Quick answer: A presentation slide should carry roughly 6–15 words for the headline, and the supporting text should stay below about 25 words. The speaker carries the detail; the slide is the visual support.

The exact number depends on the deck type, but the principle is the same.

The rule by slide

Slide Text target
Title slide Title, name, one line
Problem / claim One headline sentence
Data slide A headline, the chart, a label
Process slide One label per step, 1–4 words
Quote slide The quote, the attribution
Code slide The code block, almost no prose
Closing The takeaway, the contact

The speaker's notes carry the rest

The spoken detail belongs in the speaker notes, not on the slide. The slide is the headline; the notes contain the sentence the founder says.

Why crowded slides fail

  • The audience reads the slide and stops listening.
  • The founder reads along with the audience.
  • The text is unreadable from the back of the room.
  • The slide is a document, and the presentation is redundant.

The exceptions

  • The self-sent PDF. A deck that's read without the founder can carry more text, because it functions as a document.
  • The training deck. A process step can carry a sentence, because the learner references the slide.
  • The quote slide. The quote is the content; the slide can be longer.

These are the exceptions to a live presentation, not the default.

The fix

If a slide is text-heavy:

  1. Write the headline as a claim, not a topic.
  2. Move the explanation to the speaker notes.
  3. Split the slide into two, one idea per slide.
  4. Replace bullets with a diagram, a screenshot, or a chart.

Frequently asked questions

Is the six-word limit real? It's a guideline for the headline, not a rule. The point is that the headline is the only text the audience reads. Can the deck be text-heavy if it's read as a PDF? A separate PDF version can; the presented deck should not. How many bullets per slide? Three to five short labels, and only if bullets are the right form. What about a pitch deck? Even shorter; the investor listens to the founder.

Write the headline the audience should remember, then say everything else out loud.

A practical rule for slide density

Slides are visual cues, not documents, so aim for a short headline and a few supporting words rather than full sentences. The exact count depends on layout, but if the slide needs paragraphs, the content belongs in speaker notes or a handout. Keep one idea per slide, let the presenter carry the detail, and check that text stays inside the safe area and remains readable at the back of the room.