In this article, we will show you how to set wallpaper per monitor in Windows 11. Latest Windows versions apply a wallpaper image to all monitors by default. Still, users have an option to specify background pictures for each screen (per-monitor wallpapers). If you use Windows 11 and virtual desktops, setting per-monitor wallpapers may become a little confusing.
Keep in mind that you need to activate Windows 11 before changing any personalization-related settings, including the desktop background. Also, we recommend you to disable or remove apps that customize Desktop image background in Windows 11, since they can interfere with your steps.
To set individual wallpaper for each display in Windows 11, do the following.
Set Wallpaper Per Monitor in Windows 11
- Press Win + I to open the Settings app.
- Go to the Personalization > Background.
- Select Picture from the Personalize your background drop-down list.
- Click the Browse Photos button and select the image you want to set as the Desktop background.
- Right-click the picture in the Recent images section and select Set for monitor 1, Set for monitor 2, and so on (depending on how many monitors you use).
- Repeat steps 4 and 5 to set another image as the background for other displays.
You are done.
Tip: Windows 11 has many default wallpapers with variants for light and dark themes. Learn how to find default Windows 11 wallpapers in our dedicated article.
Fix Windows 11 showing the "Set for desktop" option instead of "Set for monitor"
Windows 11 will not allow you to set per-monitor wallpapers if you use more than one virtual desktop. Right-clicking a picture in the Settings app, for some reason, will show you the "Set for desktop" menu instead of "Set for monitor."
To fix that, press Win + Tab or click the Task View taskbar button. Now, delete all virtual desktops.
Finally, set wallpapers for each display as described in the previous chapter.
Once done, restore the previously deleted virtual desktops.
In addition to the Settings app, you may want to use the classic Control Panel app. Its "Personalization" applet doesn't not support virtual desktops, and is not affected by the new behavior of Windows 11. So it allows you to set wallpapers for individual monitors with ease. The only small problem here is that classic Personalization is hidden, but you can open it with a special command.
Set Different Wallpaper for Each Monitor with Control Panel
- Press Win + R and paste the following command in the Run dialog:
shell:::{ED834ED6-4B5A-4bfe-8F11-A626DCB6A921} -Microsoft.Personalization\pageWallpaper.
- In the "Desktop Background" window, select the desired image you want to set for one of your monitor.
- To select a custom image, click the "Browse..." button and find it on your drive.
- Finally, right-click the wallpaper in the list, and select Set for monitor 1..N from the menu to apply it to the specific display.
- Repeat the steps 2-4 for each of the connected displays, and you are done!
That is how you set per-monitor wallpapers in Windows 11.
Support us
Winaero greatly relies on your support. You can help the site keep bringing you interesting and useful content and software by using these options:
Thanks for posting this fix, not being able to set per monitor was bugging me.
That’s exactly what I was looking for. But what’s happening here is that it doesn’t stick.
I choose the papers for each of the 2 monitors (one image for the horizontal one, and one for the vertical), I save, and everything looks perfect. When I move to another desktop and return, it’s no longer there. Have you seen this error?
Thanks a lot
I have the same issue. It doesn’t save.