# How a screen decides what to play


> Four conditions decide whether a playlist reaches a screen. Knowing them in order turns 'why is it showing that' into a two-minute check.
A playlist plays on a screen when four things are all true at once. Nothing else is involved.

1. **The playlist is enabled.** A disabled playlist stays assigned but never plays.
2. **The screen is in its target.** Either named directly, or carrying a label the playlist targets.
3. **The screen is enabled.** A disabled screen holds no license and shows nothing.
4. **The schedule matches right now**, in that screen's local time.

## When several qualify at once

By default they share. The screen cycles through every eligible playlist, giving each its turn.

One exception: a **priority** playlist. While its schedule is active it plays ahead of and suppresses the regular ones on the screens it is assigned to, then hands back on its own when the schedule ends.

That is the whole precedence model. There is no per-playlist ranking beyond priority on or off.

## Why this list is worth memorizing

Almost every "why is it showing that" question is one of those four, and they fail in a specific order of likelihood: schedule first, then the label not matching, then the playlist being disabled.

Two shortcuts settle it faster than reasoning about it. The **Now playing** tab on a screen lists what is active on that screen right now. The **effective schedule summary** on a playlist says in plain language when it will play.

## Case matters in labels

`Warehouse` and `warehouse` are two different labels. This is the most common cause of a playlist that is correctly built, correctly enabled, and quietly playing on nothing.

Deeper: [Assign a playlist](/docs/playlists/where-it-plays/assign-to-screens/), [When playlists overlap](/docs/playlists/playback/when-several-are-eligible/), [Priority override](/docs/playlists/playback/priority-override/).