paragraphs: Pressing Tab at the start creates a first-line indent. This separates one paragraph from the next.
• Lists: Pressing Tab turns a bullet point into a sub-point. This builds a multilevel list, useful for showing subtopics.
  
  
  

You can also customize bullet styles to highlight different levels of your list.

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Fine-Tuning Indents with the Ruler

Want more control? Use the Ruler.

Show the Ruler:

• Go to the View tab.
• Check the Ruler box.

Use Indent Markers:

On the ruler, you’ll see:

• First-line indent marker: Adjusts only the first line.
  
  
  
• Hanging indent marker: Adjusts all lines except the first.
  
  
  
• Left indent marker: Moves the whole paragraph in or out.
  

To use:

• Click anywhere in the paragraph.
• Drag the marker left or right as needed.

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Adjust Bullet Spacing

You can change how far bullets sit from the text:

• Select the list items.
• Drag the hanging indent marker on the ruler.
  
  
  
• This sets space between the bullet and the start of the text.

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How to Adjust Line Spacing

Line spacing affects how tight or loose your text looks. Here's how to change it:

1. Select your text.
2. Go to the Home tab.
3. In the Paragraph group, click Line Spacing.
   
   
   
4. Pick a spacing option like 1.0, 1.5, or 2.0.
   
   
   

For more control:

• Click Line Spacing Options from the drop-down.
• Use the Paragraph dialog box to change:
• Line spacing (between lines)
• Paragraph spacing (before/after paragraphs)

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Quick Tips

• Don’t overuse line spacing—too much makes the text tiny.
• Use indents sparingly to keep slides clean.
• Stick to one or two bullet levels for clarity.