How to Get Started With Using SmartArt in PowerPoint (+Video)

You may be wondering: What is SmartArt in PowerPoint exactly? The SmartArt graphic below PowerPoint is an example.

Think of SmartArt as a time-saving graphic tool, built into PowerPoint—which allows you to choose among various ready-made layouts and preset styles to help you visualize your ideas with. SmartArt comes with ready-to-use charts, diagrams, process maps, and more.

In this tutorial, I want to teach you how to use SmartArt in PowerPoint. With it, we can add flexible and great-looking illustrations to our slideshows quickly.

Need Help? Download Our eBook on Making Great Presentations (Free)

We also have a useful compliment to this tutorial. Quickly grab it before you read on. Download our FREE eBook: The Complete Guide to Making Great Presentations, which  will help you write, design, and deliver the perfect presentation. 

How to Use SmartArt in PowerPoint (Quick-Start Video)

If you want to learn more about how to use SmartArt in Microsoft PowerPoint, check out the quick screencast below. You’ll see examples of how to use SmartArt in PowerPoint for graphics that you can always update and tweak.

Keep reading for a written step-by-step tutorial on how to use SmartArt in PowerPoint, and some more ideas on how to leverage it to quickly visualize information in your presentation.

How to Make Your First SmartArt Graphic in PowerPoint

Let’s get started building a SmartArt PowerPoint design. Your best bet is to use a premium template from Envato Elements. With thousands of designs to choose from, you’re sure to find a slide deck that works perfectly for you. 

For this tutorial, I’ll be working with the beautiful CLEAN PowerPoint template from Envato Elements. It includes over fifty unique custom slide designs. Download it today to follow along!

Insert Your First PowerPoint SmartArt

What’s SmartArt in PPT? Let’s learn how with a walkthrough of our first example.

To add your first piece of SmartArt, go to the Insert menu on the PowerPoint ribbon. Find the SmartArt menu option and click on it to launch the SmartArt menu.

The next menu that pops up allows you to choose what type of SmartArt PowerPoint to add to your presentation. It’s a list of SmartArt graphic PowerPoint templates. You can use any of these PowerPoint SmartArt templates as a starting point.

You’ll notice that the app has a variety of SmartArt graphic PowerPoint designs. On the left side, you can choose from styles such as “List”, “Process”, “Cycle.” Choose one of these categories based on the content that you’re working with (more on that later.)

The thumbnails in the center of the window are various types of SmartArt. Click on one to preview it on the right side of the window. There are helpful descriptions that explain what the SmartArt graphic PowerPoint design does.

Once you’ve selected a SmartArt type, click on OK to insert it into your presentation.

How to Add Meaningful Content to Your SmartArt

You’ve added SmartArt to your presentation. Now what? It’s time to add some content and make it meaningful to your audience.

When SmartArt is added, a context menu opens up to the left of your data. If you can’t see this menu, click on the small arrow to open it up. (The menu is labeled “Type your text here” in the screenshot below.)

This menu is used to populate the SmartArt. You can type over the bullet points to add text to the SmartArt. As you add that text, the SmartArt automatically updates with the text you type.

Another way to modify your SmartArt is to simply double-click on an individual object and type in it. 

Ready to customize SmartArt objects? Let’s keep moving.

How to Modify SmartArt Elements

In the example above, the default SmartArt object has three bullet points that populate the SmartArt arrow. But, what if we wanted four, or five, or more objects on it?

To add another object to the SmartArt, you can do it one of two ways. The first is to find the Add Shape option, which is on the far left side of the Ribbon when you’ve selected SmartArt Design.

Plus, if you’re working in the context menu (“Type your text here” on the left side) you can simply press return on your keyboard to add a new bullet point to the list, and a new object is placed into your presentation.

If you had too many objects on your slide, simply click on one and press delete on your keyboard. PowerPoint removes it from the presentation.

You can also manually reposition individual elements in the slideshow. Click-and-drag to move objects around within the SmartArt. In the screenshot below, you can see how I’ve moved the boxes around to show the steps as descending.

How to Change SmartArt Layouts

What if you start working on your SmartArt and realize you chose the wrong layout? You can easily change the layout and preserve your content. 

With a SmartArt object selected, find the Layouts section of the SmartArt Design tab. Simply click on a new layout, and PowerPoint converts your content to the new selection.

In the screenshot above, I’m working with the same SmartArt I’ve been using throughout this tutorial. The only thing that’s changed is the layout I’ve applied to it.

How to Style Your SmartArt

Don’t like the default style for your SmartArt object? No problem. Make sure that you’ve got your SmartArt selected and click on the SmartArt Design tab on the ribbon. 

There’s a SmartArt Styles section of the menu where you can choose from preset SmartArt styles. Click the drop-down arrow to view all the available styles for your selected SmartArt.

Click the drop-down arrow and choose a new style to change your SmartArt to. In the screenshot below, I selected a more three-dimensional style and applied it to my SmartArt.

Although the original SmartArt layout is preserved, you can change the graphic style with a single click.

Finally, you can also change the colors used in a SmartArt presentation. Click on Change Colors in the drop-down and choose a new color scheme for your SmartArt object.

If you want to restyle individual elements, click on the Format tab. You can change the fill and outline colors of individual objects in your SmartArt chart.

8 Important Types of SmartArt (And When It’s Best to Use Them)

As you can see on the SmartArt window, the app has a litany of options for SmartArt graphic PowerPoint designs. With so many options, you might wonder what the right type of SmartArt to use is.

