Digital signage apps and widgets: what they are and which you need
Quick answer: DigitalSignage.com calls them components: the blocks you drop into a SignStudio scene to show live content: clock, weather, RSS and news tickers, calendar, social feeds, YouTube, web pages and dashboards, Google Sheets, JSON or XML data, QR codes and countdowns; the first 3 screens are free forever with about 90% of features, then $3 per screen per month. Most screens need four or five. Weather, clock, RSS, YouTube, web page and Google Sheets need no API key; social feeds need an account login or a hashtag, and JSON needs whatever the source API asks for.
Last updated October 22, 2026. Sources: our SignStudio components library, data integration, scene editor and scheduling pages, the weather integration guide and the integrations FAQ. Where a component's exact options are not documented, this page says so.
Apps, widgets and components are the same thing
Vendors use different words for the same idea: a widget, an app, a block, a component. In SignStudio they are components, and they sit inside zones in a scene alongside your own images, video and text. The question to ask of each one is not whether it exists but three practical things: does it need a connection to show anything, what does it show when the connection drops, and what credentials does it need to set up.
The widgets most screens use
| Widget | SignStudio component | What you enter | API key or login | Works offline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clock | Clock: digital, analog, world clock, flip clock; 12 or 24 hour, time zone, seconds | Time zone, style | None | Yes |
| Date and calendar | Calendar: Google Calendar, Outlook and Office 365, iCal or ICS feed; month, week, day, agenda or next event | A calendar connection or feed URL | Google or Microsoft sign-in, or none for an iCal URL | Shows last data |
| Countdown | Countdown: event countdown, time since, deadline, daily reset | A date or time | None | Yes |
| Weather | Current conditions, forecast (3 to 7 days or hourly) and radar | City, ZIP code or coordinates; units; refresh every 15 to 60 minutes | None | Shows last data |
| News and RSS | RSS feed (1 to 10 items, headlines or summaries, thumbnails) and news ticker (speed, direction) | Any RSS or Atom URL | None | Shows last data |
| Social media | X (Twitter), Instagram and Facebook feeds; a social wall across platforms, with moderation | A username, hashtag or page, and an account connection | The social account login or a hashtag | Shows last data |
| YouTube | YouTube component: a video or playlist by URL | The URL | None | No, it streams live |
| Web page and dashboard | Web Page: URL, refresh interval, scroll position, scale, JavaScript on or off; used for Power BI, Grafana, intranet pages | A URL that opens without a login | None, but the page itself must be shareable | No |
| Spreadsheet data | Google Sheets: share the sheet, choose the range, map columns | A sheet URL | Sharing the sheet; no key | Shows last data |
| Any API | JSON data (URL, headers, refresh, JSONPath mapping) and XML data (XPath) | The endpoint and a mapping | Whatever the source API requires: none, an API key, a bearer token or OAuth | Shows last data |
| QR code | QR code: URL, Wi-Fi credentials, vCard, text, or API-driven | The content | None | Yes |
| Menu | Text, images, Google Sheets and zones; see the menu board setup guide | Prices and items, or a sheet | None | Yes |
| Video and slideshow | Video (MP4 H.264, WebM, MOV) and slideshow (duration, transitions, Ken Burns) | Uploaded files | None | Yes, cached |
| Touch | Touch button (navigate, open URL, call an API, play media, popup), form input | Actions | None | Yes |
Offline behaviour follows one rule: media stored on the player plays from the cache through an outage; live components such as web pages, YouTube, social feeds and weather need a connection and pause or show their last data until it returns. For critical screens, prefer uploaded media over streamed content.
Which widgets need no API key
Documented as needing only what you type in: clock, countdown, weather (location only, no key for current conditions, forecast and radar), RSS and news ticker (a feed URL), YouTube (a URL), Web Page (a URL), Google Sheets (share the sheet), QR code, text, images, video and shapes. Social components need you to authenticate the account or enter a hashtag or username. The JSON and XML data components support API keys, bearer tokens, OAuth 2.0 and basic authentication, stored encrypted and sent only over HTTPS, so what they need depends entirely on the source. Direct database connections (SQL Server, MySQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle, ODBC) are a Server edition feature, which is the on-premise mediaSERVER at a one-time $895.
Dashboards and anything behind a login
The Web Page component shows a URL the way a browser would. If the dashboard tool can produce a public or embed link, the page shows on the screen and refreshes on the interval you set. If the page needs a login, the player cannot sign in for you, so use the tool's public, embed or publish-to-web option, an export to Google Sheets, or the JSON component against the tool's API. That is the practical difference between the Power BI, Excel and SharePoint views people ask about: the ones with a shareable link work, the ones that demand a session do not.
