15 Tools That Will Upgrade Your Presentation Game

SlideUpLift
9 min readMay 3, 2024
Image with a lady sitting on a chair with a man showing her something on the TV. The image also has a few icons of the presentation tools mentioned in the blog. The title of the image is Tools That Will Upgrade Your Presentation Game

Making a presentation from scratch is a daunting task for many, especially when it comes to designing and adding the right content and explaining data simply. Many get tired when creating a slideshow while keeping these points in mind, making it challenging. That is where presentation tools come into play! These tools help you level your presentation game by creating visually appealing presentations with the right content and visualized data. With so many tools in the market, we decided to curate a list of the 15 best presentation tools you need!

How Are Presentation Tools Helpful?

Presentation tools are a godsend as they make the process of creating a presentation easier and help in other aspects of the slideshow. Here are the reasons why presentation tools are helpful.

Infographic of how do presentation tools help. The image lists the uses of tools, like communication and clarity, audience engagement, and improved efficiency.

1. Better communication and clarity

Using various tools and software, you can add visuals and structured data and emphasize and highlight key points in your presentation, helping you communicate with the audience clearly while ensuring that others understand your messages.

2. Increased audience engagement

Presentation tools help you add an interactive edge to your slideshow, like a poll, a quiz, or even a video, that helps increase engagement between you and the audience.

3. Efficiency is greatly improved

AI tools and template libraries help cut down the time it takes to design a presentation, allowing you to focus more on the much-needed aspects, like content refinement and rehearsals. This makes your presentation more impactful and visually appealing while saving time.

Best Presentation Softwares

Creating a presentation without the right software can be a tedious task for anyone. With so many software programs available, choosing the right one can be confusing. To help you out, here are the best presentation software options on the market right now!

Infographic of the best presentation software. It contains Microsoft PowerPoint, Google Slides, and Keynote with their respective icons

1. Microsoft PowerPoint

Price: $159.99

Microsoft PowerPoint is among the most recognized presentation software. Microsoft PowerPoint is not only user-friendly, but it is also compatible with almost every device. This makes it easy for you to access your presentation on whichever platform! PowerPoint also features a rich feature set, allowing you to easily add images, text, animations, data, and more. With a co-editing feature, Microsoft PowerPoint lets you collaborate with your peers and streamline your work, and with seamless integration with other Microsoft software, PowerPoint stands out as a strong contender.

2. Google Slides

Price: Free

Renowned as one of the best presentation software, Google Slides is another option that you can choose when it comes to creating presentations. With almost every feature from PowerPoint, like a rich feature set and co-editing, Google Slides allows multiple people to work on a slide, promoting teamwork. It is also accessible on any web browser, which eliminates any compatibility issues and a polished interface, making it a great choice for people who want to create a presentation on the go.

3. Keynote

Price: Free

Keynote is a presentation software that only a few know of, but it is as strong as Google Slides and Microsoft PowerPoint. Only available for iOS users (a little love to iOS lovers), Keynote is a sleek, stylish, and elegant software! With Keynote, you can easily add images, videos, audio, and data visualizations to your presentations. Unlike Google Slides, Keynote has limited collaborative features, which can be a dealbreaker for some. But, if you are a part of the Apple environment, then Keynote will be your best friend when it comes to making presentations.

There are many presentation applications, but these were the top 3. If you want to know more applications, our blog on the best presentation softwares will help!

Best PowerPoint Template Libraries

The best tool to help create a visually appealing presentation is using templates for your slideshow. A template is nothing but a preset of design and content that you can edit according to your needs and wants. Here are the best template libraries to create an eye-catching PowerPoint!

Infographic of the best powerpoint template libraries. It contains Microsoft PowerPoint, Google Slides, and SlideUpLift with their respective icons

4. SlideUpLift

Price: Depends on template

One of the best places to find high-end customizable PowerPoint templates has to be SlideUpLift. This website offers various templates depending on your needs, from professional roadmap templates to SWOT analysis templates. On SlideUpLift’s website, you will find almost any PowerPoint template that you need and customize it according to your needs. You can change the colors, icons, backgrounds, text, and a lot more! The best part is that these templates are compatible with Microsoft PowerPoint and Google Slides.

5. Microsoft PowerPoint

Price: $159.99

Yup, while being a presentation software, Microsoft PowerPoint is also a template library! MS PowerPoint has a built-in template library ranging from visually pleasing templates to professional slides. You can even import templates you downloaded online or create your own custom one! All the templates on PowerPoint are also 100% customizable, meaning that you can switch things around however you want.

6. Google Slides

Price: Free & Paid

Like Microsoft PowerPoint, Google Slides also offers a wide range of templates you can use according to your needs. Slides also allow you to import and edit your custom templates on it. The platform also provides free and paid options, allowing people on a budget to create visually appealing presentations as well.

Best Interactive Presentation Tools

Everyone loves an interactive presentation; it is the best way to help your audience understand something without having you deliver the information one way, and it also helps you maintain a flow. Here are the best interactive presentation tools to help you add an interactive element to your slideshow.

