Does Power BI Have Dark Mode?

Looking for a native dark mode in Power BI? While there isn't a single button you can flick to transform everything, it's absolutely possible to create a sleek, eye-friendly dark-themed experience. This guide will walk you through the exact steps to enable dark mode for the Power BI application itself and, more importantly, how to build your reports with a proper dark theme that makes your data pop.

Changing the Power BI Desktop Theme

First, let's tackle the easy part. Power BI Desktop has a few built-in application themes that change the color of the menus, panes, and ribbons surrounding your report canvas. The 'Dark' theme is one of these options, though it's important to know this setting does not affect your actual report visuals or canvas background.

Here’s how to enable it:

1. Open Power BI Desktop.

2. Navigate to File > Options and settings > Options.

3. In the Options window, select Global > General from the left-hand menu.

4. Look for the Theme dropdown menu and select Dark.

5. Click OK. You'll need to restart Power BI for the change to take full effect.

Upon restarting, you'll notice a significant change. All the surrounding interface elements - the ribbon at the top, the Fields pane, the Visualizations pane - will now have a dark gray background. However, your report canvas will still be a bright, white default. This is where most people get stuck, but the next section is where the real customization begins.

Creating a True Dark-Themed Report

To get the full dark mode effect, you need to tell your report itself to use dark colors. You can do this in two primary ways: by using a custom theme file (the recommended method for consistency) or by manually adjusting every element (the more hands-on approach).

Recommended: Build and Import a Custom Theme File

A Power BI theme is a simple JSON file that holds all the formatting definitions for your report. By creating a dark theme JSON, you can apply it to any report with a single click, ensuring all your visuals, text, and backgrounds are perfectly coordinated. It saves a massive amount of time in the long run.

You don’t need to be a developer to do this. You can start with a basic template and adjust it to your liking.

1. Create the JSON Theme File

Open a plain text editor like Notepad (Windows) or TextEdit (Mac) and paste the following code. This is a solid starting point for a dark theme.

Save this file somewhere you can easily find it, and name it something like MyDarkTheme.json. Make sure the file extension is .json, not .txt.

2. Import the Theme into Power BI

Once you have your JSON file, applying it is straightforward.

• In Power BI Desktop, go to the View tab in the ribbon.

• In the Themes section, click the dropdown arrow.

• Select Browse for themes.

• Navigate to where you saved your MyDarkTheme.json file and open it.

Instantly, your report canvas and visuals will transform. The page background will turn dark, and all text elements, like titles and labels, will switch to white for readability. Now every new visual you add will automatically adopt these dark-theme styles.

Alternative: Manually Formatting Your Report

If you prefer not to mess with JSON files or just want to quickly update a single report, you can achieve a similar look by manually changing the settings in the Format pane.

1. Set the Canvas Background

First, change the background of the report page itself.

• With no visuals selected, click on the report canvas.

• Go to the Visualizations pane, and click on the Format your report page icon (it looks like a paint roller).

• Expand the Canvas background section. Select a dark color (e.g., a dark gray like #222222) from the Color picker and set Transparency to 0%.

• Expand the Wallpaper section and choose the same dark color.

2. Customize Your Theme's Colors

Before you start adding visuals, it's a good idea to update the current theme's colors so that your text appears white by default.

• Go to the View tab in the ribbon.

• In the Themes dropdown, click the small arrow and select Customize current theme.

• A new window will open. Go to the Text section.

• Change the default color for General, Titles, Cards, and KPIs to white or a light gray. This step is a huge time-saver and prevents "invisible" black text from appearing on your dark backgrounds.

• Click Apply.

3. Adjust Individual Visual Backgrounds

By default, many Power BI visuals have a white or semi-transparent background. You'll need to remove it so the dark canvas background shows through.

• Select a visual (like a bar chart or card) on your canvas.

• Go to the Format your visual pane.

• Navigate to General > Effects.

• Turn the Background toggle to Off.

You'll need to repeat this for each visual on your report page, which is why using a JSON theme is often much faster for complex dashboards.

Tips for Effective Dark Mode Dashboards

Designing in dark mode is more than just inverting colors. Here are a few tips to make your reports look professional and remain readable.

• Focus on Contrast: The most important rule. Ensure your text and data colors stand out clearly against the dark background. Avoid using dark text colors like dark gray or navy. Bright or light colors work best for your data visualizations.

• Use a Coordinated Palette: Your default data colors may not look good on a dark background. Consider a color palette with slightly desaturated or brighter colors that pop without being jarring. Neon greens, bright blues, and vibrant yellows often work well.

• Check Your Slicers and Filters: Slicers, buttons, and other interactive elements are visuals too. They might have their own background and font color settings that you'll need to adjust manually to fit the dark theme.

• Consider Your Audience and Environment: Dark mode is fantastic for reducing eye strain, especially in low-light environments. However, if your reports are frequently printed or presented in brightly lit conference rooms, a traditional light theme may offer better readability.

Final Thoughts

While Power BI lacks a simple, one-click dark mode for reports, you’re now fully equipped to create a custom one yourself. By using either a portable JSON theme file for consistency or by manually fine-tuning your canvas and visual settings, you can design visually striking reports that are easier on the eyes and align perfectly with your preferred aesthetic.

This process highlights the level of manual configuration that can be required in traditional BI tools just to change the way things look. It’s one reason we built Graphed in the first place. We think getting insights shouldn't require you to become an expert in JSON files or spend your afternoon digging through format panes. With our platform, you can connect your marketing and sales data, and then just ask for what you need in plain English - like "create a dashboard showing website sessions and ad spend by campaign this quarter" - and we’ll instantly generate the visualizations for you. If you want to spend less time on setup and more time finding answers, give Graphed a try.