Copilot vs. PowerPoint Designer: Which Tool for Which Task?

Quick Answer: Should You Use Copilot or Designer in PowerPoint?

I watched a consulting client waste 40 minutes last Thursday trying to get Copilot to fix her slide layouts.

Forty. Minutes.

She kept prompting: “Make this look better.” “Redesign slide 3.” “Fix the formatting.”

Copilot kept creating new slides instead of fixing the existing ones. She was getting frustrated. Her deadline was in two hours.

Here’s what I told her: “You’re using the wrong tool for the job.”

She switched to Designer. Three clicks later, her slides looked professional. Total time: 90 seconds.

The confusion between Copilot vs. Designer in PowerPoint costs professionals hours every week. Both are AI tools built into PowerPoint. Both promise to make your presentations better. But they do completely different things – and using the wrong one for your task is like using a hammer to screw in a lightbulb.

After testing both tools on 50+ client decks across banking, biotech, and SaaS, I’ve mapped exactly when to use each. Here’s the breakdown that’ll save you the trial-and-error I went through.

What People Get Wrong About Copilot vs. Designer in PowerPoint

The professionals crushing it with PowerPoint AI tools aren’t treating Copilot and Designer as interchangeable.

They’re strategically choosing which tool to use based on what they need to accomplish.

Here’s the core difference most people miss:

Designer is a visual layout engine. It looks at what’s already on your slide and suggests ways to arrange it better. It doesn’t create content – it arranges content.

Copilot is a content generation engine. It creates new slides, writes text, restructures presentations, and generates ideas. It can also access information from other documents, emails, and data sources.

Using Copilot to fix layouts is like asking ChatGPT to resize your photos. Using Designer to generate content is like asking Photoshop to write your emails. Wrong tool, wrong job.

I cover the full Copilot workflow in my complete PowerPoint Copilot tutorial, but understanding this Copilot vs. Designer distinction comes first.

When to Use PowerPoint Designer (The Layout Tool)

Designer has been in PowerPoint since 2016. It’s mature, fast, and surprisingly good at what it does – as long as you use it for the right tasks.

Here’s what surprised me after years of training corporate teams: most people either don’t know Designer exists or completely ignore it in favour of the shiny new Copilot. That’s a mistake.

Designer Works Best For Visual Upgrades

Use Designer when you have content that’s already correct, but looks boring or unprofessional:

• Slide layout suggestions: Drop an image and text on a slide, and Designer offers 8-12 layout options instantly
• Image placement: Designer automatically suggests cropping, positioning, and text wrapping
• Icon recommendations: Type a keyword and Designer suggests relevant icons with professional placement
• Chart formatting: Basic chart beautification and colour scheme suggestions
• Template-consistent formatting: Designer respects your template’s fonts and colours

Real Example: Banking Pitch Deck Formatting

Last month, an investment banking analyst sent me 15 slides with solid content but inconsistent layouts. Every slide looked different. Charts were different sizes. Text alignment was random.

I ran Designer on each slide. Total time: 8 minutes.

The result? Consistent, professional layouts that matched their brand template. No content changes – just visual polish.

If she’d tried using Copilot for this, she’d have spent an hour fighting with prompts and likely ended up with new content she didn’t want.

A senior associate at a Big Four firm told me recently: “I used to spend 30 minutes per deck just making slides look consistent. Designer does it in under 5.” That’s the kind of time savings that compound.

Designer Limitations (Be Honest About These)

Let me be blunt. Designer can’t:

• Create new content from scratch
• Restructure your presentation flow
• Pull information from other documents
• Write speaker notes
• Generate slides from prompts

If you need any of those, you need Copilot.

When to Use PowerPoint Copilot (The Content Engine)

Copilot is the newer, more powerful tool – but power means nothing if you don’t know when to use it.

I’ll admit something: when Copilot first launched, I tried using it for everything. Layouts, formatting, content – you name it. Most of that was wasted effort. It took me three months and probably 40 failed experiments to figure out where Copilot actually shines.

Copilot Excels at Content Generation

Use Copilot when you’re starting from scratch or need to create, restructure, or transform content:

• Creating presentations from prompts: “Create a 10-slide investor pitch for a fintech startup”
• Generating slides from documents: Turn a Word doc or PDF into slides
• Restructuring existing decks: “Add an executive summary” or “Reorganise for a technical audience”
• Creating speaker notes: Generate notes based on slide content
• Content summarisation: Condense long presentations or create overview slides

For the complete prompt library I use with clients, check out my best PowerPoint Copilot prompts guide.

Real Example: SaaS Product Launch Deck

A SaaS client needed 12 slides for a product launch. They had a 15-page product brief in Word.

I uploaded the brief to Copilot with this prompt: “Create a 12-slide product launch presentation for enterprise buyers. Focus on ROI, implementation timeline, and integration capabilities. Professional tone, data-driven.”

First draft in 4 minutes. We spent 25 minutes refining.

Total time: 29 minutes for a deck that would’ve taken 3+ hours from scratch.

Then I ran Designer on each slide for visual polish. Another 5 minutes.

That’s the Copilot vs. Designer workflow that actually works: Copilot for content, Designer for looks.

