How to Use Night Light in Windows 10

Reduce eyestrain with this blue light filter for your PC

By
Scott Orgera
Scott Orgera
Scott Orgera
Writer
Scott Orgera is a former Lifewire writer covering tech since 2007. He has 25+ years' experience as a programmer and QA leader, and holds several Microsoft certifications including MCSE, MCP+I, and MOUS. He is also A+ certified.
lifewire's editorial guidelines
Updated on February 2, 2021

The blue light emitted from your PC can prove problematic when it comes to eye strain and may also interrupt your sleep cycles. Microsoft offers a Windows 10 Night Light feature that essentially applies a blue light filter to the operating system’s display to help alleviate these annoying and potentially chronic symptoms. 

The blue light filter, also called Night light settings on Windows 10, doesn't change your display's screen brightness. Instead, it adjusts the color temperature by changing the amount of blue shown on the screen.

How to Activate the Windows 10 Night Light Mode

Before the blue light filtering capability in Windows 10, users had to employ third-party apps to screen blue light levels emanating from their computer screens. However, now that it's part of Windows 10, the blue light filter is easy to activate.

The Night light feature is not available on all devices, in particular those that use Basic Display or DisplayLink drivers. Also, if you have two or more monitors attached to your computer, the Night light feature may not apply to all attached monitors.

  1. Select Start.

    The Start button in Windows 10

  2. Select Settings, represented by a gear icon.

    Settings under the Windows 10 Start menu

    Alternatively, you can use the Windows 10 Search bar to search for "Settings" and then select the Settings app in the search results.

  3. The Windows Settings interface should now be displayed. Select System, located in the upper left-hand corner.

    The System heading in Windows 10 settings

  4. Select Display from the left menu pane, if necessary.

    The Display option in System in Windows 10 Settings.

  5. Select Night light settings, found in the Brightness and color section.

    Night Light settings in Windows 10 Display

  6. To enable the night light immediately, select Turn on now. 

    The "turn on now" button in Windows 10 Night Light settings

  7. To schedule the night light to automatically be displayed during a certain time window each day, toggle Schedule night light to On.

    The "schedule night light" switch

  8. Two options will now be displayed. The default option, Sunset to sunrise, activates the night light at sunset and turns it off at sunrise. Your individual time zone automatically determines the sunset and sunrise times.

    screenshot of Windows 10 Night Light settings

  9. If you prefer to set your own custom interval for the Windows night light, select Set hours and enter your preferred start and stop times. 

    You can also specify your light's specific display range by using the Color temperature at night slider. The farther to the right the slider is, the more orange your display becomes. The farther to the left, the more blue light is emitted.

  10. Select the X in the upper right-hand corner to close the settings interface and return to your desktop.

Was this page helpful?