A Complete Guide to Enabling YouTube‘s Dark Mode

Have you ever strained your eyes watching YouTube videos in an otherwise dark room? Or wished videos had a darker, less glaring background for comfortable viewing? If so, you likely want to enable YouTube‘s dark mode.

In this comprehensive 2000+ word guide, you‘ll learn step-by-step how to activate dark mode on YouTube across devices like desktop browsers, iPhones, Android phones, and tablets.

We provide specific walkthroughs, screenshots, and troubleshooting advice so you can easily enjoy YouTube‘s new sleek black interface. Read on to learn how!

Overview: Key Things We‘ll Cover

Here‘s an overview of what we‘re going to cover in this guide:

What is Dark Mode – We‘ll explain what dark mode is and why so many people prefer enabling it, especially on streaming sites like YouTube
Benefits of Dark Mode – Next we discuss the specific upsides to using dark mode, from better sleep to improved battery life
How To Enable on Desktop – We provide clear step-by-step instructions to activate dark mode on YouTube when using desktop browsers like Chrome or Safari
How To Enable on Mobile – Want YouTube dark on your iPhone or Android phone? We walk through exactly how to set dark theme via YouTube app or display settings
Customization and Troubleshooting – We offer pro tips to refine your dark mode experience, settings tweaks to try, and troubleshooting advice
The Bottom Line – Finally, our take on why it‘s worthwhile enabling YouTube‘s dark mode for comfortable viewing

Let‘s begin!

What is Dark Mode and Why Enable it on YouTube?

Dark mode, as the name suggests, inverts bright interface elements to darker colors for lower visual contrast.

Apps and sites like YouTube with dark mode enabled:

Display black or dark gray backgrounds
Use white or muted tones for text
Invert graphics, colors, and icons accordingly

This transforms bright white web pages, videos, apps, and operating systems to have dark backgrounds and light text – essentially a dark theme or inverted "night mode" look.

Dark mode has steadily grown in popularity over the past few years. Many users prefer how slick apps look in dark mode aesthetically while also finding it beneficial in these key ways:

Reduces Eye Strain
Staring at bright screens in dark rooms leads to eye discomfort and fatigue quicker than looking at darker screens. Given many people end up watching videos in bed or otherwise low-light environments, enabling YouTube‘s dark theme cuts down on glare and strain.

Better Sleep Hygiene
Relatedly, research confirms blue light exposure from devices before bed can negatively impact sleep patterns. Dark mode helps mitigate that issue, supporting better rest according to sleep scientists.

Extends Battery Life
OLED smartphone displays require less power to produce black pixels compared to lighter ones. This translates to minor battery life improvements using dark mode, especially helpful for users who multitask while streaming YouTube videos.

Personal Preference
For some, the choice comes down to enjoying the modern, stylish aesthetics of a blacked-out UI over conventional light themes. Dark mode simply looks slick and professional to many folks.

Now that you know what what dark mode is and why so many YouTube users enable it let‘s get into how to activate it while watching videos:

Step-by-Step Guide to Enabling YouTube Dark Mode

You have a few options for enabling dark mode on YouTube based on what device you use to stream videos:

Device	Method 1	Method 2	Method 3
Computer (Mac/Windows)	Adjust YouTube Website Settings	Browser Extensions	Switch OS Dark Theme
Android	Adjust Display Settings	YouTube App Settings
iPhone/iPad	YouTube App Settings

Below we provide detailed instructions for each method across devices:

How to Enable YouTube Dark Mode on Computers

Adjust YouTube Website Settings (Applies to current browser only):
- Sign into YouTube account
- Click profile picture > Appearance > Device Theme
- Select Dark theme to apply
Install Dark Mode Browser Extension (Applies to all sites):
- Navigate to Extensions in Chrome/Firefox/Safari
- Search for dark mode extension like Dark Reader
- Click Add to install
- Site including YouTube are now dark!
Switch System Dark Theme On (Applies to all apps & sites)
- On Mac go to Settings > General
  - Select Dark appearance
- On Windows 10 open Settings > Personalization > Colors
  - Toggle Dark mode on

See the screenshots below for examples activating YouTube dark mode on a desktop computer:

How to Enable Dark Mode on YouTube Mobile Apps

Similarly, switching the YouTube app itself to dark mode using in-app settings or the toggling your entire mobile OS to dark via display options are two straightforward paths.

On Android:

Open Settings > Display
- Turn on Dark theme (All apps dark)

In YouTube app, click on Profile > Settings
- Choose Appearance > Dark theme

On iPhone & iPad:

In YouTube, select Profile > Settings
- Go To Appearance
- Enable Dark theme

Customizing & Troubleshooting YouTube Dark Mode

Don‘t simply settle for YouTube‘s default dark mode. Instead, tailor the experience to your preferences:

Fine-tune Darkness Intensity

Many dark mode extensions and OS settings let you specify exactly how dark you want interfaces to be. For true blacks, crank settings to max darkness. For slightly muted grays, decrease accordingly.

Exclude Channels or Videos from Dark Mode

Not all videos may look best in dark mode, especially those with already darker palettes. Browser extensions provide options for disabling forcing dark mode on specific sites or pages. White-list your favorite channels or videos that look better in light mode.

Disable Automatic Toggling

Some OS dark modes automatically switch between light and dark based on sunrise/sunset in your location. If distracting, disable auto schedule-toggling.

Invert Colors

Go beyond dark mode to invert every color on screen for maximum contrast by enabling color inversion accessibility options.

Troubleshooting YouTube Reverting to Light Mode

If YouTube isn‘t staying reliably dark, chances are you only flipped the switch within the YouTube website itself rather than via a broad dark mode extension or system setting change.

For consistent dark mode on YouTube across all your browsers and devices, we recommend adopting a "set it and forget it" global OS or browser extension approach vs. the quick YouTube appearance fix.

Conclusion – The Bottom Line Benefits to Using YouTube Dark Mode

At the end of the day – or night – the bottom line is using YouTube dark mode makes for a more comfortable, less visually straining viewing experience in dim environments.

It also helps support better sleep habits for those who watch videos before bed. And while dark mode‘s battery life improvements are minor, every bit helps if you want to squeeze max life from your devices.

Beyond the highly practical perks, can‘t dismiss the modern aesthetics dark mode offers either.

So in summary:

YouTube Dark Mode Pros: