To reduce eye strain and improve focus and productivity by introducing Dark modes and Night modes universally is an endeavor device manufacturers, OS developers, and app developers will all have to work together on. YouTube is doing its part in furthering this cause, with the world’s largest video-sharing platform integrating a Dark Mode into not only its web interface but also its mobile app available for both Android and iOS. Referred to as “Dark theme”, YouTube’s Dark Mode is much easier on the eyes than its default theme, more so when used in the dark and in low-light environments. User feedback has made it clear that, unlike features like the Recommended videos section, Dark Mode is a hit with the masses, especially those browsing videos on YouTube at wee hours of the night or bundled up in a dark room.
Enabling Dark Mode on YouTube is pretty easy, but the process differs slightly depending on whether you’re using YouTube on the web or using one of YouTube’s mobile apps.
How to enable YouTube’s Dark Mode on the web
If you’re using YouTube’s desktop website and would like to enable the Dark Mode feature, you need to:
- In the top-right corner of your screen, locate and click on your Google account display picture. If you’re not logged into YouTube, you won’t see this icon – click on the Menu button (represented by three vertically aligned dots) that appears here instead, and proceed.
Click on your profile picture - In the context menu that appears, locate and click on the Dark theme option.
Click on the Dark theme button - In the dialog box that pops up, click on the Dark Theme slider to enable the Dark Mode feature. The feature will be enabled the moment you click on this slider. If you would like to disable the Dark Mode feature, come back right here and click on the slider once again.
Click on the Dark Theme slider to enable the feature
Note: When you turn Dark Mode on while using YouTube on an internet browser, the configuration is saved for that browser only and not for your account as a whole. So if you then use YouTube on a different computer or even on a different browser, Dark Mode will have to be enabled again.
How to enable YouTube’s Dark Mode on an iPhone or iPad
iOS and iPadOS have their own dedicated YouTube apps, and Dark Mode is available on both of them. If you’re using YouTube on an iPhone or iPad, here’s how you can turn Dark Mode on:
- Launch the YouTube app.
- Tap on the Profile icon in the top-right corner of your screen.
Tap on the Profile icon - On the next screen, locate and tap on Settings.
Tap on Settings - On the Settings screen, locate the Dark theme option and tap on the slider next to it to enable it.
Tap on the Dark theme slider to enable the feature
YouTube will immediately switch to the Dark theme – when you want to switch back to the default Light theme, simply repeat the steps above and tap on the Dark theme slider while the feature is already enabled to turn it off.
How to enable Dark Mode on YouTube’s Android app
It took Google quite some time to ship YouTube’s Dark Mode feature to Android devices, and some devices may still not have it today. If you’re using the YouTube app on an Android device that Dark Mode has been rolled out to, you can enable the feature if you simply:
- Launch the YouTube app.
- Tap on the Profile icon in the top-right corner of your device’s screen.
- On the Account screen, locate and tap on Settings.
Tap on Settings - On the Settings screen, locate and tap on General.
Tap on General - Locate the Dark Theme option and tap on the slider right next to it to enable the feature. YouTube will immediately switch over into Dark Mode, and you can simply tap on this slider once again when you want to go back to YouTube’s default Light theme.
