How to Use a Setlist App on Stage: The End of Paper Setlists
Paper setlists get stepped on, blown away, and can't be updated when the singer decides to swap a song 30 seconds before you go on. Here's a better way.
What Is a Gig Mode Setlist App — and Why Do Bands Need One?
A gig mode setlist app gives you a distraction-free, full-screen view of your setlist on stage — with keyboard or foot pedal navigation between songs, instant access to keys and tempos, and the ability to make last-minute changes right up to the moment you walk on. It replaces paper setlists with a live view built for performance conditions: bright screen, large text, no notifications, no accidental app switches.
| Paper Setlist Problem | Gig Mode Solution |
|---|---|
| Falls off the amp, gets kicked over | Stable on phone, tablet, or monitor |
| Can't be updated after printing | Editable right up to downbeat |
| Singer calls an audible — no one knows the new order | Reorder in seconds, everyone sees the same thing |
| Can't read it under stage lights | High-contrast display built for low-light |
| No key or tempo reference | Key and BPM visible per song |
Every gigging musician has a paper setlist story. The one taped to the monitor that came unstuck mid-set. The one that listed the wrong key after a last-minute change. The one nobody could read because the stage lighting made it invisible. The one that was already out of date because the singer called an audible in the van on the way to the venue.
Paper setlists are a workaround that every band uses because they don't know there's something better. There is.
Why Paper Setlists Fail on Stage
Paper is reliable until it isn't — and when it fails, it fails at the worst possible time.
It's static. The moment you print a setlist, it starts getting out of date. Last-minute song swap before you go on? Your paper setlist is already wrong. Someone in the band has the change in their head, someone else doesn't, and you find out about it at song four.
It's fragile. Paper gets stepped on, knocked into a drink, blown off a monitor by a fan, or left in the van. Gaffer-taping it to a monitor is the industry solution, and it's a hack.
It's illegible. Under stage lighting — especially colored or low-level lighting — a printed setlist can become unreadable. Small font because you tried to fit 20 songs on one page makes it worse.
It has no supporting information. The paper setlist tells you the song order. It doesn't tell you the key, the tempo, or the note someone left about the tricky bridge. You carry that in your head or it gets lost.
It can't be shared instantly. If you change the setlist on stage — pulling a song that isn't landing, moving the closer earlier because the crowd is peaking — everyone needs to know immediately. With paper, that's a whispered conversation across a loud stage.
What You Actually Need From a Stage Setlist
Think about what you're actually trying to do on stage with a setlist:
Navigate. Know where you are, know what's next, move to the next song without confusion.
Reference. Quick check of a key or tempo before a song — especially useful if you're playing a large set with songs in different keys that you don't perform every week.
Adjust. Move songs around, pull something out, add something in response to what the room is doing — without it becoming a production.
Share. Make sure every member of the band is looking at the same thing. No "I thought we were doing X next" moments.
Stay in the moment. Not fumbling with a phone trying to find the app, dismiss a notification, or accidentally call someone while trying to navigate to the next song.
A gig mode designed for on-stage performance addresses all five of these. A regular notes app or a printed page addresses one or two.
How to Set Up Your Stage Setlist Properly
Before You Leave for the Gig
Build the setlist in the same place you manage your songs. The advantage of a dedicated band app is that your song library — keys, tempos, status, notes — is already there. You're not retyping information into a separate setlist app. You select songs from your library and the supporting information comes with them.
Lock the setlist. Once it's finalized, no more changes until you get to the venue and have a reason to make them. A setlist that keeps changing up to the last minute is a setlist nobody has memorized.
Make sure every member has access. This is the single biggest advantage of a shared digital setlist over a paper one: when you make a change, everyone sees it simultaneously. One source of truth, always current.
At the Venue
Open your setlist app before soundcheck, not before you go on. Get familiar with the navigation in a low-pressure environment. Know how to move forward and back between songs, know how to reorder if needed, know how to add a note quickly.
Check your display settings. High brightness, large text, portrait or landscape depending on where you're positioning the device. If you're using a tablet as a dedicated monitor, test it from your playing position — not from arms reach.
Position the device at eye level where possible. A phone lying flat on the amp requires you to look down and break stage presence. A phone or tablet propped at an angle at roughly chest or eye level means you can glance at it without visibly disengaging from the room.
Have a backup. Paper isn't dead — it's insurance. A printed copy of the setlist in your back pocket for emergencies costs nothing and has saved shows.
On Stage
Navigate with minimal movement. Setlistly's Gig Mode is built for keyboard navigation — next song, previous song, without touching a screen. If you're using a foot pedal controller connected to your device, you can advance through the setlist without using your hands at all.
Glance, don't stare. The setlist on stage is a reference, not a script. Know your songs well enough that you only need a glance to confirm what's next — not a read.
Use the reorder function when the room tells you to. If the crowd is at a peak earlier than you planned, pull your closer forward. If a song isn't landing, swap it for something that will. A digital setlist lets you make that call in 10 seconds. Paper can't.
Common Mistakes When Going Digital on Stage
Using a regular notes app. A notes app will work — right up until a notification pops up, the screen times out, you accidentally tap something and lose your place, or you realize you can't navigate between songs without touching the screen with sweaty hands mid-performance.
Not testing it before the show. Your first time navigating the app on stage should not be during the show. Run through the navigation at soundcheck or rehearsal until it's completely automatic.
Putting the device somewhere you can't see it. A phone face-down on the floor, a tablet balanced at an angle where the stage lighting makes it invisible — these are paper setlist problems in a different format. Position the device where you can read it with a glance.
Over-relying on it. The digital setlist is a safety net, not a crutch. Know your songs. Know the setlist order. Use the app to confirm, not to perform from.
Not briefing the whole band. If you switch to a digital setlist and the rest of the band is still using paper — with different versions of the order — you've made things worse, not better. Everyone needs to be on the same system.
Gig Mode in Setlistly
Setlistly's Gig Mode gives you a dedicated live performance view designed specifically for on-stage use:
- Full-screen, distraction-free display — no notifications, no accidental navigation, just the setlist
- Large, readable text optimized for stage lighting conditions
- Keyboard navigation — advance through songs without touching the screen
- Key and tempo visible per song — at a glance, without opening anything
- Real-time sync — any change made by any band member updates immediately across all devices
- Last-minute reordering — drag and drop right up to the moment you walk on
It's built into the same app where you manage your song library, build setlists, and log show retros — so your stage view is always a direct reflection of the setlist you actually built, with all the song information already there.
Ready to level up your live shows?
Try Gig Mode free at setlistly.com — no credit card required
Get Started FreeThe Transition: Moving Your Band From Paper to Digital
If you've been using paper setlists for years, the move to digital takes one or two shows to feel natural. The friction is in the unfamiliarity, not the tool.
First show: Keep the paper backup. Use the digital as primary, paper as insurance. Notice what you reach for.
Second show: Paper stays in the back pocket but doesn't come out. The digital navigation starts feeling automatic.
Third show: You forget the paper and don't notice until you're packing down.
The bands that go back to paper after trying a proper gig mode app are rare. Once the navigation is automatic and you've experienced making a last-minute setlist change that every member sees instantly, the paper version starts feeling like a step backward.
Part of the Setlistly live performance series: