You want to draw attention to specific points on your slides during a live presentation. The built-in Pen and Highlighter tools in PowerPoint let you mark up slides in real time without any extra software. This article explains how to activate and use these annotation tools, how to change their colors, and how to keep or discard your marks after the presentation ends.
You will learn the exact steps for both Windows and Mac versions of PowerPoint. The guide also covers common problems such as the pen not showing up or ink disappearing after advancing slides.
Key Takeaways: Using the Pen and Highlighter in PowerPoint
- Ctrl+P during a slide show: Activates the Pen tool instantly so you can draw on any slide.
- Ctrl+I during a slide show: Switches to the Highlighter tool for transparent yellow marks over text or images.
- Right-click > Pointer Options > Ink Color: Lets you change the pen or highlighter color before or during annotation.
- Keep or Discard prompt after ending the show: Choose Yes to save all ink marks on the slides for later review or distribution.
How the Pen and Highlighter Work in PowerPoint
The Pen and Highlighter are slide show annotation tools built into PowerPoint. They appear only when you are in Slide Show mode (full screen). You cannot access them from Normal or Editing view. The Pen draws a solid line in any color you choose. The Highlighter draws a transparent line, similar to a physical highlighter marker, with yellow as the default color.
These tools are part of the PowerPoint Ink feature. They work with a mouse, a touchscreen, a digital pen (like Surface Pen), or a stylus. The annotations are temporary unless you choose to save them when you exit the slide show. If you save them, the ink becomes part of the slide objects and can be moved, resized, or deleted later.
Prerequisites for Using Annotation Tools
You need PowerPoint 2013 or later on Windows, or PowerPoint 2016 or later on Mac. The tools are also available in PowerPoint for the web but only in the desktop version do you get full color and thickness options. A touchscreen or digital pen is not required but makes drawing easier.
Steps to Annotate Slides During a Live Presentation
The following steps work in PowerPoint 2019, 2021, and Microsoft 365 on Windows. Mac users will see slightly different menus but the same keyboard shortcuts.
- Start the slide show
Press F5 to begin from the first slide, or click the Slide Show icon in the lower-right corner of the PowerPoint window. You can also press Shift+F5 to start from the current slide. - Activate the Pen tool
Press Ctrl+P on your keyboard. The cursor changes to a small dot. You can now draw on the slide by clicking and dragging with your mouse, touch, or pen. - Switch to the Highlighter tool
Press Ctrl+I. The cursor becomes a yellow block. Drag over text, images, or shapes to highlight them. The highlight is transparent and does not block the content underneath. - Change the ink color
Right-click any part of the slide. From the menu, select Pointer Options then Ink Color. Choose a color from the palette. The pen or highlighter will now draw in that color. You can change the color as many times as you want during the presentation. - Erase individual ink marks
Press Ctrl+E to activate the Eraser tool. Click on any ink mark to delete it. The Eraser removes one stroke at a time. To exit the Eraser, press the Escape key or select another pointer option. - Clear all ink from the current slide
Right-click the slide, choose Pointer Options, then Erase All Ink on Slide. This removes every pen and highlighter mark on that slide only. It does not affect other slides. - Switch back to the normal arrow cursor
Press Ctrl+A or Escape. The pen or highlighter turns off and the mouse pointer returns to the normal arrow. You can click links, buttons, or advance slides normally. - End the slide show and decide whether to keep ink
Press Escape to exit the slide show. A dialog box appears with the message: “Do you want to keep your ink annotations?” Click Keep to save all ink marks as slide objects. Click Discard to remove them permanently.
Using a Digital Pen or Stylus
If you use a Surface Pen or another active stylus on a touchscreen Windows device, the Pen tool activates automatically when you touch the screen with the pen. You do not need to press Ctrl+P. The default color is red for the pen and yellow for the highlighter. You can change the default color in PowerPoint settings: File > Options > Advanced > Pen.
Common Annotation Problems and How to Fix Them
Pen or Highlighter Does Not Appear During the Slide Show
This usually happens when PowerPoint is running in a window instead of full screen. Press F5 again to start the show in full-screen mode. If the tools still do not appear, check that your mouse or touch driver is working. On Windows, go to Device Manager and verify that the Human Interface Devices category shows a HID-compliant pen or touch device without an error.
Ink Disappears When You Advance to the Next Slide
Ink marks are attached to the slide where you drew them. When you move to the next slide, the ink on the previous slide is still there but hidden. If you return to that slide, the ink reappears. This is normal behavior. To see ink on all slides at once, you must save the annotations by clicking Keep after exiting the show.
Highlighter Draws a Solid Line Instead of a Transparent One
This occurs if you are using the Pen tool instead of the Highlighter tool. Press Ctrl+I to switch to the Highlighter. If the line is still solid, your version of PowerPoint may not support the Highlighter. PowerPoint 2010 and earlier do not have the Highlighter tool. Upgrade to a newer version to get the transparent highlight effect.
Saved Ink Marks Cannot Be Edited After the Show
When you click Keep, PowerPoint converts the ink into drawing objects. You can move, resize, or delete them in Normal view. To change the color of a saved ink mark, select it, go to the Shape Format tab, and choose a new color from the Shape Fill or Shape Outline menu. You cannot revert the ink back to a live annotation.
Pen and Highlighter: Slide Show vs Normal View Comparison
| Item | Slide Show Mode | Normal (Edit) View |
|---|---|---|
| Tool access | Ctrl+P for Pen, Ctrl+I for Highlighter | Draw tab > Pens group (drawing tools only) |
| Ink transparency | Highlighter is transparent, Pen is solid | All ink is solid; no built-in highlighter |
| Color options | Up to 16 colors via right-click menu | Full color palette via Shape Format tab |
| Persistence after exit | Prompt to Keep or Discard | Ink stays until manually deleted |
| Best use case | Live presentations, webinars, remote demos | Pre-recording slide annotations, review |
PowerPoint also offers the Laser Pointer tool (Ctrl+L) which shows a red dot that moves with your mouse but does not leave any marks. The Pen and Highlighter are the only tools that produce permanent ink during a live show.
To practice using these tools before a real presentation, open any slide deck and press Shift+F5 to start from the current slide. Draw a few lines and highlights, then press Escape and click Keep. Switch to Normal view and inspect the saved ink objects. This quick test will confirm that your hardware and PowerPoint version support the annotation features correctly.