Edit a Teams Based PowerPoint File – It’s Easy!

Opening a PowerPoint file from Teams in the desktop app is a common task, but we’ve had some questions about the exact steps involved. Let’s clarify the process with a straightforward walkthrough, along with some helpful tips. First, it’s important to understand that a file in Teams is actually a SharePoint file. Teams serves as an interface to SharePoint, making it easier to access files without navigating to the SharePoint site directly. However, the files are still stored in SharePoint, and the process for opening them remains the same.

Teams gives you 3 (yes 3!) ways to open a PowerPoint file:

  • Open in teams – Opens the file directly within the Teams interface
  • Open in browser – Pops the file open in your default browser in PowerPoint for web
  • Open in desktop app – This is the option we’re looking for, as the desktop app allows you to use the full features of PowerPoint AND any add-ons that you’ve enabled

Here’s how to open a PowerPoint file with the full features and power of the desktop app:

  1. Go to the file in Teams and select it
  2. Click the three-dot menu (“More Options”)
  3. From the dropdown menu, choose Open in Desktop (or it may say Open in App)

TIP: Update the Teams open default by clicking  “Change default” in the drop-down menu and selecting Desktop and hitting save. Now whenever you click a PowerPoint file in Teams it (should) open in the desktop app automatically.

That’s it. The presentation is now stored on Teams, ready for collaboration editing, AND open in the PowerPoint Desktop App!

-The TLC Creative Design Team