The themepack (popularly known as a theme) feature was first introduced with Windows 7 and has been part of the latest Windows 10 version as well. A theme or themepack usually includes a bunch of beautiful wallpapers and a color for the window borders. Some themes or themepacks also include desktop icons, screensaver, and sound scheme.
A themepack or theme is not easily accessible as right-clicking on desktop and clicking personalize option no longer brings the classic Personalization window in Windows 10. That said, a similar version of the Personalization window is present in the Settings app, and can be used to create, install, change, and delete themes.
We have already shown how to change the default theme in Windows 10 as well as how to create your own theme in Windows 10. In this guide, we will see how you can download, install, and delete themes in Windows 10.
Install a theme from the Store in Windows 10
The Windows 10 Store has hundreds of stunning themes for the operating system. Here is how to install a theme from the Store in Windows 10.
Step 1: On your Windows 10 PC, navigate to Settings > Personalization > Themes page.
Step 2: Scroll down the page to see the Get more themes in the Microsoft Store link. Click on the link to open the Themes page in the Store app.
Step 3: Click on a theme that you want to install to see details about the theme, including the wallpapers included in the theme.
Step 4: Click the Get button to install the theme.
Step 5: To apply the installed theme, navigate to Settings > Personalization > Themes. In the Change theme section, double-click on the theme to apply it.
To install a theme or themepack from outside the Store
Step 1: Download a theme to install in Windows 10. You can visit the personalization gallery page of Microsoft to download over 250 beautiful themes for Windows. Themes released for previous versions of Windows also support Windows 10.
Step 2: After downloading a theme, double-click on the theme file to install and apply it. Alternatively, you can right-click, and then click the Open option to install and apply the theme.
To delete a theme or themepack
Depending on the number of pictures, a theme or themepack might weigh from a few MBs to tens of MBs. If you have tens of themes installed, you can free up hundreds of MBs by deleting a few themes.
If you want to delete one or more installed themes, follow given below directions.
Step 1: Go to Settings > Personalization > Themes page.
Step 2: Right-click on the theme that you want to delete and then click the Delete option to remove the theme.
Please note that it’s not possible to delete the theme which is currently in use. If you right-click on a theme that is currently being used by Windows, you will see Save theme and Save theme for sharing options only.
To uninstall the currently applied theme, apply any other theme by clicking a theme, right-clicking on the theme that you want to delete, and then click Delete option. Also, it’s not possible to delete default themes that are offered with Windows 10.
To change the current theme to a different theme
If you have tens of themes and want to switch to a different one, complete the given below instructions.
Step 1: Right-click on the desktop and click Personalize option to open the Personalization section of the Settings app.
Step 2: Click Themes. Scroll down the page to see all installed themes. Double-click on a theme to apply it.
Our how-to extract wallpapers from the themes guide might also interest you.
admin says
Jan,
Navigate to Settings > Personalization > Themes to view and delete themes. I will update the guide soon.
Jan says
The “personalizaion” option is gone as mentioned by Mobile Geek in 2017. I can delete themes I installed, but I cannot find them to re-install. This makes the entire THEMES program MS offers a source of frustration, not a good experience or “perk.”
Mark Land says
Why the hell can I not delete themes. ?
I do not want your rubbish imposed on me.
Mobile Geek says
It appears in build 1703 that Microsoft has removed the Personalization section of the old Control Panel. In the new interface, if I right click on a theme I saved, it does not give me a “Delete” option, but rather a “Save theme for sharing” option. If I click on other installed themes I did not create, I see a “Delete” option. If I click on a system Theme, I also see a “Delete” option, but it is grayed out.
Ultimately, I was able to delete my own custom theme, by going to C:\Users\\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\Themes and deleting the “.theme” file, which worked just fine. I hope that was just a bug on Microsoft’s part and not a design decision.
Brenda says
@Deb: I had that problem too initially. It’s because that is a theme you’re currently using and/or it’s being read by Windows as in use. Make sure it isn’t highlighted when you right-click it. If it’s the only theme you have saved, use one of the Windows Default Themes temporarily.
Deb says
When trying to delete themes in windows 10 I did as instructed but when I right click on a theme there is no selection for delete. I also tried pressing the delete button but nothing happens