Collage Templates for PowerPoint & Google Slides

PowerPoint has five built-in methods for making a photo collage. The fastest is using a pre-made collage template; the most flexible is arranging images manually from scratch. All methods work in PowerPoint 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Microsoft 365.

Method 1 — Use a Collage Template (Fastest Method)

Best for: anyone who wants a polished result in under 5 minutes without manually positioning images.

• Step 1:  Open PowerPoint and go to File > New.
• Step 2:  In the template search bar, type ‘photo collage’ or ‘picture album’.
• Step 3:  Select a template from the results and click Create.
• Step 4:  Click any image placeholder — a picture icon appears in the centre. Click it and choose your photo.
• Step 5:  Repeat for each placeholder. Adjust background colours and fonts as needed.

Method 2 — Use the Picture Layout Feature

Best for: quickly arranging a set of photos you already have, with automatic grid formatting.

• Step 1:  Go to Insert > Pictures > This Device and select all your photos at once.
• Step 2:  With all images selected on the slide, click the Picture Format tab.
• Step 3:  Click Picture Layout and hover over each option to preview the arrangement.
• Step 4:  Click the layout you want. PowerPoint automatically crops and sizes all photos to fit.
• Step 5:  To add captions, type directly into the text boxes below each image.

Method 3 — Use the Photo Album Feature (Best for Many Photos)

Best for: collages with 10 or more photos that should be spread across multiple slides.

• Step 1:  Go to Insert > Photo Album > New Photo Album.
• Step 2:  Click File/Disk to select multiple photos from your device.
• Step 3:  Set your picture layout (1, 2, or 4 images per slide) and choose a frame shape.
• Step 4:  Click Create. PowerPoint builds the full album automatically.
• Step 5:  Customise each slide by swapping images, adjusting crops, and editing text.

Method 4 — Use the Designer Sidebar (Microsoft 365 Only)

Best for: Microsoft 365 subscribers who want AI-generated layout suggestions instantly.

• Step 1:  Insert your photos onto a blank slide via Insert > Pictures.
• Step 2:  The Designer sidebar opens automatically on the right. If it does not, go to Home or Design and click Designer.
• Step 3:  Scroll through the suggested layouts and click one to apply it.
• Step 4:  Select ‘See more design ideas’ at the bottom of the sidebar for additional options. 

Method 5 — Build a Custom Collage from Scratch

Best for: full creative control over image placement, shape cropping, and overlapping layouts.

• Step 1:  Insert all images onto a blank slide via Insert > Pictures.
• Step 2:  Enable guides and gridlines: View tab > check Ruler, Guides, and Gridlines. This lets you snap images into precise alignment.
• Step 3:  Resize each image by dragging the corner anchor points. Hold Shift to maintain aspect ratio.
• Step 4:  To crop an image to a shape, select it, go to Picture Format > Crop > Crop to Shape, and choose a shape.
• Step 5:  Use right-click > Bring to Front or Send to Back to layer overlapping images.
• Step 6:  Add colour consistency: select a photo, go to Picture Format > Color, and apply a colour overlay to harmonise photos with different tones.

What Is a PowerPoint Photo Collage?

A PowerPoint photo collage is a slide — or set of slides — that combines multiple photographs into a single, visually organized layout. Unlike a standard slideshow, where each slide shows one image, a collage arranges several photos together on one slide using grids, overlapping frames, mosaic patterns, or scrapbook-style designs.  PowerPoint supports collage creation natively using the Picture Layout feature (which automatically arranges selected images into 30 different grid styles), the Photo Album tool (for multi-slide picture books), and the Microsoft Designer sidebar (which generates layout suggestions automatically in Microsoft 365). You can also use pre-built collage templates, which provide image placeholders that you fill with your own photos.  The most common uses for a PowerPoint photo collage include wedding presentations, birthday slideshows, school and university projects, photography portfolios, travel recaps, team introduction slides, and photo collage gifts. You can also explore free PowerPoint templates for additional collage layouts and styles

PowerPoint Collage Templates

A PowerPoint collage template is a pre-built slide file (.PPTX) with image placeholders already positioned and styled. Instead of placing and sizing photos manually, you click each placeholder, insert your image, and the layout holds everything in place automatically. Our best PowerPoint Templates save time and remove the need for design skills — the spacing, proportions, and visual balance are already done for you.  The templates in this collection cover the most commonly searched collage styles:

• Photo grid templates — equal-sized image cells arranged in 2×2, 3×2, or 3×3 grids. Clean and structured. Best for professional presentations, team introductions, and portfolio slides.
• Scrapbook-style templates — overlapping photos, slight rotations, decorative borders, and handwritten-style fonts. Popular for family memories, school projects, and birthday slideshows.
• Photo mosaic templates — many small images fill the entire slide background to form a visual mosaic. Used in anniversary presentations, Year in Review decks, and graduation slideshows.
• Photo album layouts — a multi-slide presentation where every slide follows a collage layout, building a complete visual album from cover to end. Common for wedding presentations, travel recaps, and event highlights.
• Google Slides collage templates — compatible.PPTX files that open and edit correctly in Google Slides. No Microsoft licence required. Ideal for Google Classroom and shared Google Drive projects.

All templates in this collection are compatible with PowerPoint 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, Microsoft 365, and Google Slides.

