How to Make Google Slides Vertical (Portrait Page Setup)

Not everything you make in Google Slides is meant for a projector. Flyers, posters, one-page sales sheets, menus, worksheets and phone-shaped graphics all look better tall rather than wide. Slides is a handy free design tool for these, as long as you can turn the canvas on its side.

There's no Portrait button, which is why so many people get stuck. The answer sits in Page setup, under the Custom size option. Here's how to set it up and what to check once you've switched.

Making Google Slides vertical with a custom page size

1. Open your presentation in Google Slides on a computer.
2. Click File, then Page setup.
3. Click the down arrow under the current size and choose Custom.
4. Enter a width and a height, making the height the bigger number.
5. Pick a unit from the list: inches, centimeters, points or pixels.
6. Click OK.

That's it. Every slide in the presentation changes shape at once, because page size is set for the whole file rather than slide by slide.

Choosing the right vertical size in Google Slides

Google's Page setup lists three preset shapes: Standard (4:3), Widescreen (16:9) and Widescreen (16:10). All three are wider than they're tall. To go vertical, you simply flip the numbers round in the Custom boxes.

What you're making	How to set the Custom size
A tall, phone-shaped graphic	Flip widescreen round, so 9 wide by 16 tall
A taller version of the classic shape	Flip standard round, so 3 wide by 4 tall
A printed flyer or worksheet	Enter your paper's width and height in inches or centimeters
A graphic for a site with set dimensions	Enter the width and height that site asks for, in pixels

The shape is what matters. Whether you type the numbers in inches or centimeters, the slide comes out in the same proportion, so choose whichever unit you find easier to think in.

Changing measurement units for a vertical Google Slides layout

If you're laying out a printed page, it helps to see the ruler in the same unit as your paper. Google gives you two places to change this:

• For the whole app: click Tools, then Preferences, tick Use measurement unit preferences and choose Inches, Centimeters or Pixels.
• For the ruler only: click the ruler at the top, hover over Change units and pick one. Reset to presentation default puts it back to the default for your presentation's region.

What to check after turning Google Slides portrait

Google's help doesn't spell out what happens to existing text boxes and images when you change the page size, so look over every slide afterwards. Anything you placed for a wide layout is likely to need moving or resizing, and a title that sat neatly across the top may now wrap onto three lines.

My advice is to switch the size first, before you design anything. It's far quicker than rearranging a finished deck, and your theme's layouts will be easier to work with from the start.

• Check titles and text boxes still fit inside the edges.
• Look for stretched or squashed pictures and resize them from a corner.
• Re-centre logos and footers.
• Preview in Slideshow to see the full page.

Can you make Google Slides vertical on a phone?

Google's help directs you to open Google Slides on your computer to adjust slide size. If you're out and about, start the file on your phone if you like, then finish the page setup in a browser on a laptop or desktop.

Your phone is still handy for a quick look at how the finished page reads on a small screen, which is useful if the graphic is going on social media. Just do the size change itself on the bigger screen, where the Page setup box is.

Why a single Google Slides file can't mix vertical and horizontal

This catches people who want one wide slide and one portrait page in the same deck. Page setup applies to the whole presentation, so every slide shares one size. If you need both shapes, the simplest option is two separate files: one wide deck for presenting and one tall file for the printed handout or graphic.

Vertical Google Slides for small business marketing

For small business owners, a tall Slides file is a free little design studio. I've seen it used for event posters, service menus, team rotas, lead magnet worksheets and social graphics for platforms that favour tall images. Pinterest is the obvious one, and if you're building pins there, my guide to making a collage on Pinterest shows the native option too.

Slides is great for layout, but it's not a full design tool. When you need a logo or product shot to sit cleanly on a coloured page, prepare it elsewhere first, and my walkthrough on creating a transparent background in Canva gives you an image you can drop straight onto a vertical slide.

If Page setup won't make your Google Slides vertical

• Can't find Page setup: it's under the File menu in the browser version of Slides, not in the mobile apps.
• Slides still look wide: check you entered the bigger number as the height, not the width.
• Size snaps back: make sure you clicked OK, not just closed the box.
• Content looks squashed: resize images from a corner handle so they keep their proportions.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a portrait option in Google Slides?

Not as a preset. Google's Page setup offers Standard (4:3), Widescreen (16:9), Widescreen (16:10) and Custom. Use Custom and make the height bigger than the width.

Can I make just one slide vertical in Google Slides?

No. Page setup changes the size of every slide in the presentation. If you need a mix, use two separate files.

What units can I use for a custom slide size?

Google lists inches, centimeters, points and pixels in the Custom size boxes.

Can I change slide size in the Google Slides app?

Google's help says to open Google Slides on your computer to adjust slide size, so do the page setup in a browser.

Will my content move when I change the slide size?

Google's help doesn't say exactly what happens, so check each slide afterwards and resize or move anything that no longer fits.