Windows 11's Bing Wallpaper App Now Opens Bing When You Click Your Desktop

If clicking an empty spot on your Windows 11 desktop suddenly opens Bing.com, Microsoft's Bing Wallpaper app is the reason.

The good news is that you can stop it in a couple of minutes and still keep a fresh picture on your desktop every day.

Windows Latest spotted the behaviour again after a recent update to the app.

The switch that used to turn it off was missing on its test PCs.

What the App Is Doing

Bing Wallpaper is a free, optional Microsoft app that swaps your desktop background for Bing's photo of the day. Most people install it themselves or after seeing an ad for it on Microsoft's website.

• Desktop clicks open Bing. Click an empty part of the desktop and a Bing page about the wallpaper opens in your browser, even when Chrome is your default.
• It is not every click. In testing it fired about once a day, which is why it can feel random.
• It also wants your search engine. The app shows a pop-up asking to make Bing the search engine in all your browsers.

The feature first appeared in late 2025 with an on-off switch that was turned on by default. Since then, that switch has gone missing for some people.

How to Stop Your Desktop Opening Bing

Try these in order. Most people will be done after the first or second step.

• Look for the switch. Right-click the Bing Wallpaper icon near the clock, open Settings and turn off "Desktop click opens Bing" if you can see it.
• Reinstall if the switch is missing. That brought it back for some people - then turn it off as in step one.
• Or remove the app completely. Open Settings, then Apps, then Installed apps, find Bing Wallpaper and choose Uninstall.

Spotlight does add a small "Learn about this picture" icon to your desktop. It only opens Bing if you click that icon, not the rest of the desktop.

Prefer your own photos? Choose Slideshow on the same screen and point it at any folder of pictures.

Need pictures to fill that folder? ConvertICO's free 4K wallpapers come in desktop, ultrawide and phone sizes, with no sign-up.

Check Your Browser Too

If you clicked "Enable now" on the app's pop-up, it may have tried to change your search engine. Chrome blocked that in Windows Latest's test, but it is worth a 30-second check.

• Google Chrome. Open Settings, then Search engine, and pick the one you want.
• Mozilla Firefox. Open Settings, then Search, and set your default search engine there.
• Any browser. Look through your extensions list and remove any Bing search extension you did not add yourself.

If you want a browser that stays out of these tug-of-wars, Mozilla Firefox is the best-known independent choice.

Google Chrome is fine too - though Google is running its own campaign, with Google's new Choose Chrome pop-up in Edge.

You can compare all the free web browsers we host in one place.

Who Should Not Worry About This

If you never installed Bing Wallpaper, this does not affect you. Check Installed apps - if Bing Wallpaper is not in the list, a Bing page opening on its own has another cause, such as a browser extension.

And if you would rather start fresh with fewer Microsoft extras overall, you can install a leaner Windows 11 with Rufus.

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