Dark Mode and Night Light in Windows: Easier on Your Eyes
Long hours at a computer, especially in the evening, can leave your eyes tired. Windows includes two simple features that help: dark mode, which uses darker backgrounds, and Night Light, which reduces blue light in the evening.
Turn on dark mode
- Open Settings → Personalization → Colors.
- Under Choose your mode, select Dark.
- Choose Custom if you want dark Windows menus but light apps, or the other way round.
Many apps, including Edge, Chrome, File Explorer and Microsoft Office, follow the Windows setting automatically. Office also has its own theme option under File → Account → Office Theme.
Set up Night Light
Night Light shifts screen colours to warmer tones.
- Go to Settings → System → Display → Night light.
- Adjust the Strength slider. Around 40–60% is comfortable for most people.
- Turn on Schedule night light and choose Sunset to sunrise (needs location) or set custom hours, such as 7 PM to 7 AM.
You can also toggle it quickly from the Quick Settings panel (Windows + A).
Get brightness right
A screen that is much brighter or darker than your room causes strain. Match brightness to your surroundings: lower at night, higher in bright daylight. On laptops, turn on Change brightness automatically when lighting changes in Display settings if available. Content adaptive brightness can also help save battery.
Make text easier to read
- Scale: in Display settings, increase Scale to 125% or 150% if text looks tiny.
- Text size: Settings → Accessibility → Text size lets you enlarge text only.
- ClearType: search for "Adjust ClearType text" to sharpen fonts.
Healthy screen habits
Settings help, but habits matter more. Follow the 20-20-20 rule: every 20 minutes, look at something 20 feet away for 20 seconds. Keep your screen at arm's length and slightly below eye level. Our guide on reducing eye strain has more tips.
Dark mode in your favourite apps
Windows' dark setting doesn't reach every app automatically. Here's how to switch the most popular ones:
- Chrome and Edge: follow the Windows setting by default. In Edge, go to Settings → Appearance to choose Dark. Websites themselves may still show white pages.
- Microsoft Office: File → Account → Office Theme → Black or Dark Gray. In Word you can also switch the page colour to dark from the View tab.
- WhatsApp Desktop: Settings → Personalization or Chats → Theme → Dark.
- YouTube: click your profile picture → Appearance → Dark theme.
- Google apps: Gmail and Docs have theme settings; Google Search follows your browser or device setting.
Is dark mode always better?
Not for everyone. Dark mode is comfortable in dim rooms and at night. In bright daylight, however, light mode is often easier to read because text contrasts better with the surroundings. Some people with astigmatism find light text on dark backgrounds slightly blurry. Try both for a few days and see which feels better for your eyes. There's also a middle ground: set Windows to switch automatically using a scheduled theme tool, or simply toggle it manually morning and evening.
Night Light and sleep
Bright, blue-rich light late at night can make it harder for some people to feel sleepy. Night Light reduces this, but the most effective habit is to stop using screens 30–60 minutes before bed. If you work late, lowering brightness and using Night Light together is a sensible compromise.
Colour-sensitive work
Turn Night Light off temporarily when editing photos, designing or choosing colours, since the warm tint changes how colours look. You can toggle it quickly from Quick Settings with Windows + A.
Frequently asked questions
Does dark mode save battery on laptops?
Only noticeably on OLED screens. On standard LCD laptops, lowering brightness saves more.
Night Light is greyed out. Why?
Usually a missing or basic display driver. Update your graphics driver through Windows Update or the manufacturer's site.
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