You ’ve got a brand new MacBook or iMac , so it ’s time to spruce up that screen background background with something other than the line of descent Apple exposure .
The good news is that it ’s not hard to change the background inmacOS . Whether you desire to switch to a favorite unexampled photo , put up a daze look-alike you find online , or rotate between a collection of your favorite backgrounds , we can show you how to change the background on a Mac the well-fixed way .
Change your Mac background in the System Settings app
One of the fastest way to change your macOS wallpaper is in the System preferences app . Here ’s how it ’s done .
Step 1 : give the System options app from your Mac ’s Dock or by selecting theApple logoin the top - left recession and choosingSystem mount
Step 2 : In the leftover - deal sidebar , selectWallpaper .
measure 3 : Here , you ’ll see different wallpapers unionize into sections . There are dynamical Wallpapers – which change their feel throughout the 24-hour interval – then various groups for landscapes , cityscapes , submerged image , and more . Simply find fault one and it will become your new background knowledge look-alike .
Step 4 : To the right of these sections , you ’ll see aShow Allbutton . Click it to see every wallpaper option within the selected category .
Step 5 : You do n’t have to stick by to Apple ’s wallpaper selection . Near the top , click eitherAdd PhotoorAdd Folder or Album , then navigate to your own image or brochure of images to add up them to System options .
Step 6 : Once you ’ve pick a background image , you have some more selection . At the very top of theWallpapersection in System options is a dropdown menu ( set toFill Screenby default ) . Open this carte and pick one of the other options ( Fit to Screen , Stretch to Fill Screen , andCenter ) to change how the wallpaper is exhibit .
stair 7 : There is also a on/off switch underneath the previous dropdown menu labeledShow on all Spaces . Toggling this on will ensure that the same wallpaper is used on alldesktop spacesand connected external presentation .
Change your background image within the Finder app
If you are browsing a folder of images using the Finder app on your Mac , you’re able to transfer your background image forthwith from there , without needing to get to the System options app first .
Step 1 : In a folder of image , right - snap one painting and selectSet Desktop Picturefrom the context card . This will instantly switch your wallpaper to your take image .
Step 2 : Note that this automatically sets the image to take your covert , but does not debase or prune it to fit in any way .
stair 3 : you could get more control over how the image is displayed by unfold System preferences , heading toWallpaperin the sidebar , then play with the dropdown menu near the top of the windowpane . Here , you ’ll also get the other controls mentioned further up this varlet .
Use a rotating selection of background images
You do n’t have to decide for a static setting image , and there are two ways you could get a rotate chemical group of wallpapers on your Mac .
gradation 1 : The first method acting is to select one of Apple ’s Dynamic Wallpapers in theWallpapersection of the System preferences app . All of these wallpaper will subtley vary over the course of study of the Clarence Shepard Day Jr. , creating a pleasant essence every hour . Note that you do n’t get much control over how on a regular basis these images change .
footstep 2 : The second selection is to utilize a leaflet of images as your background . To do this , go toSystem configurations > Wallpaper , then selectAdd Folder of Album . From here , you’re able to either pick out an album from the Photos app or manually peck an record album . If you need to do the latter , selectChoose Folderfrom the dropdown computer menu .
pace 3 : sail to the folder you want to use , select it , then clickChoose .
Step 4 : This album will look at the bottom of the list of wallpaper in the System options app . you’re able to either choose one image by get across on it , or tell macOS to rotate through the images by choose the left - most thumbnail ( it shows a brace of rotating arrows overlaid on double from the record album ) .
footstep 5 : Back at the top of theWallpapersection of System options , you ’ll see a newShuffleoption . you may select how often the images rotate ( from once every five seconds to once a Clarence Day ) and whether they only shuffle when you access or when you wake your Mac from eternal sleep . There is also a checkbox to randomize the order of magnitude of the shuffle .
You have a few options when it comes to changing the background picture in macOS , but all of them are middling straightforward . Whether you want to use a static image or a rotating stock of painting , there are a few options to meet your needs .
Before too long , you ’ll have a bully new wallpaper – or grouping of wallpaper – clothe your Mac .
