When organizing your PowerPoint slide content, you may need to delete a text box. This guide shows you the most straightforward methods and some troubleshooting options if it stubbornly won’t delete.
Option #1: Use the Delete keyboard shortcut
Left-click the text box border to select it, then press:
- Windows users: press DEL on your keyboard.
- Mac users: Backspace on your keyboard.
Option #2: Cut the text box
Even though this is an indirect method, it allows you to delete a text box without using your keyboard.
Right-click the text box border and select Cut.
Alternatively, select the text box, go to the Home tab and click the Cut icon. The text box will now be deleted.
Still can’t delete the text box? Try these solutions
Scenario #1: Text box is under other objects
It isn’t easy to select a text box when other objects are layered over it. You can use this solution to select it instead:
- Go to the Home tab, select Arrange, then click Selection Pane…
Select Selection Pane… - A “Selection” panel will appear on the right with a list of objects on the slide. Select the object names until your desired text box is selected on the slide. Then, use one of the options above to delete it.
Select the text box in the selection pane for deletion.
Scenario #2: The text box is grouped
When objects are grouped, they appear as one element on the slide. Therefore, if you want to delete a grouped text box, you have to ungroup it first.
- First, select the text box.
- Go to the Home tab, select Arrange, then click Ungroup.
Select Ungroup - Now you can select the text box and hit the DEL key on your keyboard (backspace on Mac).