Slide in LaTeX: How to Make Slides with Beamer

To make a slide in LaTeX, use the Beamer document class: put \documentclass{beamer} at the top of your file and write each slide as a frame environment. Beamer is a LaTeX class for making presentations and slides; it works in both PostScript and direct PDF output modes and uses the pgf graphics system (CTAN, read 2026-11-08). This guide is for researchers who want a compile-ready slide file they can adapt for a talk, and it covers adding slides, revealing content step by step, columns, and the errors that most often trip up a first deck.

What it is used for in research

Beamer produces slide decks as PDF from the same LaTeX source you use for papers, so equations, citations and symbols are typeset the same way in the talk as in the manuscript. It is a presentation class, not a poster tool: for posters see the CASRAI guides on the beamerposter package and on scientific poster design. If you prefer not to install anything, a browser-based editor can compile Beamer files; see LaTeX editors on the web.

Install or access (official source only)

Beamer is distributed through CTAN, the Comprehensive TeX Archive Network, at ctan.org/pkg/beamer. The package is listed under the licences FDL, LPPL 1.3c and GPL v2+, and its user guide is at mirrors.ctan.org/macros/latex/contrib/beamer/doc/beameruserguide.pdf. Its source repository and bug tracker are at github.com/josephwright/beamer. Overleaf documents Beamer as a standard class you can use directly in an Overleaf project (Overleaf Beamer documentation, read 2026-11-08).

Step-by-step: build a slide deck

1. Choose the class. Start the file with \documentclass{beamer}. The default text size is 11pt; you can set another with an option such as \documentclass[17pt]{beamer}. The supported sizes are 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 17 and 20pt (Overleaf Beamer documentation).
2. Pick a theme. Add \usetheme{Madrid} (other themes such as Boadilla work the same way). If you also set a colour theme, for example \usecolortheme{beaver}, it must come after \usetheme.
3. Set the title information. Use \title{...}, \subtitle{...}, \author{...}, \institute{...} and \date{...}. A short form in square brackets, \title[Short]{Full title}, supplies the text that themes can show in the footer. \logo{...} adds a logo.
4. Make the title slide. Inside the document, write \frame{\titlepage}. The \titlepage command has to sit inside a frame.
5. Add a slide. Each slide is a frame: \begin{frame}, then \frametitle{Title}, then your content, then \end{frame}.
6. Reveal content in steps. Put \pause where the next piece should appear, or add overlay specifications to list items, as in \item<1-> and \item<2->.
7. Use columns. Wrap them in \begin{columns} … \end{columns} and start each with \column{0.5\textwidth}.
8. Compile. Compile the file with your LaTeX toolchain or in Overleaf to get a PDF.

Complete example

This file combines the pieces above. It uses only the commands described in the Overleaf Beamer documentation and its Beamer tutorial (read 2026-11-08).

\documentclass{beamer}
\usetheme{Madrid}
\usecolortheme{beaver}

\title[Short title]{Full Title of the Talk}
\subtitle{Optional subtitle}
\author{Your Name}
\institute{Your Institution}
\date{\today}

\begin{document}

\frame{\titlepage}

\begin{frame}
\frametitle{Key Points}
\begin{itemize}
  \item<1-> First point, visible from the first step
  \item<2-> Second point, appears on the second step
  \item<3-> Third point, appears on the third step
\end{itemize}
\end{frame}

\begin{frame}
\frametitle{Two Columns}
\begin{columns}
  \column{0.5\textwidth}
  Left column text.
  \column{0.5\textwidth}
  Right column text.
\end{columns}
\end{frame}

\begin{frame}
\frametitle{Reveal Step by Step}
First line.
\pause
Second line, shown after one more step.
\end{frame}

\end{document}

Output and how to read it

The result is a PDF in which each frame becomes one or more pages. A frame is the basic container for a slide, and one frame can produce several PDF pages when it uses overlays such as \pause or \item<2->. In the example above, the title page and the columns frame give one page each; the key-points frame gives three pages, one per step; the pause frame gives two. So the page count of the PDF is normally larger than the number of frames in the source.

Troubleshooting

Symptom	Likely cause	Fix
Colour theme does not take effect as intended	\usecolortheme placed before \usetheme	Move \usecolortheme after \usetheme
Title slide not produced	\titlepage used outside a frame	Write \frame{\titlepage}
PDF has more pages than you have frames	Overlays (\pause, \item<1->) create one page per step	Expected behaviour; remove overlay commands from frames you want on one page

Free alternatives

Beamer itself is free software, and slides are not tied to one editor. The table lists what the sources document.

Option	What it is	Source
Beamer on CTAN	The class itself, licensed under FDL, LPPL 1.3c and GPL v2+; works in PostScript and direct PDF output modes	CTAN beamer package page
Beamer in Overleaf	Online LaTeX editor with documented Beamer support and tutorials	Overleaf Beamer documentation

For other editors you can use, see LaTeX editors on the web, and for working with LaTeX on a tablet see LaTeX on iPad. For fonts in a Beamer deck, see Beamer fonts in LaTeX.

FAQ

How do I add a new slide in LaTeX?

Add another frame environment: \begin{frame}, a \frametitle{...}, your content, and \end{frame}.

Can one slide produce several PDF pages?

Yes. A frame with overlays such as \pause or \item<2-> yields one PDF page per step.

Which font size does Beamer use by default?

11pt. Other supported sizes are 8, 9, 10, 12, 14, 17 and 20pt, set as a class option.

Do I need the Beamer user guide?

It is the reference for everything beyond this guide; it is available as a PDF from CTAN.

Sources

• CTAN: beamer package (read 2026-11-08)
• Overleaf: Beamer (read 2026-11-08)
• Overleaf: Beamer Presentations, a Tutorial for Beginners (Part 1) (read 2026-11-08)
• Beamer user guide (PDF, CTAN)