Mac - Free (In-App Purchases)
Want more apps? Check out our hand-picked lists:
- Best iPhone apps
- Best iPad apps
- Best macOS apps
- Best Apple Watch apps
If you ever find the bright glare from your Mac’s screen a little too intense or headache-inducing, then today’s app is for you. Noir is a Mac app and Safari extension that adds a dark mode to every website you visit. And, because it works as a Safari extension, you don’t need to activate it when you load a new page.
Creating a dark mode for every single website you visit isn’t easy considering they all have different styles and are built on different platforms. But Noir is able to generate a custom dark style for every website you visit, which is based on the colors that are used on each page. Noir costs $3.99/£3.99 from the Mac App Store, but that’s not a subscription, buy it once and you have it forever.
How does Noir for Safari work?
The cool part about Noir is that you won’t even notice it’s performing its dark magic. It works incredibly fast and the end result is a dark mode that’s tailored for each website. You’ll find that contrast between the different shades is preserved and any highlights on the page still pop. However, there are built-in themes to choose from, as well as the ability to create your own, which means you can tailor your results to exactly how you want them.
Noir will automatically work with any site you visit when you’re using the Safari browser. And, by default, it’s linked up to your Mac’s Dark Mode settings, which means that sites will only go dark when you’ve programmed them to. You can also quickly change these settings to your liking, even customizing them per website. So if you only want to use Noir on certain websites, that’s completely possible. If you want to disable it on others, that’s easy too.
Switching on dark mode is perfect for night-time working and means you won’t be startled by a bright white screen. But even though the app is created for better browsing at night, I also sometimes prefer dark mode settings during the day, too. Especially if I’m working in a cafe with low light, or if I can feel a migraine brewing and need to do everything I can to reduce the glare of the screen before I can lock myself in a dark room.
