How to Make Mac Dark Mode Active [Video]

These are instructions on how to make Mac dark mode active on macOS.

Dark Mode makes it easier to stay focused on your work especially in low light situations, because your content stands out while darkened controls and windows recede into the background.

ENABLE DARK MODE

Step One

Click the Apple menu at the top left corner of your screen, then click System Settings... from the menu that appears.



If you are running a version of macOS older than Ventura, choose System Preferences from the Apple menu.

Step Two

Click to select Appearance from the Settings menu. In earlier versions of macOS, choose General.

Step Three

At the top of the window, you'll be able to choose from several Appearance options including Light Mode, Dark Mode, and Auto. The Auto mode will automatically switch between light and dark modes, choosing the light appearance during the day, and the dark appearance at night.

To enable Mac dark mode, click Dark Mode, then close System Settings. You'll immediately notice that dark mode inverts many of the background and foreground colors to reduce eye strain in a dark room.

ENABLE DARK MODE USING CONTROL CENTER

The fastest way to enable Dark Mode on Mac is to use Control Center.

Step One

Click the Control Center Icon from the menu bar at the top right of your screen.

Step Two

Click the Display widget to bring up further options.

Step Three

Click the Dark Mode button to toggle the appearance setting ON or OFF.

IMPORTANT NOTES

● To turn on Dark Mode on your Mac computer, you'll need to be running macOS Mojave or later.

HOW DARK MODE WORKS WITH APPS

Dark Mode works system wide, extending to default apps and third party apps. If an app does not switch to a dark color scheme when Dark mode is turned on, it doesn't support the native feature. However, it may still be possible to manually set a theme within the app for a darker look.

These Apple apps have special Dark Mode settings or features: 

● Mail can use a light background for email messages while Dark Mode is turned on: Turn on Dark Mode, then open Mail and choose Mail > Settings (or Preferences). Click the Viewing tab and deselect “Use dark backgrounds for messages.”

● Maps can use a light background for maps while Dark Mode is turned on: Turn on Dark Mode, then open Maps and choose Maps > Settings (or Preferences). Select ”Always use light map appearance.” In earlier versions of macOS, click View in the menu bar in Maps, then deselect Use Dark Map.

● Notes can use a light background for notes while Dark Mode is turned on: Turn on Dark Mode, then open Notes and choose Notes > Settings (or Preferences). Deselect “Use dark backgrounds for note content.”

● Safari automatically shows a website in Dark Mode if the website has been designed to support it. If the website doesn't support Dark Mode, you can use Safari Reader to read articles in Dark Mode.

● TextEdit can use a light background for documents while Dark Mode is turned on: Turn on Dark Mode, then click View in the menu bar in TextEdit and deselect Use Dark Background for Windows. (Requires macOS Mojave 10.14.2 or later.)