How Many Slides Should You Include in a Presentation? The Answer Will Surprise You!

Key Takeaways:

• There is no magic number of slides suitable for every presentation. What matters is not how many you use but how they are perceived by the audience. Their number should be proportional to the complexity of the content and the goals of the presentation. Each slide should be well-organized and designed to enhance understanding, focusing on one clear and easily readable concept.

• Well-designed slides add meaning to the speech, making it clearer and more engaging without being redundant or overloaded with information. You can use many slides, as long as they help maintain a dynamic pace and support the narrative flow.

• Slides should be conceived as part of a seamless narrative that guides the audience from introduction to conclusion. A good narrative flow helps maintain attention and guides the audience through the presentation’s key points. Each slide should play a specific role in this structure, reinforcing the main message without overwhelming the experience. This balance between visuals and content makes the presentation effective and memorable.

How to Adapt the Number of Slides to Your Needs and Create a Narrative Flow That Captivates Your Audience

Have you ever attended a presentation that seemed endless, with the speaker flipping through slides as if stuck in an infinite loop? Or have you found yourself staring at a blank PowerPoint slide, wondering, “How many slides do I actually need?“

This is precisely the moment when you start to feel the weight of the decision—a weight that’s not easy to bear!

It’s a bit like figuring out how many photos to include in an album: too many, and no one will go through it; too few, and you’ll miss important details. Finding the right number of slides is a real art.

Opinions?

Well, they’re everywhere—more plentiful than sand at the beach—and all equally enlightening! You’ve noticed that, right?

Some say five minimalist slides are enough to look professional, while others claim you need at least fifty to explain yourself properly.

The result? You’re likely more confused now after reading countless conflicting opinions.

Let’s bring some clarity: if there’s one idea that communication experts worldwide agree on, it’s this: less is more. Fewer slides, but used effectively, are a great starting point to create an effective presentation and avoid boring the audience—or worse, putting them to sleep.

The problem is that even when listening to advice from world-class gurus, you might come across lessons that are less universal than they seem.

Let’s start right there.

Guy Kawasaki’s Rule: 10 Slides to Captivate the Audience

You’ve probably heard of him, but if not, let’s fix that right away: Guy Kawasaki is a recognized authority on storytelling and promoting ideas, products, and brands in an engaging, persuasive, and authentic way. He’s regarded as a marketing master, having developed an approach that goes beyond mere commercial promotion, aiming to create an emotional connection and a sense of belonging between people and what’s being communicated.

Today, he’s a successful entrepreneur and the author of books that have inspired thousands to improve their communication skills.

In short, he’s no rookie.

Among Guy’s most famous contributions is the well-known 10/20/30 Rule.

“And what’s that, Maurizio?”

It’s simple. In essence, Guy Kawasaki strongly recommends that:

• a presentation should have no more than 10 slides. Why? Because 10 are enough to cover the main points without losing the audience along the way;
• the maximum duration of a presentation should be 20 minutes. Beyond that, attention spans inevitably drop;
• finally, each slide should use a font size no smaller than 30 points. This ensures readability and forces you to avoid overcrowding slides with unnecessary details.

The most interesting part, at least for our topic, is the 10-slide limit. According to Kawasaki, if you can’t explain your point in 10 slides, there’s something wrong with your message.

And honestly, to some extent, he’s right: how often have you sat through presentations where the speaker seemed to have more slides than ideas?

The crux of Kawasaki’s rule is this: brevity and clarity. Too many slides or overly dense slides can turn your presentation into a reading exercise for the audience. And when the audience is busy reading, they stop listening to you. In other words, the slides become a distraction, and the speaker fades into the background.

It’s like going to the theater and finding the set design more interesting than the actors—a disaster, essentially.

The 10/20/30 Rule is, therefore, a good starting point for your presentations, but like any guideline, it shouldn’t be taken too literally. An effective presentation isn’t about numbers; it’s about how the slides complement the speech.

Read also: How long should a presentation last? Let’s make it clear

It’s Not About the Number of Slides but How You Use Them

Here’s the central point: is there a perfect number of slides?

The short answer is no. There’s no magic number that works in all cases. Spoiler alert: there’s no magic answer to any presentation question.

The longer answer, however, is more interesting.

Imagine slides as the bricks of a house. You can use few or many, but what matters is how you arrange them to create something solid and functional. Kawasaki’s rule is perfect for those who tend to build “houses” that are overloaded and shaky, but it’s not an unchangeable law.

Personally, I believe the ideal approach is different: as I like to emphasize in training sessions, it doesn’t matter how many slides you use, but how they are perceived by the audience. If each slide adds value and clarifies the message, then you’re on the right track. If, on the other hand, slides become a burden (too much text, too many graphs, too many elements), you risk losing the audience’s attention. In short, it’s a matter of balance.