How to Make a Collage on Google Slides?

Google Slides does not have a dedicated Picture Layout or Photo Album feature like PowerPoint, but you can still make a photo collage in Google Slides using image insertion, manual arrangement, and pre-built collage templates.

Method 1 — Use a Google Slides Collage Template

• Step 1:  Download a collage template from this collection. You will receive a .PPTX file.
• Step 2:  Go to Google Drive, click New > File Upload, and upload the PPTX file.
• Step 3:  Once uploaded, right-click the file and select Open with > Google Slides.
• Step 4:  Click any image placeholder, then go to Insert > Image > Upload from computer to add your own photos.
• Step 5:  Repeat for each placeholder. Share or present directly from Google Slides.

 Method 2 — Build a Collage in Google Slides from Scratch

• Step 1:  Open a new Google Slides presentation and go to Insert > Image > Upload from computer.
• Step 2:  Insert all your photos onto the slide. They will stack on top of each other — this is normal.
• Step 3:  Click and drag each image to position it. Drag the corner handles to resize.
• Step 4:  To crop an image: select it, go to Format > Crop image, and drag the handles to set the visible area.
• Step 5:  To layer images, right-click and use Order > Bring to front or Send to back.
• Step 6:  Use View > Guides to enable alignment guides for precise positioning.

Using professionally designed Google Slides templates can make creating a collage faster, helping you arrange photos with pre-built layouts, styles, and alignment guides.

Photo Collage Present Ideas

A photo collage is one of the most personalized gifts you can give — and PowerPoint makes creating one surprisingly straightforward. Instead of paying a printing service to design it for you, a collage template lets you arrange the photos yourself, print the result, and frame it — often for a fraction of the cost.  Here are the most popular photo collage present ideas that work well with PowerPoint and Google Slides templates:

• Framed photo grid collage — a 2×2 or 3×3 grid of meaningful photos printed at A3 or A4 size and framed. One of the most searched college gift formats. Use a photo grid template, export as PDF, and print at a local print shop for best quality.
• Anniversary photo timeline collage — a sequence of photos from across the years of a relationship, arranged chronologically on one slide with year labels. Works particularly well as a framed gift or slideshow presented at a party.
• Birthday memory collage — a collection of photos featuring the recipient across different ages and life moments, often combined with short captions. Popular for milestone birthdays (18th, 21st, 30th, 50th).
• Family photo collage — a scrapbook-style or grid collage featuring family members, holidays, and shared moments. Can be printed large for display, used as a digital keepsake, or presented as a slideshow at family gatherings.
• Travel photo collage — a destination-themed layout combining photos from a trip. Often used as a gift to document a shared travel experience. Photo album templates work best here.
• Baby milestone collage — a month-by-month or year-by-year photo layout tracking a child’s growth. Popular as a nursery print or first birthday gift. Scrapbook-style templates are well-suited to this use case.

Tip: For a print-quality photo collage gift, export your finished PowerPoint slide as a PDF (File > Save As > PDF). Then convert the PDF to a 300 DPI PNG using a free tool such as Adobe Express or Smallpdf before sending it to a printer. PowerPoint’s default JPEG export is only 96 DPI — too low for anything larger than a 4×6 print.

PowerPoint Collage Template vs. Google Slides: Which Should You Use?

Both platforms support photo collage creation, but the right choice depends on how you plan to use the finished collage.  Choose PowerPoint if: you need the widest range of editing tools (Picture Layout with 30 styles, Photo Album feature, Designer sidebar in Microsoft 365), you plan to print the collage (PowerPoint’s PDF export gives the best print-quality output), or you want full animation control for a slideshow presentation.  Choose Google Slides if: the presentation will be shared collaboratively and edited by multiple people in real time, it needs to be embedded in a Google Site or assigned in Google Classroom, or you do not have a Microsoft 365 licence.  For collage templates, most PPTX files in this collection open correctly in Google Slides when uploaded to Google Drive. The image placeholders, layout, and most formatting transfer intact. Some custom fonts and advanced animations may not carry over — for these, a Google Slides-native template will give the cleanest result.

Common Mistakes When Making a Photo Collage in PowerPoint

Even with a template, a few common errors can make a photo collage look inconsistent or unprofessional. These are the most frequent mistakes — and exactly how to avoid each one.

• Using low-resolution source photos. PowerPoint does not improve image quality when resizing. Always use the highest-resolution photos you have. For printed collages at A4 size or larger, source images should be at least 2400 x 3000 pixels.
• Allowing PowerPoint to compress images by default. PowerPoint compresses inserted images automatically to reduce file size. To prevent this: go to File > Options > Advanced > Image Size and Quality and tick ‘Do not compress images in file’. Essential for print-quality output.
• Mixing very different aspect ratios without planning. Portrait and landscape photos placed in the same-sized placeholders result in heavy cropping. Group similar aspect ratios together, or use a template with mixed-size placeholders that accommodates both.
• Overloading slides with text. Collage slides are visual. Large text blocks compete with photos for attention and reduce impact. Limit text to short captions, dates, or single-line labels.
• Exporting at default 96 DPI for print. PowerPoint’s default image export is 96 DPI — fine for screens, pixelated for print. Export as PDF first (File > Save As > PDF), then convert to high-resolution PNG using a free online tool before sending to a printer.