How to Turn a PowerPoint Slide Into an A1 Conference Poster

The critical step comes first: in PowerPoint, go to Design → Slide Size → Custom and set the slide to 84.1 × 59.4 cm (A1) before designing. A standard 16:9 slide scaled up to A1 turns crisp logos and charts into blur. Design at true size, export via File → Save As → PDF, and you have a printable conference poster.

Step by step

1. Design → Slide Size → Custom Slide Size → 84.1×59.4cm (landscape) or 59.4×84.1 (portrait).
2. Choose "Ensure Fit" if converting an existing slide, then fix the layout manually — everything will need resizing.
3. Insert images at high resolution; charts pasted from Excel as vector (paste special → PDF/EMF) stay sharp at any size.
4. Body text 24pt+; headings 60pt+; title 90pt+ — readable from a metre away.
5. File → Save As → PDF. Check the PDF page size says 841×594mm.

The mistake every year at conference season

Designing at default slide size and asking the printer to "just blow it up". At 4× enlargement, 96dpi screen-resolution images land around 24dpi. If your source images are modest, what DPI survives at poster size is worth two minutes' reading.

University of Suffolk and visiting researchers

We print academic posters at A1 and A0 regularly — matte or satin 200gsm, and same-day is realistic with a correct PDF by 1pm, which matters when the conference is tomorrow. Poster prices are published here.

FAQ

A0 instead? Set 118.9×84.1cm; everything else identical. Will you check my PDF? Yes, free — we'll flag low-res images before printing. Fabric posters for flights? Ask ahead — foldable fabric is available on longer lead times.