How to Disable Dark Mode in Chrome on Android, iOS, Windows, Mac

Sometimes, you don’t choose the dark mode, but darkness chooses you. I’m referring to the dark mode in various popular apps such as Chrome. For some users, the feature is activated automatically. A dark mode lover would jump with joy. But for people like me who can’t stand it we want to disable it immediately. Here we will tell you how to disable dark mode from Chrome in Windows, macOS, Android, and iPhone.

Google Chrome is my default browser across devices. I use it regularly to browse the internet. Recently, I activated dark mode on Chrome accidentally, which made the homepage, settings, and some other things black. Turning it off wasn’t an easy task. So I thought that others could also be wondering about how to turn off dark mode in Chrome. Hence, this post.

Let’s see how to have Chrome get rid of this darkness.

Disable Dark Mode in Google Chrome on Android

In Chrome on Android Lollipop 5+, dark mode gets activated in three ways — from app settings, system-wide theme settings, and battery saver mode. Here’s how to disable it.

1. Change Chrome Theme from Dark to Light

In the first case, you have to turn off dark mode in the Chrome settings. Here are the steps for the same.

Step 1: Launch the Google Chrome app on your phone.

Step 2: Tap on the three-dot icon at the top-right corner and select Settings from the menu.

Step 3: Tap on Themes present under the Basics section. You will find three options — light, dark, and system default. Tap on Light.

2. Change Android Phone’s Theme to Disable Chrome’s Dark Mode

In case you are running Android 10+ with dark mode activated on your phone, then Chrome will automatically turn dark if the theme setting in Chrome is kept as the system default. Similarly, if the battery saver is enabled with system default as Chrome theme, then again Chrome will turn dark. So you need to disable the dark mode on your phone or turn off battery saver mode.

To remove it from your phone, go to phone Settings > Display. Turn off the toggle next to Dark theme.

Tip

To disable battery saver, go to phone Settings > Battery. Turn off Battery Saver.

Disable Dark Mode in Google Chrome on iOS

Google Chrome doesn’t offer a dedicated theme setting on iPhones. The dark theme is tied to your iPhone theme settings. If dark mode is enabled on your iPhone running iOS 13 and up, Chrome will turn dark. Therefore, to remove dark mode from Chrome on iOS, you have to disable it in iPhone settings.

To do so, open Settings on your iPhone and go to Display & Brightness.

Tap on Light under the Appearance section to turn off dark theme. Open Chrome and it will be normal again. Do check our dedicated guide to disable dark mode on iPhone and iPad.

Tip:

Disable Dark Mode for Chrome on Windows 10

Google Chrome becomes dark in two ways on Windows 10 — using system settings and by applying the black theme. Here we will tell you how to deactivate both.

1. Deactivate Chrome Dark Mode from Windows Settings

Windows 10 supports dark mode for apps. Meaning, the supported apps will turn dark when this setting is enabled. So you need to turn it off to remove dark mode from Chrome on Windows. For that, follow these steps:

Step 1: Open Settings on your Windows 10 PC and go to Personalization.

Step 2: Click on Colors in the left sidebar.

Step 3: In the Colors settings, select Light under ‘Choose your color’. That will make both the apps and your Windows turn light.

However, if you only want apps to turn light without changing the Windows theme, select Custom under Choose your color. Then, select the box next to Light under ‘Choose your default app mode’. Keep the ‘Choose your default Windows mode’ as per your preference. Open Chrome and it will become light-themed.

2. Turn off Dark Mode from Chrome Themes

A few months back, Google launched new themes for Chrome. One of them is Just Black that turns some of your things in Chrome dark. So to remove the dark mode, you have to disable black theme.

For that, follow these steps:

Step 1: Launch Chrome and click on the three-dot icon at the top-right corner. Select Settings from the menu. Alternatively, use the direct link chrome://settings/ to open settings.

Step 2: Scroll down and you will find Themes under the Appearance section. Click on Reset to default. That will revert the theme to the original light version.

Note: The themes in Chrome are linked to your Google accounts (if signed in

Disable Dark Mode for Chrome on Mac

Similar to Windows, the dark theme on Chrome in macOS is linked to the system-wide dark theme setting on devices running macOS 10.14 Mojave+. So you have to change your Mac’s theme to disable dark mode on Chrome.

For that, follow these steps:

Step 1: Click on the Apple menu and select System Preferences from the menu.

Step 2: Click on General under System Preferences.

Step 3: You will find three options next to Appearance — light, dark, and auto. Click on Light to turn off dark mode. That will change the theme not only for Chrome but your entire Mac.

If you choose Auto (available on macOS Catalina), dark theme will be activated automatically in the evening. Know in detail on how to disable dark mode on macOS.

Cannot Disable Dark Mode on Chrome

If after following the above steps you are unable to remove dark mode on Chrome, check these tips:

1. Turn off Incognito Mode

Incognito mode is dark by default. So you need to check whether you are browsing in the normal or incognito mode. For that, look for the incognito icon, which consists of glasses and a hat.

On the desktop, you will find it at the top-right corner. If you are in the incognito mode, close the window and open Chrome again in the normal mode.

On the Chrome mobile apps (Android and iPhone), the incognito mode icon is present at the left side of the address bar. If you see it, close the tab and launch normal tabs. Know in detail how to disable Chrome incognito mode on various platforms.

2. Restore Chrome Settings

On Chrome desktop, you can reset Chrome settings to disable dark mode. Resetting Chrome settings will not delete your data, history, or bookmarks. Only extensions and themes will be disabled. Learn what happens when you reset Chrome settings before performing this step.

To reset Chrome settings, follow these steps:

Step 1: Open Chrome Settings by clicking on the three-dot icon at the top-right corner.

Step 2: Click on Advanced to show more settings.

Step 3: Scroll down to the bottom. Click on ‘Restore settings to their original defaults.’ Then click on Reset settings to confirm.

Remove Dark Mode in Chrome Only

My life would become hell if dark mode on Chrome was a permanent feature. Thankfully, it can be removed from all the devices as shown above. However, as you have seen, you need to disable system-wide settings on some devices to remove it from Chrome too. In case you don’t want to do that, check out how to disable dark mode on Chrome alone in Windows and macOS.

Next up: Do you use a password manager on Chrome? Know why and how to disable it from the next link.