Tech Tip: How to enable Dark Mode in Microsoft Office

By: Ryan Johnson

Microsoft Office includes black and dark gray themes for Office apps like Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint.

To change your theme, click the “File” menu at the top left corner of an Office application like Word, Excel, Outlook, or PowerPoint.

dark mode screenshot for tech tip

Click the “Account” option in the sidebar. On the right, open the “Office Theme” dropdown menu, and then select your desired theme.

dark mode screenshot 2 for tech tip

To enable dark mode, select “Black” for the darkest possible Office style.

You can also select “Dark Gray.” This theme uses lighter dark grays, which you might prefer if you find the Black theme too dark.

You can select a different “Office Background” from here, too. For example, if you’d rather not see a design behind Office’s ribbon bar, click the “Office Background” box and select “No Background.”

These theme and background settings affect all Microsoft Office applications on your system. They even affect Office applications on other Windows PCs, assuming you sign into them with the same Microsoft account.