Good things come in free packages. Most popular wallpaper themes in the list below may be downloaded for free if you know where to look. So without further ado, here are the top 10 most downloaded wallpaper themes of all time…

10. Nature Wallpapers

Everybody should love nature. It’s our mutual home, nature and the environment. So why not combine the opposing forces of nature and technology with nature wallpaper on your PC? Nature wallpapers are some of the most popular on the Internet. In fact, thousands of free nature wallpapers are available for download. Some are photographs, some are digitally enhanced, but all are equally wonderful whichever way you see it. Most operating systems use nature wallpapers as their default wallpaper. A good example is Windows Vista.

9. Anime Wallpapers

You’ve got to admit, anime cartoons have become every bit as popular as American ones, so it’s no wonder anime wallpapers are all the rage. Some of the most popular anime series of recent times—Naruto, Ghost Fighter, Dragon Ball Z, Ghost in the Shell, Bleach, Gundam, Evangelion—are the most downloaded anime wallpapers on the Internet. If you want a truly unique anime wallpaper, you can always take a still photo of your favorite anime episode. A little Photoshop here and there you can create your very own anime wallpaper.

8. Cartoon Wallpapers

Disney characters and the Looney Tunes may be old, but these are timeless characters. You see them on backpacks, pillows, children’s bed sheets, and even on PC wallpapers! Cartoon wallpapers are some of the most vibrant and colorful brand of wallpapers on the Internet. You can download them directly, or with a little bit of Photoshop magic, you can create your own. Simply take a still photo of your favorite cartoon episode and have someone edit the image for you using any graphics editor software.

7. Celebrity Wallpapers

Next to the cartoon characters, Hollywood celebrities are a favorite among many PC users around the world. Still pictures from movies are popular, but so are paparazzi captures and movie posters. Recent popular movie posters include “The Dark Knight” posters, “The Incredible Hulk”, “Iron Man”, “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull”, “Hellboy: The Golden Army” and many others. All these, as you probably noticed, are blockbusters films slated for summer of this year. So now you know the marketing power of these movies.

6. Automotive Wallpapers

Do I smell machismo or is it just me? Sports cars, luxury cars, off-road trucks, armored vehicles—you name it! Name the car and the Internet delivers the wallpaper. Most websites dedicated to cars also feature quality automotive wallpapers. Many are available for free, but others may require you to subscribe for membership before you can download their wallpapers. Popular sports cars include the Ford Mustang, the Chevrolet Corvette, the Lamborghini Murcielago, the Mitsubishi Eclipse, the Ford Shelby and the Saturn Sky. You can bet you won’t have any trouble finding free wallpapers of these cars.

5. Art Wallpapers

This is your chance to display your sensitive side. Your PC’s monitor can become a canvass. You can take a step back from your hard work and admire one of the greatest paintings of all time by downloading great works as wallpaper. Perhaps the Mona Lisa’s eyes will follow you across the screen or you may get lost in an Escher painting on you PC.

4. Video Game Wallpapers

These days if it isn’t anime, its video games that are keeping the children busy. So you can expect them to get all gooey with video game wallpapers. Which video game wallpaper is popular depends on whether you’re talking about American, European or Asian gamers. In Europe and in the US, console games are in. For example: “Metal Gear Solid”, “Grand Theft Auto”, “Super Mario Galaxy”, and “Halo” wallpapers are in. In Asia, online RPGs are all over the market. Popular RPG wallpapers include “Ragnarok Online”, “Granado Espada”, “Perfect World”, “Tantra Online”, and “Fly For Fun” wallpapers are all the rage.

3. Sports Wallpapers

For all sporty guys and gals out there, this is your wallpaper! It’s hard not to admire the world’s greatest athletes and it’s equally hard to resist putting up their wallpapers on our PCs. There are sports wallpapers for all kinds of sports stars—from Tiger Woods to Michael Schumacher to Pete Sampras to Tony Hawk to Evander Holyfield to Michael Jordan. You can’t go wrong with sports wallpaper.

2. Beach and Sea Wallpapers

If anything, beach and sea wallpapers are some of the most enigmatic types of wallpapers around. There’s something deeply quiet and serene about the view of the beach and the ocean. With beach and sea wallpapers, you get all that minus the sand in your toes and hair. Most free beach and sea wallpapers on the Internet are pictures taken by amateur photographers; but if you really want quality beach wallpaper, you might have to subscribe to a closed forum to gain access to them. Immerse and enjoy!

1. Digital or 3D Wallpapers

When you’re sick and tired of the real thing, why not try digital wallpaper? Digital or 3D wallpaper is any wallpaper that uses computer-drawn graphics instead of cartoon or actual photographs. With this, digital wallpapers have become one of the most flexible types of wallpaper available. For example, digital nature wallpaper, or a digital celebrity wallpaper. The possibilities are endless! The most commonly used graphics editor software these days are Photoshop and Fireworks.

 

(If you just love customizing your desktop and you can’t have enough of wallpapers, the Top Ten Wallpaper Genres is the thing for you. )