How-To

Schedule Your Dark Theme Usage in Android

Having the ability to schedule when your phone or tablet uses the dark theme can make things easier on your eyes when it counts the most.

Dark theme scheduling can be very useful if you’re an Android device user. You might find such a theme easier on the eyes at certain times of the day, but maybe not all the time. Fortunately, you can easily schedule when to use the feature.

While a system-wide dark-theme has been available since Android 10, custom dark theme scheduling is only available if you are using a device running Android 11 or newer.

The Dark Side

A dark theme (especially a system-wide one) has multiple advantages, especially when you’re using your device in a darker environment. A good example is when you’re responding to emails in the evening. It is much easier on the eyes and reduces blue light. Considering how much time we’re all spending on our mobile devices, it’s not a bad thing to have.

Also, if your device has an OLED or AMOLED display, it will help save energy.

Last but not least, darker tones on your screen look nicer, especially on a device with a dark color scheme. However, that last one is completely a matter of personal opinion.

Dark Theme, Custom Schedule

Starting with Android 11, you have much more control in terms of when your Dark Theme turns on or off on your device. You could go with the classic “sunrise – sunset” model, but you might also want something different, with custom times.

For example, you might be working in a very bright building, with lots of artificial light. In that case, you might want your dark theme to come on only when you leave the office (say, at 5:30 PM).

Either way, you have all of these options. Here’s how to use them.

Start by going to Settings, then Display, in your smartphone’s main menu.

Dark Theme schedule settings display

The next thing will be to tap Dark theme.

Tap Schedule and you will see the available options. You can still change your mind and choose Turns on from sunset to sunrise.

However, if what you’re after is something more precise, tap Turns on at custom time.

Dark Theme schedule custom time

You can then easily set the time when you want the dark theme to turn on and, also, when you want it to switch off.

Dark Theme schedule custom time set

That’s it! The feature is now set to switch on and off at the custom hours of your choosing.

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