Are You Looking to Add a Background Image to Your WordPress Website?

Do you want to make your website more visually appealing and enhance the overall user experience? Adding a background image might be the solution for you! It might seem daunting, but adding a background image to WordPress is not as difficult as it seems.

Step 1: Choose the Right Image

First, you must choose the right image that complements your website design and doesn’t obstruct the readability of your website content. You can choose from various image sources such as royalty-free image websites, your own photography collection, or purchase a stock photo. Ensure that the image size is optimized for web use as large files can slow down your website’s loading speed.

Step 2: Upload Your Background Image

After selecting the perfect image, it’s time to upload it to your WordPress website. Log in to your WordPress dashboard and head to the Media section, then click on the ‘Add New’ button and select the image you want to use as your background image. Once the upload is complete, click on the ‘edit’ button to get more information about your background image. Note the File URL, as you will need it later in the process.

Step 3: Add Background Image Using CSS

To add a background image to WordPress, you need to use Cascading Style Sheets (CSS). Add the background image code through the WordPress theme editor, custom CSS, or a plugin. We recommend using a responsive custom CSS plugin like Simple Custom CSS & JS, which allows you to add CSS code within WordPress without affecting your website’s stability. Once you install the plugin, head to the Appearance menu and select the “Custom CSS” option.

The next step is to add the following codes to the plugin:

body {background-image:url('File_URL');}

Once you add the code, click ‘Save’ or ‘Publish,’ and you’ll see your background image on the website.

Step 4: Adjust Image Size and Alignment

To maximize the impact of your background image, adjust the size and alignment to fit the website’s design. To adjust the alignment, use the background-position property to move the position of your background image on the screen.

To adjust the size of your background image, use the background-size property. The ‘cover’ option ensures that the image covers the entire screen’s background area, while the ‘contain’ option fits the image in the screen’s background, maintaining its aspect ratio.

Step 5: Optimize Your Background Image

Your background image can significantly impact your website’s loading time, especially on mobile devices. To ensure your website’s performance doesn’t suffer, compress your image size and convert it to a format that works best on the web. Use free image compression online tools such as TinyPNG or JPEGoptimizer.

Conclusion

Adding a background image to your WordPress website is an effective way to make your website stand out and improve the user experience. Follow these steps to effortlessly add a background image to your website through CSS styling. Remember to optimize the image size, choose the right image, and align it accordingly. When done correctly, a background image can significantly improve your website’s aesthetics and improve user engagement.