I Use Dark Mode, and You Should Too: How to Enable it on Android Phones

I first started using dark mode on my Samsung Galaxy device in 2018. I was tired of staring at a bright, white screen, and aware of benefits like preserving battery life, reducing eye strain, and helping with bluelight-induced sleep issues. But also, it just looked cool.

During the peak of dark mode mania, Apple added a system-wide version in iOS 13; Google released a standardized dark mode in 2020’s Android 10. Now that it’s available everywhere, and phone hardware is better optimized to take advantage of the benefits, it’s never been a better time to dim the lights. Here’s how to turn on dark mode on Galaxy and Google Pixel phones.

Enable Dark Mode on Samsung Galaxy Devices

Samsung has offered a dark mode since 2019, so you should be familiar with the process by now. Open Settings > Display, and then choose Dark at the top of the screen. You can also control the feature directly from the phone’s Quick Settings shade. Just pull down the menu and tap the Dark mode button under the brightness bar.

You can also select Dark mode settings and enable Turn on as scheduled to set when the theme should turn on and off. By default, the theme will turn on at night and off during the day, but you can pick Custom schedule to set specific times for the feature.

(Credit: PCMag / Samsung)

Enable Dark Mode on Google Pixel Devices

To enable dark mode on your Google Pixel device, open Settings > Display & touch and enable Dark theme. You can also pull down the quick settings menu and tap the Dark theme setting button. If it doesn’t appear in the menu by default, tap the pencil icon, locate the dark theme icon in the list, and drag it to the top section so it appears.

You can also schedule when the color scheme should turn on and off automatically. Under the Display & touch screen, tap Dark theme (the words next to the switch) to view scheduling options. Tap Schedule to set dark mode to a custom time, sunset to sunrise, or at bedtime.

(Credit: PCMag / Google)

About Jason Cohen

Senior Editor, Help & How To

As PCMag’s editor of how to content, I have to cover a wide variety of topics and also make our stories accessible to everyday users. Considering my history as a technical writer, copywriter, and all-around freelancer covering baseball, comics, and more at various outlets, I am used to making myself into an expert.

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