Depending on the type of data that you’re presenting, some types of charts work better than others. Keep in mind though, there are no rules on how to use SmartArt—only suggestions. 

Let’s look at the important types of SmartArt and the right situations to put them to best use:

1. List

If you’ve got a simple bulleted list of data in PowerPoint, the SmartArt list style is an easy upgrade to make the data more visually appealing. 

Lists are pretty versatile. There’s a wide variety of SmartArt styles in PowerPoint, ranging from simple “Basic Blocks” to “Vertical Lists” that show things in a sequenced, descending order. If you aren’t sure what style to use, start with a list style and iterate from there.

2. Process

Process flows are one of my favorite ways to use SmartArt. When I’m working with teams to document how a process should work, SmartArt is a great visual map to capture processes.

The Process SmartArt styles can help you record how things should happen, step by step. If you’re making a product for example, use a Process to show how the product goes through each steps of the manufacturing process.

3. Cycle

Cycles are like process maps, but the idea is that they’re continuous. Use a Cycle type chart when you’re mapping a process that’ll keep on going.

Cycles are continuous, ongoing processes. If you run a company where processes flow similarly each month, use cycles to capture those processes.

4. Hierarchy

Hierarchies are designed to show how things descend in an organization or process. One natural use for this type of chart is building an organizational chart for a company or group of individuals.

Another use for a hierarchy is to show the individual parts of a larger whole. Imagine using a hierarchy to show the raw materials inside of a finished product.

5. Relationship

A relationship SmartArt is designed to show how individual parts relate. In the examples below, you can see that there are a variety of relationship charts: balance charts, funnels, and hexagons.

The common thread is that these charts show how parts relate to one another. 

6. Matrix

Matrix charts are like relationship charts, but it’s more about taking one object and splitting it into equal parts that make up the whole.

7. Pyramid

Pyramids are like hybrids between process charts and hierarchies. Each of the pyramids are unique and show how the parts of the pyramid fit together.

8. Picture

The Picture category in PowerPoint SmartArt is a bit of a wildcard. It contains styles from a variety of categories but makes it easy to add images from your computer.

5 Best PowerPoint SmartArt Templates (From Envato Elements – For 2023)

When you choose a premium SmartArt PowerPoint template, you’re sure to succeed. You can use even more PowerPoint SmartArt templates thanks to Envato Elements. Here are five that are trending now:

1. Ever PowerPoint Template

With the Ever SmartArt PowerPoint, you can build amazing slides quickly. Inside the template, you’ll find 250 slide layouts to work with. These include many animated objects and icons to bring your content to life. Master slide designs streamline the process of bulk edits. 

2. Leaf – Multipurpose PowerPoint Presentation

Leaf is a modern SmartArt graphic PowerPoint with a green design style. 150 unique slides help you present content in new and creative ways.

You’ll enjoy many custom infographics and style designs. Vector icons feature throughout. All design elements are editable. 

3. Sparta PowerPoint Template

Sparta is a powerful slide deck for SmartArt PowerPoint designs. The widescreen slide layouts look good on any display.

Drag-and-drop image placeholders make it easy to illustrate with your favorite photos. Plus, free fonts and editable graphics make this template a top choice if you need to adapt each slide to your own needs. 

4. Furi – Business PowerPoint Template

With 39 slides inside, Furi is a 2023 SmartArt PowerPoint meant for you. It’s flexible enough to adapt to any topic or subject that you’re presenting.

All graphics are resizable, and content placeholders help you drag and drop objects into place. Free fonts are used, and a  documentation file is available if you need a boost getting started. 

5. Dalton PowerPoint Presentation

Dalton is a SmartArt graphic PowerPoint template for 2023 projects. 16:9 widescreen layouts are used for all 30 slides. You can easily change text, colors, and more, thanks to fully editable graphics. Modern styles and sleek text designs appear throughout the template slide deck. 

More PowerPoint Presentation Resources

Giving a presentation isn’t a genetic trait; it’s a skill that you can build like any other. Here are more great tutorials on building your presentation skills:

• Brad Smith has a great list of quick-wins to improve your presentations, with 60 Effective PowerPoint Presentation Tips.
• Animations are another great skill for sequencing your presentations and can even be used in combination with SmartArt.
• Jump in our quick PowerPoint video tutorials to learn more presentation tools fast.

Check out our  Ultimate Guide to the Best PowerPoint Templates to find the perfect template for you.  Also, if you need more visual styles in PowerPoint, check out: 

• 

  35 Best Infographic PowerPoint Presentation Templates: With Great PPT Data Slides 2022

  

  Sean Hodge

  07 Nov 2021

Make Great Presentations (Free eBook Download)

We’ve got the perfect complement to this tutorial, which walks you through the complete presentation process. Learn how to write your presentation, design it like a pro, and prepare it to present powerfully. 

Download our new eBook: The Complete Guide to Making Great Presentations. It’s available for free with a subscription to the Tuts+ Business Newsletter. 

Make Use of SmartArt in PowerPoint

What’s SmartArt in PPT? It’s a flexible graphics tool that you can use with no other apps needed. As you learn how to use SmartArt in PowerPoint, I hope you saw that this is the key to graphics that always look great – even if you’re a beginner.

Stop drawing your own custom illustrations. Look for opportunities to use SmartArt to craft quick visualizations with instead. Leverage the SmartArt graphic PowerPoint starters now. It’s a great time-saver that results in good quality graphic results.

Editorial Note: This post was first published in February 2017. It’s been brought up to date and a video added by Andrew Childress.