Linux is, without a doubt, the most customizable OS on the planet. Unlike the alternatives, where you can customize the desktop experience with a wallpaper and maybe a set of icons on Linux, you can replace the whole desktop environment if it doesn’t look and function as you’d like.

That’s why, as you’ll see, the following desktops use different desktop environments on various distributions. They’re equipped with different apps, wallpapers, icons, and docks. Each looks radically different, tailor-made for their owners, who truly made them their personal desktop.

The common factor between them? They all look fantastic and can act as an inspiration, nudging you to replicate them or go on your own adventure to construct your own original desktop, unlike any other.

No Excuse!

Reddit user derob shared his desktop in a Reddit post titled “I have no excuse for this other than that I’m overly nostalgic.”

Although it may not be the heaviest on customization and extras, we admire both the sentiment and his self-deprecating humor. Even the most fanatic Windows hater has to agree that the XP look and its default “bliss” wallpaper are, by now, the equivalent of pop-art!

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Perfect Workflow

Shubhkarmansingh posted on Reddit what he deems a desktop for “perfect workflow.”

For anyone interested in what that “workflow” might involve, he uses his PC for programming, gaming, music production, and video editing – a multi-faceted desktop for (and from) a multi-talented individual.

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shubhkarmansingh uses more apps customized for his demands than we could list here. Find his dotfiles with his configurations instead with a visit here.

He also has this and more wallpapers at his GitHub.

The program that dominates the center screenshot is DaVinci Resolve by Black Magic Design, one of the leading media editing tools on Linux.

Minimal and bright

Reddit user u/SwerveVillechaize said he “grew a bit weary of dark, convoluted setups and wanted something clean, minimal and bright” on a post where he showcased his desktop. Admittedly, a large chunk of customized Linux desktops go for a gloomy and moody look, so it’s nice finding such a “lite” concept.

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OS: openSUSE Tumbleweed

WM: KDE

Theme: Inspiration-Light

Icons: Breeze

Wallpaper: Pyramids

Dock: Latte (Alignment Right)

Miserable now!

“After putting in weeks, heaven knows I’m miserable now,” was the title of Reddit user abhi3o’s post, with a screenshot of his stunning desktop.

A peek at it, and it’s simple to get how he feels because what could follow something like this? There is much functionality and information displayed in a slick, neat and compact way, while taking advantage of the wallpaper’s neon colors for the desktop elements accents.

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macOS and Miku

Reddit user u/NeoTredix is a fan of both the anime virtual idol/singer Hatsune Miku and the way macOS looks, for he’s brought both together on his beautiful desktop.

Based on KDE, it takes advantage of the effects Plasma allows, to enhance its visuals with shadows, transparency, round corners, and background blur. Less than a decade ago we were looking at similar desktops in Hollywood films and chuckling at how they seemed foolishly futuristic. Now, here we are!

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Debian Flames

Glorious in its purity, Reddit user londoed’s desktop doesn’t have to show much as far as customization goes: a simple Cinnamon theme, an ordinary set of icons, and a fairly generic-fashioned wallpaper. But when those pieces come together …

Remember how Avatar was the first movie that felt like you were gawking at an alien world through a trans-dimensional window? The color and shadow combination of all elements evokes a comparable feeling in londoed’s desktop, with the wallpaper looking like it’s in a different depth contrasted with the desktop elements, Debian’s logo hovering in between, center stage but unobtrusive.

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Which out of those desktops do you think looks the best? Have you customized your desktop to your liking, and do you have any screenshots to share?