Dark mode misses some apps
Why does dark mode not apply to all my apps?
Written by The CommonFixes team · fact checked by CommonFixes review desk
Last updated
Short answer
Dark mode is not one single switch. Windows has two separate settings, one for its own menus and one for apps, and each app still has to choose to follow it. Older programs such as Control Panel, Notepad in older builds, Office and most desktop tools were built before dark mode existed, so they simply ignore the setting and keep their own colours. Web pages are the same; the site decides its own colours unless the browser is told otherwise. The quickest thing to try first: turn on both windows switches, not just one — Go to Settings, Personalisation, Colours, and set Choose your mode to Dark. If you see the two older options, set both Windows mode and App mode to Dark. People often set only one and then wonder why half the screen stays bright. Most people are done in about 8 minutes.
Full walkthrough below: 6 steps for Windows and Mac, rated easy.
Sounds like this
- •Most of the system is dark but a few windows stay bright white
- •File Explorer is dark but the old Control Panel windows are white
- •Websites stay white even though everything else is dark
Why it happens
Dark mode is not one single switch. Windows has two separate settings, one for its own menus and one for apps, and each app still has to choose to follow it. Older programs such as Control Panel, Notepad in older builds, Office and most desktop tools were built before dark mode existed, so they simply ignore the setting and keep their own colours. Web pages are the same; the site decides its own colours unless the browser is told otherwise.
Work through these in order
0% done- 1
Turn on both Windows switches, not just one
Go to Settings, Personalisation, Colours, and set Choose your mode to Dark. If you see the two older options, set both Windows mode and App mode to Dark. People often set only one and then wonder why half the screen stays bright.
- 2
Set dark mode inside each big app separately
Office is the usual culprit. Open Word, go to File, Account, and set Office Theme to Black or Use system setting. Do the same in Chrome under Settings, Appearance, in Spotify under Settings, and in WhatsApp or Telegram under their own chat settings. Each of these keeps its own theme and ignores Windows until you change it there.
- 3
Make web pages dark in the browser
In Chrome or Edge type the address chrome://flags or edge://flags, search for Auto Dark Mode for Web Contents, set it to Enabled and restart the browser. That forces bright websites to be redrawn dark. If a site looks broken afterwards, turn the flag back off and use the Dark Reader extension instead, which lets you switch it off per site.
- 4
Accept that Control Panel and old tools will stay light
Control Panel, Device Manager, Disk Management and the older Windows dialogs were never updated for dark mode and Microsoft has not converted them. No setting or registry edit changes them properly. Anything promising otherwise usually just breaks text contrast.
- 5
On a Mac, check the app menu and the wallpaper setting
System Settings, Appearance, Dark applies to system windows. Then in each app look under its own menu, for example Notes, Settings, or Safari, Settings, Advanced. Also set Appearance to Dark rather than Auto, because Auto flips back to light in the morning and looks like dark mode failed.
- 6
Restart the app after switching
Some programs only read the theme when they start. Close the window completely, including from the system tray, then open it again before deciding it does not support dark mode.
If none of that worked
If one specific app still stays white, search its name plus dark mode on its own support page. Many apps such as Zoom and Adobe Reader hide the option deep in their preferences rather than following Windows at all.
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The CommonFixes team
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