strikethrough.text

PowerPoint on Windows and Mac

Strikethrough in PowerPoint Ctrl + T, then Alt + K

There’s no single-key strikethrough in PowerPoint for Windows. The fastest route is Ctrl + T to open the Font dialog, then Alt + K and Enter.

WindowsCtrl+TthenAlt+KOpens the Font dialog and ticks Strikethrough. Press Enter.
Mac⌘+Shift+XRecent versions. Otherwise Format → Font.
ButtonHome→ab̶c̶In the Font group

Updated · strikethroughtext.online

The quickest way on Windows

PowerPoint for Windows doesn’t come with a one-key strikethrough shortcut. These keys get you there in a second:

  1. Select the text on the slide, or select the whole text box to strike everything in it.
  2. Press Ctrl + T. The Font dialog opens.
  3. Press Alt + K to tick Strikethrough.
  4. Press Enter.

To take it off again, repeat the same keys: Alt + K unticks the box.

You can also use the ribbon without the mouse. Press Alt, then H for the Home tab, and PowerPoint shows a letter or number on every button. Press the one shown on the ab̶c̶ button.

With the mouse

  1. Select the text.
  2. On the Home tab, find the Font group.
  3. Click ab̶c̶ (Strikethrough). It sits next to Bold, Italic, Underline and Shadow.

In PowerPoint for the web the same button is in the Font group. If the window is narrow, it moves into the ··· overflow menu at the end of the toolbar.

PowerPoint for Mac

Select the text and press ⌘ + Shift + X. Recent versions of PowerPoint for Mac support it, the same as Word and Excel. If your version doesn’t respond, choose Format → Font from the menu bar and tick Strikethrough.

Double strikethrough

PowerPoint can draw two lines through text, which Google Slides can’t:

  1. Select the text and press Ctrl + T (⌘ + T on a Mac).
  2. Under Effects, tick Double Strikethrough.
  3. Click OK.

Revealing a strikethrough during a talk

A popular slide trick is to show a word, then cross it out live and reveal the replacement. Formatting can’t be animated, so build it from a shape:

  1. Type the old word. Draw a line over it with Insert → Shapes → Line, holding Shift to keep it straight.
  2. Make the line thick and give it a strong colour.
  3. Select the line, open the Animations tab and choose Wipe. Set Effect Options to From Left.
  4. Add the new word as a separate text box with an Appear or Fade animation after the line.

On the next click the line draws through the word, and on the click after that the replacement appears.

Copying struck text out of PowerPoint

Strikethrough is formatting, so it only travels into apps that understand formatting, like Word or Outlook. Paste a struck title into a chat message, a file name or a social post and the line disappears. The copy-paste version below puts the line into the characters themselves, so it survives anywhere.

Accessibility on slides

Screen readers don’t always announce strikethrough, so someone listening to your deck may hear the old figure and the new one as if both were current. If the change matters, say it in words too, for example “was £40k, now £55k”.

Copy-paste version

For the places where PowerPoint formatting won't follow your text, like file names, chat apps or a social bio.

9 characters, 2 words
Ctrl + Enter copies the first result

Runs in your browser. Nothing you type is uploaded.

  • strikethroughQ̶3̶ ̶t̶a̶r̶g̶e̶t̶
  • short strikeQ̵3̵ ̵t̵a̵r̵g̵e̵t̵
  • wavy strikeQ̴3̴ ̴t̴a̴r̴g̴e̴t̴
  • slashQ̷3̷ ̷t̷a̷r̷g̷e̷t̷
  • long slashQ̸3̸ ̸t̸a̸r̸g̸e̸t̸
  • double slashQ̸̷3̸̷ ̸̷t̸̷a̸̷r̸̷g̸̷e̸̷t̸̷
  • strike + underlineQ̶̲3̶̲ ̶̲t̶̲a̶̲r̶̲g̶̲e̶̲t̶̲
  • strike + overlineQ̶̅3̶̅ ̶̅t̶̅a̶̅r̶̅g̶̅e̶̅t̶̅
  • underlineQ̲3̲ ̲t̲a̲r̲g̲e̲t̲
  • double underlineQ̳3̳ ̳t̳a̳r̳g̳e̳t̳
  • overlineQ̅3̅ ̅t̅a̅r̅g̅e̅t̅
  • dottedQ̤3̤ ̤t̤a̤r̤g̤e̤t̤
  • waveQ̰3̰ ̰t̰a̰r̰g̰ḛt̰
  • x belowQ͓3͓ ͓t͓a͓r͓g͓e͓t͓
  • redacted█████████

Questions people ask

What is the shortcut for strikethrough in PowerPoint?

On Windows there is no single shortcut. Press Ctrl + T to open the Font dialog, Alt + K to tick Strikethrough, then Enter. On a Mac, recent versions of PowerPoint use Cmd + Shift + X. If that does nothing, use Format, then Font.

How do I remove strikethrough in PowerPoint?

Select the struck text and click the ab̶c̶ button on the Home tab again, or open the Font dialog with Ctrl + T and untick Strikethrough.

Can I do a double strikethrough in PowerPoint?

Yes. Select the text, press Ctrl + T to open the Font dialog, and tick Double Strikethrough under Effects. There is no ribbon button for it.

How do I make the strikethrough appear during the presentation?

Strikethrough formatting can’t be animated by itself. Draw a straight line over the word with Insert, Shapes, Line, then give the line a Wipe entrance animation from the left. It draws across the word when you click.

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