PhpStorm 2025.3 Help

User interface themes

The interface theme defines the appearance of windows, dialogs, buttons, and all visual elements of the user interface. By default, PhpStorm uses the Dark theme unless you changed it during the first run.

Change the UI theme

  1. In the Settings dialog (Ctrl+Alt+S) , select Appearance & Behavior | Appearance.

  2. Select the UI theme from the Theme list:

    • Dark: PhpStorm default dark theme

    • Light: PhpStorm default light theme

    • Light with Light Header: default light theme with a light header

    • High Contrast: theme designed for users with color vision deficiency

    • Darcula: alternative dark theme

    • Many Islands Dark: alternative dark theme with the clear separation of UI sections

    • Many Islands Light: alternative light theme with the clear separation of UI sections

    Click Get More Themes to install a custom theme as a plugin from JetBrains Marketplace

    Settings | Appearance & Behavior | Appearance
  3. Optionally, select a color scheme from the Editor color scheme list.

    The default color scheme for the current theme is indicated in the list.

Select Sync with OS to let PhpStorm detect the current system settings and use the default dark or light theme accordingly. If your OS is set up to auto-switch between day and night modes, the IDE will automatically toggle between light and dark themes too.

It is also possible to create your own UI themes for PhpStorm and customize the built-in themes. For more information, refer to IntelliJ Platform SDK Documentation.

Quick switch theme

You can quickly switch between different user interface themes, color schemes, code style schemes, keymaps, view modes, layouts, and zoom percentage without invoking the IDE settings.

  1. Press Ctrl+` or select View | Quick Switch Scheme from the main menu.

  2. In the popup that opens, select the IDE setting that you want to change.

    Switch scheme popup
  3. In the suggestion list, select the desired option.

    Switch color scheme popup

Create shortcuts

You can map the Theme action to your preferred key combination.

    25 November 2025