How to Add Music to a Slideshow | Quick Soundtrack Tips

Adding music to a slideshow means importing an audio file, setting playback across slides, and balancing volume so speech stays clear.

Music can turn a plain set of slides into something that feels joined, polished, and easy to follow. Many people search online for how to add music to a slideshow because a simple track under photos or key points helps with pacing and keeps viewers watching to the final slide.

The good news is that almost every slideshow tool can play a song or recorded track. The steps share the same pattern, even though menus look a little different. Once you learn that pattern, you can repeat it in PowerPoint, Google Slides, Keynote, and even phone gallery apps.

How To Add Music To A Slideshow: Core Steps

Before you click any menu, decide what kind of soundtrack you want. Do you need a soft bed under a photo collage, a short intro sting, or a full narrated walkthrough? That choice shapes how long the audio should be and where it should start and stop.

Next, pick an audio file that your software can handle. Most slideshow apps accept MP3, WAV, or M4A files. Shorter tracks load faster and are easier to manage than giant albums. Aim for music with a steady mood so it does not fight with your message.

From there the process is simple:

Open your slideshow and move to the slide where the music should begin.
Use the Insert or Media menu and choose the option for Audio or Music.
Select your audio file from your computer or cloud drive.
Place the audio icon off to the side so it stays out of the way.
Open playback settings and choose whether the track starts on click or automatically.
Turn on play across slides or loop if you want background music through the whole show.

Those steps stay roughly the same in every major tool. To help you choose the best place to start, here is a quick view of popular apps and what they can do with audio.

Slideshow App	Common Audio Formats	Music Features To Look For
Microsoft PowerPoint	MP3, WAV, M4A	Play across slides, loop, fade in and out, trim clip
Google Slides	MP3, WAV from Google Drive	Start on click or auto, volume slider, link to online audio
Apple Keynote	MP3, AAC, AIFF	Background soundtrack, per slide audio, fade controls
Canva & Web Slide Makers	MP3, M4A	Built in music library, simple timing, export as video
Windows Photos / Clipchamp	MP3, WAV, M4A	Music across timeline, auto beat matching, quick exports
iPhone / Android Gallery Apps	MP3, AAC, M4A	Basic background track, volume control, share as video
Video Editors (CapCut, iMovie)	MP3, WAV, AAC	Multiple tracks, fades, detailed timing per clip

Picking The Right Audio File For Your Slideshow

The soundtrack should match the length and mood of your slideshow. A short photo reel might only need a 30 second clip that loops. A longer talk with voiceover might need a track that drops under your voice and swells again between sections.

Check licensing before you drop in a song you love. Royalty free libraries and built in music collections keep you away from copyright trouble. Many slideshow makers include safe tracks that you can use in personal and classroom projects.

File size matters too. Compressed formats like MP3 keep presentations lighter than raw WAV files. Microsoft lists supported audio formats and playback notes in its PowerPoint audio guide, which is a handy reference when music refuses to play.

Google Slides streams sound from Google Drive. That means your viewers need permission to the audio file as well as the deck. Google explains supported media types and insertion options in its Docs Editors media help, and those rules affect your slideshow too.

How To Add Music To A Slideshow On Different Platforms

Once you understand the shared pattern, you can add music in almost any slideshow app with only a few clicks. This section walks through the most common tools so you can follow along with the one you use day to day.

Adding Background Music In Microsoft PowerPoint

PowerPoint gives you detailed control over when and how music plays. Start from the slide where the soundtrack should begin.

Open the Insert tab on the ribbon and choose Audio, then Audio on My PC.
Pick your music file and click Insert. An audio icon appears on the slide.
Select the icon and open the Playback tab.
Set Start to Automatically if you want music as soon as the slide appears.
Turn on Play in Background to let the track run across your full slide deck.
Use the Fade In, Fade Out, and Trim Audio tools to smooth the start and finish.

When you run the slideshow, check that the audio bar appears briefly in the corner and that the track runs through slide changes without gaps.

Adding Music In Google Slides

Google Slides handles audio through Google Drive. Before you begin, upload your track to Drive and make sure link sharing matches the way you share the slideshow.

