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Powerpoint 2016 to PDF Page Margin Issue

Anonymous
2015-09-22T01:19:42+00:00

Hey guys! I am hoping to find the answer in these forums. I just upgraded to PPT 2016. I convert all of my PPTs to PDFs for an online business. Usually, I can click "print" "Save as PDF" - then I lock the PDF. The PDF then has a page that matches the 8.5X11 area of the page without white margins. I am usually prompted by a box that reads  "Page exceeds printable area" and I click "ok" rather than "fix" to get this to work.

Now, there is no option. I have tried to hours to save a PDF without the white margins. 

This is really messing up my formatting. Please tell me someone knows!!!

Microsoft 365 and Office | PowerPoint | For home | Windows

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  1. John Korchok 229.2K Reputation points Volunteer Moderator
    2015-09-22T18:41:51+00:00

    I was following as long as you were using actual command names, but what does "lock the PDF" mean? How does that change it from a 7.5" x 10" page to an 8.5" x 11"? The default for 2016 is now 16:9, which is not going to fill an 8.5" x 11" without distortion.

    I think a better approach is to create custom page sizes that match the PowerPoint slide dimensions:

    1. In PowerPoint, choose File>Print.
    2. Change the Page Size dropdown to Manage custom sizes.
    3. In the dialog, click on the plus sign in the lower left corner. A new page size is created.
    4. Type in a name like PPT Widescreen.
    5. Enter 10" for the Width (yes, that's correct, page sizes are always specced with the narrow dimension as the width)
    6. Enter 13.33" for the Height.
    7. Set all margins to 0". OK out.
    8. While you're there, create custom pages for OnScreen (5.63" x 10"), the older 16:9 format and Standard (7.5" x 10").

    Now, when you print to PDF, choose the same custom page size as is used to format the presentation and you'll get an undistorted borderless PDF.

    24 people found this answer helpful.
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  2. Anonymous
    2016-02-21T20:59:41+00:00

    I was following as long as you were using actual command names, but what does "lock the PDF" mean? How does that change it from a 7.5" x 10" page to an 8.5" x 11"? The default for 2016 is now 16:9, which is not going to fill an 8.5" x 11" without distortion.

    I think a better approach is to create custom page sizes that match the PowerPoint slide dimensions:

    1. In PowerPoint, choose File>Print.
    2. Change the Page Size dropdown to Manage custom sizes.
    3. In the dialog, click on the plus sign in the lower left corner. A new page size is created.
    4. Type in a name like PPT Widescreen.
    5. Enter 10" for the Width (yes, that's correct, page sizes are always specced with the narrow dimension as the width)
    6. Enter 13.33" for the Height.
    7. Set all margins to 0". OK out.
    8. While you're there, create custom pages for OnScreen (5.63" x 10"), the older 16:9 format and Standard (7.5" x 10").

    Now, when you print to PDF, choose the same custom page size as is used to format the presentation and you'll get an undistorted borderless PDF.

    Thank you John, I have searched for a while to find the answer to the "white border" for my TpT products.  This was the perfect solution and made me smile!

    9 people found this answer helpful.
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