How to use PowerPoint templates in Google Drive

powerpoint google drive

PowerPoint is one of the best-known tools in the world, used in the field of education, as well as in companies and institutions. In previous articles we have talked about different types of templates that we can use, as templates for education. Many of those PowerPoint templates can be used on Google Drive, on Google Slides, the firm's alternative to Microsoft's presentation software.

Many users don't use PowerPoint on their computer, instead preferring to use Google Slides. That is why they look for the way in which PowerPoint templates can be used in Drive, which is where we find Google Slides. Luckily, most of those templates are compatible, so we will have no problems using them.

Before you start using those PowerPoint templates in Drive we must check if they are compatible. Most of them are, although it may depend on the version of the program to which they belong. That is, if it is a somewhat old template, some compatibility problems may arise in this regard. But the normal thing is that a template that you have downloaded will be compatible with Google Slides, Google's answer to Microsoft's PowerPoint.

Google Slides (Google Slides)

Google Presentations

As we have mentioned, Google Slides can be seen as Google's answer to Microsoft's PowerPoint. This program is integrated into Google Drive, the Google cloud. It is a program that can be of great help when creating a slide show. One of its keys is that we can use it with several people at the same time, that is, we can give several people access to a presentation and that several people edit said presentation at the same time.

Thanks to this, each person who participates in said edition you can do it remotely, it will not be necessary to be in the same space. This is something very comfortable, in addition to adapting perfectly to many environments, also in the pandemic, each being at home, for example. Google Slides works in an identical way to PowerPoint, although when creating and editing this presentation you need to have an Internet connection at all times, this is one of the differences to take into account.

In Google Slides (known as Google Presentations in Spanish) we find many designs available when creating a presentation. Although the options are limited for users, which is why they look for third-party templates in many cases. It is possible to import PowerPoint templates into Drive, so that we can edit them in Google Slides whenever we want. This is the process that many want to know how to do and the reality is that it is not something complex.

Import PowerPoint templates to Drive

Connections template

If you have downloaded a PowerPoint template on your PC and you want to edit it in Drive, because it is a project that you are going to carry out with other people, so we have to import it. That template that you have downloaded will be in Microsoft's own PowerPoint format, that is, it will be a .pptx file. Google Slides (Google Presentations) supports this format, so you can open and edit the presentation in question in Slides on your computer.

This process will not take us too long, so any user will be able to do it. As we have mentioned before, you are going to need have an Internet connection at all times in order to import these PowerPoint templates into Drive. So it is good that you first make sure that you have such an Internet connection and if so, then we can start with the process in question.

Steps to follow

Import Powerpoint Drive Templates

There are a series of steps that we have to follow in this regard to import those Microsoft PowerPoint templates into Google Drive. Of course, you will have to have a template on your PC that you will be able to import into your account. Either one that you have created in the program itself or if you have downloaded one online. Once you have one, it is possible to start this process now.

  1. Open Google Drive on your PC, this is possible directly this link.
  2. If you are not logged into your Google account, please do so.
  3. Click on My Unit on the left side of the screen.
  4. Tap New at the top of the screen.
  5. Choose Google Slides from the list that appears on the screen (Google Slides in English).
  6. Select the Blank Presentation option.
  7. A presentation then opens on the screen.
  8. Go to the top menu on the screen.
  9. Click on File.
  10. Go to the Import slides option and click on it.
  11. In the window that opens on your PC screen, click Upload (located on the right side).
  12. Click on the blue button «Select a file from your device».
  13. Search your PC for the location of the PowerPoint template or templates that you are going to upload to Drive.
  14. Choose that file.
  15. Click Upload.
  16. Wait for the presentation to upload.
  17. In a few seconds that presentation opens in Google Slides.
  18. Proceed to edit this presentation.

These steps allow you to already have those PowerPoint templates that you had on your computer already available in Drive, so that you will be able to edit them in Google Presentations. If you want to proceed to edit them with other people, you will only have to invite them, so that all of you can make changes to it. The changes that are made will be saved automatically in this presentation that you can then download or present directly from Slides when the time for that presentation has arrived.

If in the future you have other PowerPoint templates you want to use in Drive, you will only have to follow the same process to carry out its import. In addition, if you want, Google Presentations gives you the possibility of importing several templates at the same time, so that you can upload several templates that you are interested in having in the same operation. This way you will have a good library of templates that you can use in presentations that you have to prepare in the future.

Import PowerPoint themes and backgrounds

Import PowerPoint themes into Drive

Google Slides not only allows us to import PowerPoint templates into Drive, but we have more options available. Since it is also possible to import themes and backgrounds in this program. If, for example, in Microsoft PowerPoint we have themes and backgrounds that we liked and that we would like to use in the Google presentation editor, it is possible to do so. It is another good option to consider and that many users can turn to if necessary.

In PowerPoint we have a large selection of professional themes and backgrounds, which can be a good help in our presentations. In addition, we can also download themes or backgrounds online, which we later want to use in a presentation. It may be more convenient for us to use Google Presentations (Google Slides) when preparing this presentation, especially if it is a project that we are doing with a group of people remotely. Faced with this situation, we are given the possibility of importing these themes or funds, so that we can use them in this presentation. The process that we have to follow in this case is the following:

  1. Open Google Drive.
  2. Log in to your account, in case you do not have the session already started or open.
  3. Open any presentation you are working on that you have in your cloud account.
  4. Go to the menu at the top of the presentation.
  5. Click on Theme.
  6. A menu with options appears on one side of the screen.
  7. Click on the Import theme option, located at the bottom of that menu on the screen.
  8. Choose the theme you want to import into Drive.
  9. Click on the blue Import theme button.
  10. Wait for this topic to show up in your presentation.

Every time there is a theme that we want to use in a presentation in Google Slides, we can upload it this way. This applies both for those themes that we have downloaded online, in pages about themes and PowerPoint templates, as well as for those themes that are specific to PowerPoint and that we have saved on the PC. So we are going to significantly expand the selection of themes that we can use in Google Slides in our account and create much better presentations in a simple way.

As in the previous section, when we have imported PowerPoint templates into Drive, it is done need to have internet connection to carry out this process of importing the themes or backgrounds. Once that theme is uploaded to your presentation, you can choose when and how to use it in that presentation you are currently working on. If in the future you want to delete themes that you have uploaded in Drive, it is also possible, as well as deleting templates that you have uploaded and that you no longer want to use. This way you will be able to free up space in your account on the platform.


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