The Role of Color in User Experience: A Systematic Literature Study of User Preferences for Dark and Light Mode

The increasing use of dark mode and light mode in user interfaces has prompted many studies to determine their effects on user experience. Findings in the literature show that research is still fragmented and does not provide a comprehensive understanding of the cognitive, emotional, and behavioral...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: M. Rifqi Atsani, Iif Alfiatul Mukaromah, M. Haikal Citra Anugerah
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Universitas Islam Negeri Profesor Kiai Haji Saifuddin Zuhri Purwokerto 2025-06-01
Series:Transactions on Informatics and Data Science
Subjects:
Online Access:https://ejournal.uinsaizu.ac.id/index.php/tids/article/view/13903
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849431034454605824
author M. Rifqi Atsani
Iif Alfiatul Mukaromah
M. Haikal Citra Anugerah
author_facet M. Rifqi Atsani
Iif Alfiatul Mukaromah
M. Haikal Citra Anugerah
author_sort M. Rifqi Atsani
collection DOAJ
description The increasing use of dark mode and light mode in user interfaces has prompted many studies to determine their effects on user experience. Findings in the literature show that research is still fragmented and does not provide a comprehensive understanding of the cognitive, emotional, and behavioral aspects of preferences for user interface themes. This study analyzed 25 selected scientific articles from 2020 to 2025. The identification topics were related to user preferences, performance, accessibility, and satisfaction with interface modes. The qualitative thematic analysis approach found 6 main themes, namely Readability and Accessibility, Cognitive and Emotional Responses, Usage Behavior and Preferences, Task Performance and Efficiency, Health and Environmental Impacts, and Interface Design and Satisfaction. The results showed that light mode was better in terms of readability and tasks that require high lighting, dark mode provides better visual comfort than light mode and reduces eye fatigue in low light conditions. User preferences were influenced by several things such as age, device type, environment, and emotional needs. This research emphasizes the development of an adaptive system that allows users to switch between dark and light modes according to their respective conditions is important. This research contributes to the field of Human Computer Interaction (HCI) by demonstrating an understanding of interface theme design as well as future research directions.
format Article
id doaj-art-449f4dd4e9e14e5584f777600e5320f0
institution Kabale University
issn 3064-1772
language English
publishDate 2025-06-01
publisher Universitas Islam Negeri Profesor Kiai Haji Saifuddin Zuhri Purwokerto
record_format Article
series Transactions on Informatics and Data Science
spelling doaj-art-449f4dd4e9e14e5584f777600e5320f02025-08-20T03:27:47ZengUniversitas Islam Negeri Profesor Kiai Haji Saifuddin Zuhri PurwokertoTransactions on Informatics and Data Science3064-17722025-06-012110.24090/tids.v2i1.13903The Role of Color in User Experience: A Systematic Literature Study of User Preferences for Dark and Light ModeM. Rifqi Atsani0Iif Alfiatul Mukaromah1M. Haikal Citra Anugerah2Department of Informatics, Faculty of Science and Technology, UIN Prof. K.H. Saifuddin Zuhri, Purwokerto, Indonesia.Department of Informatics, Faculty of Science and Technology, UIN Prof. K.H. Saifuddin Zuhri, Purwokerto, Indonesia.Department of Informatics, Faculty of Science and Technology, UIN Prof. K.H. Saifuddin Zuhri, Purwokerto, Indonesia. The increasing use of dark mode and light mode in user interfaces has prompted many studies to determine their effects on user experience. Findings in the literature show that research is still fragmented and does not provide a comprehensive understanding of the cognitive, emotional, and behavioral aspects of preferences for user interface themes. This study analyzed 25 selected scientific articles from 2020 to 2025. The identification topics were related to user preferences, performance, accessibility, and satisfaction with interface modes. The qualitative thematic analysis approach found 6 main themes, namely Readability and Accessibility, Cognitive and Emotional Responses, Usage Behavior and Preferences, Task Performance and Efficiency, Health and Environmental Impacts, and Interface Design and Satisfaction. The results showed that light mode was better in terms of readability and tasks that require high lighting, dark mode provides better visual comfort than light mode and reduces eye fatigue in low light conditions. User preferences were influenced by several things such as age, device type, environment, and emotional needs. This research emphasizes the development of an adaptive system that allows users to switch between dark and light modes according to their respective conditions is important. This research contributes to the field of Human Computer Interaction (HCI) by demonstrating an understanding of interface theme design as well as future research directions. https://ejournal.uinsaizu.ac.id/index.php/tids/article/view/13903Dark modelight modeuser experienceuser preferenceHCIaccessibility
spellingShingle M. Rifqi Atsani
Iif Alfiatul Mukaromah
M. Haikal Citra Anugerah
The Role of Color in User Experience: A Systematic Literature Study of User Preferences for Dark and Light Mode
Transactions on Informatics and Data Science
Dark mode
light mode
user experience
user preference
HCI
accessibility
title The Role of Color in User Experience: A Systematic Literature Study of User Preferences for Dark and Light Mode
title_full The Role of Color in User Experience: A Systematic Literature Study of User Preferences for Dark and Light Mode
title_fullStr The Role of Color in User Experience: A Systematic Literature Study of User Preferences for Dark and Light Mode
title_full_unstemmed The Role of Color in User Experience: A Systematic Literature Study of User Preferences for Dark and Light Mode
title_short The Role of Color in User Experience: A Systematic Literature Study of User Preferences for Dark and Light Mode
title_sort role of color in user experience a systematic literature study of user preferences for dark and light mode
topic Dark mode
light mode
user experience
user preference
HCI
accessibility
url https://ejournal.uinsaizu.ac.id/index.php/tids/article/view/13903
work_keys_str_mv AT mrifqiatsani theroleofcolorinuserexperienceasystematicliteraturestudyofuserpreferencesfordarkandlightmode
AT iifalfiatulmukaromah theroleofcolorinuserexperienceasystematicliteraturestudyofuserpreferencesfordarkandlightmode
AT mhaikalcitraanugerah theroleofcolorinuserexperienceasystematicliteraturestudyofuserpreferencesfordarkandlightmode
AT mrifqiatsani roleofcolorinuserexperienceasystematicliteraturestudyofuserpreferencesfordarkandlightmode
AT iifalfiatulmukaromah roleofcolorinuserexperienceasystematicliteraturestudyofuserpreferencesfordarkandlightmode
AT mhaikalcitraanugerah roleofcolorinuserexperienceasystematicliteraturestudyofuserpreferencesfordarkandlightmode