What People Get Wrong About Copilot’s Capabilities

I learned this the hard way. Copilot struggles with:

• Precise layout control: You can’t prompt “put the image in the top-right corner”
• Brand consistency: It often ignores template colours and fonts (see my fix generic Copilot slides guide)
• Complex data visualisation: Charts often need manual fixing
• Editing existing slides: It prefers creating new slides over modifying current ones

Everyone tells you Copilot is the future and Designer is legacy. Here’s what I’ve found: the professionals saving the most time use both, strategically. Designer isn’t obsolete – it’s essential.

Copilot vs. Designer PowerPoint: Side-by-Side Comparison

Task	Use Designer	Use Copilot
Fix ugly slide layouts	[YES] – 1-click suggestions	[NO] – Creates new slides instead
Create slides from scratch	[NO] – No content generation	[YES] – Full content creation
Turn Word doc into slides	[NO] – Can’t read documents	[YES] – Imports and converts
Improve image placement	[YES] – Multiple layout options	[NO] – Limited visual control
Write speaker notes	[NO] – Visual only	[YES] – Generates from content
Add consistent icons	[YES] – Smart icon suggestions	[NO] – Hit or miss
Restructure presentation flow	[NO] – Slide-by-slide only	[YES] – Full deck restructuring
Speed of results	Instant (1-2 seconds)	30-90 seconds per generation
Cost	Free with Microsoft 365	Requires Copilot licence ($30/month)

My Biotech Copilot Disaster (Learn From This)

I tried using Copilot vs. Designer interchangeably on a biotech investor deck last year. This is embarrassing to admit, but you’ll learn from it.

The client had 20 slides ready for a Series B pitch. Good content, ugly layouts. Classic formatting inconsistency.

Instead of using Designer for the visual fixes, I prompted Copilot: “Make these slides look more professional and investor-ready.”

Copilot interpreted “make these slides” as “create new slides.” It generated 12 new slides that duplicated content, changed the narrative flow, and removed three slides of clinical trial data that were critical to the pitch.

The founder called me at 9pm: “Where’s our Phase 2 data?”

I spent 90 minutes untangling the mess. Designer would have taken 10 minutes.

Here’s what I learned: Copilot in PowerPoint creates content. Designer arranges content. Never confuse the two.

The Professional Workflow: Copilot Then Designer

After testing Copilot vs. Designer on dozens of real client decks, here’s the workflow that consistently delivers the best results:

Step 1: Start With Copilot (If Creating Content)

If you’re building a presentation from scratch or from source material:

1. Use Copilot to generate your first draft
2. Review and edit the content for accuracy
3. Have Copilot add speaker notes
4. Use Copilot to restructure if needed

For detailed prompts that work, see my PowerPoint Copilot tutorial.

Step 2: Polish With Designer (Always)

Once content is finalised:

1. Go slide by slide with Designer
2. Select layouts that match your template
3. Let Designer optimise image placement
4. Use Designer’s icon suggestions for visual interest

This Copilot vs. Designer PowerPoint workflow typically saves 45-90 minutes per deck compared to using either tool alone.

The Contrarian Take: Sometimes You Don’t Need Copilot at All

This is going to sound counterintuitive coming from someone who sells Copilot training.

But here’s the truth: for probably 40% of presentation tasks, Designer alone is faster, cheaper, and better.

I had a client last month who was paying $30/month for Copilot and barely using it. She was formatting existing decks, not creating new content. Designer – which she already had for free – did everything she needed.

Don’t buy Copilot because it’s new and exciting. Buy it because you create presentations from scratch regularly. If you’re mostly reformatting and polishing? Designer is your tool. It’s free. It’s fast. It works.

The professionals who save the most time aren’t the ones with the fanciest tools. They’re the ones who use the right tool for each task.

When Designer Beats Copilot (Even If You Have Both)

Here’s something that surprised me after months of testing: even with full Copilot access, Designer is often the better choice.

Quick Formatting Under Deadline

Copilot takes 30-90 seconds per request. Designer shows options in 1-2 seconds.

When an investment banker needs slides ready in 10 minutes, Designer wins every time. No prompting, no waiting, no reviewing AI-generated content for accuracy.

Client Edits and Revisions

Client says “make slide 7 look better”? Don’t overthink it.

Click on slide 7. Open Designer. Pick a layout. Done in 15 seconds.

Using Copilot for this would take longer, might change content you don’t want changed, and adds unnecessary complexity.

Preserving Exact Content

Sometimes the words matter more than the look. Legal disclosures. Regulatory statements. Approved messaging.

Designer will never change your words. Copilot might “improve” them without asking. I’ve seen it happen on compliance-sensitive slides. Not worth the risk.

A management consultant told me last week: “I finally get the difference between Copilot vs. Designer. I was fighting with Copilot for layout fixes when Designer does it in one click. I’m saving 45 minutes per deck now.”

That clarity – knowing which PowerPoint AI tool to use for which task – is what separates frustrating AI experiences from genuine productivity gains.

If you want the complete prompt library I use with banking, consulting, and SaaS clients – including 50+ tested prompts that work with Copilot and pair perfectly with Designer polish:

Or for the comprehensive 201-page resource with industry playbooks:

Get the PowerPoint Copilot Master Guide – £29

100+ tested prompts | 8 industry playbooks | Tested on £100M+ deals

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About the Author: Mary Beth Hazeldine is the founder of Winning Presentations, with 24 years of corporate banking experience at JPMorgan Chase, PwC, Royal Bank of Scotland, and Commerzbank. She tests every AI recommendation on real client decks before sharing it. Her clients have raised over £250 million using her presentation methodology.