Post

QQ about Dark Mode Toggles on websites How many options do you show to users? - Three values: System, Light, or Dark - Two values: Light, Dark (with one of them mapping to “System” behind the scenes). Why the one or the other? (I have an opinion about it, but I’m looking for external input)

Kristóf Poduszló

@kripod.dev

4 Aug

None. I rely upon a ‘prefers-color-scheme’ query, waiting for a browser-level toggle to be implemented sooner or later 😄 I could only hope cookie consent overlays will disappear to a similar fate eventually. One can dream…

Cynthia 🐈

@cynthia.dev

(coming from Lea Verou's latest skeet) > waiting for a browser-level toggle to be implemented sooner or later Not sure if you mean per-website or globally, but Chromium browsers have a global toggle already! :D

3/9/26, 8:47 am0 reposts2 likes

Remco Haszing

@remcohaszing.nl

3 Sept

There’s also a per-website programmatic API. You just have to ask your users to use Chrome Canary and enable enable-experimental-web-platform-features 🫠

developer.mozilla.orgUser Preferences API - Web APIs | MDNThe User Preferences API allows page authors to programmatically override user preference-related media query settings.

Cynthia 🐈

@cynthia.dev

3 Sept

Well, coming from the post "The best dark mode toggle is probably none", that API doesn't feel quite like the right tool for the job 😅 lea.verou.me/blog/2026/da...

lea.verou.meThe best dark mode toggle is probably none • Lea VerouMy post on two-state dark mode toggles sparked a lot of discussion about the optimal dark mode toggle design. But should you have a (persistent) dark mode toggle at all? I have since been convinced th...

Remco Haszing

@remcohaszing.nl

3 Sept

I agree. The only reason I care, is because the dark mode experience suffers from poor preference detection. I only ever use this toggle to switch from light to dark mode, but the website should have detected this for me automatically.