Microsoft today launched a much-requested dark mode for its Outlook.com web mail service. The company teased the new mode earlier this month, suggesting it would be reminiscent of last year's Halloween theme for Outlook.

outlook dark mode
The new dark mode actually adopts shades of grey to generate panel contrast, providing a more polished look as a result. You can enable it from the Quick settings menu (the cog wheel icon in the upper right). Currently it only works with the default blue theme.

The dark mode for Outlook.com is one of the most highly requested features for Microsoft's web mail service, according to listings on the Outlook.com feedback site, although there's still no word on whether a similar mode is coming to the mobile Outlook app.

Last month, Microsoft launched a rebranded version of its Microsoft News app for iOS with a dark mode. Several other iOS apps have similar modes, including Twitter, YouTube, Reddit, and Twitch, while Apple's upcoming macOS Mojave also includes dark mode support.

Top Rated Comments

44267547 Avatar
96 months ago
What’s so special about dark mode?
When dark mode is enabled, it provides a reverse color scheme to Improve readability, thus resulting in making it easier on the eyes when reading for less strain. For some, dimming isn’t the answer, when dark mode is preferred.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Music Ambulance Avatar
96 months ago
The less outlook the better
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
0815 Avatar
96 months ago
This will make lots of people happy. I personally don’t care for dark modes - for me it reduces readability. But everybody is different. I tried dark mode in the macOS beta and also before in many other tools ... maybe I’m too old for this.

But choice is good and as long as everybody can pick their favorite, everybody should be happy.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
honeycombz Avatar
96 months ago
Dark mode is pointless. Everyone has their macs running in a freezer now anyways. Plenty dark in there.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Cpk Avatar
96 months ago
If I look at the attached screenshot I have to say though... this is what I'd prefer for iOS.

Dark Gray + BLUE
not
Dark Gray + ORANGE how Apple did it.
(Sorry for the long post...)

I agree! As a person with poor eyes, this is awesome! I really hate Apple for taking so long to implement a good, simple and consistent OS wide Dark mode. I hate Microsoft for implementing it half-a**ed as well.

On my iOS devices I have my home button triple click set on invert screen. Unfortunately Apple's 'Smart Invert' is ok once On, but awful to use due to the long time it takes to swap between normal and Smart Invert (on iphone 6, anyways). Then, just like Microsoft (half a**), the alarm clock is in Dark Mode by default, so if I'm reading and I'm in invert colors mode, and before sleep I need to check my Alarms, I open a bright white app that burns my eyes. This is so simple to properly fix or introduce into iOS and yet it takes years before they do it. If ever.
On PC, my tool of choice is a little program called Negative Screen that has smart invert features. I have it an all my computers and it help a lot. I do photography. Photoshop had a darkish' gray background since version 3! Now it's even darker. I always had all my photo viewers set with dark (er) background for thumbnail view. It just helps to see the colors so much better because your eyes don't fight the all the white space around them. I'm an engineer. All my CAD stuff is on black. I've tried once to swap the colors just for fun...you get headache after half an hour of work.

And for all the people out there that think Dark Mode is just a fad or completely useless, please understand that taking the brightness down all the way at night is NOT what you need in order to comfortably read stuff on your phone or tablet. And no, don't compare it with the 'books' either please. You never ever read books in the dark. You always have a light above or nearby that lights up more than just your book. There is no strain because your eyes don't have to adjust to anything as the light reflected off of your book is just about at the same intensity as the light reflected off of your walls or ceiling, or night stand. Reading on a backlit screen is NOT like reading in a book. It's like someone points a flashlight in your eyes. At night, in a dark room, with dark mode on, your eyes don't fight lights of 0 intensity (your room) and bright intensity (your screen). You can keep your brightness quite high for pictures and such, and still read comfortably.

