# Backdrop - Elevate Your Mac Desktop

**The wallpaper engine for macOS Desktop and Lock Screen**

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## Quick Description

Backdrop transforms your Mac with stunning 4K video wallpapers, custom animated scenes, playlists, per-display controls, and Lock Screen video wallpaper support built specifically for macOS. It is now the largest Mac live wallpaper community, with over 50,000 users worldwide.

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## About Backdrop

Backdrop revolutionizes the Mac desktop experience by replacing static wallpapers with dynamic, high-quality video scenes and animations. Built natively for macOS, Backdrop delivers seamless performance while offering the largest Mac live wallpaper community, where more than 50,000 users worldwide discover thousands of curated wallpapers, visit community profiles, organize favorites, build playlists, or create their own scenes.

What sets Backdrop apart is its Lock Screen support - a first-of-its-kind feature for custom video wallpapers on the Mac Lock Screen. This breakthrough feature, combined with advanced video encoding technology, intelligent playback behavior, and deep per-display controls, makes Backdrop the definitive wallpaper solution for Mac users who want to personalize every aspect of their desktop experience.

Whether you're looking for calming nature scenes, abstract art, cinematic aerials, or dynamic animations, Backdrop's community-driven platform ensures there's always fresh content to match your mood and style. The built-in editor provides professional-grade tools for creating custom scenes, while playlists, Favorites, advanced filters, and multi-monitor support make it easy to curate exactly what plays on each display.

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## Key Features

### Core Features
- **4K Video Wallpapers**: High-quality video backgrounds with smooth playback
- **Desktop and Lock Screen Support**: Custom video wallpapers for both your desktop and Mac Lock Screen
- **Largest Mac Live Wallpaper Community**: More than 50,000 users worldwide browse, download, favorite, and share thousands of user-created wallpapers
- **Playlists**: Create custom playlists, use the always-synced Favorites playlist, and organize your library around moods or setups
- **Per-Display Controls**: Choose what plays on each display, disable playback per display, and configure per-display playlist behavior
- **Built-in Editor**: Professional tools for trimming, muting, encoding, and publishing custom video wallpapers
- **Community Profiles**: Visit user profiles, track submissions, browse favorites, and earn community ranks from Bronze to Diamond
- **Performance Optimized**: Intelligent battery management and minimal system impact

### Technical Excellence
- **Custom Video Encoder**: Advanced compression for optimal performance
- **Native macOS Integration**: Seamless integration with system features
- **Modern macOS Compatibility**: Supports macOS 15.0 Sequoia or later, including macOS Tahoe
- **Aerial Video Support**: Improved encoder compatibility for Apple Aerial videos
- **Reduced Footprint**: App bundle size reduced substantially through runtime and platform cleanup
- **Battery Preservation**: Smart power management for extended laptop use
- **Reliable Playback**: Ongoing fixes for Lock Screen wallpaper application, display changes, Spaces transitions, and audio-device side effects

### User Experience
- **One-Click Setup**: Instant wallpaper changes with simple controls
- **Liquid Glass Design**: Beautiful, translucent interface that adapts to content
- **Advanced Discovery**: Filter by category, format, resolution, color, motion level, popularity, and blocked tags
- **Library Inspector**: Preview wallpapers inline with author info, live video, Favorites, and quick actions
- **Keyboard and Mouse Workflows**: Spacebar previews, keyboard navigation, multi-select, right-click actions, and shelf navigation buttons
- **Real-Time Preview**: See changes instantly while editing
- **Feedback Voting**: Vote on feature requests and share ideas directly in the app
- **Community Sharing**: Upload and share your creations with #MyBackdrop

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## What's New in Backdrop 2.5

### Playlists and Favorites
- **Custom Playlists**: Create and organize your own wallpaper playlists from your Backdrop library
- **Synced Favorites Playlist**: Starred wallpapers appear in a permanent Favorites playlist that stays in sync automatically
- **Per-Display Playlist Options**: Configure skip timers and shuffle behavior separately for each display
- **Multi-Select Library Actions**: Use Cmd+Click, Shift+Click, or Shift+Arrow to select multiple wallpapers, then add them to playlists or delete them from the right-click menu

### Per-Display Playback
- **Improved Display Picker**: Choose which display should play a Backdrop from the Player Bar
- **Independent Display Toggles**: Disable playback on individual displays without affecting the rest of your setup
- **Multi-Monitor Reliability**: Improved display positioning, screen-change handling, and wallpaper client behavior

### Better Discovery
- **Motion Filter**: Filter wallpapers by Static, Slow, Medium, or Dynamic motion
- **Advanced Filters**: Combine category, format, resolution, color, and sorting options in the Browse view
- **Popularity Sorting**: Browse the most popular wallpapers across all time, this month, or this week
- **Blocked Tags**: Hide wallpapers containing tags you do not want to see across Browse, Search, and Featured
- **Larger Catalog**: Submission review is dramatically faster, and recent updates added more than 500 new Backdrops

