Template Jeopardy Game on PowerPoint: Build or Adapt One Fast

The quickest way to get a Jeopardy game on PowerPoint is to use a template built on one board slide whose point values link to clue slides, with a link on every clue slide back to the board. You can download one or build your own with nothing but PowerPoint’s built-in Link and Trigger features, and no macros are needed.

Below is how these templates work, how to build one from scratch, and what to check before you put a downloaded file in front of a class or team.

How a PowerPoint Jeopardy template works

Every template, free or paid, uses the same structure. iSpring’s gamification guide sums it up: you need a board slide, question slides and answer slides, connected with hyperlinks.

• Board slide: a grid with category names across the top and point values (100, 200, 300 and so on) below.
• Clue slides: one per tile. Each shows the clue and has a way to reveal the answer.
• Return links: a button or text on each clue slide that jumps back to the board.

Because players pick tiles in any order, the game only works in Slide Show mode while you click links. Pressing the spacebar or arrow keys moves to the next slide in sequence, which skips around the board.

Should you download a template or build your own?

If you download one, stick to sources you recognize and read the license, especially for classroom or company use. Aggregator sites that list “free Jeopardy templates” often lead to files of unknown origin. Avoid macro-enabled files (.pptm) unless you trust where they came from.

Build your own Jeopardy board, step by step

This follows the approach in iSpring’s step-by-step tutorial, which uses a table for the board and hyperlinks for navigation, plus Microsoft’s own documentation for each feature.

1. Make the board

1. Add a blank slide and go to Insert > Table.
2. Make a grid of 5 columns by 6 rows (one header row for categories plus five rows of point values). iSpring’s tutorial uses a 5x5 grid. Adjust it to fit how many questions you want.
3. Type category names in the top row and point values in the cells below.
4. Format the table so it fills the slide and the numbers are large enough to read from the back of the room.

Some builders prefer separate rectangles instead of a table, because each shape can be moved, colored and linked on its own. Either works.

2. Create the clue slides

1. Add one slide per tile and put the clue on it. A 5x5 board means 25 clue slides.
2. Put the answer on the same slide (revealed by a click, see step 4) or on a separate answer slide right after it.
3. Name or number your slides clearly, for example “Science 300”, because you’ll pick them from a list in the next step.

3. Link each tile to its clue

Microsoft’s hyperlink guide covers the official way:

1. On the board, select the point value text (or the shape) for one tile.
2. Go to Insert > Link.
3. Choose Place in This Document (some versions say This Presentation or This Document).
4. Pick the matching clue slide and select OK.
5. Repeat for every tile.

4. Add a return link and an answer reveal

1. On each clue slide, insert a shape or text box that says “Back to board”.
2. Link it to the board slide using the same Insert > Link > Place in This Document steps.
3. Copy that finished button and paste it onto the other clue slides. The link travels with it.

To reveal the answer on the same slide, use a trigger. Microsoft’s trigger article describes the process:

1. Select the answer text box and apply an entrance animation (for example Appear or Fade) from the Animations tab.
2. Open the Animation Pane.
3. In the Advanced Animation group, select Trigger > On Click of, then choose the shape that should reveal the answer, such as a “Show answer” button.

If a trigger shape doesn’t respond to clicks, check whether it has No Fill. A shape with no fill can only be clicked on its outline, so give it a fill (even one that matches the background).

5. Show which tiles have been played

A popular trick is to let used tiles change color automatically. PowerPoint does this with the Followed Hyperlink color in your theme. Microsoft explains how to change hyperlink colors through Design > Variants > Colors > Customize Colors, where you set both Hyperlink and Followed Hyperlink.

Two caveats:

• These colors apply to linked text. If you link a whole shape rather than the number inside it, you won’t see the color change.
• Test it in Slide Show before game day, because the effect depends on how each tile was linked.

6. Add scoring and extras

Scoring is the part templates handle in the most different ways. The simplest reliable method is a whiteboard or a shared spreadsheet beside the slideshow. Some templates add a scoreboard slide with text boxes you edit by hand. Others use macros, which means a .pptm file that may be blocked by school or company IT policies.

For a Final Jeopardy round, add one more link on the board slide (for example in a corner) to a final clue slide.

Test before game day

Run the whole game once in Slide Show mode before using it:

1. Click every tile and confirm it opens the right clue. iSpring’s tutorial specifically recommends checking that every link lands correctly.
2. Click every “Back to board” button.
3. Click every answer reveal.
4. Test on the same computer and app version you’ll present from.

Desktop, Mac and web differences

Build the game in the desktop PowerPoint app if you can. As of November 2026, Microsoft’s page on how features behave in web-based PowerPoint says animations the web version doesn’t support are kept in the file and play in Slide Show, but can’t be modified there. The same page has also said the web version can add links to text but not to shapes or pictures. That detail may be out of date, so check the current page if you need to build on the web.

Mac users should test triggers in their own copy of PowerPoint. At least one third-party tutorial reports that on some Mac versions you can click existing triggers but not create new ones. We couldn’t confirm that against current Microsoft documentation, so run the game first before relying on it.

Menu names and features can change between PowerPoint updates, so if a label above doesn’t match your screen, Microsoft’s support articles linked here show the current wording for your version.