The short answer

There are three ways to read a “dark mode Bible”. Bible apps have a dark or night theme in their reading settings, free. An eBook can be designed with black pages, so it stays dark in any reader. A printed Bible with black pages gives the same look with no screen at all: the page reflects light instead of shining it at you. Which is best depends on when and where you read.

Dark mode means light text on a dark background. Many people read everything that way at night, and want their Bible to match. You can get there with a setting, a file or a book.

even the darkness doesn’t hide from you, but the night shines as the day. The darkness is like light to you.

KJVYea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.

Psalm 139:12 · World English Bible, with the King James Version

1. Dark mode in a Bible app

Most Bible apps, including YouVersion’s Bible App, have a dark or night reading theme in their text settings, and many follow your phone’s system-wide dark mode automatically. If the app is stuck in dark mode, check both: the app’s own theme setting and your phone’s display settings. Dark mode in an app is free and immediate, and you keep every translation the app offers.

The downside is the phone itself. A screen gives off its own light, notifications arrive while you read, and everything else on the phone is one swipe away. For a quick look at a verse that does not matter; for an hour with a Gospel it often does.

The Black Edition, in twenty-three seconds. With sound.

2. A Bible eBook designed in black

An app’s dark mode inverts the colours of an ordinary page. A black-page eBook is designed dark from the start: the page, the type and the red letters are chosen for a black background, and the PDF looks the same in any reader, whatever its settings. Our Black Edition eBook is the printed book page for page as a PDF, white text on black with the words of Jesus in red, plus an ePub in the same look for phones and e-readers, $10. It is a file you keep, offline, with no account. Our guide Bible eBook: PDF, ePub or Kindle? explains which format suits which device.

3. A printed Bible with black pages

A printed black-page Bible takes the idea off the screen. The page is printed black with the text left light, so it looks like dark mode, but it reflects the light in the room rather than giving off its own. In a dim room many readers find it calmer than a bright white page, and there is nothing to notify you. Our Black Edition prints all 27 books of the New Testament this way, in two columns of EB Garamond with the words of Jesus in red, in A5:

The black-page Bible guide shows the actual interior pages, and black-page Bibles by translation explains which translations exist on black pages.

Which one suits you

Three ways to read the Bible light on dark.
App, dark themeBlack-page eBookPrinted black pages
CostFree$10$60–$80
TranslationsManyKJV, WEB, German, DanishKJV, WEB, German, Danish
LightThe screen shinesThe screen shinesThe page reflects room light
DistractionsThe whole phoneFewer in an e-readerNone
ContentsWhole BibleNew TestamentNew Testament

Many readers combine them: the app for looking things up, a printed book for the evening.

Is dark mode easier on the eyes?

It depends on the person and the light. Some readers, often people who are sensitive to glare or bright light, find light text on a dark background calmer, especially at night. Others find it harder: in a bright room, or for people with astigmatism, white letters on black can look blurred or seem to glow. Research on reading speed generally favours dark text on a light background in good light, while preferences vary widely. Dark mode is a matter of comfort, not a treatment, and if reading is uncomfortable in any mode, see an optometrist. Our guide why black pages can be easier on some eyes sets out what readers report and what the studies say, with sources.

Two tips if you try it: keep some light in the room rather than reading a dark page in total darkness, and choose type that is not too thin. Light letters on black need slightly sturdier type than black on white.

Try it before you buy

The quickest test costs nothing: switch your Bible app to its dark theme for a week of evening reading. If you like it, open the free reading sample of the Black Edition (PDF) on a tablet to see how a designed black page compares, before you choose a book or an eBook.

Questions about dark mode Bibles

Does the Bible app have a dark mode?

Yes. Most Bible apps, including YouVersion’s Bible App, have a dark or night theme in their reading settings, and many follow your phone’s system dark mode.

Is there a dark mode Bible in print?

Yes. A black-page Bible prints white text on black pages. Our Black Edition New Testament is printed this way, with the words of Jesus in red, in the KJV, the WEB, German or Danish.

Is there a black-themed Bible eBook?

Yes. The Black Edition eBook is a PDF of the printed black pages and an ePub in the same look, for $10.

Is dark mode good for your eyes?

It suits some people and not others. Some find light text on dark calmer, especially at night or with glare sensitivity; others, including some people with astigmatism, find it blurry. It is a matter of comfort, not a treatment.

Why is my Bible app stuck in dark mode?

Many apps follow the phone’s system setting. Check the app’s own theme setting and your phone’s display settings; one of them is usually set to dark or automatic.

How we wrote this guide. We print a black-page New Testament and its eBook, so we have an interest; the guide also recommends free options. App settings change between versions, so check the current app. Statements about eyes and reading summarise the research described in our separate guide, with its sources; this is not medical advice. The quotation is from the World English Bible and King James texts we print. Published 26 October 2026.

Sources and further reading