How to Turn on YouTube's Dark Theme

Try the dark mode for a different vibe

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Updated on December 2, 2020

YouTube's Dark Theme option, often referred to as YouTube's "dark mode," is a setting available to all users who want to switch from the app's default white background to a dark background. Some text colors also change to match the new design aesthetic. We'll explain why it's so popular and how you can enable it yourself.

What Are the Benefits of YouTube's Dark Theme?

YouTube's dark theme is a cosmetic change that has no effect whatsoever on how YouTube functions. There are several reasons why users choose to activate it:

The color setting causes less eye strain in low light environments.
The dark mode can save battery life on devices with an OLED screen such as Apple's iPhone X smartphone.
Some people think the darker color scheme looks cooler than the standard color scheme.

How to Enable YouTube's Dark Theme on iOS

The official iOS YouTube app allows users to enable and disable dark mode on iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Here's how to turn the YouTube Dark Theme on:

Open the YouTube app on your iOS smart device, and tap your profile image in the upper-right corner.
Select Settings.
Select Dark theme to turn on the setting.

The YouTube Dark Theme settings are device-specific; enabling it on one device won't turn it on across all of your other devices. If you want YouTube's dark mode on your smartphone, tablet, and computer, you need to enable it on each device.

How to Enable YouTube's Dark Theme on Android

The YouTube Dark Theme is available on the official YouTube app for Android smartphones and tablets. Here's how to turn it on and off.

Open the YouTube app on your Android device, and tap your account profile icon in the upper-right corner of the screen.

Your YouTube account icon may be hidden if you're watching a video or performing a search within the Android YouTube app. To make it appear, drag the video you're watching to the bottom of the screen to minimize it, then tap Home from the menu.
Select Settings > General > Appearance.
Select Dark theme.

How to Enable YouTube's Dark Theme on Desktop

YouTube's Dark Theme can be enabled on a PC or Mac computer using any internet browser, such as Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Opera, or Microsoft Edge. Regardless of the computer and browser combination, the instructions for turning on dark mode are the same.

Go to YouTube.com on your internet browser.
Select your profile image in the upper-right corner of the screen.
Select Appearance: Device theme in the drop-down menu.
Choose Dark theme.
The screen immediately changes to the dark theme.

Your YouTube Dark Theme preferences remain unique to each browser you use on your computer. For example, if you enable the dark mode in Firefox, it remains disabled in Chrome until you turn it on in that browser as well.

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