How to Rotate a Ruler in PowerPoint?

Instructors, teachers, students, and engineers use ruler tools more often in their presentations. The ruler tool in PowerPoint works quite like the actual ruler.

From aligning objects to drawing lines, a ruler can be used for multiple actions. Displaying a ruler is easy, but do you know how to rotate a ruler in PowerPoint to change its angle?

In this tutorial, we will help you understand how to rotate the ruler in PowerPoint and how to use it effectively for different drawings and tasks. If you want to learn how to make instant PowerPoint presentations with AI, stay with us till the end.

What is the Ruler in PowerPoint?

A ruler in PowerPoint is a visual guide used to draw straight lines and align objects and shapes in the slide. By default, it appears along the left top corner, and with little tweaks, you can adjust and rotate the ruler to any angle of your choice.

Objects and lines drawn with the help of a ruler look clean and perfectly aligned. Rotating a ruler should be easy, but unfortunately, you might have to follow these steps to understand how to rotate or change the angle of the ruler in PowerPoint.

Options to Rotate Ruler in PowerPoint

There are different options and workarounds to rotate the ruler in PowerPoint. We will discuss the most popular options to change the angle so that you get professional and clean slides for every presentation.

Method 1: Rotate Ruler with Mouse or Touch Pad

Most users prefer a mouse for drawing objects with great precision. If you have a mouse attached to your computer or laptop, rotating the ruler will be easy. You can do it with a mouse pad, too. Here are the steps that you need to follow.

Step 1: Display Ruler on Slide

Open your PowerPoint slide where you want to display the ruler and click the Draw tab. Here, click on the Ruler button, and you will see a ruler just like the image below.

Step 2: Rotate Ruler with Mouse Wheel

When you select the ruler to move it, you simply change its position, but it does not rotate. Select the ruler and scroll the mouse wheel, and you will see that the ruler will start rotating.

On a laptop with a mouse pad, place two fingers on the mouse pad and slide across the pad, and see that the angle starts changing. The setting to scroll down or up on the mouse pad may be slightly different for every model and make.

Method 2: Rotate via Ruler Manipulation Mode

With the first method, you get more control over rotating the ruler, but for some users, this may not work due to the unavailability of a mouse or different mouse pad configurations.

In this method, you can change the ruler’s angle by 15 degrees. Here is how to do it in ruler manipulation mode.

Step 1: Display Ruler on the Slide

Go to the Draw tab and display the ruler on the slide. You can display a ruler on any slide, blank or existing slides with content.

Step 2: Enter Ruler Manipulation Mode

Select the ruler, press the Shift + F6 combination to activate the ruler manipulation mode. Now, use CTRL + Right/Left Arrow keys to rotate the ruler by 15 degrees.

Ruler Does not Rotate in PowerPoint.

Despite following these steps and methods on how to rotate a ruler in PowerPoint, some users may face issues. This happens with the older versions of PowerPoint. Latest versions have made it easier to rotate the ruler with the mouse wheel or touch pad.

Users with an older PowerPoint version can try the keyboard keys to rotate the ruler. Try updating your PowerPoint version for a smoother and convenient experience.

How to Show Ruler on the Sides of the Screen?

PowerPoint has an amazing feature where you can display a ruler on the top and left side of the slide preview screen. These rulers can be customized or resized to perfectly align objects and elements on the slide.

If rulers are not visible on the sides of the screen, go to the View tab >> check the Ruler tab in the Show section as shown in the attached image.

Making Clean and Attractive Presentations with AI

PowerPoint is a powerful tool for making presentations, and millions of professionals use it every day for personal and business slides. There is a common problem that every user has to face: making presentations takes too much time.

What if you could achieve the same level of professional and attractive slides without spending hours on designing and formatting slides?

Twistly has made it possible for PowerPoint users to enjoy ChatGPT-like features inside PowerPoint. Now, you can generate complete presentations within seconds by providing the presentation topic or a simple prompt.

Benefits of Twistly Add-in

The very first benefit that attracts users is the seamless integration with PowerPoint. You don’t need to leave the software, as Twistly add-in brings all AI features to the software.

Here are some amazing benefits of Twistly for making instant and professional presentations:

• Generate attractive and professional slides and presentations within minutes
• Automation of slide designing, formatting, and structure
• AI content for complex topics and concepts
• Insert stock images or create custom AI images
• Create detailed speaker notes for slides
• Powerful AI capabilities that can improve your overall PowerPoint experience

Conclusion

Use the mouse wheel, touch pad, or ruler manipulation mode with ALT + Arrow keys to rotate the ruler in PowerPoint, or let Twistly help you create AI slides. Sometimes we have to explore some additional steps to use the true potential of PowerPoint features and tools.

The struggle of making professional and attractive slides in PowerPoint can be frustrating for beginners and professionals. Twistly is the best AI presentation maker that is equally useful for all types of users. Download Twistly now and claim your limited-time free trial version.

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