### Library and Community
- **Library Inspector**: Click any wallpaper to open an inline inspector with live preview, author info, and quick actions
- **Quick Preview**: Press Space to preview wallpapers in the Library
- **Community Profiles**: Create your profile, visit other users, view submissions and favorites, and track stats
- **Ranking System**: Earn points through community activity and climb from Bronze to Diamond
- **Profile Tab**: Track your own submissions and review status from a dedicated tab

### Editor, Playback, and Compatibility
- **Improved Editor Performance**: Faster editing workflows with better support for Apple Aerial videos
- **Lock Screen Reliability**: Fixes improve how Lock Screen wallpapers apply and stay in place
- **Modern Requirement**: Backdrop now requires macOS 15.0 Sequoia or later
- **Playback Polish**: Recent updates improve Spaces transitions, automatic update checks, aerial wallpaper restarts, and audio-device behavior

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## Availability

- **Platforms**: macOS 15.0 Sequoia or later, including support for macOS Tahoe
- **Pricing**: 
  - Free 7-day trial
  - $1.99/month subscription
  - $14.99/year subscription  
  - $29.99 lifetime license
- **Download**: Available at [cindori.com/backdrop](https://cindori.com/backdrop)
- **Updates**: Backdrop 2.5 is a free update for existing users

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## Community

- **Discord**: [discord.gg/D8eBtnDXmx](https://discord.gg/D8eBtnDXmx)
- **Social Media**: Follow development on [Bluesky](https://bsky.app/profile/oskargroth.bsky.social), [X](https://x.com/oskargroth), and [Mastodon](https://mastodon.social/@oskargroth)
- **Hashtag**: Share your setups with #MyBackdrop

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## Frequently Asked Questions

**What is Backdrop?**  
Backdrop transforms your Mac desktop and Lock Screen into a dynamic visual experience using high-quality video and animated scenes. It's perfect for focus, ambience, or just making your workspace feel inspiring.

**How do I get started?**  
Download Backdrop from our website, launch the app, and explore the Backdrop Browser to discover scenes. You can try it for free, then unlock full access with a subscription or lifetime license.

**What's included in the Trial?**  
You can use the Trial to try out Backdrop for 7 days. Purchase Backdrop to remove the watermark and unlock unlimited access to the Community Platform.

**What's included in my purchase?**  
Purchasing Backdrop removes the watermark, and gives you access to the entire Backdrop community platform, including thousands of Backdrop scenes and new content and features added regularly.

**Can I use my own videos or images?**  
Yes. Backdrop supports using custom video files to create a scene. You can import your own content in the Editor, trim and encode it, and even submit it to the Community Platform for others to use.

**Does Backdrop impact performance or battery?**  
Backdrop is optimized for maximum performance and minimal resource usage. Playback pauses automatically when apps are in fullscreen mode, and further optimizations are done to increase performance while on battery power.

**Does it work with multiple displays?**  
Yes. Backdrop supports multi-monitor setups. You can choose which display to play on, disable playback per display, and configure playlists, skip timers, and shuffle behavior for individual displays.

**Does Backdrop support playing on the Lock Screen?**  
Yes. Backdrop lets you set custom video wallpapers on both your desktop and Mac Lock Screen, with recent updates improving Lock Screen wallpaper reliability.

**Can I organize wallpapers into playlists?**  
Yes. Backdrop includes custom playlists and a permanent Favorites playlist that stays in sync with the wallpapers you star.

**Can I filter the community catalog?**  
Yes. Backdrop includes advanced filters for category, format, resolution, color, motion level, and popularity, plus Blocked Tags for hiding content you do not want to see.

**Do I need an account?**  
There is no account registration required, but if you want to use the Community Platform you need to be logged in to your Apple iCloud account on your Mac.

**Can I cancel anytime?**  
Absolutely. You can cancel your subscription at any time from our License Manager. Your access will remain active until the end of the billing period.

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## Company Information

### About Cindori
Cindori is a 1-man indie software company run by Oskar Groth, dedicated to enhancing the macOS experience through innovative, beautifully crafted applications. Founded with a passion for pushing the boundaries of what's possible on Mac, Cindori creates tools that combine cutting-edge technology with intuitive design. The company is known for its attention to detail, native macOS integration, and commitment to performance optimization. Cindori's portfolio includes award-winning applications that have garnered recognition from both users and the tech community for their quality and innovation.

### Contact Information
- **Company**: Cindori AB
- **Location**: Stockholm, Sweden
- **Website**: [cindori.com](https://cindori.com)
- **Press Inquiries**: [cindori.com/press](https://cindori.com/press)
- **Social Media**: 
  - [Bluesky](https://bsky.app/profile/oskargroth.bsky.social)
  - [X/Twitter](https://x.com/oskargroth)
  - [Mastodon](https://mastodon.social/@oskargroth)

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**Media Contact**: For press inquiries, additional assets, and review copies, visit [cindori.com/press](https://cindori.com/press).

*Last Updated: April 22, 2026 (Backdrop 2.5 Update)*
