Dark Reader – Beautiful Dark Mode for any Website

Description

Dark Reader turns your WordPress site into a comfortable dark mode experience with one click. It reduces eye strain, improves night-time readability, and gives visitors the same adaptive experience their phone already offers.

Trusted by 100,000+ websites, it works with any theme and needs no coding.

Live Demo | Get Dark Reader | Docs

Key Features

  • Enable Dark Mode – switch every post and page to a dark colour scheme.
  • Brightness Control – how light or dark the page appears.
  • Contrast Control – text-to-background difference, for accessible reading.
  • Sepia Filter – a warm tone that cuts blue light while reading.
  • Grayscale Filter – shades of grey for a distraction-free look.
  • Toggle Button Position – place the switch in any screen corner.
  • 5+ Toggle Styles – Default, Round, Switch, Toggle and Minimal.
  • Use System Color Scheme – follow the visitor’s device preference.
  • Enable for PDFs – dark mode for embedded PDF files.
  • Apply Immediately – no flash of light content before dark mode loads.
  • Filter Mode – softer Dimmed mode or high-contrast Dark mode.
  • Text Stroke – outline text so it stays legible on dark backgrounds.
  • Shortcode – place [dark_reader_toggle] anywhere on your site.
  • Export / Import Settings – back up your configuration as JSON.

Pro Features

  • Time-Based Dark Mode – schedule it by time, date or sunset.
  • Admin Dashboard Dark Mode – a dark backend for long sessions.
  • Image Handling – brightness, grayscale, invert, or a separate dark mode image.
  • Video Support – videos adapt to the dark interface.
  • Widget Support – toggle blocks for Gutenberg and Elementor.
  • Custom CSS – write your own dark mode rules.
  • Exclusions – keep chosen elements, pages or posts untouched.
  • Custom Toggle Button – your own icons, colours, border and size.
  • Dark Mode Analytics – see how many visitors actually use it.

Lightweight, responsive and accessible. Works with Elementor, WPBakery, Divi and Break Builder, and behind caching plugins.

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Visit BdThemes to learn about our services, Elementor page builder-based products, informative blogs and documentation.

Screenshots

Installation

  1. Upload the dark-reader folder to the /wp-content/plugins/ directory
  2. Activate the plugin through the ‘Plugins’ menu in WordPress
  3. Go to Admin Dashboard > Dark Reader > Configure your dark mode settings
  4. Select your preferred toggle button style and position
  5. Save your settings and enjoy your beautiful dark mode!

FAQ

Will Dark Reader slow down my website?

No, Dark Reader is designed to be lightweight and optimized for performance. The plugin loads efficiently and has minimal impact on your page load times.

Can I customize the colors used in dark mode?

Yes! Dark Reader allows you to set custom background and text colors for both dark and light modes. You can create your own unique color scheme that matches your brand.

Does Dark Reader work with all themes?

Dark Reader is designed to work with most WordPress themes. The plugin uses advanced algorithms to transform your website’s colors intelligently. However, some themes with complex CSS or custom JavaScript might require minor adjustments.

Can visitors choose their preferred mode?

Absolutely! The toggle button allows visitors to switch between light and dark modes at any time. Their preference is saved for future visits.

Can I add the dark mode toggle button to specific locations?

Yes, you can use the [dark_reader_toggle] shortcode to add the toggle button anywhere in your content, widgets, or template files.

Does Dark Reader support system preferences?

Yes! Dark Reader can automatically detect and apply your visitor’s system color scheme preference, switching to dark mode when their device is using dark mode.

Will images be inverted in dark mode?

No, Dark Reader is smart enough to preserve the original appearance of images while darkening the surrounding content. This ensures your images look their best in both modes.

Can I schedule dark mode to activate at specific times?

Yes, you can schedule dark mode to activate at specific times on most modern operating systems and many mobile devices.

Is Dark Reader compatible with caching plugins?

Yes, Dark Reader works with popular caching plugins. The plugin’s JavaScript runs on the client-side, so it continues to function even with cached pages.

Can I exclude certain elements from dark mode?

This functionality is available in the Pro version. You can exclude specific elements, pages, or posts from dark mode transformation.

Can I backup and restore my Dark Reader settings?

