How to Show or Hide the Lock Screen Background on the Sign-in Screen in Windows 11

What Is the Lock Screen?

The Windows 11 lock screen is the very first thing you see when you turn on your computer or lock it by pressing ⊞ Win+L.

By default, the lock screen picture also appears behind the sign-in box. If you prefer, you can turn this background picture on or off.

Option 1Turn On or Off the Lock Screen Background for Your Account Using Settings

1. Press Win + I on your keyboard to ⚙️ open Settings.
2. Click on Personalization on the left side.
3. Click Lock screen on the right side.
4. Look for the setting called “Show the lock screen background picture on the sign-in screen”.
5. Turn it On to show the picture, or Off to hide it.
6. You can now close ⚙️ the Settings window.

You can easily turn the Windows 11 lock screen background picture on or off for your account right from ⚙️ the Settings app.

Lock screen settings in Windows 11

Turn the lock screen background on or off here

Option 2Use Windows Terminal and Registry Editor (For Advanced Users)

For more control over your Windows 11 lock screen background, or if you can’t use ⚙️ the Settings app, you can use Windows Terminal and the Registry Editor.

1. Open Windows Terminal by right-clicking the ⊞ Start button and selecting it, then choose Command Prompt or PowerShell.
2. Type this command and press Enter to see the list of user accounts and their SID (Security Identifier):
   
   wmic useraccount get domain,name,sid
3. Find your user name in the list and copy the SID next to it. It looks like a long number starting with “S-1-5-21-…”.
4. Press Win + R, type regedit, and press Enter to open the Registry Editor.
5. In Registry Editor, navigate to this path (replace <SID> with your actual SID): HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\System\ProtectedUserData\<SID>\AnyoneRead\LockScreen
6. In the right pane, double-click HideLogonBackgroundImage.
7. Change the value to:

   • 0 to show the lock screen background (default)
   • 1 to hide the background
8. Click OK.
9. Close the Registry Editor and Windows Terminal when done.

Option 3Turn On or Off the Lock Screen Background for All Users (Administrator Only)

⚠️ Admin privileges required

If you manage a PC used by many people, you can set this for everyone using the Registry. You must be signed in as an administrator to do this.

To Enable the Lock Screen Background for Everyone (Default)

reg delete "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\System" /v DisableLogonBackgroundImage /f

To Disable the Lock Screen Background for Everyone

reg add "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\System" /v DisableLogonBackgroundImage /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /f

Summary

• You decide: You can turn the lock screen background picture on or off based on what you like.
• Multiple ways: Use Settings for easiest control, or Windows Terminal and Registry Editor for more options.
• Admin control: If you manage a computer with many users, you can set this for everyone.
• Default setting: Windows shows the lock screen background by default, but you can change it anytime.
• Look and feel: Showing the background picture makes signing in look nicer and more personal.

You have control over whether the Windows 11 lock screen background appears on your sign-in screen, with simple options available.