VLC Dark Mode – How to Enable it on Smartphone & PC

Consider enabling VLC Dark Mode feature if you care about your eyes.

Kathrine TeresaAugust 26, 2020

Only a very few media players have gained recognition by all sort of people. VLC is one of them, which is a free and fully open-source media player used on both smartphones and PCs. While the dark mode support is gaining importance in recent times, VLC also lets its users customize the background. To take advantage of the dark theme, just tweak into the VLC settings. With this, you can enable VLC dark mode and access the media player in the dark theme. Hence, your eyes will not get strained while watching movies or videos.

How to Enable VLC Dark Mode?

The steps to use the VLC dark mode on smartphone and PC differs. So, you shall skip to the respective section.

On Smartphone

Currently, only Android users can enable dark mode on the VLC app. You cannot enable VLC dark mode settings on the iOS version of the VLC app. But, you can turn on the system-wide dark mode on iPhone or iPad for a darker theme on the media player.

(1). On the home screen of Android, go to the Apps section.

(2). Scroll down to click on the VLC media player logo.

(3). On its home screen, press the Menu icon (three horizontal lines).

(4). You shall need to select the Settings option with a gear icon.

(5). Navigate down to the Extra Settings section to click on Interface.

(6). Now, click the DayNight mode option.

Click on DayNight Mode to use VLC Dark Mode — Click on DayNight Mode

(7). On the pop-up, select the Black theme, and this will enable the dark mode on the VLC player.

Select Black Theme to use VLC Dark Mode — Select Black Theme

Alternative: If your device runs on Android 8 and above, enable dark mode on Android device and select Follow system mode on the VLC app. It will follow your Android settings.

Note: Choosing DayNight mode will let VLC switch between the day and night theme automatically.

On PC

Whether you are using VLC on Windows or Mac, you can change the default skin to the dark theme. The following steps will guide you better.

Pre-Requisite:

Download any dark skin by visiting from the official website of the VLC player. (videolan.org/vlc/skins.php) For instance, select eDark Vlc and Click on the Download link to download it as a .vlt skin file.

(1). Launch VLC media player on your Mac or Windows.

(2). Click on Tools options available on the menu bar of the player.

(3). On the expanded menu, choose Preferences to open the Simple Preferences window.

Select Preferences to enable VLC Dark Mode — Select Preferences

(4). Click on Interface option at the top to select Use custom skin option under Interface Settings.

Select Custom Skin option to use VLC Dark Mode — Use Custom Skin

(5). Tap on Choose to browse the location in which the eDark Vlc.vlt skin file is saved.

(6). Finally, click on the Save button and quit the VLC player on your PC.

(7). Relaunch the player, and it will be updated with the dark skin.

Note: If the above-mentioned steps seem to be time-consuming, you can use the system-wide dark mode on Windows and dark mode on Mac.

Our Opinion

By default, the dark mode on VLC won’t be enabled automatically. However, you can turn it on at your convenience or when required. Follow the guide and don’t strain your eyes with too much bright light while using VLC in a low lighting environment.

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