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To turn on dark mode in Word, change the appearance setting for your platform: choose the Black Office theme in Windows, use macOS Dark appearance on a Mac, or select Dark Mode in Word for the web. You can also switch the document page between dark and light without changing the app’s dark controls. These display settings do not change how a document prints or how collaborators see it.

Choose the setting for your device

Platform Turn on dark appearance Change the document page
Word for Windows In Word, go to File > Account and set Office Theme to Black. In some versions, the theme selector is under File > Options > General. Choose Use system setting if Office should follow Windows appearance. Microsoft Support and its Microsoft 365 theme guidance describe these options. Go to View > Switch Modes.
Word for Mac Set macOS to Dark at System Settings > Appearance > Dark. To keep macOS dark but use Word’s light appearance, choose Word > Preferences > General > Personalize > Turn off Dark Mode. Choose View > Switch Modes. To keep the page white while Word is dark, go to Word > Preferences > General > Personalize and select Dark Mode has a white page color.
Word for the web If the browser or operating system uses dark mode, Word may turn it on automatically. Otherwise, select View > Dark Mode. Select View > Switch Backgrounds.
Word on iPhone or iPad Set the device to dark appearance at Settings > Display & Brightness > Dark. Microsoft’s guidance applies to iOS 13 or later. Microsoft’s documented page-background controls focus on Windows, Mac, and web; a separate iOS page-color toggle is not specified in that guidance.

Microsoft’s platform-specific instructions are in Dark Mode in Word, Change the look and feel of Microsoft 365, and Dark Mode in Office for iOS. Labels and locations can vary by Word version.

Set Word to dark while keeping the page white

Windows

Go to File > Options > General. Under Personalize your copy of Microsoft Office, select Never change the document page color, then select OK.

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Mac

Open Word > Preferences > General > Personalize and select Dark Mode has a white page color.

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Word for the web

Use View > Switch Backgrounds to change the page independently of the app’s dark interface.

Understand what dark mode changes

Word’s dark theme changes the interface, and the page-background control changes how the document canvas appears on your screen. The canvas switch is a viewing preference, not a document-formatting command. Microsoft says, “The dark page background does not convey how your document will print, or the default view your collaborators will see when they open it.” Printing uses a light page, and collaborators’ view preferences are their own.

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For a more reliable preview of print appearance or another person’s view, switch the page to light before checking. By contrast, Design > Page Color applies a background color to the document itself; choose No Color there to remove that formatting. Don’t use Page Color just to make your own screen dark.

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Know what may look different or fail

  • Some panes and dialog boxes may remain light or otherwise fail to adapt.
  • Charts, text boxes, and equations may not display as expected in dark mode.
  • Ink color may update only after you finish drawing.
  • Text copied from another dark-mode app can arrive as black text on a white background. On Windows, try Ctrl+Shift+V or Paste Text Only; on Mac, try Command+Shift+V or Paste Text Only.

Microsoft documents these exceptions and workarounds in its Word dark-mode guidance.

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When the setting does not stick

Word for the web resets its page or theme choice

The web preference is saved per unique browser. Check that cookies are enabled in the browser you use for Word.

Word looks different on another device

Dark-mode choices do not carry over among Word for Windows, Mac, and the web. Configure each platform separately. On iPhone and iPad, Word follows the device’s appearance setting.

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Use a black page in Immersive Reader

If you want a black reading canvas rather than the standard Word page view, open View > Immersive Reader > Page Color > Black. This is a separate reading option from the app theme and the regular page-background switch.

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