How to Change Lock Screen Background Image in Windows 11

This article will show you four ways to change the lock screen background image in Windows 11. If you find the default lock screen wallpaper in Windows 11 a little boring, here is how you add a personal touch with custom images, slideshows, and Windows Spotlight.

Important: Changing personalization settings in Windows 11 requires activating Windows. You cannot set the lock screen background on a system with a non-activated copy of Windows 11.

Change Lock Screen Background Image in Windows 11

In Windows 11, you can set the lock screen background image to a static image, slideshow, or Windows Spotligt. The latter will automatically download beautiful images from the Internet and apply them to the lock screen.

Change the Lock Screen background image in Settings

To change the lock screen background image in Windows 11, do the following.

1. Press Win + I to launch the Settings app.
2. Go to Personalization and click Lock screen.
3. Select "Picture" from the drop-down list next to the "Personalize your lock screen" option.
4. Click the Browse photos button and pick an image you want to use.

And that is it. The lock screen background is now set to the image you have selected, and won't be automatically changed.

Alternatively, you can set a picture as your Lock Screen background using the Photos app. There is no need to open the Windows Settings app every time you want to set a picture as the lock screen background.

Set a picture as the Lock Screen wallpaper using the Photos app

1. Open a picture and find the toolbar at the top of the Photos app.
2. Click the menu button with three dots.
3. Select the "Set as" option from the menu.
4. Click Set as lock screen.

Now, let's see how to set Windows Spotlight as the lock screen background in Windows 11.

Set Windows Spotlight as the Lock Screen background in Windows 11

1. Right-click the Start menu and select Settings from the menu.
2. In the Settings app, navigate to the Personalization section.
3. Click Lock screen on the right.
4. Select "Windows Spotlight" in the "Personalize your lock screen" drop-down list. Windows will apply the changes in an instant.

Done! The Windows Spotlight feature will refresh the lock screen regularly with new pictures.

Finally, Windows 11 allows you to pick a few images and use them as the background for the lock screen. The operating system will shuffle the selected images periodically to provide you with a fresh picture. Here is how to display a slideshow on the lock screen in Windows 11.

How to enable a slideshow for the Lock Screen in Windows 11

1. Press Win + I to open the Settings app. Alternatively, you can right-click the Start menu button and select Settings.
2. Go to the Personalization section and click Lock screen.
3. Find the Personalize your lock screen option and click Slideshow in the dropdown list.
4. Now it is time for you to select what images Windows 11 will show as the background on the lock screen. The operating system uses the Pictures folder by default. If you want to override that and pick another folder, click Browse.
5. Alternatively, place a checkmark next to the "Include camera roll folders" option. That will let you use the photos your devices back up in OneDrive.
6. Click the Remove button next to the folders you want to exclude from the slideshow.
7. Uncheck the "Only use pictures that fit my screen."
8. Finally, you can select a timeout, after which Windows will turn off the screen. Select some time if you want to preserve energy or the battery in your laptop/tablet.

That is it.

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