# How to put Google Slides on a digital signage screen

ScreenTinker does not have a dedicated "Google Slides app" - and it does not need one. Google Slides can publish a deck to the web, and ScreenTinker's universal Webpage widget can display that published URL on any screen, auto-advancing through the slides on a loop.

## The short version

In Google Slides, go to File → Share → Publish to web → Embed, set the auto-advance interval, and copy the published URL. In ScreenTinker, add a Webpage widget, paste that URL, drop the widget into a playlist, and assign the playlist to a screen. That is the whole integration.

## Step by step

1. Open your deck in Google Slides and choose File → Share → Publish to web.
2. Switch to the "Embed" tab. Pick how fast slides should advance (for example, every 5 seconds) and tick Auto-advance and Restart the slideshow after the last slide so it loops forever.
3. Click Publish and confirm. Copy the published URL from the embed snippet - it is the `src` value that looks like the one below, not your normal editing link.
4. In ScreenTinker, add a Webpage widget. Open your dashboard, create or edit a playlist item, and choose the Webpage widget type.
5. Paste the published URL into the widget's URL field and save.
6. Add the widget to a playlist and set its duration to at least one full loop of the deck.
7. Assign the playlist to a screen. The player pulls the published deck and it starts advancing on the wall.

A published Slides embed URL looks like this:

    https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/e/2PACX-xxxxxxxx/pubembed?start=true&loop=true&delayms=5000

## Getting the right URL

This is the step that trips people up. Google Slides has several URLs and only one of them will embed:

- The /edit URL (ends in `/edit`) is your working document. It requires a Google login and refuses to be framed - it will not show up in the Webpage widget.
- The /present URL (ends in `/present`) is presenter mode and also blocks framing.
- The published URL from Publish to web (contains `/pub` or `/pubembed`) is the only one that permits embedding. Always use this one.

The reason is `X-Frame-Options` / `frame-ancestors`: any page that sends those headers to deny framing cannot be shown in an iframe, and ScreenTinker's Webpage widget is an iframe. The published URL is served without that restriction specifically so it can be embedded. If your slides do not appear, the URL is almost always the cause.

## Auto-advance and refresh tips

- Set the pace in Slides, not ScreenTinker. The `delayms` parameter in the published URL controls how long each slide holds. Adjust it by re-publishing with a different interval, or edit the `delayms` value directly in the URL (milliseconds).
- Keep `loop=true` so the deck restarts after the last slide and never goes blank.
- Give the playlist item enough time. Set the Webpage widget's on-screen duration to at least the length of one full loop so viewers see every slide.
- Content updates are automatic-ish. When you edit the source deck, Google re-publishes changes to the published URL within a short window (usually a few minutes), so the sign updates without touching ScreenTinker.

## FAQ

### Why won't my Google Slides link show up on the screen?

You almost certainly pasted the `/edit` or `/present` URL. Those require a login and block framing. Go back to File → Share → Publish to web and copy the published `/pubembed` URL instead.

### Do viewers need a Google account to see the deck?

No. A published-to-web deck is public and renders without any login, which is exactly why it works on an unattended signage player.

### Can I make the slides advance automatically?

Yes. Enable auto-advance when you publish and set the interval; the `delayms` and `loop` parameters in the published URL handle timing and looping.

### Will the sign update when I edit the deck?

Yes, on a short delay. Google re-publishes edits to the published URL automatically, so the screen picks up changes without any change in ScreenTinker.

### Is there a native Google Slides widget?

No - this uses the universal Webpage widget with the deck's published URL. That is the supported and reliable way to show Slides on ScreenTinker.

## Related guides

- All digital signage integrations
- Display Canva designs on digital signage
- Power BI dashboards on digital signage
- What is digital signage?
- Self-hosted digital signage: complete guide

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