Use a remote to control a Keynote presentation

The Mac and the iPhone need to have Keynote installed and have Wi-Fi turned on.

1. Go to the Keynote app on the iPhone that you want to use as a remote.

2. In the document manager, tap , then tap Continue.

   The device displays the Keynote Remote menu.

   Note: Tap Allow if you’re asked to allow Keynote to find and connect to devices on your local network.

3. Go to the Keynote on your Mac, then choose Keynote > Settings (from the Keynote menu at the top of your screen).

4. Click Remote at the top of the Settings window, then select Enable.

5. Click Link next to the device you want to use as a remote.

   A four-digit code appears on the Mac and on the device.

6. Verify that the four-digit codes match, click Confirm, then close Keynote Settings.

After the devices are linked, you can control the presentation from the remote device.

The remote control device and the presentation device need to have Keynote installed and have Wi-Fi turned on.

1. Go to the Keynote app on your iPhone.

2. In the document manager, tap , then tap Continue.

   The device displays the Keynote Remote menu.

   Note: Tap Allow if you’re asked to allow Keynote to find and connect to devices on your local network.

3. Open the presentation in the Keynote app on the device where you will play it.

4. Tap , tap Keynote Remote, then turn on Enable Remote Control.

   Note: Tap Allow if you’re asked to allow Keynote to find and connect to devices on your local network.

5. Tap Link next to the device you want to use as a remote.

   A four-digit code appears on both devices.

6. Verify that the four-digit codes match, then tap Confirm.

After the devices are linked, you can control the presentation from the remote device.

You must first set up iPhone to be a remote control, as described in the previous task. To turn your device into a remote using Handoff, Handoff must be set up on the the iPhone and the device or computer that the presentation will play on. The presentation you want to control must also be saved on iCloud Drive.

1. Go to the Keynote app on the Mac, iPhone, or iPad you want to present on, then open the presentation.

2. On the iPhone you’ve set up to be a remote, do one of the following:

   • Open Keynote on the iPhone that you set up as a remote, tap in the document manager, then tap Play.

   • Use Handoff. To do this, swipe up from the bottom to the middle of your screen (or double-click the Home button on devices without Face ID) until you see the App Switcher, then tap the Keynote banner at the bottom of the screen. If you are presenting on a Mac and don’t see the banner, move the pointer.

3. To control the presentation, do any of the following:

   • Advance to the next slide or build: Tap the slide, or swipe left across the slide.

   • Return to the previous slide: Swipe right across the slide.

   • Skip to a specific slide: Tap the slide number in the upper-left corner, then tap the slide you want to display.

   • Stop playing the presentation: Tap .

4. To change what you see on your remote device as you’re presenting, do any of the following:

   • View the current slide, next slide, or presenter notes: Tap , then select a layout.

   • Change the appearance of presenter notes: With presenter notes showing, tap , then tap to make the font larger, or tap to make it smaller. Turn on Invert Colors to show white text on a black background or vice versa (other text colors aren’t affected).

   • Switch between a timer or current time display: Tap the time or timer at the top of the screen.

The remote control device and the presentation device need to have Keynote installed and have Wi-Fi turned on.

1. Go to the Keynote app on the device that you want to use as a remote.

2. In the document manager, tap , then tap Continue.

   The device displays the Keynote Remote menu.

   Note: Tap OK if you’re asked to allow Keynote to find and connect to devices on your local network.

3. Open the presentation on iPhone, tap , tap Keynote Remote, then turn on Enable Remote Control.

4. Tap Link next to the device you want to use as a remote.

   A four-digit code appears on both devices.

5. Verify that the four-digit codes match, then tap Confirm.

After the devices are linked, you can control the presentation from the remote.

The other device must be set up as a remote control, as described in the previous task.

1. Go to the Keynote app on your iPhone.

2. Open the presentation you want to play.

3. Open Keynote on the device that you set up as a remote, tap in the document manager, then tap Play.

4. To control the presentation, do any of the following:

   • Advance to the next slide or build: Tap the slide, or swipe left across the slide.

