Microsoft is set to rectify the long-standing issue with Windows 11's dark mode.
After a significant delay of nearly a decade, Windows 11 is making strides towards a more complete system-wide dark mode. This progress is particularly noticeable in legacy UI elements like File Explorer dialog boxes involved in file operations, such as copy, delete, access denied, and other prompts.
As of August 2025, Windows 11 Insider preview builds (like Build 26100.5061 and later) have introduced dark backgrounds and dark-themed buttons for these dialogs. However, some UI elements are still incomplete, with button colours yet to be fully addressed.
This development marks the first step towards a consistent dark mode across Windows 11, a long-standing demand that was first introduced with Windows 10 in 2016 but left many UI components in a light theme.
Microsoft has not yet announced a final release timeline, but the presence of these features in recent Insider builds suggests that dark mode completion for legacy UI parts like File Explorer dialogs may appear in stable releases later in 2025 or early 2026.
There are still other legacy UI surfaces that require dark mode updates, including the Run dialog, Registry Editor, Group Policy Editor, and more. These updates have yet to be confirmed but are anticipated to be addressed eventually.
For users eager to experience total dark mode coverage on Windows 11, the only options currently are to use preview builds and enable these hidden features manually or to wait for official stable releases containing these improvements.
This progress on Windows 11's dark mode is a welcome change, particularly when compared to other platforms such as macOS, Chrome OS, and iPadOS, which have had a complete dark mode for a long time. The complaints about the lack of dark mode on Windows started back in the Windows 10 era in 2018.
The author, who has been advocating for Microsoft to finish dark mode on Windows for over five years, is excited about this development. Last year, the author described dark mode on Windows 11 as "embarrassingly incomplete."
Microsoft has not yet commented on why dark mode was abandoned in an incomplete state on previous versions of Windows. However, with the improvements planned for Windows 11 in 2025, it seems that the company is committed to addressing this issue.
The author invites readers to share their opinions on Microsoft's work on new dark mode improvements for Windows 11 in 2025. Is this progress enough, or do you expect more from Microsoft? Let us know in the comments below.
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