Sorry, but yeah...the more Dark Mode, the better.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Glockworkorange Avatar
96 months ago
So is this available in Office 365 Outlook or just Outlook.com? I can't find it in Office 365.
Not in Office 365. Just Outkook web mail
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iOS 26

iOS 26.2 Coming Soon With These 8 New Features on Your iPhone

Thursday December 11, 2025 8:49 am PST by
Apple seeded the second iOS 26.2 Release Candidate to developers earlier this week, meaning the update will be released to the general public very soon. Apple confirmed iOS 26.2 would be released in December, but it did not provide a specific date. We expect the update to be released by early next week. iOS 26.2 includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, such as a new...
Google maps feaure

Google Maps Quietly Added This Long-Overdue Feature for Drivers

Wednesday December 10, 2025 2:52 am PST by
Google Maps on iOS quietly gained a new feature recently that automatically recognizes where you've parked your vehicle and saves the location for you. Announced on LinkedIn by Rio Akasaka, Google Maps' senior product manager, the new feature auto-detects your parked location even if you don't use the parking pin function, saves it for up to 48 hours, and then automatically removes it once...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature 1

Apple to Make More Foldable iPhones Than Expected [Updated]

Tuesday December 9, 2025 9:59 am PST by
Apple has ordered 22 million OLED panels from Samsung Display for the first foldable iPhone, signaling a significantly larger production target than the display industry had previously anticipated, ET News reports. In the now-seemingly deleted report, ET News claimed that Samsung plans to mass-produce 11 million inward-folding OLED displays for Apple next year, as well as 11 million...
iOS 26

15 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 26.2

Friday December 5, 2025 9:40 am PST by
Apple is about to release iOS 26.2, the second major point update for iPhones since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least 15 notable changes and improvements worth checking out. We've rounded them up below. Apple is expected to roll out iOS 26.2 to compatible devices sometime between December 8 and December 16. When the update drops, you can check Apple's servers for the ...
AirPods Pro Firmware Feature

Apple Releases New Firmware for AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3

Thursday December 11, 2025 11:28 am PST by
Apple today released new firmware designed for the AirPods Pro 3 and the prior-generation AirPods Pro 2. The AirPods Pro 3 firmware is 8B30, up from 8B25, while the AirPods Pro 2 firmware is 8B28, up from 8B21. There's no word on what's include in the updated firmware, but the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3 are getting expanded support for Live Translation in the European Union in iOS...
AirTag 2 Mock Feature

Apple AirTag 2: Four New Features Found in iOS 26 Code

Thursday December 11, 2025 10:31 am PST by
The AirTag 2 will include a handful of new features that will improve tracking capabilities, according to a new report from Macworld. The site says that it was able to access an internal build of iOS 26, which includes references to multiple unreleased products. Here's what's supposedly coming: An improved pairing process, though no details were provided. AirTag pairing is already...
iOS 26

Apple Seeds Second iOS 26.2 Release Candidate to Developers and Public Beta Testers

Monday December 8, 2025 10:18 am PST by
Apple today seeded the second release candidate version of iOS 26.2 to developers and public beta testers, with the software coming one week after Apple seeded the first RC. The release candidate represents the final version iOS 26.2 that will be provided to the public if no further bugs are found. Registered developers and public beta testers can download the betas from the Settings app on...
iPhone 14 Pro Dynamic Island

iPhone 18 Pro Leak Adds New Evidence for Under-Display Face ID

Monday December 8, 2025 4:54 am PST by
Apple is actively testing under-screen Face ID for next year's iPhone 18 Pro models using a special "spliced micro-transparent glass" window built into the display, claims a Chinese leaker. According to "Smart Pikachu," a Weibo account that has previously shared accurate supply-chain details on Chinese Android hardware, Apple is testing the special glass as a way to let the TrueDepth...
ipad blue prime day

iPad 12 Rumored to Get iPhone 17's A19 Chip, Breaking Apple Tradition

Wednesday December 10, 2025 12:22 pm PST by
The next-generation low-cost iPad will use Apple's A19 chip, according to a report from Macworld. Macworld claims to have seen an "internal Apple code document" with information about the 2026 iPad lineup. Prior documentation discovered by MacRumors suggested that the iPad 12 would be equipped with an A18 chip, not an A19 chip. The A19 chip was just released this year in the iPhone 17, and...
studio display purple

Apple Studio Display 2 Code Hints at 120Hz ProMotion, HDR, A19 Chip

Thursday December 11, 2025 4:19 am PST by
Apple's next-generation Studio Display is expected to arrive early next year, and a new report allegedly provides a couple more details on the external monitor's capabilities. According to internal Apple code seen by Macworld, the new external display will feature a variable refresh rate capable of up to 120Hz – aka ProMotion – as well as support for HDR content. The current Studio...