7. Mentimeter

Price: Free and Paid

When it comes to the best interactive tools for presentations, Mentimeter is name always mentioned. This tool shines during live presentations, helping you create real-time polls, Q&A sessions, quizzes, and more while the audience joins in using their phone or laptop. This keeps the audience engaged, and you get access to real-time insights, making it a popular choice for audience engagement.

8. Prezi

Price: Plans start from $5/month

Prezi is among the most renowned interactive tools for presentations in the market. It is known for its non-linear canvases, which allow you to zoom in and out of your elements for an improved storytelling experience. With the help of zooming in and out of various components, you can easily show the relation of each content in every element.

9. PowToon

Price: Plans start from $15/month

PowToon is another presentation tool that makes your slideshow interactive and light-hearted! PowToon is a tool that helps you create animated presentations with a cartoonish feel. PowToon is perfect when explaining a complex concept in a simple manner or targeting a younger audience using visuals and animations.

Now that you know the tools to make your presentation interactive. If you need help making your presentation interactive, check out our blog on the ways to make interactive and engaging presentations in PowerPoint.

Best Data Visualization Presentation Tools

The human brain is wired in a way that makes processing information using visuals easier than processing raw data. Using graphs, pie charts, histograms, and other visual aids helps your audience understand the data you are presenting without confusing them while keeping them engaged. To help you make your data more visual in a presentation, here are the best data visualization presentation tools.

10. Tableau

Price: Free and Paid

Tableau is among the best free data visualization tools that you can use to create engaging presentations! The application has a free version where you can visualize your data, but it won’t be private. The platform offers hundreds of data import options with mapping capabilities. If it is your first time using Tableau, they also provide video tutorials to help you get used to the platform and teach you how to use it to the max!

11. Microsoft Power BI

Price: Free and Paid

A great data visualization partner to PowerPoint is Microsoft Power BI. This platform goes ahead of a static visual and allows you to add a narrative to your presentation by highlighting the relationship and trend of each data. Power BI also allows your slideshow to be interactive by embedding live Power BI reports. This allows the audience to hover over the data and dive into the details using filters and slicers, helping them develop their insights.

12. Qlik Sense

Price: Free and Paid

Qlik Sense is a tool constantly mentioned when discussing data visualization tools for presentations, and it is for all the right reasons. Qlik Sense helps create interactive dashboards and visualization that allow your audience to understand the data better using data storytelling like Power BI. The platform is also easy to use with its drag-and-drop feature, enabling you to create visualizations even without experience.

Best AI Tools For Presentations

AI has become a tool that everyone uses due to its simplicity. You ask it to do something, and voila, within mere seconds or minutes (depending on what you ask), your output is ready. AI has now also entered the presentation market, where you can ask what type of presentation you need or any changes you want, and your presentation is ready. Making a presentation has never been as easy as it is now, so here are the best AI tools for presentations!

13. SlideUpLift’s AI Slide Editor

Price: Plans start from $24.99/month

SlideUpLift, while a template library website, also offers an AI Slide Editor that helps you create visually appealing presentations even if you have no experience in design. The AI tool helps users beautify their presentations and create new ones from scratch. The AI Slide Editor helps users create and customize each aspect of their PowerPoint slide. You can easily change text, alter colors, swap images, adjust fonts, and more by providing simple instructions to the AI, making it a great AI tool for presentations.

14. Gamma

Price: Free and Paid

The next AI tool for creating lovely presentations and decks is Gamma! This AI platform’s true strength lies in quickly creating alluring presentations based on your input, and it also suggests images and formats text to make the slideshow clear and engaging. The best part of Gamma is that it gives you multiple outputs, so even if you don’t like one output, you do not have to go back and change your prompt to add the changes you want. Gamma’s free plan lets you generate a small number of presentations and decks using AI; you will have to buy their Pro or Plus plan to increase the number.

15. Tome

Price: Free and Paid

Last but not least, our final presentation tool is Tome, an AI-powered platform that helps you create presentations with a focus on great storytelling. The platform helps cut down time and allows you to focus on the finer details of the slideshow, like the content and practice. Tome also allows you to collaborate with your peers, allowing for teamwork. Like Gamma, Tome also has limited uses until you purchase their Pro plan, but you get 500 credits at the start, helping you make your presentation.

These are the 15 presentation tools that will help you upgrade your game and create presentations that will leave your audience in awe. Now that you have created your slideshow, the time to present it is approaching. If you are someone who is scared to talk in public then our blog on tips to overcome your fear of public speaking will help you do exactly that!

FAQS

Which is the most widely used tool in presentation?
Microsoft PowerPoint is the most widely used tool in presentation.

What are data visualization tools?
Data visualization tools are applications that let show your raw data in a graphical way, like charts, graphs, pie charts, and more.

Why use templates in PowerPoint?
PowerPoint templates helps you stay consistent. If you are following brand colors and guielines, templates help you stay consistent.

What is the best interactive presentation tool?
Mentimeter, FlowVella, Nearpodd, Prezi, and PowToon are some of the best interactive presentation tools on the market right now.

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SlideUpLift

SlideUpLift, your go-to presentation partner, brings you tips, tricks, tutorials, guides, templates, and more to level up your presentation skills.