5 Best Free Presentation Tools

When you sit down to create a presentation, you’ll quickly discover there are a lot of moving parts. From fleshing out your ideas to incorporating design elements like photos and videos, you’ll need to pool your resources to get from concept to finished product.

The good news is, presenters don’t have to look far to find the tools needed to create a presentation from scratch. In fact, there’s a plethora of free tools available right at your fingertips.

To get you started, I’ve included a few of my favorite free presentation tools below. Once you start using these tools regularly, they’ll become second nature to you, and you’ll speed through the process of pulling together different visual elements for your presentation decks.

1. Free Photos and Icons for Presentations
2. Free Videos for Presentations
3. Free Slide Presentation Tools
4. Free Fonts for Presentations
5. Free Dictation Tools

Free Photos and Icons for Presentations

When you need photos or icons for your presentation, don’t just grab anything you see after searching the internet. Doing so could violate copyright rules, unless you get permission from the publisher or photographer to use an image. 

To avoid these problems, make use of websites that offer royalty-free images, many of which are free of charge. Here are a few of my favorites:

• Noun Project — With its comprehensive collection of both icons and stock photos, the Noun Project features stunning images and artwork from its international community of designers.
• Unsplash, Pexels, Stockphotos, and more — There’s no shortage of websites dedicated to free stock photography. 
• Google Images — Search for images in Google just like you’d conduct a text-based query. Filter your search by “Images” and then further filter by Creative Commons (i.e., public domain) licenses to locate royalty-free photos.

As you search for photos, take note of the specific requirements associated with downloading images for each platform. For example, some websites ask that you credit the original source of the image. 

Free Videos for Presentations

Likewise, only use videos that are part of the public domain. To search for videos, go to YouTube — a search engine in itself where you can find videos related to your presentation topic. For example, if your topic is about the benefits of yoga, input a “benefits of yoga” search query in YouTube, and use the Filters feature at the top of the results to filter by Creative Commons licenses.

To download a YouTube video and use it in your presentation, try a free YouTube downloader tool like BTCLOD or 4KDownload.

Free Slide Presentation Tools

Both Keynote and Google Slides are free presentation deck tools you can use to create a professional-looking deck. 

Both programs have many different free themes available and will let you collaborate with colleagues. Whereas Keynote works only on Mac and iOs devices and allows for offline use, Google Slides simply requires a Gmail account, but you’ll need to be connected to the web. 

Free Fonts for Presentations

Need fonts beyond what’s built into your presentation software? Try Font Squirrel or Google Fonts. Keep it simple, however; avoid decorative fonts. If you plan on emailing a PPT or Keynote file, you’ll need to attach the fonts to your message, too. 

Free Dictation Tools

If you’re not a fan of typing up presentation notes prior to creating your deck, voice-to-text annotation might be your new best friend. Built-in dictation tools on iPhone or Android devices make it easy to simply grab your phone or tablet and start talking through your ideas.

Dictation tools are not only time savers, but they also give you the freedom to work through concepts while on the go. On an iPhone or iPad, launch the Voice Memos app to record a voice note, or any app you can type into, such as Notes or email. Pull up your keyboard, and tap the microphone button to the left of the space bar. Then, chat away! When you’re done speaking, tap the keyboard button again. You can then fix any errors and send the text to yourself, or send it as is to clean up later. 

Android devices offer similar capabilities. The Google-provided Gboard touch keyboard will let you dictate text anywhere you would normally type in a text entry. Alternatively, you can use a voice-memo app, or your keyboard of choice to activate speech to text.

Need More Help With Your Presentation? Just Ask

Creating a presentation isn’t for everyone — some of us are too busy to search for free assets. Thankfully our company has a library of amazing tools and assets at our disposal. Give us a call if you need a hand.