How to use Live Wallpapers on Linux

Run a Full-HD video on loop as your wallpaper/desktop background

Desktop wallpapers have always been a way to personalize your computer, but what if your wallpaper could be more than just a static image? On Linux, you can take things a step further with live wallpapers – backgrounds that play videos or animations right on your desktop. One of the most popular tools for this is Hidamari, a simple app that brings video wallpapers to Linux in a smooth and efficient way.

Hidamari – the video wallpaper app

Hidamari is a lightweight tool that lets you set looping videos or animations as your desktop wallpaper. It’s built with Electron and integrates neatly with GNOME and other modern desktop environments. Unlike some older solutions, it focuses on being simple to use without hogging system resources.

You can install Hidamari from several popular repositories:

• Flathub

• COPR

• AUR

• nixpkgs

How to use Hidamari

Getting started with Hidamari is straightforward. Once installed, you launch the app and are presented with a simple interface that lets you pick a video file from your system. After selecting one, Hidamari places it seamlessly as your wallpaper.

You can choose from your own videos, download looped backgrounds from sites like Wallpaper Engine (with some conversion), or grab community-made live wallpapers that are already optimized for looping. Hidamari also includes options to pause playback when you’re running on battery power, and you can set different wallpapers for different monitors if you use a multi-display setup.

Alternatives to Hidamari

Hidamari has a cousin - the Hanabi GNOME extension if you're using a GNOME desktop.

While Hidamari is great, it’s not the only option for live wallpapers on Linux. Tools like Komorebi have been around for a while, offering animated and video wallpapers with extra desktop widgets, though they can be a bit heavier on resources. Another option is xwinwrap, a classic utility that lets you “wrap” video players onto your desktop background, though it requires more tinkering compared to Hidamari’s simple interface.

If you’re a KDE Plasma user, you can also find wallpaper plugins that support animated or video backgrounds, though the implementation depends on which version of Plasma you’re running.