Over the weekend we noted that Facebook had added a "hidden" setting in Facebook Messenger that allows you to turn on a long-awaited Dark mode. The new mode was found by several sites and users and remains hidden for now.

facebook dark mode

How to Turn on Dark Mode in Facebook Messenger

  1. Send just the 🌙 emoji to anyone (or even yourself).
  2. Tap on the moon emoji in the chat after you send it.
  3. A pop up should appear saying you found dark mode.
  4. Go to settings and you should see it here.
  5. You may have to force quit the Facebook Messenger app and relaunch it before tapping on the Moon emoji will work.

Facebook acknowledged the Dark mode setting in a blog post.

As many may have discovered, dark mode can be accessed through a hidden, limited-time only experience. Simply send a crescent moon emoji – 🌙 – in any Messenger chat to unlock the setting and prompt to turn on dark mode.

Facebook promises that the feature will be deployed our to everyone in a matter of weeks. The secret method to enable dark mode works in both Android and iOS.

The new mode works particularly well with Facebook's color/gradient option. If you tap on the name of the person you are chatting with, you can choose a custom color for that chat. The gradients work well against the new dark background.

Apple is widely rumored to be adding a dark mode in iOS 13 which is expected to be debuted at WWDC 2019.

(Thanks, Nathan!)

Related Forum: iOS 13

Top Rated Comments

FairlyKors Avatar
82 months ago
The most satisfying way to enter dark mode is to simply hold down the fb icon until it wiggles and then press that “secret” X that appears.
Score: 32 Votes (Like | Disagree)
keysofanxiety Avatar
82 months ago
Pretty sure FB messenger always had a hidden dark mode, with any messages or photos sent directly to Zucc for his strange gratification.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BWhaler Avatar
82 months ago
Facebook. Gross.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
podycust Avatar
82 months ago
not working for me

edit: after sending I force quit messenger then tapped on the moon in the chat and it worked!
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
squizzler Avatar
82 months ago
I’ve quit Messenger and Facebook altogether. Never felt better.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
idmean Avatar
82 months ago
Facebook is not spelt with an uppercase b...
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching in Three Months With These 12 New Features

Saturday June 14, 2025 5:45 pm PDT by
The iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are three months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of June 2025:Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone X through iPhone 14 Pro have a...
iPadOS 26 App Windowing

Apple Explains Why iPads Don't Just Run macOS

Friday June 13, 2025 7:46 am PDT by
iPadOS 26 allows iPads to function much more like Macs, with a new app windowing system, a swipe-down menu bar at the top of the screen, and more. However, Apple has stopped short of allowing iPads to run macOS, and it has now explained why. In an interview this week with Swiss tech journalist Rafael Zeier, Apple's software engineering chief Craig Federighi said that iPadOS 26's new Mac-like ...
Logitech Logo Feature

Logitech Announces Two New Accessories for WWDC

Friday June 13, 2025 7:22 am PDT by
Alongside WWDC this week, Logitech announced notable new accessories for the iPad and Apple Vision Pro. The Logitech Muse is a spatially-tracked stylus developed for use with the Apple Vision Pro. Introduced during the WWDC 2025 keynote address, Muse is intended to support the next generation of spatial computing workflows enabled by visionOS 26. The device incorporates six degrees of...
iphone 16 pro models 1

17 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 17

Thursday June 12, 2025 8:58 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup. If you skipped the iPhone...
iOS 26 Feature

Apple Seeds Revised iOS 26 Developer Beta to Fix Battery Issue

Friday June 13, 2025 10:15 am PDT by
Apple today provided developers with a revised version of the first iOS 26 beta for testing purposes. The update is only available for the iPhone 15 and iPhone 16 models, so if you're running iOS 26 on an iPhone 14 or earlier, you won't see the revised beta. Registered developers can download the new beta software through the Settings app on each device. The revised beta addresses an...
Mac Studio Feature

Apple Begins Selling Refurbished Mac Studio With M4 Max and M3 Ultra Chips at a Discount

Thursday June 12, 2025 10:14 am PDT by
Apple today added Mac Studio models with M4 Max and M3 Ultra chips to its online certified refurbished store in the United States, Canada, Japan, Singapore, and many European countries, for the first time since they were released in March. As usual for refurbished Macs, prices are discounted by approximately 15% compared to the equivalent new models on Apple's online store. Note that Apple's ...
m4 macbook air pink

Apple Now Selling Refurbished M4 MacBook Air Models

Friday June 13, 2025 3:34 pm PDT by
Apple today added M4 MacBook Air models to its refurbished store in the United States, making the latest MacBook Air devices available at a discounted price for the first time since they launched earlier this year. Both 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air models are available, with Apple offering multiple capacities and configurations. The refurbished devices are discounted by approximately 15...