Whether you're working from home (part-time or full-time), attending meetings from a busy office environment, or you're embarrassed by what's going on behind your desk, knowing how to blur a background in Zoom can be a godsend.
Of course, there are plenty of other ways to hide a cluttered home office or messy living room, like using a virtual background. However, virtual backgrounds aren't always ideal. I've regularly noticed how weird my head looks when Zoom or Microsoft Teams blocks out my over-ear headphones with a background image. Sometimes, blurring the background is the simplest option.
The good news? Learning how to blur your background on Zoom is easy. Anyone can do it, even if you're using a free plan or a mobile device.
Here's how you can blur your background on Zoom.
How to Blur a Background in Zoom: Prerequisites
As mentioned above, you don’t have to be on one of Zoom’s premium plans to access the background blur feature. However, you will need to have a device that’s capable of handling the “blurring” process. Zoom’s background blur feature uses the same technology as its “virtual background” option.
The only difference is that instead of replacing your background with a completely different image, it just applies a filter that turns everything behind you into unrecognizable blobs. Plus, you probably don’t need a green screen to use background blur. You don’t technically need one for a virtual background either, but it can help create a crisper image.
If you’re using a business account for Zoom, you may need to ensure your admin has “virtual backgrounds” switched on as an option for all users. This is usually enabled by default, but you can double-check with your team just in case.
If you can access Zoom’s background blur, here are the system prerequisites you’ll need to know:
- Zoom desktop client: Windows 5.5.0 (12454.0131 or above), MacOS 5.5.0 (12467.0131 or above), Linux 5.7.6 (12467.0131 or above).
- Zoom mobile: Android 5.6.6 (2076 or above), iOS 5.6.6 (423 or above).
How to Blur a Background in Zoom: Before a Call
If you don’t want to risk someone spotting your messy background at the beginning of a call, the easiest option is to set up the background blur feature before your meeting begins. Notably, you can only blur your background before a meeting on Zoom’s desktop client.
I’ll come back to how to blur a Background in Zoom on a mobile in a moment.
On a desktop device, visit the Zoom website, click on a meeting link, launch your Zoom Desktop client, and sign into your account. From there:
- Click on your profile picture.
- Select the Settings
- Choose Backgrounds & Filters.
- Click the Blur
Your background should instantly blur, and then you’re free to start your meeting.
How to Blur a Background in Zoom Calls
If you’re already in a meeting or Zoom call, you can still blur your background. This may be a good option if people in your home start moving around behind you during a meeting. Just log into your Zoom client to begin and join the meeting, then look at the menu at the bottom left of the screen.
Click on the arrow pointing upwards next to the buttons for “Start Video” and “Stop Video.” Here, you’ll see the “Blur my Background” option. Click on this, and Zoom will start blurring your background automatically. You can switch the setting off by clicking the arrow and “Blur my Background” again.
Notably, after you choose the “Blur background” option, Zoom will continue to apply it as default to your future meetings. All you need to do to stop this is click on your profile picture, then select “Settings” followed by “Backgrounds and Effects”. Select “None” to remove the blur.
