Social Media Instagram How to Turn on Dark Mode on Instagram Use Instagram's dark mode to save energy and give your eyes a break by Elise Moreau Freelance Contributor Elise Moreau is a writer that has covered social media, texting, messaging, and streaming for Lifewire. Her work has appeared on Techvibes, SlashGear, Lifehack and others. our editorial process Facebook Twitter Elise Moreau Updated on July 14, 2020 Instagram The Ultimate Guide to Instagram Tweet Share Email If you find yourself squinting and straining your eyes while looking at Instagram on your device in the dark, you might want to know to turn on dark mode on Instagram. What Is Dark Mode on Instagram? Instagram's dark mode is simply a darkened theme for the app's layout. Instead of a light background with dark text, which you see on the standard light theme, dark mode reverses it by making the background dark and the text light. Dark mode is ideal for looking at Instagram in dark conditions, such as at night or in low light. This helps to reduce eye strain. You can also increase your screen brightness up to as much as 100% in dark mode without draining your device's battery. Dark mode only affects the background, the text and some of the layout features (like buttons and icons) on Instagram. None of the colors in the images or videos you see will be altered. How to Turn on Instagram's Dark Mode on iOS Follow these instructions if you're using the Instagram app on an iPhone or iPad. You should have the latest version of the Instagram app and your device must be updated to iOS 13. Learn how to update your iPhone or your iPad. Tap your Settings app from the home screen. Scroll down and tap Display & Brightness. Under Appearance, tap Dark. You should notice that the background of your screen goes dark and the text goes light. Enabling dark mode from your device's settings means that some other apps will appear dark as well—not just Instagram. If you want to enable dark mode just on Instagram, you'll have to sit tight and wait for this feature to be released on the Instagram app for iOS. It's currently only available for the Android version. Exit Settings and open the Instagram app. It should appear dark with light text. To turn dark mode off, repeat steps one and two above, then select Light. Learn how to schedule dark mode to automatically turn on and off when you want to so you don't have to do it manually every day. How to Turn on Instagram's Dark Mode on Android Follow these instructions if you're using the Instagram app on an Android device. You should have the latest version of the Instagram app and your device must be updated to Android 10. Learn how to update your Android OS. Access your device's Settings from the home screen (or alternatively from the All Apps screen, the Favorites bar, or the Quick Settings). Tap Display. Tap the Dark theme button. The background of your screen will go dark and the text will go light. Turning dark mode on from your device's settings means that other apps will appear dark too, in addition to Instagram. If you only want Instagram to be in dark mode, you can do this from within the Instagram app by navigating to your profile, tapping the menu icon, tapping Settings, tapping Theme and selecting Dark. Exit Settings and open the Instagram app. It should appear to be in dark mode. To turn dark mode off, repeat steps one and two above, then tap the Dark mode button to turn it off.