How to activate dark mode in Excel

Over the past few years, soaring demand has seen dark mode widely adopted by numerous desktop apps, mobile apps, operating systems, and websites.

Proponents say it reduces eye strain, improves visibility, and the overall aesthetic appeal of interfaces. Others think it's just a fad.

Predictably, this has led to Microsoft rolling out its own dark mode options to its Microsoft 365 apps. However, its implementation doesn't consist of a mere toggle switch like others.

Standard across all Microsoft 365 apps is the File menu at the leftmost of the ribbon. Clicking this followed by Account in the Backstage reveals a dropdown labelled Office Theme. This lets you choose from five colour choices that affect the ribbon and UI.

In Word, picking Black activates a fully-fledged dark mode that paints everything, including the main canvas. A new button called Switch Modes also appears on the View tab, allowing you to toggle between a black or white canvas.

Disappointingly, Excel is not afforded this luxury as it does not impact the grid, meaning you're unable to fully enjoy the benefits.

There is a workaround, though. On the Page Layout tab, select Background and either create your own all-black graphic and use that or search for one using the built-in Bing feature. This applies the repeated image to the whole worksheet.

The final step is to select the entire range and change the font colour to white.

It ain't perfect, but if you're desperate for a dark mode in Excel, this is the best we have for now. 😁

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