How to Turn On Dark Mode in Slack
Switch the Slack desktop app to a dark theme, let it follow your operating system, and pick a color theme, plus the matching setting in the phone app.
Applies to: current Slack desktop app; phone app differences noted. Last checked September 11, 2026. Suggest an edit
The white Slack window is glaring at night, or you just prefer dark interfaces. The setting lives in Preferences and takes a few clicks. It is personal to your account, so nobody else in the workspace is affected.
Click your profile picture
Click your profile picture in the top-right corner of the Slack window.
Open Preferences
Click Preferences in the menu. A settings window opens with a list of sections down the left side.
Go to Appearance
Click Appearance in the left column. In older versions of the app the same section is called Themes.
Choose Dark
Under Color mode, select Dark. The change applies right away, no restart needed. Choose Light to go back, or System to have Slack follow whatever your Mac or Windows PC is set to, which means it will flip automatically if your operating system switches to dark at sunset.
Pick a color theme
Below the mode setting, choose an accent theme. Single color options tint the sidebar in one hue, Vibrant themes add more contrast, and Custom lets you paste specific hex values if your team shares one. Dark mode works with all of them, so you can keep a bright sidebar color on a dark background.
Keyboard shortcut for switching. There is no dedicated shortcut for dark mode, but you can press Ctrl+, (Cmd+, on Mac) to open Preferences directly and land on the same window.
On a phone. Tap the You tab at the bottom, tap Preferences (labeled Settings on some versions), tap Appearance, and choose Dark. Pick System there to have the phone app follow the phone's own dark mode schedule.