When presenting with Google Slides, you might prefer an automatic playback for your slides. Fortunately, setting Google Slides to autoplay is simple. This article outlines two easy methods to enable autoplay for your presentation.
Quick Steps to Autoplay Google Slides:
- Open Google Slide.
- Click “Slideshow” or “CTRL+F5”.
- Hover bottom left for menu (â‹®).
- Select “Auto-play”, set duration and press “Play”.
The “Slideshow” option is the most common way to autoplay Google Slides, but it isn’t the only one, and a few small tweaks can change how your presentation feels on screen. Keep reading for a step-by-step walkthrough of each method.
Contents
AutoPlay Google Slides from Slideshow
The initial approach to autoplay your Google Slides involves the “Slideshow” feature. The steps below apply to Google Slides in a desktop browser on Windows or Mac. Let’s look at how to set your slides to autoplay using this method:
Step 1: Click on Slideshow
First, open the Google Slide you want to autoplay. Then find and press the “Slideshow” option in the top-right of the screen. Alternatively, you can also press “CTRL+F5” to start the slideshow.
Step 2: Find the Menu
Once you’re in the slideshow, you need to bring up the menu bar. To do this, move your cursor to the bottom left of the screen. Now you will see the page number and the menu icon (â‹®) beside it.
Step 3: Press on AutoPlay
Clicking the menu icon reveals the slideshow options. Select Auto-play to open the timing controls. The screenshots show the older menu labels; Google also refers to these controls as Auto advance options.
Step 4: Set the Time for Autoplay
Once you press Autoplay, a new pop-up menu will appear on the screen. Here you can set how long each slide should play before advancing to the next one. After selecting the duration, press “Play” to start the autoplay. Choose Loop if you want the deck to repeat. Choosing a duration alone does not start playback, and you need to set the auto-advance options again each time you present.
Method 2: Autoplay from “Publish to the web”
Another way to set your Google Slides to autoplay is through the “Publish to the web” feature. This method offers the added benefit of sharing your presentation via a link. Check the slides for private information before publishing: the published version can be visible to anyone with its link, depending on your account settings. Work or school accounts may restrict publication or limit the audience to the organization.
Step 1: Open “Publish to the web”
Begin by opening your Google Slide presentation. Navigate to File > Share > Publish to web. The older screenshot below shows Publish to the web directly in the File menu; use the Share submenu if your current interface places it there.
Step 2: Select “Start slideshow”
Under the “Link” tab, choose “Start slideshow as soon as the player loads.” This starts the slideshow when the published player loads. You can also dictate the duration each slide displays before moving to the next using the “Auto-advance slides” setting. Select “Restart the slideshow after the last slide” if it should loop.
Once you’ve configured the settings, click “Publish” and confirm the prompt. This action produces a published link you can distribute to others. With the start-on-load option selected, that link starts the slideshow when its player loads. Copy a fresh published link after changing the timing; the ordinary editing or sharing URL is not the published autoplay link.
You have two available methods to autoplay your Google Slides presentation. Based on your requirements, opt for either method to enhance the appeal and engagement of your presentation. If a published deck should no longer be accessible, return to File > Share > Publish to web, expand Published content & settings and choose Stop publishing. Edits to a published Google Slides deck update its published version automatically.
How to Autoplay Videos in Google Slides
You can also autoplay videos on Google Slides. Let’s see how to do this:
Step 1: Open the Slide that Contains the Video
First, open the slide that contains the video you want to autoplay. Select the video, then click Format options in the toolbar. Alternatively, right-click the video and choose Format options. A left-click selects the video rather than opening its context menu.
Step 2: Check the Autoplay Box
Once the Format options sidebar opens, expand Video playback and choose Play (automatically) from the playback options. The heading and screenshot use older wording, but this is a playback choice rather than an autoplay checkbox. Play (on click) responds to the next presentation click; Play (manual) requires a click on the video itself.
This activates automatic playback for your video when you reach that slide in presentation mode. It does not set the deck’s slide timings. Allow enough time for the clip before the next slide advances. If the clip fails to play, check the video’s availability and the audience’s access to any Google Drive video file. If a browser prevents playback, start it manually. For a deck that stays on the first slide, reopen the slideshow menu and press Play after choosing the interval; for a published deck, check the start-on-load setting and use the newly copied published link.
Conclusion
In summary, you now have two reliable ways to autoplay a Google Slides deck. Whichever one you pick, give the file a moment to load fully before you hit play, because a buffering screen partway through a pitch is the last thing you want your audience to see.
