Outlook 2019 reading pane doesn't turn dark

Question

_{Tuesday, March 10, 2020 8:48 AM}

Hi,

I've an issue with my Outlook desktop app. I've a 365 pro plus version of office with all the update but still I haven't the option to "turn off the light" and put the reading pane in dark theme (even if the rest of the app is dark), does anyone knows why ?

All replies (4)

_{Wednesday, March 11, 2020 9:45 AM}

Hi Benjamin,

>> I've a 365 pro plus version of office
>> Outlook 2019 reading pane doesn't turn dark
Are you using Outlook 2019 desktop client? Or Outlook 365 desktop client? Please check the version number of your Outlook via File > Office Account > About Outlook.

According to my research, the Dark Mode feature only supports the Outlook 365 client so far and this feature is still under tests in Outlook 2019. I also conducted tests about your issue like below:

1. In Outlook 365
   If we choose Black theme via File > Options > General > Personalize your copy of Microsoft Office > Office Theme, we can see all the interfaces of Outlook are all black.(including the background of Reading pane). And there will be a switch button next to Reply like below.
   
   If you checked the “Never change the message background color” option like below, the color of the Reading pane will change to white.
   
2. In Outlook 2019
   When choosing black theme, the background of Reading pane still shows white and we cannot find the switch button. Also, there is no change whether you checked the “Never change the message background color” option or not.

If you are using Outlook 2019 desktop client, please wait for the updates  in the future or switch to Outlook 365 desktop client.

Hope this can be helpful.

Regards,

Jeff Yang

Please remember to mark the replies as answers if they helped. If you have feedback for TechNet Subscriber Support, contact [email protected].

_{Friday, March 13, 2020 10:01 AM}

Hi Benjamin,

I'm writing to see if the reply above is helpful to you.

If you have any update about this issue, please feel free to post back.

Regards,

Jeff Yang

Please remember to mark the replies as answers if they helped. If you have feedback for TechNet Subscriber Support, contact [email protected].

_{Friday, March 20, 2020 9:36 AM}

Hi Benjamin,

I'm writing to see if the reply above is helpful to you.

If you think my reply is helpful to you, please remember to mark it as an answer.

Regards,

Jeff Yang

Please remember to mark the replies as answers if they helped. If you have feedback for TechNet Subscriber Support, contact [email protected].

_{Tuesday, April 14, 2020 1:19 PM}

Hello.

According to my account info, I'm using a Microsoft Office 365 ProPlus subscription. When I check the Oulook version, it says that it's Microsoft Outlook for Office 365 MSO (16.0.11929.20618). I'm assuming that this means that I'm running OUtlook 365, right?

Now, the problem is that according to your description, I'm running Outlook 2019. And no, I can't change the background color of the message window (it's always white)...I'm also running another copy of Outlook on a different pc (also Office 365), but in this PC everything is working as expected. The only difference is the build number (12130.20272), which seems to be higher than the one I have on the PC where I can't change the background color of the message window.

I've tried checking for updates, but it seems like it can't find any...is this a problem with the way my company manages updates (I think they use SCCM for that).

Thanks.

Luis Abreu