Play a presentation on Mac

Present on your Mac

  1. In the slide navigator, select the slide you want to begin with, then click the Play button in the toolbar.

  2. To advance through the presentation, do any of the following:

    • Go to the next slide or build: Press the Right Arrow key.

    • Go back a slide or reset the builds on the slide: Press the Left Arrow key.

    • Jump to a different slide: Press any number key to make the slide navigator appear, enter the slide number in the text field at the top of the slide navigator, then press Return.

  3. To see all of the keyboard shortcuts you can use as you present, press ? on your keyboard.

    The shortcuts appear in an overlay that isn’t visible to your viewers. Click the close button in the top-left corner to dismiss it.

  4. To stop playing the presentation, press Esc (Escape).

Use the Touch Bar when you present

If your Mac has a Touch Bar, thumbnails of your slides appear in the Touch Bar as you present, as well as buttons for quickly accessing other Keynote features. You can use the thumbnails and buttons to view and control your presentation.

The MacBook Pro Touch Bar with presentation controls for exiting the presentation, jumping to different slides, and switching the presenter display.

Require a password to exit a presentation

You can require a password to stop or exit a presentation. This password requirement is useful, for example, when the presentation is set to play automatically in a kiosk.

  1. With the presentation open, choose Keynote > Preferences (from the Keynote menu at the top of your screen).

  2. Click Slideshow at the top of the preferences window, then select the “Require password to exit slideshows” checkbox.

  3. Type a password, then click Set Password.

  4. To remove the password, choose Keynote > Preferences, then deselect the “Require password to exit slideshows” checkbox.

This password applies only to slideshows played on the Mac where you set the password.

See alsoPlay a presentation on a separate displayControl a presentation with a remoteSelf-playing or interactive presentationsRehearse on your MacRequire a password to open a presentation