How to set different wallpapers on multiple Mac displays
With multiple displays connected, you can choose a different image for each display. Open System Settings → Wallpaper, turn off Show on all Spaces if it appears, and select each display before choosing its image. The exact controls can vary with your macOS version.
Choose an image for each display
- Connect your displays and open System Settings → Wallpaper.
- If Show on all Spaces is on, turn it off. Apple says this setting applies the same wallpaper to every desktop space and display.
- Select the display you want to change in the wallpaper controls, then choose a picture. To use a saved file, scroll to Your Photos, choose Add Photo → Choose File, and open it.
- Repeat for each display. Check the result on each screen.
On older macOS versions, the settings window and display controls may look different. See Apple’s Wallpaper settings and custom wallpaper instructions.
If both screens show the same picture
- Check whether Show on all Spaces is enabled in Wallpaper settings.
- In System Settings → Displays, check whether the screens are mirrored. Mirroring shows the same desktop on both; use an extended display if you want separate desktops.
- If you use multiple desktop spaces, check the wallpaper in each space. Apple describes changing pictures for individual spaces in its Spaces guide.
Choose the right image for each screen
A MacBook screen and an external monitor may have different pixel dimensions and shapes. Use an image large enough for each display and check the crop on both. A portrait monitor generally needs a portrait image; an ultrawide screen may need a much wider crop. See our wallpaper size guide and cropping guide.
Can one image span both displays?
Showing the same image on both screens is different from spanning one continuous image across them. Choosing the same wallpaper on each display may repeat or crop it separately. For a continuous scene, prepare separate crops for each screen and account for their relative sizes and physical gap; the result depends on your display arrangement.