Getting started

SetlistForge has two kinds of data: a library of songs you enter once, and setlists built from that library. Everything is saved automatically in the browser and, if you accept the one-time backup prompt, to your account (see Account sync).

Quick start

1. Open SetlistForge from the dashboard. You land on the Library tab.
2. Tap + Add song. Only the title is required. Add duration, key and mode (Major/Minor), BPM (or Tap at least three times), an energy level from 1 to 5, composer and lyricist for the royalty reports, and notes. Enter saves; Save & add next keeps you typing.
3. Switch to the Setlist tab. Tap + Add song to open the picker, or drag songs across from the Library. Songs already in the set are marked in the picker; tap one again to add it twice (an encore, say). Removed a row by mistake? You can undo it.
4. Fill in the show header: Show title, Date, Venue, Artist. Drop a logo (PNG or JPG, max 10 MB) into the slot on the left — it prints on the PDF.
5. Watch Total runtime in the footer; each set also shows its own subtotal. Tap + Insert set break between sets and give it a length in minutes (20 by default); set a Set length (min) target and the footer shows how much is over or free.

That is a timed setlist. From here: export the PDF, run the gig in Show Mode, or prepare the royalties report.

The screen

• Show header — sticky across all tabs: logo, title, date, venue, artist, the light/dark theme toggle, the Show Mode button and the account-backup status.
• Library — a searchable table (title or artist) with filters for key, BPM range and minimum energy. Rows can be edited, duplicated, deleted (undo for ten seconds) or given an audio file.
• Setlist — the active setlist, with a switcher to create, rename, duplicate and delete setlists (grouped into Upcoming, Past and Undated), and a List / Timeline toggle.
• Royalties — the performed-songs report; Tantiemen in German.

Reading the set

• Camelot badges — every song with a key gets a Camelot wheel code. Same number, or a neighbouring number with the same letter, mixes smoothly.
• Energy Arc — the chart above the list draws each song's energy (1–5); the dotted line is BPM. Aim for waves, not a flat line. It needs at least two songs.
• Transition warnings — a large Camelot distance or BPM jump is flagged on the row as a hard transition.
• Timeline — the same setlist on a time rail with cumulative start times (planned breaks included) and an energy spine.

Getting songs in faster

Import songs (CSV) takes pasted CSV or tab-separated text, or a .csv / .txt file (max 2 MB, 1,000 rows per import). Pick the delimiter or let it auto-detect, tick First row is headers, then map each column to a field — Title is the only one that must be mapped.

Export library in the Library toolbar writes a JSON backup of songs and setlists; Import library restores one (max 10 MB) and replaces what is there — you are asked first.

Audio references

Attach an MP3, M4A, OGG or WAV to a song with the paperclip. Audio stays in this browser only — it is never backed up to your account and is not part of a library export.

Sharing the set with the band

On the Setlist tab, Share read-only link gives you a link to the setlist that bandmates open in their own browser — no account or licence of their own, and no way to change it. They see the show details, the running order, durations, keys and BPM; your stage notes only if you tick Include stage notes. Composers, lyricists and everything in the royalty reports are never on it.

The link is a snapshot: after changing the set, press Update link — the address stays the same. Stop sharing ends it at once; otherwise it expires 90 days after your last update, or 30 days after the show if that is later. The printed stage sheet and Copy as text work as before.