I keep seeing dark themes that use pure black (#000000) for backgrounds and it hurts my eyes after like 10 minutes

I tried reading on a site with #000 black background and white text last week and got crazy eye strain, turns out using a dark gray like #121212 gives way better readability and still looks dark enough, has anyone else noticed this making a difference?

2 comments

2 Comments

emma_ramirez1d ago

pure black (#000000) for backgrounds" - yeah because who needs functioning retinas anyway? i learned this the hard way when i tried to read a whole novel on a site with black bg and white text and thought i was going to get a migraine. the contrast is just WAY too intense, it's like staring at a void with screaming text. dark gray is the real MVP here, it gives you the same vibe without feeling like your eyes are getting blasted by a flashlight. honestly anyone who designs with full black backgrounds should have to stare at their own site for an hour and explain why that's a good experience.

king.dakota1d ago

Point out how it's the same logic as every modern car interior ditching pure white LEDs for warmer amber lights at night. Dark gray backgrounds are basically the UI version of realizing that pure black is just as bad as a bare fluorescent bulb hanging over your desk. The best design feels like it's not even trying to burn your eyes out, and that takes way more thought than just maxing out the contrast.