> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.scaleflex.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.scaleflex.com/portals/building-a-portal/sections/gallery/gallery-settings/display-mode.md).

# Display mode

Choose how assets are organized and displayed in this gallery.

**Display mode** is the first decision to make about a gallery, because it changes what every other panel offers. It decides how the assets are grouped: as one continuous run, as groups you define yourself, or as a structure visitors navigate.

<div><figure><img src="https://2536208400-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2Fqsq2dR7Fjagf5eTifWZx%2Fuploads%2F1ahYMiEQ85pKsuxoyhxQ%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=f01231e3-29a1-40c4-afbe-63dcb715d525" alt=""><figcaption><p>The <strong>Display mode</strong> panel of Gallery settings, on <strong>Flat</strong>.</p></figcaption></figure> <figure><img src="https://2536208400-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2Fqsq2dR7Fjagf5eTifWZx%2Fuploads%2Fwrh9e8uHwBtS46uKGe5W%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=e16843d3-4186-4c17-855b-94a842d8ed9b" alt=""><figcaption><p>The same panel scrolled down, to the last option — <strong>Labels</strong>.</p></figcaption></figure></div>

Picking a mode is not only a layout choice — it rewires the rest of the dialog, and decides a few settings for you. That's the last column.

| Mode            | What it does                                                                         | It also sets                                                                                               |
| --------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Flat**        | Display all assets in a single continuous view without any grouping or organization. | Turns **Display tabs** off — there are no groups to tab between.                                           |
| **Sections**    | Organize assets into custom sections, each with its own title, source, and filters.  | Leaves **Display tabs** available; it's the only mode that offers it.                                      |
| **Folders**     | Let viewers browse assets by navigating through your folder structure from VXP.      | Sets the asset source to **Folder**, and turns **Display tabs** off.                                       |
| **Collections** | Let viewers browse assets by navigating through your collections structure from VXP. | Sets the source to a collection, includes sub-collections, and turns **Display tabs** off.                 |
| **Labels**      | Let viewers browse assets by label, shown as a grid of label covers.                 | Sets the source to **Label** — you pick which labels visitors can browse — and turns **Display tabs** off. |

{% hint style="warning" %}
Switching mode clears what you had picked in **Source**; you choose it again for the new mode. Nothing is removed from the DAM — only this gallery's selection.
{% endhint %}

{% hint style="info" %}
In **Collections**, the filters you set still apply — visitors just meet them one level in, once they drill into a group's assets, because the gallery opens on the collections tree. **Expand filters by default** isn't offered in this mode for the same reason.
{% endhint %}

## Which one to use

**Flat** is the simplest: one set of assets, one continuous grid. Use it when the gallery has a single subject — a product's imagery, one campaign, one event.

**Sections** is the default, and the right choice when a single page needs to hold several distinct groups — *Logos*, *Photography*, *Templates*. You define each group yourself: its title, where its assets come from and how they're narrowed. Visitors move between them with tabs.

**Folders** hands navigation over to the structure you already keep in the DAM. Visitors start at a root folder you choose and drill down from there. Use it when your folder tree is already the way people think about the assets, and when it changes often enough that you'd rather not mirror it by hand.

**Collections** does the same for collections rather than folders.

**Labels** opens on a grid of label covers rather than assets; visitors pick a label and see what carries it. Use it when the useful grouping cuts across folders — by season, by market, by campaign.

## On an Asset gallery page

A gallery that fills a whole page rather than sitting inside one offers only **Flat** and **Folders**, and never offers **Display tabs**. Everything else on this page still applies.