“Theme” means two different things in Microsoft Word. A document theme sets the fonts, colors, and effects used throughout a document. Change it from the Design tab by clicking Themes and picking one. The Office Theme changes how Word itself looks, such as dark or light menus. Change it under File > Account > Office Theme. Both are covered below, including how to make a theme your default for new documents.
Account” width=”1200″ height=”630″ />Change the document theme
- Open your document and click the Design tab.
- Click Themes on the far left.
- Hover over a theme to preview it, then click to apply it.
The theme changes headings, body text, tables, charts, SmartArt, and shapes that use theme fonts and colors. Text you formatted by hand, such as a specific font you picked from the Home tab, keeps its manual formatting. To see the biggest effect, use Word’s built-in styles like Heading 1 and Normal. See how to make something a heading in Word.
Mix and match theme parts
Next to Themes on the Design tab, you can change each part separately:
- Colors: choose a color palette, or click Customize Colors to set your own, for example to match brand colors.
- Fonts: choose a heading and body font pair, or Customize Fonts.
- Effects: change the look of shape shadows, outlines, and fills.
The Document Formatting gallery in the middle of the Design tab changes the style set, including spacing and heading appearance, within the current theme.
Save your own theme
- Set up the colors, fonts, and effects the way you want.
- Click Design > Themes > Save Current Theme.
- Name it and click Save. It’s saved as a .thmx file and appears at the top of the Themes gallery under Custom.
Theme files also work in PowerPoint and Excel, so your documents, slides, and spreadsheets can match.
Make it the default for new documents
After setting your theme and style set, click Set as Default on the right of the Design tab, then Yes. New blank documents will use it from now on. For a full starting point with layout and content, save a template instead; see how to make your own template in Word.
Go back to the original theme
Click Design > Themes > Reset to Theme from Template. This restores the theme that came with the document’s template, usually the standard Office theme.
Change the Office Theme (Word’s appearance)
To change the color of Word’s ribbon, menus, and window, which doesn’t affect your document:
- Click File > Account.
- Under Office Theme, choose Colorful, Dark Gray, Black, White, or Use system setting to follow Windows’ light or dark mode.
You can also find it under File > Options > General > Office Theme. The setting applies to all Microsoft 365 apps on that PC. With Black, Word also darkens the page itself on screen; to switch only the page back to white, click View > Switch Modes. See how to enable dark mode in Microsoft Word.
Related: page color and background
A theme doesn’t change the page color. To color the page, see how to change the page color in Word.
Troubleshooting
The theme doesn’t change my text
The text has manual formatting. Select it and press Ctrl + Space to clear character formatting, or apply a built-in style.
Themes is greyed out
The document may be in Compatibility Mode (an old .doc file). Use File > Info > Convert, then try again.
New documents still open with the old look
You applied the theme but didn’t click Set as Default, or your Normal template is read-only. Repeat the default step and accept the prompt.
Frequently asked questions
Does Word for Mac have themes?
Yes, on the Design tab. The app’s appearance on a Mac follows macOS light or dark mode.
Will the theme change if I open the document on another PC?
The document theme travels with the file. The Office Theme is a setting on each PC.
Summary
To restyle your document, use Design > Themes, adjust Colors and Fonts, and click Set as Default to keep it. To change how Word looks, go to File > Account > Office Theme.
Related: change the automatic font color in Word.
Related: change font size in Word.
Matt Jacobs has been working as an IT consultant for small businesses since receiving his Master’s degree in 2003. While he still does some consulting work, his primary focus now is on creating technology support content for SupportYourTech.com.
His work can be found on many websites and focuses on topics such as Microsoft Office, Apple devices, Android devices, Photoshop, and more.