   • Return to the previous slide: Swipe right across the slide.

   • Skip to a specific slide: Tap the slide number in the upper-left corner, then tap the slide you want to display.

   • Stop playing the presentation: Tap .

5. To change what you see on your remote device as you’re presenting, do any of the following:

   • View the current slide, next slide, or presenter notes: Tap , then select a layout.

   • Change the appearance of presenter notes: With presenter notes showing, tap , then tap to make the font larger, or tap to make it smaller. Turn on Invert Colors to show white text on a black background or vice versa (other text colors aren’t affected).

   • Switch between a timer or current time display: Tap the time or timer at the top of the screen.

Keynote must be installed on Apple Watch and its companion iPhone. To install Keynote on Apple Watch, update the companion iPhone to the latest version of Keynote. Then on Apple Watch, confirm the Keynote installation. If you’re using iPhone as a remote, you must first set it up to be a remote control for the presentation device, as described above.

1. Go to the Keynote app on your iPhone.

2. Open the presentation you want to play.

3. On Apple Watch, press the Digital Crown, then tap to open Keynote.

4. To play the presentation, tap .

5. To advance to the next slide, tap .

6. To view the advanced controls screen, swipe right on Apple Watch, then do any of the following:

   • Advance to the next slide or build: Tap .

   • Return to the previous slide: Tap .

   • Stop playing the presentation: Tap .

   • Return to the simplified controls: Swipe left.

   Note: If you stop and restart the presentation, or if Apple Watch goes to sleep and then wakes up, the Apple Watch screen returns to the simplified controls (that show only the Forward button).

When you’re using Keynote Remote to control a presentation from iPhone or iPad, you can draw on your device and have your drawing appear on the device that’s playing your presentation. This feature is useful, for example, if you want to emphasize a particular item on your slide—you can underline or circle the item for your audience.

1. With an iPhone or iPad set up as a remote, go to the Keynote app on the device or computer you use to show your presentation.

2. Open the presentation, then do one of the following:

   • Play the presentation on a Mac: Click in the toolbar.

   • Play the presentation on an iPad or iPhone: Tap in the toolbar.

3. Go to the Keynote app on the iPhone or iPad you’ve set up to be a remote, tap in the document manager, then tap Play.

4. Tap .

5. Do any of the following:

   • Draw with a color: Tap a color, then draw with your finger on the slide.

   • Use the laser pointer: Tap the laser pointer, then move your finger around the slide; the laser pointer follows your movements.

   • Erase the last highlight: Tap . Continue tapping to undo all your drawing on the slide.

   • Return to the previous slide or advance a slide: Tap the left or right arrow on the slide.

   • Hide the drawing tools: Tap Done.

1. Go to the Keynote app on the iPhone or iPad you’ve set up as a remote.

2. In the document manager, tap .

3. Tap Devices, then do any of the following:

   

   • Add another presentation device: Tap Add a Device, then follow the onscreen instructions.

   • Switch to a different presentation device: Tap a different device name, then tap Done.

   • Remove a presentation device: Swipe right across the name of the device, then tap Delete.

1. Go to the Keynote app on the iPhone or iPad you use to show the presentation.

2. Tap , tap Keynote Remote, then tap Unlink next to the remote you want to remove.

If you don’t want to use any remote, but you don’t want to unlink devices you already linked, you can turn off Enable Remotes. Turn on Enable Remotes when you want to use a device again.

1. Go to the Keynote app on your Mac.

2. Choose Keynote > Settings (from the Keynote menu at the top of your screen).

3. Click Remote at the top of the settings window, then do one of the following:

   • Permanently unlink a remote: Click Unlink next to a device.

   • Temporarily unlink all linked remote: Deselect Enable so the device remains linked but isn’t functional as a remote. Reselect Enable when you want to use it again.