A video really helps keep people’s attention. Embedding a YouTube video in a PowerPoint presentation allows you to play that video as long as it is online and you have good internet access. We have discussed the benefits of using online video with PowerPoint in the past.

We recommend that you download the video for your presentation instead of playing it from the internet in this article. But, there may be cases where you can’t do that. For example, when you’re sharing the presentation with other people. Sending people the whole video with the presentation might be an issue especially through email. Email attachments also have size limits, so linking the YouTube video might be better.

Adding a YouTube Video In PowerPoint 2010 and 2013

Use the Developer tab to add a youtube video. Click File from the Ribbon and click Options.

YouTube - File - Options - PowerPoint 2013 - FreePowerPointTemplates

Click Customize Ribbon and make sure that Developer is checked.

YouTube - File - Options - Custom Ribbon - Developer - PowerPoint 2013 - FreePowerPointTemplates

Click OK, and now you should be able to see the Developer tab added to the Ribbon Menu. Click the Developer tab and click the Icon for More Options.

YouTube - Developer - More Controls - PowerPoint 2013 - FreePowerPointTemplates

Find Shockwave Flash Object in the list by pressing S on the keyboard. Press OK.

YouTube - Developer - More Controls - Shockwave Object - PowerPoint 2013 - FreePowerPointTemplates

Click and Drag to draw the Embedded Object in the slide

YouTube - Developer - More Controls - Shockwave Object - Draw - PowerPoint 2013 - FreePowerPointTemplates

(Click here to download the PowerPoint Template used in this example)

Now, copy your YouTube URL from the web browser.

YouTube - Copy Youtube URL from Browser - PowerPoint 2013 - FreePowerPointTemplates

Change the URL to the correct format.

https: //www.youtube.com/watch?v=hNuiYpG_6m8

delete watch? and “=” form the address. Add / after “v”. You should get a URL like this:

https: //www.youtube.com/v/hNuiYpG_6m8

Now, Right-click the embedded object you made by Clicking and Dragging earlier, and click Property Sheet. Insert the URL in front of the Movie field.

Make Sure The Video Plays

When you’re dealing with online video, there is a chance your internet connection won’t be good enough to play the video smoothly. If you don’t want that to happen, then please make sure to check the video before giving your presentation. Make sure that it is playing correctly.

Image: [CC BY 3.0] via Wikimedia Commons

Image: [Public Domain] via Pixabay