How to Change Your Background on Zoom
Replace or blur what is behind you in Zoom, before a meeting from Settings or during one from the video menu, with a built-in or custom image.
Your camera shows a messy room or you want a neutral backdrop. Zoom can blur your surroundings or replace them with an image or video, either before you join or while you are in a meeting.
Open the background settings
Before a meeting: open the Zoom desktop app, click the gear icon (Settings) in the top right, then click Background & effects.
During a meeting: click the small arrow next to Stop Video in the toolbar, then click Choose Virtual Background. The same settings panel opens.
Choose a background
Under Virtual backgrounds, click one of the included images to apply it. Click Blur to keep your real room but soften it so nothing is legible. Click None to return to your real camera view. The preview at the top of the panel updates immediately, so you see the result before anyone else does.
Add your own image or video
Click the + button to the right of the background thumbnails and pick Add Image or Add Video. Choose a file from your computer. JPG and PNG images work; for video use MP4 or MOV. A 16:9 image close to your camera resolution (1920 x 1080) looks cleanest. The file is added to the list and stays there for future meetings.
Leave the green screen box alone unless you have one
Leave I have a green screen unchecked unless a physical green or single-color backdrop hangs behind you. Checking it without one makes parts of your body vanish into the background. If you do have one, check the box and click the backdrop in the preview to tell Zoom which color to replace.
Check the result in the preview
Look at the preview. If edges around your hair and shoulders flicker, add more light on your face and move away from the wall behind you. Close the settings panel; the background stays on for every meeting until you change it.
If Blur or virtual backgrounds are missing. The feature needs a supported processor. Zoom hides Blur and the background list on computers that do not meet the requirement. Updating Zoom sometimes adds support for newer machines, but there is no setting to force it on.
On a phone. In the Zoom mobile app, join the meeting, tap More in the bottom toolbar, then Background & effects. Pick Blur, a built-in image, or + to add a photo from your library.