Yes! Dark Reader includes an Export/Import feature that allows you to backup all your settings to a JSON file and restore them later. This is useful when migrating to a new site or testing different configurations.

Where do I report security bugs found in this plugin?

Please report security bugs found in the source code of the Dark Reader plugin through the Patchstack Vulnerability Disclosure Program. The Patchstack team will assist you with verification, CVE assignment, and notify the developers of this plugin.

Reviews

23. veebr 2026 2 replies
I bought Dark Reader PRO and have no regrets. The plugin works well, and the premium features are very useful, with a nice toggle button and other advanced settings. It does not slow down my website. What I especially like is the customer service, which is fast, friendly, and solution-oriented. There’s an amazing dev team behind Dark Reader!
27. nov. 2025 1 reply
Really great plugin — simple, fast, and works exactly as expected. Dark mode looks clean on my site and didn’t break anything. Super easy to set up and a nice upgrade for the user experience. Highly recommended!
Read all 5 reviews

Contributors & Developers

“Dark Reader – Beautiful Dark Mode for any Website” is open source software. The following people have contributed to this plugin.

Contributors

Changelog

1.1.11 [18th August 2026]

  • Fixed: Text domain on the White Label menu labels
  • Fixed: Timezone-safe filename for exported settings
  • Updated: Cached the Pro option lookup used by settings export
  • Updated: Prefixed the admin template variables
  • Updated: Trimmed the readme description to the supported length

1.1.10 [10th August 2026]

  • Removed: Promotion notice feature and all of its assets, AJAX handler, and dismissal logic
  • Removed: Dashboard feed widget and its remote feed requests, transients, and styles

1.1.9 [8th August 2026]

  • Fixed: Security issue where data returned by the promotions API could be injected as script into the WordPress admin area
  • Fixed: Promotion links and images are now restricted to http(s) and mailto addresses

1.1.8 [4th June 2026]

  • Updated: Made compatible with WordPress version 7.0

1.1.7 [14th May 2026]

  • Fixed: Admin notice styling and handling

1.1.6 [7th May 2026]

  • Added: Export/Import Settings feature in dedicated tab under Support section
  • Added: Ability to export all Dark Reader settings to JSON file
  • Added: Ability to import settings from previously exported JSON files

1.1.5 [17th March 2026]

  • Added: Dashboard feed widget with styled RSS posts, banner image, badges, and footer links on the WordPress dashboard

1.1.4 [3rd March 2026]

  • Fixed: Admin API notification system with countdown timers

1.1.3 [9th February 2026]

  • Updated: Minor updates to URL links

1.1.2 [12th January 2026]

  • Fixed: Admin Notice

1.1.1 [30th December 2025]

  • Added: Accessibility Options in Advance Features Badge

1.1.0 [7th December 2025]

  • Updated: General code cleanup and refactoring for better performance

1.0.9 [2nd December 2025]

  • Updated: Made compatible with WordPress version 6.9
  • Fixed: Support Button Focus Issue

1.0.8 [23rd November 2025]

  • Removed: Slider Toggle Button for Design Compatibility
  • Updated: Admin Notice

1.0.7 [19th November 2025]

  • Fixed: Use System Color Scheme
  • Updated: Plugin Update Check
  • Added: Slider Toggle Button
  • Added: Custom Style Toggle Button in Pro

1.0.6 [11th November 2025]

  • Fixed: Admin Notice for Black Friday
  • Added: Liquid Glass in Pro Version

1.0.5 [10th November 2025]

  • Added: Admin Notice for Black Friday
  • Fixed: UI of Admin Dashboard

1.0.4 [9th September 2025]

  • Added: Admin Notice

1.0.3 [25th September 2025]

  • Added: Widget Support (Gutenberg & Elementor)
  • Updated: Image Replacement in Dark Mode in Elementor
  • Fixed: Shortcode usage on toggle button selection

1.0.2 [11th September 2025]

  • Added: Image Replacement in Dark Mode
  • Fixed: Toggle Button Icon Color Situation
  • Updated: Page Visibility to Specifically Toggle Dark/Light mode on pages

1.0.1 [26th August 2025]

  • Added: Bounce Animation Effect on Toggle Switches
  • Fixed: Dark Mode Enable for PDFs
  • Fixed: Clear/Reset Functionality for Color Selection
  • Updated: Moved Shortcode in Help & Support Page