How to install Screenly on your Raspberry Pi

Eric
  • Updated
Follow

Last updated: July 23, 2026.

This article will guide you through installing Screenly on your Raspberry Pi device. Most Raspberry Pi units come with a microSD card, so if yours is in a case, you will need to open it and remove the card from the slot to proceed. 

For a more comprehensive guide on putting all the pieces together from scratch—case, microSD card, power cable, and all—check out How to self-build a Screenly Player.

What you will need:

  1. A microSD card - We recommend SanDisk Industrial grade cards, specifically model ID: SDSDQAF3-016G.
  2. A microSD card reader - You can buy from Amazon.
  3. A tool for writing the image file onto your microSD card. We suggest using Raspberry Pi Imager.

Method 1: Using Raspberry Pi Imager

  1. Download and install the latest version of Raspberry Pi Imager.
  2. Power off the Raspberry Pi, remove the SD card, and insert this into your computer's SD card reader slot. SD card readers come in different shapes and sizes.

     
  3. In Windows, you might see a pop-up asking you if you want to format the SD card. You should format the SD card in the FAT32 format.
  4. Open Raspberry Pi Imager.
  5. For Raspberry Pi Device ("Choose Device"), select the device type that you have: Raspberry Pi 3, 4 or 5.
    For Operating System ("Choose OS"), select Freemium & Paid-For OS >> Digital Signage OS >> Screenly Digital Signage, then select the image.
  6. For Storage ("Choose Storage"), select your SD card.
  7. Select Next to start flashing (no changes to the defaults needed if prompted).

    screenly-OS-flashing-with-pi-imager.gif
     
  8. Once done safely eject and remove the SD card.
  9. Finally, plug it into the tiny slot on your Raspberry Pi motherboard. Put your player back together, plug it in, and continue with the setup.


Method 2: Using a Downloaded ScreenlyOS Image 

If you prefer not to use Raspberry Pi Imager, you can flash Screenly using a downloaded ScreenlyOS image and a third-party flashing tool.

  1. Download the latest ScreenlyOS image from screenly-latest-pi64-stable.img.
  2. Download and install a flashing tool of your choice. balenaEtcher is a popular and beginner-friendly option, but any image flashing tool will work.
  3. Open your flashing tool and select the downloaded ScreenlyOS image as the source.
  4. Select your SD card as the target drive.
  5. Start the flashing process and wait for it to complete.
  6. Once done, safely eject the SD card and insert it into your Raspberry Pi. Plug it in and continue with the setup.


Frequently asked questions on flashing out Screenly to an SD card

Q: Why is my Raspberry Pi 4 or 5 not booting correctly (stuck on white screen, or black screen with blinking cursor)?

A: For Raspberry Pi 4 and 5, these can sometimes require a firmware update. For instructions on how to complete this, please click here.

Q: When I view the SD card contents on my computer it says that it has a much smaller capacity than before, it went from 16 GB to 31 MB! What's up? 

A: The storage space is still there. We've just formatted it so that it will not show up correctly on Windows or Mac OS. This is normal; don't worry about it. 

Q: When I insert the SD card into my computer it says that it is locked or read only and I can't format it, what do I do? 

A: SD Card adapters have a physical switch on them that locks the card into read only mode. Flipping the switch down should unlock it. 

Related articles