Text boxes and shapes are how you add titles, captions, callouts, and visual structure to your pages. This article covers both.
How to add and format a text box
Text boxes are how you add titles, captions, notes, and labels to your pages. They support multiple fonts, sizes, colours, and inline formatting.
How to add a text box
Press T (or click Add → Text in the Command Bar).
Click on the page where you want the text to start — a text box appears.
Start typing.
How to move a text box
Click and drag the text box to its new position on the page.
How to resize a text box
Select the text box, then drag any edge or corner to resize it. The text inside reflows to fit the new shape.
How to format text
With a text box selected, the formatting toolbar gives you:
Font — pick from the standard library, or upload your studio's own custom fonts. See How to upload a custom font below.
Font size.
Bold, italic, underline, strikethrough.
Alignment (left, centre, right).
Text colour.
How to upload a custom font
With a text box selected, open the font dropdown in the formatting toolbar.
In the Studio fonts section at the top, click the + button. Your file browser opens.
Pick a font file from your computer. Programa supports TTF, OTF, WOFF, and WOFF2 (the standard web font formats).
A confirmation prompt appears asking you to confirm you have the right to use the font. Tick to confirm and continue.
The font uploads. A confirmation toast appears, and the font shows up in the Studio fonts section of the font dropdown.
Select your new font from the dropdown like any other font, and apply it to any text box.
Once someone in your studio uploads a font, anyone in that studio can use it across their presentations.
Note- You need the rights to use a font commercially before uploading. Programa shows a licensing confirmation prompt as a safeguard, but the responsibility is yours.
How to add and style a shape
Shapes are useful for callouts, framing images or pinned products, simple diagrams, or as fill blocks behind text.
How to add a shape
Click Add → Shapes in the Command Bar.
Pick the shape you want from the menu.
Click and drag on the canvas to draw it.
What shapes you can add
Rectangle
Circle / ellipse
Triangle
Hexagon
Line — draw at any angle, with stroke-width control. Hold Shift while drawing to snap to 0° / 45° / 90°.
Arrow
How to style a shape
With a shape selected, you can adjust:
Fill colour — pick a colour, or choose None for no fill (transparent). The swatch shows a clear visual for "no fill."
Line colour — pick a colour for the outline, or choose None for no border. The border icon next to the value field reflects the current state.
Line width — how thick the outline is.
Opacity — from 0% (invisible) to 100% (fully opaque).
Rotation — drag the rotation handle. Hold Shift while rotating to snap to 45° / 90° increments.
Recently-used colours sync across every colour picker in Presentations — text colour, shape fill, line colour, and page background. Pick a colour once, and it's there in your swatches the next time you reach for it anywhere.
💡 Tip — a semi-transparent rectangle behind a text caption is a quick way to keep text readable when it sits over a busy image.
How to lock a shape in place
You can lock a shape so it can't be accidentally moved or resized while you work around it. See How to arrange and style elements in a presentation for the full instructions.
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