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How Do I Achieve a Dark Mode Menu Bar, With Light Mode for Everything Else?

Before upgrading to Mojave macOS I was able to achieve a dark Menu Bar (and pull down menus) with a setting in some place I have now forgetten (possibly System Preferences – General?) With Mojave it appears that I can only have a dark menu bar if I go ‘all-in’ with Dark Mode for the whole GUI – or is there a way to darken the menu bar in light mode in Mojave?

— Colin

PS thank for your great work here and on your YouTube channel!!

—–
Colin

Comments: 3 Responses to “How Do I Achieve a Dark Mode Menu Bar, With Light Mode for Everything Else?”

    5 years ago

    I know what you mean. You are not the only one disappointed that the dark menu bar is gone. The option actually made the menu bar and the Dock dark, but nothing else.

    But there is a way to get it back, at least for now. But you have to be comfortable using Terminal commands to throw a switch.

    In Terminal, use this:
    defaults write -g NSRequiresAquaSystemAppearance -bool Yes

    Then you need to log out and back in again (or restart).

    Now when you switch on Dark mode, it should act like the Dark menu bar and Dock option from High Sierra.

    Use the same command and "No" to turn it off, with the log out/in again.

    Colin
    5 years ago

    Thanks Gary - if at some stage I wanted to undo the Terminal command to revert to standard Mojave, what would the syntax be?

    BTW - in High Sierra, as well as the Menu Bar and Dock, the Spotlight "box" also went dark with the dark menu option!

    5 years ago

    Colin: The same, but "No" instead of "Yes"

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