How to automatically play a presentation and time slides in Keynote

Learn how to use the self-playing feature in Apple Keynotes on the iPhone, iPad, and Mac to automatically play a presentation and advance slides without user intervention.

You can set up a Keynote slideshow to start playing when you click and advance to the next slide automatically. Plus, you can time slides so they appear for specific amounts of time.

To help you create the perfect slideshow, this tutorial shows you how to set up a self-playing presentation and time your slides in Keynote.

iPhone and iPad

1. Open your presentation in Keynote for iOS, tap the three-dotted menu button in the top-right corner, and choose Presentation Options > Presentation Type.
2. Turn on the Self-Playing option.
3. Drag the Transition Delay and Build Delay sliders to change the times in seconds for slide transitions and builds, then hit Done to return to the presentation.

Mac

1. Open your Keynote presentation on a Mac and click the Document button in the top-right corner of the window toolbar.
2. In the Presentation Type section, select Self-Playing in the menu.
3. In the Delay box, enter the time in seconds before transitioning to the next slide or effect.

When you define the slide delay for the self-playing option, you can still keep certain slides visible for a longer or shorter amount of time:

1. Click the Animate button in the top-right corner.
2. In the Start Transition section, select Automatically in the menu.
3. In the Delay box, enter the time in seconds for the slide transition delay.

The self-playing feature is handy for live presentations without user intervention. And Keynote for iOS, iPadOS, and macOS makes it simple.

Do more with Keynote

Keynote is a powerful presentation software with which you can build stunning presentations for free. You can use one of the gorgeous ready-made templates as a starting point and then easily change the slide layout to your liking.

Keynote also makes it easy to animate objects. And when you’re ready to present, you can use your iPhone as a remote clicker to advance slides.

Do you use Keynote or PowerPoint to create presentations? Which app is better for presenting, do you think, and why? Let us know in the comments below!