Why is my Word document black on Mac?

If you work in dark mode and are used to seeing a black screen a black Word Document will not surprise you. But, if you haven’t chosen the document to be black and still find yourself staring at a black document here is an article on Why is my Word document black on Mac?

The different reasons why a Word document on Mac is blank include, Dark mode activated in Word, Display issues, Corrupt document, possible compatibility issues, Document theme, or background image. Most of these problems can be fixed manually from the menu in the top ribbon of the document.

How to make Microsoft Word Light Mode mac

If you are wondering how to get MS Word off dark mode, this section will take you through the process

  • Open MS Word and the document you would like to work on
How to make Microsoft Word Light Mode mac
  • To switch from dark mode to light, click on Word in the top panel of the screen.
How to make Microsoft Word Light Mode mac
  • Click on Preferences; you will have a popup menu.
  • Select General from the options available.
why is my word document black on macbook
  • You will now see a list of things you can alter when it comes to the general setting’s appearance. Under the personalize section, select Turn off Dark mode.

Microsoft Word dark mode white page

Changing the theme of Word will disable the dark office layout and the dark page color. This being said, you can change the page to white while still in the dark mode. Here is how it’s done.

  • Locate and open Microsoft Word on your device
Microsoft Word dark mode white page
  • Click on Word in the top panel of the screen.
Microsoft Word dark mode white page
  • Click on Preferences for a popup menu
why is my word doc black on mac
  • Go to the section titled General
why is my microsoft word document black on mac
  • Under Personalize select Dark mode has a White page color

Why is my Word document suddenly black?

The dark mode can be annoying if you are not used to it. The previous section looked at the Word Document is black despite disabling the dark mode. Here is a fix that you can try,

Why is my Word document suddenly black?
  • Click on the apple icon in the top panel
  • From the options available, click on System Settings
Why is my Word document suddenly black?
  • Click on Appearance
  • You will now see the Light, Dark, and Auto modes. If Auto or Dark mode are selected, click on Light.

How to change the page background color in Word?

Changing the mode or the theme from dark to light will change the overall appearance of your system. If you still notice that the page in Word is Black, it could be because of the background color. Here are the steps to follow to reverse this.

  • Open the Word document you would like to work on
how to change the background color in Word
  • Go to the Design or Page Layout tab in the top ribbon of the document. The placement of tabs depends on the version of Word you are using.
Why is my Word document black on Mac
  • Look for the Page Color or Page Background option.
  • Click on Page color
how to change the background color in Word
  • You will now see a palette. Check if black is selected. This could be the reason the page is black
  • Click on No color or White or any other color that you would like the page to be.

In conclusion

There are various reasons why the Word document is black. In most cases, the solution is simple, and you only need to change the page color or the theme. If these don’t work, you might have copied the text from a source and picked up the background color as well. In this case, paste the text in Notepad to remove formatting. If this doesn’t work, you might have a document that is corrupt.

You may also like: