Alex Ruben
How To Customize the Boot Logo in Windows 11 and 10: A Complete Step-by-Step Tutorial
If you’re tired of seeing the same boring Windows boot splash screen every time you start up, you’re not alone. Sometimes, it’s kind of fun to slap on something more personalized or just different, especially if you’re into tweaking your system. The good news — you can actually swap out that default logo with a custom one, and it’s not super complicated, provided your system is UEFI-based. Just keep in mind, this involves using a tool called HackBGRT, which is pretty popular for this kind of thing, but of course, it’s not exactly official Microsoft magic. Still, if done right, it’s pretty safe, and you get a unique look at startup. Just remember to back stuff up so you don’t end up bricking your system by accident. Everyone’s setup is a little different, and sometimes these tweaks don’t work perfectly on the first try, so patience is key.
How to Fix Your Windows Boot Logo in UEFI Systems
Verify your system is UEFI
This is the first and most crucial step — if your machine isn’t UEFI, this method won’t work, and you’ll probably get flustered trying to make it happen. To check, press Windows + R, type msinfo32 into the Run box and hit Enter. In the System Information window, look for “BIOS Mode.” If it says “UEFI,” awesome — keep going. If it says “Legacy,” you’re out of luck with this method. (Because of course, Windows has to make it harder than necessary.)
Download HackBGRT from GitHub
- Open your browser and Google “HackBGRT”. Find the official GitHub page (HackBGRT GitHub Repository) — it’s usually the first result.
- Head to the latest release section, grab the ZIP file, and save it somewhere easy to find, like your Desktop or Downloads folder.
- Give it a few moments to download. It’s just a zip file, so no special install needed at this stage.
Extract the HackBGRT files
Because this isn’t a portable app that magically runs from the ZIP, you’ll need to unzip it:
- Right-click on the ZIP file you downloaded, pick Extract All (or use your favorite archive manager).
- Select a folder — maybe create a new one named “HackBGRT” somewhere easy to access — then click Extract. Now you have your files ready.
Prep your custom boot logo
For that personal touch, you’ll want a good image in the right size. It’s kind of weird, but a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels in BMP format works best for most screens:
- Open an image editor like Paint (or GIMP, Photoshop, whatever).
- Start a blank canvas at 1920×1080 pixels.
- Design or insert your logo — keep it simple, high contrast, and in black background for best results. You can set the background to black via the image editor.
- Go to File > Save As. Save it as
splash.bmpin the BMP format. Be careful to select BMP explicitly; some editors default to PNG or JPEG.
Replace the default splash.bmp in HackBGRT folder
Now that your custom logo is ready, it’s time to swap out the default file:
- Go back into the extracted HackBGRT folder.
- Find
splash.bmp. It’s the default logo that will show at boot. - Copy your new
splash.bmpimage into this folder, replacing the existing one. If prompted for permission, click Yes.
Pro tip: Make a backup of the original splash.bmp somewhere else in case you wanna revert later. Because nothing ruins a fresh logo like a bricked boot screen.
Run the setup script to install HackBGRT
This part is crucial — running the script installs the necessary bootloader tweaks. Here’s how:
- In the same folder, find setup.bat.
- Right-click and select Run as administrator. Yep, admin privileges are needed because this changes system settings.
- When it pops up a command window, press I to install. (That’s what HackBGRT uses.)
- Once it finishes, it will prompt you to press Enter to close the window.
Note: Sometimes, the first attempt isn’t perfect — a reboot or running the script again might be necessary. Don’t panic if it’s not perfect immediately.
Restart and see your new boot logo
Shut down your machine completely, then turn it on again. If all went well, you’ll see your custom splash screen loading at startup — how cool is that? Just a heads-up, sometimes the logo might look a little pixelated or blurry if the BMP isn’t quite perfect, but tweaks to the image usually fix it.
Extra Tips & Troubleshooting
- Make sure your BMP file is exactly 1920×1080 and saved in BMP format — mismatched size or format can give weird display glitches.
- If your new logo didn’t show, double-check that you replaced the correct
splash.bmpin the HackBGRT folder. - If Windows refuses to boot after this, you probably need to fix things via recovery mode. Quick fix: replace the custom
splash.bmpback with the original, or run the uninstaller if you kept it. For some, adding the uninstall instructions on GitHub helps.
Summary
- Check UEFI support first — no point trying if it’s not UEFI.
- Download and extract HackBGRT from GitHub.
- Create a BMP logo of 1920×1080 in black background.
- Swap out the default splash.bmp with your custom one.
- Run setup.bat as admin, then reboot to see the magic.
Wrap-up
Changing your boot logo isn’t exactly plug-and-play, but it’s pretty doable if you’re careful. With a bit of patience and some backups, you get a unique visual flair at startup. It’s one of those things that, on one setup it worked first time, on another, it needed a few tries or a reboot to look right. Still, fun to see your own design pop up — just a small detail that makes the experience a little more personal. Good luck, and fingers crossed this helps someone save a bit of hassle or adds a little personality to their PC.