Skip to main content
← Back

Themes and appearance

Customize how Cursor looks with themes, font settings, and editor preferences.

Theme controls and the Extensions view are part of the IDE. If you're in the Agents Window and don't see the steps below, open the command palette and run Open IDE, then continue.

How do I switch to light mode or dark mode?

  1. Open the command palette:
    • Mac: Press CmdCtrl + Shift + P
    • Windows/Linux: Press Ctrl + Shift + P
  2. Type Preferences: Color Theme and select that command
  3. Pick a light or dark theme:
    • For light mode, select Default Light Modern or any theme with "Light" in the name
    • For dark mode, select Default Dark Modern or Cursor Dark

You can also set Cursor to follow your OS appearance: open Settings (CmdCtrl + , on Mac, Ctrl + , on Windows/Linux), search for "Auto Detect Color Scheme," and enable it.

How do I change the color theme?

  1. Open the command palette:
    • Mac: Press CmdCtrl + Shift + P
    • Windows/Linux: Press Ctrl + Shift + P
  2. Type Preferences: Color Theme and select that command
  3. Browse the list and select a theme. Use the arrow keys to preview each theme before selecting.

How do I install more themes?

  1. Open the Extensions view:
    • Mac: Press CmdCtrl + Shift + X
    • Windows/Linux: Press Ctrl + Shift + X
  2. Search for theme
  3. Click Install on a theme extension

If the Extensions view doesn't open, switch to the IDE with Open IDE, then try the shortcut again. See Extensions for more on installing and managing extensions.

How do I change font size?

Open Settings (CmdCtrl + , on Mac, Ctrl + , on Windows/Linux) and search for "Font Size." Adjust the editor font size, terminal font size, or both.

How do I change the font family?

Open Settings and search for "Font Family." Enter the name of any font installed on your system (e.g., JetBrains Mono, Fira Code). To enable font ligatures, search for "Font Ligatures" and set it to true.

Related

Was this article helpful?