Which widgets you need, by venue
| Venue | The content that is the point | Add | Skip |
|---|---|---|---|
| Restaurant, cafe, QSR | Menu zones from text, images or a Google Sheet | Clock, weather, a daypart schedule, a QR code for ordering | Social walls on the menu board |
| Office, lobby | Announcements, calendar of rooms and events | Clock, weather, RSS news, a Web Page dashboard, a welcome board | Autoplaying YouTube with sound |
| School | Schedule, announcements, achievements | Countdown to events, weather, a Google Sheet for the day's timetable | Public social feeds without moderation |
| Retail | Promotions as images and video | Daypart scheduling, a QR code, a social wall with moderation | Dense RSS tickers |
| Clinic, waiting room | Wait-time and health information | Clock, weather, news ticker, calendar | Anything with patient data |
| Gym | Class schedule from a Google Sheet | Countdown, social feed, YouTube or uploaded video | Live web pages that fail offline |
Four or five components cover most screens. Every extra live component is one more thing that must load, so start small, watch the screen for a week and add.
Plans
The free plan covers the first 3 screens forever with no credit card, no ads, no watermark, about 90% of features and 1 GB of storage. Plus+ is $3 per screen per month, with every screen billed once an account has 4 or more screens; touch components are on Plus+ and full kiosk presentations on Enterprise, which is priced per screen in the public calculator. The on-premise mediaSERVER is a one-time $895. The components library lists every option with its settings; for anything not documented there, ask support@digitalsignage.com, live chat at https://chat.digitalsignage.com/ or call +1-877-344-7446.
Frequently asked questions
What are digital signage widgets?
Widgets, apps and components are the same thing: blocks you drop into a scene to show live or structured content without coding. In SignStudio they are components: clock, calendar, countdown, weather, RSS and news ticker, social feeds, YouTube, Web Page, Google Sheets, JSON and XML data, QR code, text, images, video, slideshow, shapes and touch buttons. Most screens use four or five alongside the content that is the point of the screen.
Which digital signage widgets need an API key?
In SignStudio, none of the common ones: clock, countdown, weather (a location only), RSS and news ticker (a feed URL), YouTube (a URL), Web Page (a URL), Google Sheets (share the sheet) and QR code need only what you type in. Social components need the account login or a hashtag. The JSON and XML data components need whatever the source API requires, which may be nothing, an API key, a bearer token or OAuth; those credentials are stored encrypted and sent only over HTTPS.
Can I show a Power BI or Excel dashboard on digital signage?
Yes, if the dashboard has a link that opens without a login. The Web Page component shows that URL and refreshes it on the interval you set; Power BI and Grafana are the documented examples. A page that demands a session cannot be shown, because the player cannot sign in for you, so use the tool's public, embed or publish-to-web option, an export to Google Sheets, or the JSON component against the tool's API. Live pages need a connection and pause when it drops.
Do widgets keep working when the internet goes down?
Media stored on the player keeps playing from the local cache through an outage: images, video, text, clock, countdown and QR codes. Live components need a connection: web pages, YouTube, social feeds, weather, RSS and data feeds pause or show their last data until the connection returns, then update. For screens that must never go blank, prefer uploaded media over streamed content and keep live components in a smaller zone.
How do I show a Google Calendar on a digital sign?
Add the Calendar component to a zone in SignStudio, connect Google Calendar (or Outlook and Office 365, or paste an iCal URL), choose month, week, day, agenda or next-event view, and publish. The sign shows the events and updates on its refresh interval; it shows the last data if the connection drops. For meeting-room doors and lobby directories with occupancy sensors, see the calendar and room booking integration guide.
Which widgets does a restaurant menu board need?
Menu zones built from text and images or driven by a Google Sheet so prices change in one place, a schedule so breakfast, lunch and dinner menus switch on time, and optionally a clock, weather and a QR code for online ordering. Skip social walls and dense news tickers on the board itself; they compete with the prices. The free plan covers 3 screens forever, so a small restaurant pays nothing for the software.
Related
- SignStudio components library
- Data integration in SignStudio
- Weather integration
- Data feeds
- Power BI integration
- Digital menu boards: SignStudio setup
Try it on your own screens, free
DigitalSignage.com, which publishes this guide, runs a permanent free plan: the first 3 screens are free forever (no credit card, no ads, no time limit), then from $3 per screen per month. The free SignPlayer runs on Windows, Mac, Android and Android TV, Chrome OS, Raspberry Pi, iPad or any modern web browser. Start free · 2026 pricing · Free plan details