Microsoft Paint finally gets a dark mode for Windows 11

Microsoft has finally started testing a new dark mode for its Paint app in Windows 11. The software giant originally teased a dark mode addition nearly two years ago, and it’s now being tested in both Canary and Dev Channels for Windows Insiders.

Like most other apps in Windows 11 that support dark modes, Paint will automatically switch over based on your system theme or you can manually enable the dark mode in the new settings page inside Paint.

“We are also rolling out improvements to the zoom controls as well to give you more flexibility and control over the view of your content on the canvas,” explains Dave Grochocki, principal program lead for built-in Windows apps. You can now zoom in and out with a custom value and there’s even a fit to screen button that will adjust the zoom to match the size of the Paint window and your resolution.

Other improvements to Paint include updated dialogs that match the Windows 11 style and improved accessibility shortcuts. Unfortunately there’s still not an option for layers, so Paint is still very much the basic image editor we’ve had inside Windows for decades. Microsoft did plan on removing Paint from Windows 10 at one point before deciding to keep it. Microsoft deemphasized 3D Paint instead, a modernized version that was intended to replace the traditional Windows Paint app.

Microsoft is testing this updated version of Paint with Windows Insiders right now, which means it should arrive for all Windows 11 users in the coming months.