Dark mode in Power BI Desktop

APPLIES TO: Power BI Desktop  Power BI service

When you create reports in Power BI Desktop, you can choose different modes, depending on what you're more comfortable looking at. For example, Dark mode replaces all the chrome around the design surface with white-on-black text instead of black-on-white.

Note

This article is about dark mode in Power BI Desktop. For information about dark mode in Power BI Mobile, see Dark mode in Power BI Mobile.

Select a mode

1. Go to File > Options and settings > Options > Global > Report settings.

2. In the Customize appearance (preview) section, select the theme you want:

   • Legacy: The standard white theme of the desktop application.
   • Dark: A dark theme that transforms the desktop application into a darker interface.
   • Light: A white theme with a more stylish look than the default theme.
   • System default: Adapts the theme based on your Windows system settings.

3. Select OK to save your settings.

There's a mode for every window in Power BI Desktop. For example, for dark mode:

• Report view
• Model view
• Table view
• DAX query view

Report view

Note

Dark mode is not applied to the Report view Canvas, including the Filter Pane and Wallpaper.

Model view

Table view

DAX query view

Try the different modes and see which you prefer.

Considerations and limitations

Collapsing of the Power Query editor ribbon is not currently available in Dark mode or Light mode.

Related content

• Create reports in Power BI Desktop with Copilot
• Mobile layout view
• Dark mode in Power BI Mobile