Phone Remote for PowerPoint on Windows

How PowerPoint on Windows receives the slide keys

PresentSync sends the same slide keys as a keyboard: Next and Prev act like the arrow keys and go to the window that is active. In PowerPoint on Windows, start with Slide Show > From Beginning or press F5, and keep the slideshow window in front for the whole talk. If you click into another program during the talk, click the PowerPoint slideshow again before you tap Next.

The pointer, the double-tap highlight and the long-press lines are drawn on the PC's screen above the slideshow. A line fades after a few seconds and nothing is saved into your PowerPoint file.

What Windows needs

Windows 10 (64-bit) or later. The PresentSync download page offers the installer (recommended, with a Start menu shortcut and a standard uninstall) and a ZIP portable package that you unzip and run.
The firewall prompt. If a firewall prompt appears when PresentSync starts, allow it, at least on private networks. Security software on the PC may also need to allow PresentSync.
One local network. The phone joins the PC over the same Wi-Fi or wired network. A PC on Ethernet and a phone on Wi-Fi still have to be part of the same local network; mobile data does not work.

Set it up in 3 steps

Install both apps. Get PresentSync for iPhone or Android and sign in. On the Windows PC, run the installer, open PresentSync (allow it if a firewall prompt appears) and scan its sign-in QR code with the phone.
Join the meeting. Click Start meeting in the desktop app and scan the meeting QR code with the phone.
Present. In PowerPoint press F5, then tap Next or Prev on the phone; swipe to point, double-tap to highlight and long-press to draw.

What PowerPoint users should know

Speaker notes and slide previews are not shown on the phone, and the phone does not mirror the PC screen. The phone is the pointer and the remote.
Colleagues can point at the same PowerPoint slideshow from their own phones, each with their own pointer color: up to 5 devices per meeting (10 on Pro).
On a Teams or Zoom call, share the entire screen that shows the slideshow, not only the PowerPoint window, so people on the call see the pointer. More in presenting while you share your screen.
Only have the deck as a PDF? See changing PDF pages from your phone.

If PowerPoint on Windows does not respond

The phone cannot connect. Check that PresentSync was allowed in the firewall prompt (or in your security software), that the phone and PC are on the same network and not on a guest Wi-Fi, and that any VPN or proxy on the phone is off.
Connected, but the slides stay still. PowerPoint must be showing the slideshow (F5), and the slideshow window must be the active one.
The phone left the meeting. Scan the meeting QR code in the desktop app again.
Still stuck? Go through the connection troubleshooting checklist.

Presenting from a Mac instead: PowerPoint on a Mac with a phone remote. Every app and computer in one table: supported presentation apps. Pointing, highlighting and drawing in detail: PowerPoint laser pointer on your phone.

Common questions

Which key does PresentSync send to PowerPoint on Windows?

Next and Prev act like the arrow keys on a keyboard. PowerPoint therefore has to be showing the slideshow, and the slideshow window has to be in front.

Do I have to allow PresentSync through the Windows firewall?

If a firewall prompt appears when PresentSync starts, allow it, at least on private networks. Most connection problems come from the phone and computer not being on the same local network, a firewall on the computer, or a VPN on the phone.

Can I control PowerPoint on a Windows PC from an iPhone?

Yes. The iPhone and Android apps have the same controls, and either one works with the PresentSync desktop app on Windows.

Can the phone use mobile data instead of the PC's network?

No. The phone must be on the same local network as the PC: the same Wi-Fi, or the same wired network.

Last updated 2026-11-15

Use your phone as a remote for PowerPoint on Windows