How to Customize Your Linux Desktop
Make your Linux desktop truly yours — themes, icons, fonts, dock, and wallpapers on GNOME and KDE.
Prerequisites
- Ubuntu, Fedora, or any distro with GNOME or KDE desktop
- Internet connection for downloading themes
Install GNOME Tweaks (GNOME Users)
GNOME Tweaks gives you access to settings that are hidden by default — fonts, themes, titlebar buttons, startup apps, and more.
sudo apt install gnome-tweaks gnome-shell-extensions
Change Your GTK and Icon Theme
Download themes from gnome-look.org. Extract them to ~/.themes for GTK themes and ~/.icons for icon packs, then apply them in GNOME Tweaks.
mkdir -p ~/.themes ~/.icons # Extract your downloaded theme: tar -xf WhiteSur-Dark.tar.xz -C ~/.themes/ tar -xf Tela-circle-icon.tar.xz -C ~/.icons/
Set Up a Dock
If you want a macOS-style dock, Dash to Dock is the most popular extension. Install it from the GNOME Extensions website or via your package manager.
sudo apt install gnome-shell-extension-dash-to-dock
Change Fonts
Download fonts like Inter, JetBrains Mono, or Fira Code. Place them in ~/.local/share/fonts/ and set them in GNOME Tweaks under Fonts.
mkdir -p ~/.local/share/fonts cp *.ttf ~/.local/share/fonts/ fc-cache -fv
Configure Wallpaper and Lock Screen
Set your wallpaper from Settings > Background. For dynamic wallpapers or slideshows, you can use tools like Hydrapaper (multi-monitor) or Variety (auto-changing).
sudo apt install variety
KDE Users: System Settings
KDE Plasma has built-in customization that rivals anything else. Open System Settings and explore:
- Global Theme — full look-and-feel presets
- Plasma Style — panel and widget appearance
- Colors — fine-tune every accent color
- Icons — swap icon packs
- Window Decorations — titlebar buttons and borders
You can download new themes directly from the settings with the Get New... buttons.