Shop / Guides / How to set a pixel art wallpaper

How to set a pixel art wallpaper

Pixel art looks best when every pixel lands cleanly on your screen. That comes down to two things: using the file made for your device, and not letting the phone or computer zoom it. Here's how to do both on iPhone, Android, iPad, Mac and Windows.

Which file to use

Device	File
iPhone, Android phones	Phone, 1280x2780 (tall, fits modern phones)
iPad, Android tablets	Tablet, 2048x2720 (portrait, 3:4)
Mac, Windows PC, laptops, TVs	Desktop, 3840x2160 (4K, 16:9)
Square screens, prints for your own home	Square original, 1080x1080

Every pack in the shop comes with all four sizes, so you never have to crop a square image to fit a phone.

Keeping pixel art crisp

Use the exact-size file. Each size is prepared for its screen shape, so your device barely has to scale it.
Don't zoom. Pinching in while positioning enlarges the pixels by an uneven amount, which blurs their edges.
Turn off depth and motion effects. iPhone's Depth Effect and any perspective or parallax option enlarge or cut up the image.
Use the original PNG. Screenshots and images sent through messaging apps get compressed. Move files with AirDrop, a cloud drive or a cable instead.
Pick Fill, not Stretch, on computers.

1. iPhone

Use the phone file (1280x2780).

Download the pack from your Gumroad link, open the zip in the Files app (tap it once to unzip), open the phone PNG for your scene and tap Share, then Save Image so it lands in Photos.
Open Settings, then Wallpaper, then Add New Wallpaper, and choose Photos. Pick the scene.
Tap the ••• button and turn Depth Effect off. Depth Effect cuts the foreground out to sit over the clock, and on pixel art the cut-out edges look rough.
Leave the zoom alone: the phone file is already the shape of an iPhone screen, so don't pinch in. Zooming scales the pixels unevenly and makes them soft.
Tap Add, then Set as Wallpaper Pair to use it on both screens. To change only the Home Screen, choose Customize Home Screen instead and turn the Blur button off so the scene stays sharp.

2. Android phones (Pixel and Samsung)

Use the phone file (1280x2780).

Download the pack and unzip it in Files by Google or Samsung's My Files (tap the zip, then Extract). The phone PNG goes to your Downloads or Pictures folder.
Pixel: touch and hold an empty spot on the home screen, tap Wallpaper & style, then Change wallpaper (or More wallpapers) and My photos. Pick the scene.
Samsung Galaxy: open Settings, then Wallpaper and style, then Change wallpapers, and pick the scene from Gallery. Or open it in Gallery, tap ⋮ (More) and choose Set as wallpaper.
Don't pinch to zoom while positioning. Tap Set wallpaper (or Done) and choose Home screen, Lock screen, or both.
If your launcher scrolls the wallpaper across home screen pages, turn that off in its home screen settings so the image isn't stretched wider than the screen.

3. iPad and Android tablets

Use the tablet file (2048x2720).

Use the tablet file (2048x2720). It matches the shape of an iPad held upright.
iPad: Settings, then Wallpaper, then Add New Wallpaper, then Photos, the same as on iPhone. Turn Depth Effect off under •••.
Android tablets: the same steps as Android phones, but pick the tablet file.
Tablets rotate, so in landscape the edges of the scene get cropped. The main subject of each scene sits near the middle, so it stays in view either way.

4. Mac

Use the desktop file (3840x2160, 4K).

Unzip the pack (double-click the zip in Finder) and find the desktop file (3840x2160, 4K).
Right-click the file in Finder and choose Set Desktop Picture. Or open System Settings, then Wallpaper, then Add Photo (or Add Folder) and pick it.
Choose Fill Screen. Most MacBooks are a bit taller than 16:9, so Fill Screen trims a sliver off the sides; avoid Stretch to Fill, which squashes the pixels.

5. Windows 11 and 10

Use the desktop file (3840x2160, 4K).

Right-click the zip in File Explorer and choose Extract All, then find the desktop file (3840x2160, 4K).
Right-click the file and choose Set as desktop background. Or open Settings, then Personalization, then Background, choose Picture and Browse photos.
Under Choose a fit for your desktop image, pick Fill. Don't use Stretch or Tile.
For the lock screen: Settings, then Personalization, then Lock screen, choose Picture and Browse photos.

Find a scene

Try one free first: there's a different free wallpaper every day on the home page. Or browse the collections, each with six scenes in all four sizes:

For October, see the Halloween pixel art wallpapers. Back to the shop