How to create virtual desktops with Windows 11

Virtual desktops are not new to Windows. In Windows 10, for example, it was a simple matter of creating a separate desktop so that you have one desktop for one project and a second for another, or a desktop for work and a second for your personal applications.

However, an upgrade has been made in Windows 11. Now you can have a different wallpaper for each desktop, making it easy to distinguish one from the other (and give you a different mood depending on what you use it for). And there are a number of other features that make virtual desktops easy and efficient to use. Note that some of these were originally offered in Windows 10, but with the new features of Windows 11 they create a useful toolbox.

Create a virtual desktop

To create a new virtual desktop:

• Hover or click the “Task view” icon in your taskbar (one square appears to be superimposed on another).
• Click on the “New desktop” thumbnail.

You can also use the Win+Ctrl+D key combination; in this case, you will immediately find yourself at your new desktop.

You can now place different apps on your separate desktops. Switch from one desktop to another by clicking the “Task view” icon. (You can also navigate using the familiar Alt-Tab key combination, which will take you to all apps on a desktop and then to the next ones.)

To remove a desktop:

• Hover or click the “Task view” icon.
• Hover over the virtual desktop you want to remove and click the “X” in the upper right corner.

Personalize your desktop

With Windows 11, you can now personalize your desktops, making it easier to separate each one into a separate function. There are several ways to do this.

Choose different wallpaper

You can have a different background for each virtual desktop. It’s pretty simple:

• Click the “Task view” icon in the taskbar.
• Right-click the desktop you want to change.
• Click on “Choose background”.

This will take you to the Personalization > Background page, where you can choose an image, a solid color for your background, or edit a slideshow. You can then browse through your photos for the image(s) you have chosen to use and decide on the type of fit you want for your image (for example, you can tile or stretch the image).

Give your desktop a name

It automatically adds “Desktop 1”, “Desktop 2” etc. to your desktops, which is pretty boring. titles will be assigned. You can easily change this by giving each desktop a name.

• Click or hover over the “Task view” icon.
• Click the name of the desktop you want to change.
• Type the new name.

Rearrange your desktop

You may want to change the order of the desktops to make it easier to remember which one to use and when. This is very simple.

• Click or hover over the “Task view” icon.
• Click and hold the desktop you want to move and drag it to its new location.

Use the same app on different desktops

If you are already using an application on one desktop and open it in another, you will use a different version of that application; for example, you can use Chrome to browse Twitter on one desktop and do some business research on another. (Note that some applications may not yet work that way – for example, when I tried to open Notion on a second desktop, my computer jumped to the desktop it was already open to.)

While this is handy, you may want to run the same application with the same data on both or all of your desktops. (Note: This is not new to Windows 11, but good to know.) To do this:

• Click on the “Task view” icon.
• Right click on the app you want to use on the other desktop.
• Select “Show this window on all desktops” if you want to duplicate a single window from this application.
• If you want to duplicate any window you use in this application, select “Show windows in this application on all desktops”.