The YouTube APK with dark mode is finally available. Google just released an update to the YouTube app for Android that lets the users switch to a dark theme via app settings. After years of demanding it, Android users are finally getting a YouTube dark theme for the Android app. The YouTube v13.35 update with the dark theme has been rolling out to users worldwide via the Google Play Store. This comes months after YouTube got a dark theme for the web and then the YouTube iOS app got a dark theme back in March.

There’s no denying that YouTube is the largest video sharing platform and by a large margin. Even with all of the competition from licensed streaming services and Facebook, YouTube still brings in an audience of over a billion. Data suggests that most of this audience is using the service through smartphones and tablets.

Since these devices are ideal for watching the short YouTube videos while on a commute or in bed at night. And that makes the YouTube app ever so important. We’ve all watched YouTube in the night at some point, and been annoyed by the contrast between the video and the bright white app background. That’s why a dark theme on YouTube is a big deal. Even more so on mobile devices, especially Android devices since the dark theme has now reached the masses.

Google began testing the dark theme on Android right about the time it was made available on iOS in March. We already showed you back then a way to enable this under-development feature. Now that the update is rolling out to everyone you don’t have to rely on those tricks. It may be some time though before you get the YouTube v13.35 update via the Google Play Store. If you want it bad you can install the latest YouTube APK via APKMirror. The APK is signed by Google and upgrades your existing app.

Download Official YouTube APK with Dark Mode

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To install an APK you’ll need to enable Unknown sources in Settings > Security. Depending on your device, the location for the Unknown sources setting could be a bit different. For instance, on Huawei devices, this is hidden under Settings > Security & privacy > Additional settings. Luckily for you, there’s a search function on the main page of the Settings app.

YouTube Dark Theme

When you launch the new updated YouTube app, you might see a pop up at the bottom urging you to try the new dark theme. If you tap on TRY IT NOW button the dark theme will be instantly applied and everything that was white will be dark, and vice versa, barring the video thumbnails and such. Some users might not get the popup and will have to go to the Settings and enable it manually.

To enable the YouTube dark theme manually, tap on your Account picture in the top-right and go to Settings > General. Here, you should find the toggle labeled Dark theme. Turning it on should turn on the dark theme but again, it does nothing for some users right now. If it doesn’t work for you, you may have to go to your device Settings > Apps > YouTube and FORCE CLOSE the app. Start the YouTube app again and the dark theme should work.

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If that fails, you might want to try clearing the app storage under Settings > Apps > YouTube > Storage. Load up the app again, then go back to the Settings and force close it. It’s all about hitting and trial and error at this point. Keep trying different things and force closing. These little tricks might also work if you’re not seeing the Dark theme toggle at all in the settings as long as you have the 13.35 version of YouTube installed.

Once you do get it working, the dark mode looks and feels so much easier on the eyes and natural. It’s how YouTube was always supposed to be. Unlike the very early days of testing, there aren’t any inconsistencies such as black text on black background as you can see in the screenshots above. The new dark theme is shown below.

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