How to use a teleprompter in church: sermons, readings and livestreams

A teleprompter in church keeps the words of a sermon, a reading or the announcements in front of the person speaking, while their face stays turned to the congregation. Large churches use glass prompters and stage monitors for this. Most churches don't need that hardware: a tablet on the pulpit or a screen at the back of the room, running a browser-based prompter, does the job.

This guide covers the setups that work in a sanctuary, how a volunteer can run the prompter from the sound desk, how to format a sermon so it reads well at a glance, and what to do for the livestream camera. The examples use EasyPrompter, a free teleprompter that runs in the browser on any phone, tablet or computer.

Who uses a prompter in church

• Pastors and preachers who write a full manuscript but want to look up more than paper allows.
• Readers of scripture and prayers, especially volunteers who are nervous in front of the room.
• Hosts of announcements, the welcome and the notices, who need names and dates exactly right.
• Livestream and video teams recording a welcome video, a devotional or a mid-week message.

A full script isn't always the answer. Many preachers mix the two: the opening, the key points and the close written out word for word, and the stories in the middle as short prompts. A prompter handles both, because it shows whatever you put in it.

Choose your setup

Put the text where your eyes would naturally go: towards the people, not flat on the pulpit.

A tablet on the pulpit

The simplest setup. Open EasyPrompter in the tablet's browser, or in the free iPad app, set a large font and stand the tablet on the pulpit, tilted up towards you. From the pews it looks like notes. A phone works for a short reading, with a smaller font.

A confidence monitor at the back or on the floor

A screen at the back of the sanctuary, or on the stage floor facing the preacher, lets them read while looking out over the whole room. Connect it to a laptop as a second display (extended, not mirrored). In EasyPrompter on the laptop, choose Another screen in the prompter's quick menu: the prompter opens in its own window, full screen on the other display in Chrome and Edge (in other browsers, drag it there), and the laptop's tab becomes the control panel.

A glass prompter in front of the camera

For a livestream or a recorded message, a beam-splitter prompter on the camera lets the speaker read while looking straight into the lens. Lay a phone or tablet under the glass and turn on Mirror. Our guide to mirror mode and beam splitters covers the setup, and the teleprompters we recommend start with ones for a phone.

Let a volunteer run it from the desk

Many churches already have someone on the sound desk or the slides. They can run the prompter too, so the preacher never touches it.

• Remote control (Pro). Sign in on the pulpit tablet and on the volunteer's laptop or phone. The remote shows a live preview of what the preacher sees, play and pause, the speed, and the list of paragraphs to jump to a point. Or open Remote control on the prompter screen and scan its QR code with any phone: it becomes the remote, with no app and no sign-in on that phone.
• Last-minute changes. If a name or a date changes during the service, the volunteer edits the script on the remote and taps Save & sync. The prompter shows the new words and keeps its place.
• From the keyboard. If the prompter runs on the desk laptop with Another screen, the volunteer can use its keys: Space to pause, ↑ and ↓ for the speed, ← and → for the previous or next paragraph.

The remote control page shows how it works.

Or let the prompter follow the preacher

Preaching rarely runs at a steady speed: you slow down for a verse, stop for a story, speed up when it's going well. Two free options keep the text with you without an operator:

• Auto speed. Turn on Auto by the speed and the prompter listens to the reader's voice: it waits for the first words, follows your pace and stops when you stop. Test it in the room first, with the sound system on: the tablet listens through its own microphone, so it should be close to the preacher.
• A clicker. Pair a presentation clicker with the tablet. Most send Page Up and Page Down, which move to the previous or next paragraph, so each click brings up the next part of the sermon.

Format a sermon for the prompter

• Big, clear type. 60 px or more on a tablet at arm's length; bigger on a monitor at the back of the room. Light text on black is easiest to read and doesn't light up your face.
• Short lines. Use the side margins so each line holds a handful of words. You take in a line, look up and say it.
• One paragraph per thought. Each paragraph is a step for the clicker or the remote, so a point, a verse or a story can each be one paragraph.
• Scripture on its own. Put each verse in its own paragraph, with the reference on the line above, so it's easy to find and to read slowly.
• Cues in capitals. PAUSE, PRAY, NEXT SLIDE on their own lines stand out from what you say. You can also set key words in bold or a color.

For writing for the ear, see how to write a teleprompter script. To plan the length, the speech time calculator turns minutes into words: a 25-minute sermon at 120 words per minute is about 3,000 words.

Slides and lyrics stay where they are

EasyPrompter is for the person speaking. The lyrics, the verses and the slides the congregation sees stay in your presentation software. The two run side by side: the slides on the projector, the prompter on the pulpit or the confidence monitor.

Readers and guest speakers rehearse at home

A volunteer reading on Sunday is much calmer after reading the text aloud a few times. With practice links (Pro), send them the reading or the announcements as a link. It opens on their phone with no app and no account, laid out for the screen they'll use in church, and the speed and text size they choose come back with the script.

Sunday checklist

• Sermon final, read aloud and timed at your speaking pace
• Font large enough from the pulpit or the back of the room, side margins set
• Tablet charged or plugged in, Do Not Disturb on, brightness checked in the room's light
• Confidence monitor connected as an extended display, prompter opened with Another screen
• Who runs it decided: the volunteer's remote, a clicker or Auto, tested with the sound system on
• Countdown on, speed a little slow; the preacher knows how to pause
• A printed copy on the pulpit, just in case

Frequently asked questions