Android has offered a system-wide dark theme since 2019’s Android 10 release, but historically, it’s been opt-in for individual apps. That means that, while the majority of your UI might offer light text on dark backgrounds, apps whose developers haven’t yet implemented a dark theme can still display retina-searing light themes, even if you’ve got dark mode turned on at the system level.
Google’s finally doing something about it. The recently released Android 16 QPR2 Beta 1 includes a change meant to force dark mode in apps where it hasn’t been manually implemented. It’s a solution that probably won’t work perfectly in all cases, but it should encourage developers who haven’t hopped on the bandwagon to implement a proper dark mode.
As Google explains on the Android Developers Blog (via Vice), starting in Android 16 QPR2 Beta 1, there’s a new option nested in Android’s dark theme settings. With the latest beta installed, you’ll have the option to toggle on an Expanded dark theme option that’ll automatically invert light app interfaces when you have dark mode turned on.
Google uses the Fitbit app as an example in the graphic above. Fitbit still doesn’t have a built-in dark theme, but I can confirm that on my Pixel 9 Pro running Android 16 QPR2 Beta 1, with the Expanded dark theme turned on, the app’s interface swaps to dark backgrounds with light text. The toggle also forces dark mode in my other apps that don’t natively support the feature, including Airbnb, Doordash, and FedEx.
‘Largely intended as an accessibility feature’
Google says that this new dark theme option is “largely intended as an accessibility feature,” meant to help users with photosensitivity or who have trouble reading dark text on light backgrounds. Still, it works well in the apps where I’ve tried it. Given the feature makes automatic changes that aren’t customized per-app, some apps might look better than others, however.
You can try the new expanded dark theme in Android 16 QPR2 Beta 1 right now. You can sign up to try the latest beta on compatiblle Pixel phones at Google’s Android beta program website.
QPR updates are applicable to both Pixel devices and AOSP, the base upon which software for all Android-powered devices is built. Individual manufacturers like Samsung and OnePlus may implement this feature differently or not at all, so if you’ve got a phone that’s not a Pixel, it’s hard to say when or if you’ll benefit from this particular change.