Our team’s presentation style doesn’t rely on creating a fixed and limited number of slides. On the contrary, we often use many slides, but we design them to be light, concise, and easy to process. During presentations, we don’t dwell on a single slide for too long: we let them flow with the rhythm of the speech, creating a smooth, dynamic… dare I say… symphony of slides?

The goal?

To engage the audience without ever boring them. Slides never steal the spotlight; they work in harmony with the speaker, like a soundtrack accompanying a film.

Narrative Flow: The Key to a Winning Presentation

At this point, you might be wondering, “Okay, Maurizio, this makes sense, but how do I apply this advice?”

Good question.

The answer is planning. Slides only work if they are part of a coherent narrative flow.

A useful model for building this flow is the “What? So What? Now What?”.

If you’re unfamiliar, here’s how it works.

1. What? Explain the context. What are you talking about? What’s the main problem or topic? This phase serves to capture the audience’s attention and prepare them for what’s to come. Example: You’re opening a pitch to present a startup plan. In the first phase, you communicate, “Every year, millions of small retailers lose revenue because they don’t have access to simple and affordable digital marketing tools. Many still rely on word of mouth, but this is no longer sufficient in the online world.”
2. So What? Why does what you’re saying matter? What’s the value of your message? Here, you need to convince the audience that listening to you is worthwhile. This is the heart of your presentation, where you turn simple data or ideas into something meaningful. Example: You continue the pitch by presenting the solution to the problem, aiming to convey this message: “Our platform allows retailers to create effective marketing campaigns in under 5 minutes, increasing sales by an average of 30%. This transforms digital marketing into a simple and accessible tool, even for those who aren’t experts.”
3. Now What? And now? Conclude with a call to action. What do you want the audience to do at the end of the presentation? This is the moment to leave a lasting impression and encourage the audience to take action. Example: “We’re seeking a €500,000 investment to expand our team and launch the platform nationwide within six months. With your support, we can transform how retailers compete in the digital market.”

This structure not only makes the presentation clearer and more engaging but also helps you choose the ideal number of slides for your specific case. Each slide should answer one of these three questions, contributing to the narrative flow and integrating with it naturally and seamlessly.

Read also: PowerPoint slide sizes: how to change them and manage them better

Don’t Fixate on Slides: Focus on the Message You Want to Convey

To summarize: how many slides are needed for an effective presentation?

It depends.

Guy Kawasaki’s rule is an excellent starting point, but it shouldn’t be taken literally. Go ahead, use 10, 20, heck, even 50 slides if each one is pulling its weight and working in harmony with your speech.

Ultimately, the real question isn’t “how many slides should I use?” but “how can I make my message memorable?”

Slides are just a tool. They don’t make an effective presentation; you do. You create a connection with the audience, convey emotions and ideas. Slides are there to support you, not replace you.

At the end of the day, the audience won’t remember how many slides you used but how you made them feel. If you succeed in engaging them, making them think, and leaving them with a clear idea in mind, you’ve hit the mark.

If this article helped you solve the mystery of the ideal number of slides for a presentation, share it with colleagues and acquaintances. And if you’d like to delve deeper into this topic, leave a comment below. I’ll be happy to respond!

Otherwise, see you in the next blog articles.

See you soon!

How Many Slides to Include in a Presentation: FAQ

What is the ideal number of slides for an effective presentation?

The ideal number of slides varies depending on the content and goals of the presentation. There’s no fixed rule, but it’s important that each slide serves the message and helps clarify the speech. The goal is to keep the audience’s attention high while avoiding overcrowding slides with too much information.

What does Guy Kawasaki’s 10/20/30 Rule suggest?

The 10/20/30 Rule proposed by Guy Kawasaki suggests structuring a presentation with no more than 10 slides, keeping the duration to 20 minutes, and writing text with a font size of at least 30 points. This approach aims to maintain the audience’s attention, encourage conciseness, and ensure that the information is easily readable and understood. It’s a useful method, but not one to follow rigidly, especially for presentations focused on conveying clear messages in professional contexts.

What is the “What?-So What?-Now What?” model?

The “What?-So What?-Now What?” model is a narrative structure used to organize presentation content clearly and effectively. The first phase, “What?”, introduces the context and presents the topic or problem to be addressed. The second phase, “So What?”, highlights why the topic is important, emphasizing the value and significance of the message to the audience. Finally, the “Now What?” phase focuses on the conclusion, proposing a call to action or reflection that encourages the audience to act or view the message as relevant. This structure helps create a logical, engaging, and easily understandable narrative.

Some illustrations were taken from Freepik and modified by MLC Design Team