Google Is Testing Dark Mode for Desktop Search Again

Google is testing a dark mode for its desktop search website that responds to a user's system display setting, a move that may have gained traction to alleviate eye strain issues for people working longer hours from home.

google dark theme

Images via The Verge

The test appears to have limited rollout at the moment, but as the images show, the very dark gray theme extends not only to the Google homepage but search results, too.

It's unknown when dark mode for desktop search could be officially rolled out globally. "We're always testing new ways to improve our experience for our users, but don't have anything specific to announce right now," Google told The Verge.

It's not the first time we've seen dark mode appear on Google's desktop search, either. The feature appeared for some users back in December, but then quietly disappeared into the internet ether.

google dark mode verge
Apple introduced Dark Mode way back in 2018 with macOS Mojave and iOS 13, and support for the system-wide option is now a staple feature of most native and third-party apps on both mobile and desktop.

But as we learned from Google's protracted stop-start efforts to bring dark mode to Gmail, there's no saying when or even if this change will ultimately see the light of day.

However, there are alternative methods available for getting rid of the plain white background on your Google searches. One of them we like is the browser extension Dark Reader, which is available for Safari, Chrome, Firefox, and Microsoft Edge.

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Top Rated Comments

svanstrom Avatar
54 months ago
Yet another reason why I've been using https://duckduckgo.com for quite some time now.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Gatto37 Avatar
54 months ago
I am not a tech professional so I don't understand why the hell is taking months to test something with a black background anyway? Same with other apps like facebook etc...
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
0924487 Avatar
54 months ago
I want to support duckduckgo, but to me, over the years, the results are still not as good as google's. Especially for more technical stuff.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Kabeyun Avatar
54 months ago

I am not a tech professional so I don't understand why the hell is taking months to test something with a black background anyway? Same with other apps like facebook etc...
Yes, this always struck me as funny. Is there some big technological leap about a black background that requires months of field testing? Lol!
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
flottenheimer Avatar
54 months ago

Too many people need to green light every single little change...

Yes, this always struck me as funny. Is there some big technological leap about a black background that requires months of field testing? Lol!

I am not a tech professional so I don't understand why the hell is taking months to test something with a black background anyway? Same with other apps like facebook etc...
I guess Google wants to be really sure that Dark Mode doesn't negatively affect the frequency of paid search results being clicked.

And who knows... human behaviour is often unexplainable, deeply irrational and weird.

Secondly I think and hope Google will want to know how people find the experience over all (e.g. white text on a dark background is well known to make reading harder).

I'd be curious to know what their testing has shown. Does Dark Mode have any effect on behaviour? And if so what happens?
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Agit21 Avatar
54 months ago
Seriously Google why does this take so long to implement? But tbh I'm happy with duckduckgo.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)