The fastest way to add music to PowerPoint

Open your presentation in PowerPoint, click the slide where you want the music to start, then go to the Insert tab at the top. Click Audio and choose Audio on My PC to select a music file from your computer. PowerPoint will place the audio icon on that slide — you can move it anywhere or resize it, and the music will play when you click the icon during your presentation.

If you want the music to play automatically when the slide appears instead of requiring a click, right-click the audio icon, select Play Settings, and check Play Across Slides. You can also set it to start automatically by clicking the Audio Tools tab that appears after you insert the audio, then choosing Start: Automatically instead of Start: On Click.

The music file must already exist on your computer — PowerPoint embeds it into the presentation file itself, so the file size will grow. Common formats that work are MP3, WAV, M4A, and AAC files.

Key Takeaways

  • Insert audio by going to the Insert tab, clicking Audio, and selecting Audio on My PC to choose a music file from your computer.
  • The audio icon appears on your slide and can be moved or hidden; clicking it during presentation mode plays the music.
  • Change the audio to play automatically when the slide appears by right-clicking the icon, selecting Play Settings, and checking Play Across Slides.
  • Your presentation file size increases because PowerPoint embeds the music file inside it, so very long audio files can make the file slow to open.
  • MP3, WAV, M4A, and AAC are the most reliable music formats; other formats may not work depending on your version of PowerPoint.

Where to find music files to use

You need an actual audio file on your computer before you can insert it. If you own music on your computer already — songs you downloaded, recordings you made, or files from a music service — those are ready to use. Right-click the file, select Properties (Windows) or Get Info (Mac), and check the file format; if it says MP3, WAV, M4A, or AAC, PowerPoint will accept it.

If you need to find music, royalty-free music sites let you read files legally without paying per use. Sites like Pixabay Music, Incompetech, and Free Music Archive offer music you can read and use in presentations. Read each site's license to confirm you can use the music in a presentation — most allow it for free, but some require you to credit the artist in your slides.

Avoid copying music directly from YouTube or music streaming services like Spotify. Those services do not let you read files, and using their music in a presentation without permission violates their terms of service.

Controlling when and how the music plays

By default, the audio icon sits on your slide and the music only plays when someone clicks it. If you want the music to play automatically as soon as the slide appears, click the audio icon, go to the Audio Tools tab, and change Start from On Click to Automatically. You can also set a delay in seconds if you want the music to wait before starting.

If you want music to continue playing across multiple slides instead of stopping when you move to the next slide, right-click the audio icon and select Play Settings. Check the box for Play Across Slides. This is useful for background music during a section of your presentation — the music keeps playing even as you advance through several slides.

To hide the audio icon so it does not appear on your slide during presentation mode, right-click it and select Hide During Show. The music will still play, but the audience will not see the speaker icon. This works best when the audio is set to play automatically.

Adjusting volume and trimming music

Click the audio icon on your slide, then go to the Audio Tools tab. You will see a Volume button that lets you set the playback volume to Low, Medium, or High. If you need more precise control, click the small arrow next to Volume to see a slider.

To trim a music file so only part of it plays, click the audio icon and look for the Trim Audio button in the Audio Tools tab. A window will open showing the audio waveform — drag the handles at the start and end to choose which section plays. This is useful if you have a long song but only want the first 30 seconds, or if you want to skip the intro and start at a specific moment.

These adjustments only affect how the audio plays in your presentation — they do not change the original music file on your computer.

Troubleshooting music that will not play

If you insert a music file and it will not play, the most common cause is that PowerPoint does not recognize the file format. Check the file extension — right-click the file and look at the name. If it ends in .flac, .ogg, .wma, or another format besides MP3, WAV, M4A, or AAC, you need to convert it first. Free conversion tools like Audacity or online converters like CloudConvert can change the file to MP3 format.

If the file format is correct but the audio still will not play, try inserting it again. Sometimes PowerPoint fails to embed the file properly on the first attempt. Delete the audio icon from your slide, go back to Insert > Audio > Audio on My PC, and select the same file again.

If you are sharing your presentation with others via email or a file-sharing service, remember that the music file is embedded inside the PowerPoint file itself. The file size will be much larger than a presentation without audio — a three-minute song can add 5 to 10 megabytes to your file. If the file is too large to email, compress the presentation by going to File > Info > Compress Media and choosing a quality level.

Using music from online sources instead of files

PowerPoint also lets you search for music directly from the Insert menu without downloading a file first. Click Insert > Audio > Online Audio, and you can search for music from Bing Image Search. However, this method is less reliable than inserting a file you already own — the online source may become unavailable, or the music may not embed properly into your presentation file.

For a presentation you plan to share or present multiple times, downloading a music file to your computer and inserting it as a file is more dependable. Online audio works best if you are presenting from your own computer and the internet connection is stable.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I add different music to different slides?

Yes. Insert an audio file on each slide where you want music to play. Set each one to play automatically or on click. If you want different songs to play in sequence without gaps, set each audio to play automatically and use Play Across Slides so the next song starts when you advance to the next slide.

What if my music file is too large and slows down PowerPoint?

Go to File > Info > Compress Media and choose a quality level. This reduces the file size by lowering the audio quality slightly. Select Standard Quality for most presentations — the difference is usually not noticeable during playback.

Will the music play if I open the presentation on a different computer?

Yes, because PowerPoint embeds the audio file inside the presentation. The music will play on any computer that has PowerPoint installed, as long as you share the entire presentation file and do not move or delete the original music file from your computer.

Can I use copyrighted music from a CD or streaming service?

Using copyrighted music in a presentation without permission violates copyright law, even if the presentation is only for a classroom or small group. Use royalty-free music from sites like Pixabay Music or Incompetech instead, or purchase a license from the copyright holder.

How do I remove music from a slide?

Click the audio icon on the slide and press Delete. The music will be removed from that slide only. If you want to use the same music on a different slide, you will need to insert it again.