4 Fixes if Windows 11 Wallpaper Keeps Going Black

Quick Tips

• An outdated version of the Display Drivers on your Windows 11 PC may be responsible for the wallpaper going black automatically on the desktop.
• Change Ease of Access Settings, which includes different accessibility settings.
• Rename the corrupt transcoded wallpaper file using Command Prompt on your Windows 11 PC.

Basic Fixes

• Manually change your wallpaper: You can manually change your wallpaper instead of choosing it to change automatically.
• Set wallpaper using the context menu: In the folder that contains your image, right-click on the image and choose Set as desktop background.
• Restart Windows Explorer: Restarting Windows Explorer on your PC effectively troubleshoots glitches, performance issues, and bugs in the user interface.
• Update Windows 11 version: Installing an updated version of Windows 11 will help remove bugs and glitches.

Fix 1: Change Ease of Access Settings

Ease of Access includes different accessibility settings for your Windows computer, such as enabling the On-Screen Keyboard, Magnifier, and rich contrast.

Step 1: Open the Control Panel and click on Ease of Access on the right side.

Step 2: Click on Ease of Access Center > Make the Computer Easier to See.

Step 3: Scroll down and look for Make Things on the Screen Easier to See.

Step 4: Ensure that Remove Background Images (When Available) is unchecked.

Fix 2: Rename Corrupt Transcoded Wallpaper File

Whenever you select an image for the desktop background, Windows will convert that image file’s format to JPG regardless of its original file format. This is called a Transcoded Wallpaper File. If your Windows 11 wallpaper keeps going black automatically, the Transcoded Wallpaper file might be corrupted.

Step 1: Click on the Windows Search icon on the Taskbar, type the following file location in the Search Bar, and press Enter.

%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Themes\

Step 2: Select the TranscodedWallpaper file and press F2 to rename it.

Step 3: Rename the file to TranscodedWallpaper.old.

Close the window and try changing the wallpaper.

Fix 3: Update the Display Drivers

An outdated version of the Display Drivers on your Windows 11 PC may be causing the wallpaper on the desktop to go black automatically. Here’s how to check and update the Display Drivers.

Step 1: Open Device Manager and click on Display Adapters.

Step 2: Right-click on your video card name and select Update Driver from the list of options.

Step 3: When a dialog box opens, click on Search Automatically for Drivers to let Windows automatically search and install the best version of Display driver for your computer.

After the driver installation is complete, try changing your wallpaper.

Fix 4: Disable Remember My Preferences in Account Settings

Step 1: Open Settings and click on Accounts,. Then, click on Accounts again.

Step 2: Click on Windows Backup and disable the option of Remember my preferences.

Now, try changing your desktop background again.