Interface
In short
Why does Reply keep going back to light mode?
Your theme choice belongs to the browser you set it in, not to your Reply account. Another computer, another browser, a private window or clearing site data all take you back to the default, which is whichever colour scheme your system was using the first time you opened Reply there. A few areas keep colours of their own and stay light even when the rest of Reply is dark.
Quick fix
- Open your account settings and look for the theme preference section. Pick the scheme you want there.
- On every other computer and browser you use Reply in, set it again. The choice does not travel with your login.
- If you work in a private or incognito window, expect light every time; that kind of window keeps nothing after you close it.
- If you recently cleared cookies and site data, or a policy on your machine clears them for you, set the theme again afterwards.
- If there is no theme preference section in your settings at all, contact support; this is set per account and nothing in your own settings turns it on.
Didn't work? Contact Reply support; the team can check your account directly.
Symptom
Reply opens in light colours even though you chose dark. Or the dark scheme holds on one machine and not another. Or most of Reply is dark, but certain panels and dialogs are still white.
Which of these is happening to you
| What you are seeing | Cause | Does setting it again help? |
|---|---|---|
| Dark on one machine, light on another; light after a cleanup | The choice is kept by the browser, not by your account | Yes – set it once per browser |
| You switched your computer to dark mode and Reply stayed light | Your system setting decides the starting point only | Yes – use the switch in Reply |
| Most of Reply is dark, a few panels are white | Those areas carry fixed colours of their own | No – this is current behaviour |
| There is no theme setting on the page | Availability is set per account | No – support can check it |
Where the choice lives and what it does
1. The choice is remembered per browser, not per account
This is the answer for almost everyone who says dark mode "keeps resetting".
When you pick a scheme, the browser you picked it in remembers it. Your Reply account does not. So the theme is light again whenever the browser has nothing stored:
- a different computer
- a different browser on the same computer
- a private or incognito window, every time you open one
- after clearing cookies and site data, or on a machine that clears them on close
How to recognize it: the scheme is right where you set it and wrong everywhere else, or it was right until a cleanup.
What to do: set it once in each browser you use Reply in. There is nothing to repair; the switch will hold in that browser until its stored data goes away.
2. Your system setting picks the starting point, and only that
The first time you open Reply in a browser that has never stored a choice, Reply looks at the colour scheme your operating system or browser is already using and starts there. That is the whole of what the system setting does.
After that first look, Reply stops watching. You may see this described as Reply following your system setting automatically; what that means in practice is the starting point, once. If you switch your computer to dark mode later (or you have already used the switch in Reply) your computer's setting will not move Reply again.
How to recognize it: you changed your computer or browser to dark and expected Reply to follow, and it did not.
What to do: set the scheme in Reply's own settings. That choice then wins in that browser, whatever your system does afterwards.
3. Parts of the interface stay light
The dark scheme is applied through Reply's shared styling. Anywhere that carries a fixed colour of its own keeps it, so a panel or dialog can stay white while everything around it is dark. Parts of the message editor are the most visible example.
How to recognize it: the navigation and the page behind are dark; a specific editor area, dialog or embedded panel is not.
What to do: nothing you can change from your side. This is current behaviour and the coverage widens over time. It is worth reporting which screen you saw it on, because that is how the list gets shorter.
4. The theme preference section is not on your settings page
Whether the theme preference appears is set per account rather than chosen by you. If the section is not there, no other setting will bring it back and re-saving your profile will not help.
How to recognize it: you have read through your account settings and there is no theme or appearance section to find.
What to do: contact support and ask them to check the theme preference for your account.
The second option in the same section
Next to the theme preference there is a separate choice of surface style, which changes how panels and cards are shaded rather than switching light to dark. It applies only while the side navigation layout is in use, with any other layout the setting has nothing to act on. The section is marked as new, so expect it to keep changing.
FAQ
How do I turn dark mode off?
Go back to the same theme preference section and choose the light scheme. It takes effect straight away in that browser. Remember that it is a per-browser choice, so turning it off on your laptop leaves it on wherever else you set it.
Why is Reply light on my other laptop?
Because the other laptop's browser has never been told. Sign in there, open the theme preference and choose dark again. Nothing is wrong with the account.
Why are some dialogs still white?
Those areas set their own colours instead of taking them from the shared styling, so the dark scheme does not reach them. Parts of the message editor behave this way today.
Does my choice apply to my teammates?
No. The theme is yours alone, and only in the browser you set it in. Teammates see whatever they have chosen on their own machines, and nothing you do here changes their view.
Still stuck? Contact Reply support
If these steps didn't solve the problem, the Reply support team can look at your account directly. Open the Reply Help Center and send the team a message.
To get an answer faster, include:
- whether the theme preference section appears in your settings at all
- which browser and operating system you are using, and their versions
- whether the scheme holds in one browser and not another
- a screenshot of the screen that stayed light, if only part of Reply is affected
Don't send passwords, API keys, or access tokens.
Related
- Why does Reply not fit on my phone screen? – the layout on a small screen
- Why does my email not look right? – formatting in the message editor
Build with Reply
The theme is held in your browser, so it is not something the API or an assistant can read or set for you.
- REST API: docs.reply.io/api-reference · MCP: docs.reply.io/mcp – for your account data itself