Icons are a powerful visual tool that can enhance your presentation, reinforce your message, and make your content easier to understand. But instead of relying solely on pre-made icons, why not design your own? PowerPoint’s shape tools make it surprisingly easy to create a custom icon set that matches your branding and presentation style.
In this blog, we’ll walk you through how to design unique icons using PowerPoint shapes—no graphic design experience required.
Why Create Your Own Icons in PowerPoint?
- Customization: Tailor icons to fit your content and branding
- Consistency: Ensure all visuals align with your design theme
- Creativity: Add a personal touch that generic icons can’t match
- Accessibility: No need for external design software
Step-by-Step: Designing Custom Icons with Shapes
- Set Up Your Design Space
Start with a blank slide:
- Change the background to white or transparent for easy exporting
- Zoom in to give yourself more design space
- Choose a Simple Concept
Think about the message or function of the icon (e.g., phone, chart, person, idea). Simplicity is key—stick to basic, recognizable forms.
- Use PowerPoint Shapes as Building Blocks
Head to Insert > Shapes and choose from:
- Circles, squares, and triangles
- Lines and arrows
- Flowchart and callout shapes
Use Merge Shapes under the Shape Format tab to combine, subtract, or intersect shapes for more complex designs.
- Align and Size Consistently
- Use the Align tools to center elements
- Keep a consistent size for all icons
- Create a visual grid to maintain uniform spacing and layout
- Add Color and Style
Apply your brand colors or a monochromatic scheme:
- Use Shape Fill and Outline options
- Keep styles minimal for a clean, professional look
- Group and Export
Once your icon is complete:
- Select all elements and Group them
- Right-click > Save as Picture to export the icon as PNG or SVG
Tips for Icon Design in PowerPoint
- Use simple geometry to maintain clarity at small sizes
- Limit icons to 1-2 colors for a cohesive style
- Test your icons on slides to ensure readability
- Duplicate and modify shapes to build variations quickly
Ideas for Custom Icons You Can Make
- Social media icons (custom logos or simplified symbols)
- Business tools (documents, graphs, briefcases)
- Communication (chat bubbles, phones, email)
- Educational (books, pencils, graduation caps)
Final Thoughts
Designing custom icon sets with PowerPoint shapes is a great way to enhance your presentations without relying on external graphics. It gives you control over style, color, and consistency—plus, it
