# Folders vs setlists: how to organize your songbook

> Use folders for your long-term catalog and setlists for the night, so drafts, favorites, and stage songs do not get mixed together.

Source: https://lyricslibrary.app/blog/organize-songs-folders-setlists

A folder is your **catalog**. A setlist is **tonight**. Mixing those two ideas is how musicians end up scrolling through old drafts while the room waits.

Lyrics Library gives you both: folders for the long-term songbook, setlists for rehearsals, Sabbath or Sunday services, gigs, and one-off nights.

## Use folders for the library

Folders answer the question: “Where does this song belong when I am not performing it?”

Useful folders are broad enough to last:

- Originals
- Worship
- Acoustic
- Covers
- Christmas
- Drafts
- Favorites

Do not build folders that only make sense for one night. “Friday coffeehouse 23 Aug” is not a folder. It is a setlist.

## Keep drafts away from stage charts

Drafts are useful. Drafts are also dangerous on stage. The half-written bridge with a placeholder line should not sit beside the finished song you might open during a service.

Put sketches in a Drafts folder until they are ready. When a chart is clean, move it to the folder where it belongs. If you write original songs, this one habit saves a lot of panic.

[Download Lyrics Library free](/#download) if your current songbook is a pile of notes, screenshots, and “final” copies.

## Use setlists for events

Setlists answer the question: “What am I playing in this order?”

Create a setlist for the actual event:

- `Harbor Hall · 23 Aug`
- `Sabbath 9am`
- `Sunday 10am`
- `Youth rehearsal`
- `Acoustic hour`

Then add songs from any folder. A worship song and an original can live in different folders but still sit next to each other in the same set.

For more detail, read [how to build a setlist for tonight](/blog/build-a-setlist-for-tonight).

## Do not over-sort

If every song needs three folders, the system is too heavy. A chart should be easy to find when your hands are full. Use simple folder names and rely on setlists for the exact night.

One good test: if you cannot explain the folder system to another musician in ten seconds, simplify it.

## Archive by leaving the set alone

After the event, do not delete the setlist just because the night is over. It becomes a record of what worked. Next time, duplicate it or create a new set.

That is especially useful for worship planning. If a Sabbath or Sunday flow worked well, you can see the order later without rebuilding from memory.

## Sync the structure too

Folders and setlists are part of the library. When you [sync Lyrics Library across devices](/blog/sync-lyrics-across-devices), your organization travels with the songs.

That means the phone in your pocket and the tablet on the stand can share the same songbook, as long as you sign in with the same Apple or Google account.