Dark Mode in Slack and Teams: Turn It On or Match Your Device
If your screen glows at night, dark mode is a two-minute fix. Slack and Teams both have it, but the menus differ and so do the details. Here is where to find each setting and what the help pages say about syncing with your device.
Miles Crawford
The quick version
In Slack on desktop, click your profile picture, select Preferences, then Appearance, and under Color Mode select Dark. In Teams, select Settings and more, then Settings, then Appearance, and choose Follow operating system theme, Light or Dark, where supported. Slack says its dark mode setting is device specific, so you set it again on each device.
Slack: turn on dark mode
Slack describes dark mode as a darker, higher-contrast color theme that is easier on your eyes. On desktop, click your profile picture in the sidebar, select Preferences, select Appearance, and under Color Mode select Dark. On mobile, tap your profile picture, then Preferences. Under Appearance, Color Mode has the choices Always Light, Always Dark or Follow System Settings. Slack's Android steps differ: select Dark Mode and choose System default, Off or On. Slack's note: the preference is device specific, so setting it in the desktop app does not change the mobile app.
Slack: match your operating system
Slack can sync dark mode with your operating system. It supports this on Mac, Windows, iOS 13 and above, and Android 10 and above. On desktop, go to your profile picture, Preferences, Appearance, and under Color Mode select System. On mobile, set Color Mode to Follow System Settings, or on Android set Dark Mode to System default. Slack notes that on iOS, dark mode syncs with your OS settings automatically.
Teams: pick a theme
In Teams, select Settings and more next to your profile picture, then Settings, then Appearance. Microsoft says you can choose Follow operating system theme, Light or Dark, where supported. To reach Appearance faster, select Expand app bar or press Ctrl+\, or right-click the app bar and select Customize app bar. Appearance also holds the Show app names toggle and the Auto collapse app bar toggle.
Teams: keep calls and meetings dark
On the same Appearance page, check the box next to Always use dark theme for calls and meetings. Microsoft says this is available in both Teams Enterprise and consumer Teams. In Teams Enterprise it is not supported with the Classic theme, so switch to another theme to use it.
Which one for what?
Our read: if you switch between a laptop and a phone, use the sync-with-system option in both apps so you set it once at the operating system level. Slack makes you repeat the choice per device, so system sync saves the most effort there. In Teams, the calls-and-meetings checkbox is worth a look if bright call windows bother you at night. For other ways to make the apps calmer, see our quiet hours guide.
What to be careful about
- Slack dark mode is per device. Desktop and mobile each need their own setting.
- Slack OS sync has version limits. It supports Mac, Windows, iOS 13 and above, and Android 10 and above.
- Menu names differ by platform. Slack's steps use Color Mode in one place and Dark Mode in another, so follow the steps for your device.
- Teams Dark is "where supported". Microsoft words it that way, so an option may be missing in some setups.
- Teams Classic theme blocks the dark calls setting. This applies to Teams Enterprise.
- Restart if a setting does not apply. This is our own tip, not from the help pages.
Sources
Checked October 21, 2026. Steps and features follow each product's own help articles. The which-one-for-what advice is ours.