Non-system fonts used in Office files will be embedded by default when the file is saved. So a full copy of the entire character set of each non-system font is stored in the file. This ensures that when the file is shared the content looks the same to each user no matter what fonts they have on their system. However, this does mean that the file size may increase dramatically especially if many different non-system fonts have been used.
There are 2 options to consider when removing fonts:
1. Subset the fonts
Subsetting fonts ensures only those characters that are actually used in the content are stored in the Office file. If the "$" character doesn’t appear anywhere in the text, that character is not included in the font. This means that Office files with subsetted fonts are smaller than Office files with fully-embedded fonts
2. Remove fonts entirely
Removing fonts entirely will change where that font is used to a system font, which may mean that the layout and spacing change. It also means that you are not guaranteed the same layout on other user's computers as they may have different fonts again. However, removing fonts can significantly reduce the file size.
How to subset or remove fonts in PowerPoint or Word
To remove or subset the embedded fonts follow these steps:
- In PowerPoint (or Word) click on the File tab and select Save As
- Select the location to save
- In the save dialog click on the Tools drop-down control (next to the save button) and select Save options.
- Click on the Save option on the left-hand side
- In the Preserve fidelity when sharing this presentation section there are a few options
- To subset the fonts: enable Embed fonts in the file and choose Embed only the characters used in the presentation.
- To remove fonts entirely: disable Embed fonts in the file