After you log in to your computer, your desktop wallpaper is the first thing you see. That's why you should pick the best desktop wallpaper possible—one that is uplifting, lets you express your creativity, or motivates you to keep your desktop tidy.

This guide will show you how to get the right wallpaper for your screen size, where to find the most beautiful wallpapers, how to have more than one wallpaper, and lots more. Your desktop won't be the same!

1. Get the Right Resolution Image

Regardless of its artistic beauty, a wallpaper that doesn't come in a high enough resolution and matching aspect ratio will look blurry and distorted. To avoid awkward-looking background images, you should understand the specs of your monitor before you start hunting for great wallpapers.

Screen resolutions are denoted in pixels, like 1920x1080. The numbers indicate how many pixels your monitor can display horizontally (1920) and vertically (1080). You can also determine the aspect ratio from the resolution. In this example, it's 16:9.

whatsimyresolution

The simplest way to find out your monitor's resolution and aspect ratio is to visit whatismyresolution.com. Alternatively, press Windows key + I to open the Settings menu, and go to System > Display > Display resolution.

You should ensure that the image you choose for your wallpaper matches your screen resolution (or higher). The aspect ratio is less important, but be aware that if the image's ratio doesn't match your monitor's then the image will be cropped.

Related: Which Display Resolution Is Best for Gaming?

2. Find the Best Wallpapers

Struggling to decide what wallpaper you should use for your desktop? The amount of websites that offer free wallpapers is endless. Some websites will even try to charge you money for wallpapers—avoid these, unless it's paying the artist directly.

To help your search, we've rounded up the best sites to download high-resolution wallpapers.

Alternatively, search on Google Images. Select Tools > Size > Large to ensure you only find high-resolution images. When you click an image, hover over the larger preview on the right, and you will see the resolution displayed in the bottom-left.

To quickly set a saved image as your wallpaper, right-click it and choose Set as desktop background.

3. Shuffle Your Wallpapers

wallpaper shuffle

Do you find it hard to choose just one wallpaper? Or perhaps you quickly get bored by seeing the same image? Have no fear because you can shuffle them by using a wallpaper slideshow in Windows 10.

  1. Press Windows key + I to open Settings.
  2. Click Personalization > Background.
  3. Change the Background dropdown to Slideshow.
  4. Click Browse to choose the folder that contains your wallpapers.
  5. Adjust the other options, like the Change picture every dropdown, as you wish.

4. Tidy Your Desktop Icons

Once you've chosen the perfect wallpaper, the last thing you want is for it to be cluttered with desktop icons. You want to see the image, not the icons! The easiest way to solve this is to hide them:

  1. Right-click an empty space on your desktop.
  2. Hover over View.
  3. Click Show desktop icons.
show desktop icons

There are better places to store shortcuts than on your desktop. The Start menu and taskbar are two superior alternatives because they are more convenient to access. You don't even need to minimize your windows to use them.

For full advice, check our guide on how to clean up your Windows desktop.

5. Get an Animated Desktop Wallpaper

It's nice to keep your desktop simple and tidy, but perhaps you want something fancier. If so, you should try an animated desktop wallpaper.

There are a number of tools to help you set a video as your wallpaper, like Wallpaper Engine and DeskScapes. Our guide on how to set live wallpapers compares these tools and more.

If a video is too much, take it down a notch and use an animated GIF as your wallpaper. It's like the modern-day screensaver!

Change the Appearance of Windows 10

Just like a physical wallpaper, a desktop wallpaper can entirely change the atmosphere and set a mood. It's the perfect way to spice up Windows 10.

If you want to customize Windows 10 even more, you can try simple customizations. Change the accent color, set a profile picture, rearrange the Start menu... whatever you do, make your computer feel uniquely yours.