Quick answer: Every major slide tool can be forced into a vertical (portrait) shape by changing the page or slide dimensions to be taller than they are wide, usually around 1080 × 1920 pixels for a 9:16 mobile fit. In Google Slides it's File → Page setup → Custom, in PowerPoint it's Design → Slide Size → Custom Slide Size → Portrait, and in Canva you pick a portrait size when you create the design. The catch is the same everywhere: these are desktop tools wearing a portrait costume, and they all fight you the moment your slides are meant to be viewed on a phone.
Below is the short version for each tool, an honest comparison of where each one breaks, and the faster way to build vertical slides that are actually made for mobile.
Can you make slides vertical?
Yes. All three big tools support a portrait page shape, but none of them is truly built for it:
- Google Slides has no orientation button at all. You change custom page dimensions instead.
- PowerPoint has a real Portrait toggle, the cleanest of the three, but it still treats vertical as an export size, not a viewing format.
- Canva lets you start in a portrait size, but resizing an existing design needs a Pro feature.
In every case you're changing the shape of a horizontal-first tool. The format underneath stays the same: static pages you click through, designed to be shown on a wide screen and edited on a laptop.
How to make vertical slides in each tool
Google Slides
- Open your deck at slides.google.com.
- File → Page setup.
- Open the size dropdown and choose Custom.
- Enter a taller-than-wide size:
1080 × 1920pixels (true 9:16) or7.5 × 13.33inches. - Click Apply.
Full walkthrough with the catch nobody mentions: How to Make Google Slides Vertical →
PowerPoint
- Open the Design tab.
- Click Slide Size → Custom Slide Size.
- Under Orientation, choose Portrait (or set width smaller than height).
- For 9:16, set
7.5"wide ×13.33"tall. - Choose Maximize or Ensure Fit when prompted for how to scale existing content.
Full walkthrough: How to Make PowerPoint Slides Vertical →
Canva
- Start a new design and pick a portrait size (for example Mobile / 1080 × 1920), or set a Custom size that's taller than it is wide.
- To convert an existing design, use Resize (a Canva Pro feature) or copy your content into a new portrait design.
- Design into the tall frame and export or share.
Full walkthrough: How to Make a Vertical Presentation in Canva →
Which tool should you use? (honest comparison)
| Google Slides | PowerPoint | Canva | Flow2 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vertical setup | Custom page size | Portrait toggle | Pick portrait size | Vertical by default |
| One-click orientation | No | Yes | At creation | N/A (always vertical) |
| Reflows content when resized | No | Partially | Partially (Pro) | No resizing needed |
| Mix orientations in one file | No | No | No | Per-screen layouts |
| Built for phone viewing | No | No | No | Yes |
| Scroll + tap interactivity | No | No | Limited | Yes |
| Share as a live link | Export/link | Export | Link/export | flow2.co/m/… link + QR |
| Built-in analytics | No | No | Limited | Yes |
The pattern is consistent. You can get a vertical rectangle out of any of these. What you can't easily get is a presentation that feels native on a phone: full-screen, scrollable, tappable, and shareable as a link people actually open.
The easier way: build vertical-first with Flow2
Flow2 starts where the others stop. It's mobile-first and vertical by default, so there's no page-setup hack and nothing to rebuild when you switch shapes:
- Vertical from the first screen: no resizing, no squished layouts.
- Made for phones: your audience opens a link and it just works, full-screen, the way they already scroll everything else.
- Scroll and tap, not click-through: vertical scrollytelling, interactive menus, and rich media (video, etc.) built in.
- Share as a link: send a
flow2.co/m/…link or QR code; no file, no app, no "can you see my screen?" - Built-in analytics: see what people actually viewed.
If you need a vertical deck for a desktop print-out, any of the three tools above will do. If you're building vertical slides because your audience lives on their phone, that's exactly what Flow2 is for.
Already have a deck? Upload an existing PowerPoint (or export your Google Slides / Canva design to .pptx first) and Flow2 rebuilds it as a vertical, mobile-ready flow you can share as a link. Free to try, no install.
FAQ
What size should a vertical slide be? For a true 9:16 mobile shape, use 1080 × 1920 pixels (or 7.5 × 13.33 inches). For a gentler portrait, 7.5 × 10 inches works well across all the desktop tools.
Can you mix vertical and horizontal slides in one presentation? Not in Google Slides, PowerPoint, or Canva. Each file uses a single orientation. If you need both shapes together, you need a tool with per-screen layouts.
Which tool is best for vertical slides? For a quick portrait export, PowerPoint is the smoothest because it has a real orientation toggle. For slides meant to be viewed and shared on phones, a mobile-first tool like Flow2 is a better fit, since vertical is the native format rather than a workaround.
Can I present vertical slides on a normal monitor? You can, but a tall slide on a wide screen leaves large empty bars on both sides. Vertical decks look best on vertical screens, which is why phones (and tools built for them) are the natural home for the format.
Do vertical slides work for social media? Yes. 1080 × 1920 is the native 9:16 resolution for Stories, Reels, and most phone screens, so exporting at that size keeps everything crisp.
Related: How to Make Google Slides Vertical · How to Make PowerPoint Slides Vertical · How to Make a Vertical Presentation in Canva