How to Add Music to a TikTok Slideshow
Updated · By the ViralSlides team
To add music to a TikTok slideshow, tap +, choose Photo, select your images, then tap Add sound in the editor and pick a track before you post. Slides designed in another tool work the same way: upload them in Photo mode and add the sound in TikTok. Business accounts can only choose from TikTok's Commercial Music Library.
A slideshow is silent until you give it a track, and the track changes how it is watched: it sets the pace of the autoplay, the mood the slides are read in, and it adds your post to that sound's page. Here is how to add one, and how to choose it.
Steps
- 1Start a photo postTap + at the bottom of TikTok, choose Photo and select your images in order. Slides you designed in another tool go in the same way.
- 2Open the sound pickerTap Add sound in the editor. TikTok suggests tracks; search or browse for more.
- 3Pick a track that fits the slidesChoose by mood and tempo: an even loop for tips people need to read, a track with a build for a before-and-after.
- 4Check the first secondsPreview it. The first beat lands with your hook slide, so skip tracks with a long quiet intro.
- 5Post or save to draftsAdd the caption and hashtags, then post. The sound plays as viewers swipe.
What the sound does on a photo post
On sound-synced photo posts TikTok times the slide changes to the beat, so a calm track gives each slide longer on screen and a fast one flips sooner. The track also sets the tone your hook is read in, and tapping a sound shows every post that used it, which gives your slideshow one more place to be found.
Why some accounts see fewer songs
When an account is switched to Business, the sound picker only offers TikTok's Commercial Music Library: tracks cleared for commercial use. The mainstream hits disappear. Brands either use that library, run the account as Personal or Creator to keep the full library, or post without a sound. Pick one approach per account rather than switching back and forth.
Match the tempo to the slides
Eight text-heavy slides on a very fast loop become unreadable, and four slides on a slow ballad drag. Look at your busiest slide and choose a tempo that leaves time to read it.
Posting from another tool
Tools that publish through TikTok's API can't choose a specific track from the in-app sound library, so the sound is something you add in TikTok when you finish the post. When ViralSlides sends a slideshow to your TikTok inbox as a draft, the slides and caption arrive ready and you pick the sound in the app before posting.
FAQ
Can I add music to slides I designed outside TikTok?
Yes. Upload the images in Photo mode and add a sound in the TikTok editor before posting, the same way as photos from your camera roll.
Why can't I find popular songs?
Your account is probably set to Business, which limits the picker to the Commercial Music Library. A Personal or Creator account has the full library, at the cost of some business features.
Do I have to add a sound?
No. A slideshow posts and gets shown without one; you only lose the pacing and mood the track would add.
Will a trending sound get me more views?
It can help people find the post, because the sound's page lists every post that used it, but no track guarantees reach. Choose for fit first.