How to Change Your Lock Screen Background in Windows 11

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Easy steps to update your lock screen picture on your PC

Written by Luigi Oppido | Edited by Hannah Dillon

Last Updated: March 11, 2026 Fact Checked

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Changing the Lock Screen Background

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Changing Lock Screen Widgets

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FAQ

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Video

Do you want to change the lock screen on your Windows 11 computer? Thankfully, changing your lock screen background is pretty simple. If you want to change the widgets on your lock screen, that's a different story—you can only choose to display the default widgets, or to display none. In this article, we'll teach you how to change your Windows 11 lock screen background, as well as how to enable or disable the lock screen widgets. Read on to learn how.

Changing Your Lock Screen in Windows 11

To change your lock screen, go to Settings > Personalization > Lock screen. You can then change the lock screen background, as well as select if you want to display widgets (also called the "Weather and more" app). You can also choose if you want to display fun facts, tips, tricks, and more on the lock screen.

Section 1 of 3:

Changing the Lock Screen Background

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Open Settings. There are a few ways you can do this:
- Press ⊞ Win+i.
- Right-click the Windows icon in the taskbar, then click Settings.
- Click the Windows icon in the taskbar, then click Settings.
- Search "settings" in the taskbar search bar, then click Settings in the Start menu that pops up.
It has an icon of a paintbrush.

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This option is near the middle of the menu, and it has an icon of a rectangle with a lock.
By default, the dropdown will have Windows spotlight selected.
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Choose a new option. Here's what each option does:
- Windows spotlight: This option shows a random image from Microsoft that changes every day or every few days. The lock screen will also display tips, tricks, and other notifications.
- Picture: This option allows you to choose one image from your computer to use as a lock screen background. You can choose a default image, or you can click Browse photos to pick your own.
  - If you still want tips, tricks, and notifications, leave "Get fun facts, tips, tricks, and more on your lock screen" checked.
- Slideshow: This option allows you to choose folders (by default, your Pictures folder will be selected). Any of the images in this folder will then be displayed as a slideshow on your lock screen. To add a folder, click Browse. To delete a folder, click Remove.
  - If you still want tips, tricks, and notifications, leave "Get fun facts, tips, tricks, and more on your lock screen" checked.
  - You can also choose advanced slideshow settings. These options will appear below the "Get fun facts, tips, tricks, and more on your lock screen" option. Choose the settings you want for your slideshow.
By default, the "Show the lock screen background picture on the sign-in screen" option is toggled on. However, if you want the sign-in screen to be blank (with no background), toggle this option off.^{[1]
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Section 2 of 3:

Changing Lock Screen Widgets

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1
Open Settings. There are a few ways you can do this:
- Press ⊞ Win+I.
- Right-click the Windows icon in the taskbar, then click Settings.
- Click the Windows icon in the taskbar, then click Settings.
- Search "settings" in the taskbar search bar, then click Settings in the Start menu that pops up.
It has an icon of a paintbrush.
This option is near the middle of the menu, and it has an icon of a rectangle with a lock.
By default, this dropdown has Weather and more selected.
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Choose which widgets you want on your lock screen. You have the choice of Weather and more, and None. You may also have an option that says Dev Home, but in our testing, this option didn't do anything when it was enabled.^{[2]
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- Weather and more will show you local weather, stocks, nearby traffic reports, and recent sports scores.
- None will show no widgets on the lock screen, as the name suggests.

Section 3 of 3:

FAQ

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Can I switch which widgets show up when "Weather and more" is selected? No, you currently cannot switch which widgets show up in the "Weather and more" app. You can change your language, region, and temperature units (all used in the Weather and more app) via the Widgets app.
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Why can't I change the lock screen on my computer? If your computer is managed by your organization (work or school), you may not be able to change your lock screen. Here's how you can get around this using the Registry Editor:
- Open regedit (Registry Editor) as an administrator.
  - Only attempt these steps if you're confident with Registry Editor. Messing something up in regedit can make your computer stop working. Always back up your registry before changing anything.
- Expand HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE.
- Expand SOFTWARE.
- Expand Policies.
- Expand Microsoft.
- Expand Windows.
- Click on Personalization.
- Double-click NoLockScreen in the right-hand pane.
- Change the "Value data" to 0.
- Click OK.
- Close Registry Editor.
- Open Task Manager and restart Windows Explorer. Once you go back to the lock screen personalization page, you should be able to personalize it.^{[3]
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