GuidesNotion

How to change Notion to dark mode

Learn how to enable dark mode in Notion on desktop, web, and mobile — adjust appearance settings to switch themes in a few clicks.

Quick answer

To enable dark mode in Notion, click your workspace name in the top-left sidebar, go to Settings > My settings, find the Appearance section, and choose Dark. The change applies immediately and only affects your own view.

Steps at a glance

  1. Click your workspace name or avatar in the top-left corner.
  2. Go to Settings > My settings.
  3. Find the Appearance section.
  4. Select Dark from the options.
  5. Close settings — Notion switches to dark mode immediately.

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Summary

Dark mode in Notion reduces the brightness of the interface and uses a dark gray background. It is a personal setting, so enabling it only affects your view. If you prefer to follow your device's setting automatically, choose Use system setting instead.

Step-by-step guide

  1. Step 1

    Open Settings

    Click your workspace name or avatar in the top-left corner of Notion. Click Settings at the bottom of the sidebar menu.

  2. Step 2

    Go to My settings

    In the Settings panel, click My settings to open your personal preferences.

  3. Step 3

    Select Dark

    Scroll to the Appearance section and click Dark. Notion immediately switches to a dark background across the entire interface.

Why this matters

You're working late and the white background of Notion is making your eyes work harder than they need to. You want to switch to dark mode so you can keep going comfortably.

Troubleshooting

  • The Dark option is not visible

    Make sure you are in My settings (personal preferences) and not Workspace settings. Only My settings has the appearance controls.

  • Dark mode is not applying to some pages

    Dark mode applies to the entire Notion interface. If some pages appear different, they may have page-level background colors set. Check the page cover and background settings.

Frequently asked questions

  • Is dark mode available on the Notion mobile app?

    Yes. On the Notion mobile app, tap the three-dot menu or go to Settings > Appearance and choose Dark.

  • Can I use a custom background color instead of dark mode?

    Not as an interface-level setting. You can set per-page background colors in Notion, but these are separate from the dark mode setting which controls the overall interface.

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