How To Turn Off Dark Mode in Microsoft Word

For many of us, we spend far too many hours in front of our computer screens. Burning the midnight oil while working on a Microsoft Word document is not uncommon these days. But thankfully, Word has a unique feature that can reduce eye strain in lower light settings called dark mode. This feature darkens brighter portions of the screen, making nighttime work a bit easier on the eyes.

However, if you’ve set this feature to accommodate your late-night work habits, you may find it doesn’t suit your daytime needs. Fortunately, there’s a way to turn off this valuable feature. This article will discuss how to turn off dark mode on a Mac and a PC running Windows 11.

Turning Off Dark Mode in Microsoft Word on a Mac

Word’s dark mode is a great way to give your eyes a break when working late nights on an important document. By lowering the light on Word’s toolbar and surrounding area, it can reduce eye strain and make evening work easier. Yet, this may not be suitable when working during daylight hours.

Fortunately, there’s a quick and easy way to turn off dark mode. You can set your Word app back to normal with just a few taps. There are two ways to do so. To learn how to use the first method, follow these instructions:

1. Open Microsoft word on your Mac.
   
2. In the top-left corner of your screen, click on the word “Word.”
   
3. From the dropdown menu, select “Preferences.”
   
4. In the popup window, tap “General.”
   
5. Scroll down and locate the “Personalize” section.
   
6. Click on the button to the left of “Turn off Dark Mode.”
   

There’s a second way to turn off dark mode on your Mac. Newer Mac OS has a universal dark mode feature. When enabled, it’ll lower the light for all apps, including Microsoft Word. To do this, follow the steps below:

1. Click on the “Apple” icon in the top-left corner of the screen.
   
2. From the dropdown menu, select “System Preferences.”
   
3. Tap on “General” in the popup window.
   
4. You’ll have three choices. To disable dark mode, select “Light.”
   

By choosing either of these methods, you can easily disable Word’s dark mode feature.

Turning Off Dark Mode in Microsoft Word on a Windows 11 PC

You’ll have two options to choose from. To learn how to do so using Windows 11 within Word, do the following:

1. Launch Microsoft Word on your PC.
   
2. Click on “File” from the top-left menu.
   
3. Towards the bottom of the left pane window, tap “Options.”
   
4. In the popup window, locate the “General” tab and then “Office Theme.”
   
5. To disable dark mode, select either “Classic, “Colorful,” or “White.”
   
6. Press “OK” to save your changes.
   

Windows 11 also has a global dark mode to help reduce eye strain when the lights are low. You can disable this feature which will include disabling it within Microsoft Word. To learn how to do this, follow the steps below:

1. Hold down “Windows+I” to open “Settings.”
   
2. Click on “Personalization,” “Colors,” and “Choose your Mode.”
   
3. From the dropdown menu, select “Light.”
   

Dark mode will now be deselected and turned off for all apps, including Word. This is an easy way to disable this feature for everything you do on your PC.

Go Back to the Light by Disabling Dark Mode

Microsoft Word’s dark mode feature can help with eye strain in low light conditions. While working on a Word document, some users prefer to switch to dark mode. But this mode could have the opposite effect on some people. Fortunately, it’s easy to disable the dark mode feature on both Macs and PCs. With just a few clicks or taps in Word’s preferences, you can return to the light.