Open your deck and select the slide where you want the song to begin.
Choose Insert, then Audio. A file picker from Google Drive opens.
Select your MP3 or WAV file and press Insert.
Move the speaker icon where it will not cover text or photos.
Open Format options, then Audio playback, to set Start on click or Automatically.
Adjust the volume slider so the music sits under any voice or classroom noise.

To carry music across multiple slides, duplicate the audio on each group of slides or turn the slideshow into a video with a single background track in a video editor. That approach gives smoother timing than trying to time many short clips by hand.

Adding Music In Apple Keynote

Keynote offers two styles of audio. You can attach music to a single slide or add a soundtrack that plays through the whole show.

Open your Keynote file and go to the first slide that needs music.
On Mac, open the Document sidebar and choose the Audio tab.
Click Choose to add a soundtrack from your music library or a file.
Turn on Play across slides if you want the track to run over the entire show.
Use the volume slider and loop toggle to fine tune the feel.

For single slide music, insert audio directly on that slide instead. That style works well when you need a short sting for a logo reveal or title card.

Adding Music With Phone Slideshow And Video Apps

On phones and tablets, slideshow tools live inside gallery and video apps. The flow still feels familiar once you know what to look for.

Gather your photos and clips into a single project or album.
Look for a Music or Audio button in the editor toolbar.
Pick a track from the app’s built in library or from files on your device.
Shorten the track so it matches the length of your slideshow timeline.
Lower the music volume so it does not drown out speech in recorded clips.
Export the result as a video and share it by message, mail, or social apps.

This style suits birthday slideshows, quick recap reels, and social posts where you want automatic pacing without deep editing.

Balancing Volume, Timing, And Transitions

Good music should sit under your slideshow, not fight with it. The easiest way to reach that point is to set volume and timing with a short checklist.

Keep music volume lower than any speech track or live talking.
Use fade in and fade out tools so the start and end never feel harsh.
Trim long songs so they do not leave long silent gaps at the end.
Match the energy of the track to the pace of your slides.

Most people find a master volume around 10 to 30 percent works well for background music. You can leave a little more headroom in rooms with poor speakers so the sound does not distort.

Slideshow Situation	Suggested Music Volume	Timing Tip
Photo montage at a party	25–40 percent	Let one full track play, fade at final slide
Classroom lesson with narration	10–20 percent	Fade under spoken sections, rise in breaks
Conference talk on stage	10–15 percent	Use short intro music, then stop for the talk
Product demo video	20–30 percent	Loop a short track and trim to video length
Personal slideshow shared online	15–25 percent	Check playback on phone speakers and laptop
Silent event booth loop	15–20 percent	Use a calm loop that repeats without sharp cuts

Common Problems When Adding Music And Quick Fixes

Even when you follow every step, audio can still misbehave. The good news is that a few checks solve most slideshow music problems.

Music Does Not Play At All

Start by testing the audio outside the slideshow. Play the file in a regular media player to confirm it is not silent or broken. If it plays there, check that the format matches what your slideshow app supports. Try saving a new copy as MP3 if you are unsure.

In Google Slides, missing audio often comes from sharing limits. Make sure the track in Drive allows the same viewers as the deck. In PowerPoint, move audio files and the presentation into one folder and avoid renaming them after you link them.

Music Is Too Loud Or Too Quiet

Lower the track level inside the slideshow first, then adjust your speakers. Many tools also offer a Normalize setting that smooths out peaks so you do not get sudden jumps in loudness between clips.

If your slideshow mixes voiceover with music, balance the two by ear. Play the loudest voice section, then raise the music just to the point where you can still hear every word clearly.

Music Stops When Slides Change

Check that you chose the right start and loop options. In PowerPoint, Play in Background keeps a track running across slides. In other tools you may need to place one long audio clip on a master slide or timeline instead of on each individual slide.

If nothing seems to work, export the slideshow as a video and add the song in a simple video editor. That gives you frame level control and removes the risk that live slide playback will interrupt the music.

Putting It All Together With A Simple Workflow

Once you have tried this once or twice, adding a soundtrack becomes a quick habit. The steps for how to add music to a slideshow stay the same whether you present in a classroom, office, or living room.

From there, focus on two checks before you share the file: does the music run cleanly from start to finish, and can every viewer actually hear it? By this point the steps for how to add music to a slideshow will feel familiar instead of technical. If both answers are yes, your slideshow is ready to share with family, students, or clients with music that lifts the whole story.