5 Best Free PowerPoint Background Sites

Liven up your presentation with these free backgrounds

By
Stacy Fisher
Profile photo of Stacy Fisher
Stacy Fisher
Technology Educator
  • Emporia State University
Stacy is a professional technology educator with over 25 years' experience. She has published hundreds of articles, co-authored a book, and has appeared on national and local TV.
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Updated on July 29, 2022

Add free PowerPoint backgrounds to your presentation to bring more to your work than regular wallpaper. These backgrounds are designed so that text, photos, and other slideshow content take center stage. The background stays where it belongs, and you'll create a professional-looking presentation.

Information in this article applies to PowerPoint 2010 and newer, including PowerPoint Online.

01
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FreePPTBackgrounds.net

science PowerPoint background from Free PPT Backgrounds
What We Like

  • Several ways to browse.

  • Full-size previews.

  • Detailed download pages.

  • Multiple size options.

  • Save the background only, or use the template with it already included.

What We Don't Like

  • Ads look like download buttons.

  • No ratings.

FreePPTBackgrounds.net is a great source for free PowerPoint backgrounds. Some download are ZIP files that contains one or more images that follow the same design, and others are PPTX or PPT files that already have photos as the slide backgrounds.

Think of these downloads as a PowerPoint theme that's broken up into separate images. Use any image you wish. Some backgrounds include the template in PPT form.

02
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FreePPTBackground.com

Free arrow heading up on barchart image free PowerPoint background.

 FreePPTBackground.com
What We Like

  • Tags to find relevant backgrounds.

  • Shows user comments.

  • Very few ads.

What We Don't Like

  • Some backgrounds are mislabeled as animated.

Most of these backgrounds are the ideal quality, size, and position for use in a presentation program. There are numerous categories, such as Colors, Food, Nature, 3D, Vector, and Wedding.

To download these backgrounds, right-click a background image (or tap and hold on a touch screen) and save the image to your computer.

03
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PPTback.com

Free graduation PowerPoint background from PPTback.com
What We Like

  • Highlights similar backgrounds.

  • Tons of categories.

  • Find new and popular backgrounds.

What We Don't Like

  • Several ads per page.

The backgrounds from this site are image files that you must right-click or tap and hold to download. Look for images in different categories, such as Cars, Drawings, Landscapes, Culture, Cartoons, Abstract, Party, and much more.

Most of the backgrounds are wide and positioned perfectly for text, shapes, and other content added to a presentation.

04
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PPTBackgrounds.net

puzzle powerpoint background image
What We Like

  • Thousands of backgrounds.

  • Variety of categories.

What We Don't Like

  • Site riddled with ads.

  • Some images have watermarks.

PPTBackgrounds.net is another great source. Some of the categories of images include culture, music, organic, beauty, 3D, Christmas, animated, and culture.

Every download page has a comment section to see what other viewers think. You can also check the popularity of each background with the download count. Details like the size and image format are included above the download button.

05
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Unsplash

Light shining in the night sky

Tim Oun / Unsplash
What We Like

  • Hundreds of images.

  • High-quality photos.

  • Download in original size.

What We Don't Like

  • Can't sort or filter the results.

  • No comments or ratings.

  • Lots of portrait oriented photos.

Looking for something a bit more lifelike? Actual photos, available from the free stock photo site Unsplash, are available for PowerPoint backgrounds, too.

These images are already categorized away from the rest of the site's collection, so you can't filter or sort them. But there are some really great images here.

If you need one of these images to be landscape, you can crop the photo in PowerPoint.

Liven Up Your Presentation

These free PowerPoint backgrounds will make your next presentation pop and leave a lasting impression. They're easy to add to both new and existing presentations, so you get a lot of value for the little effort it takes to find and download one.

You don't need Microsoft PowerPoint to use these images. Try a free presentation software program or a free online presentation maker to create a slideshow and integrate these backgrounds.

Are you looking for a little more than a background? Free PowerPoint themes change the look of a presentation and take it to another level.

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