Microsoft Brings Dark Mode to Office for Mac

After over a month of testing with Office Insiders, Microsoft has now updated Office on the Mac with support for macOS Mojave’s Dark Mode.

According to Microsoft, Office for macOS now offers a “modern Office design that’s fully optimized for the Mac, including Retina display and full-screen view,” which refers to two key macOS features. Its customizable ribbon means that “all the power of Office [is] now organized the way you want it.”

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The latest Office for Mac release also supports a new Focus Mode—a kind of trendy thing in Mac-based text editors and other creation apps—so that you can concentrate only on what you’re working on. And it features improved accessibility via its improved Reading Mode and auto-generated Alt-Text meta-data for images. It also supports expressive inking, presumably for those Mac users with a pen tablet peripheral.

But the most striking change, of course, isn’t mentioned by Microsoft when you upgrade: Office for Mac now automatically conforms to whichever view mode you use. So those using Dark Mode in macOS Mojave will now see a dark and more natural-looking new user experience.

Apple shipped macOS Mojave in September, adding Dark Mode support and other new features. Microsoft then began publicly testing Dark Mode for Office in October and extended that testing to Outlook in mid-November. With Windows 10 also supporting its own Dark Mode, Microsoft has likewise brought this UI change to other products, like Outlook.com on the web.

As always, you’ll need an Office 365 subscription to see this update and its new features.

 

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Conversation 12 comments

  • red.radar

    Premium Member
    12 December, 2018 - 9:59 am

    <p>What is fueling the dark mode interest ? Eye strain ? </p><p><br></p><p>Ir is it just cool….</p>

    • christian.hvid

      13 December, 2018 - 6:26 am

      <blockquote><em><a href="#381119">In reply to red.radar:</a></em></blockquote><p>We need a dark mode for dark times. Or perhaps a dark mode for a dark mood. Light mode is for, well, optimists.</p>

  • Jeffery Commaroto

    12 December, 2018 - 10:00 am

    <p>This post made me realize Office on Windows has a dark mode. I never went looking for it. Awesome!</p>

  • thalter

    Premium Member
    12 December, 2018 - 11:53 am

    <p>I don't like it: The white documents with the black windows is an extremely discomforting contrast. Even if it is no longer true WYSIWYG, they should go all in on dark mode and make the document you are editing itself dark (like Visual Studio). </p>

  • will

    Premium Member
    12 December, 2018 - 12:00 pm

    <p>I like this new look. They did a good job of using shades of dark grey and not just going super black. However, there is still not a way to customize the Outlook ribbon, but per discussions this on the way as well as a new Outlook UI.</p>

  • Jeffsters

    13 December, 2018 - 6:53 pm

    <p>I like it! Thanks Microsoft!</p>

  • alfredjohnson

    24 January, 2019 - 12:32 pm

    <p>Great news! Really I am very glad to read this awesome news about the new feature of microsoft office for Mac user. I am also using Mac for the five years, so I am so liked these new dark in MS Office and I hope people also liked this awesome feature. Rally this is very update for all kind of technology related news thats why I bookmark this informative site. Actually I am working as a professional writer at <a href="https://uk.edubirdie.com/personal-statement-writing&quot; target="_blank">EduBirdie</a> and I need to always using MS Office so this news will be help to update my old Microsoft Office and enjoy this new feature with dark mode. So I much appreciate to the author for sharing this great news! </p>

  • doctor shifu

    08 March, 2019 - 8:41 am

    <p>MS Office in <a href="www.doctorshifu.com" target="_blank">Black</a></p>

  • sakhinecklace

    09 March, 2019 - 12:52 am

    <p>This feature is awesome in macbook i,m also use it </p><p><a href="https://www.buymyjewel.com/&quot; target="_blank">Click</a> and see</p>

  • careercartz

    09 March, 2019 - 9:42 am

    <p>Thanks for <a href="https://careercartz.com/&quot; target="_blank">sharing Great news</a>.</p>

  • wikipedia india

    14 March, 2019 - 4:27 am

    <p>I tried to do so many times. This post is <a href="https://www.wikipediaindia.com/2019/03/what-is-etherchannel.html&quot; target="_blank">really</a> good.</p>

  • tyreecewilley

    02 May, 2019 - 2:20 am

    <p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">I love this dark mode feature in Microsoft office. As a </span><a href="https://thestudyhelp.co.uk/assignment-writing-help/&quot; target="_blank" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">professional assignment writer</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, I often use MS-office in my mac and this feature gives me different experience during different day time. I really appreciate such new features.</span></p>

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