Visual modes of operation

ArcGIS Pro supports the following visual modes of operation:

• High contrast mode, which is a Windows operating system setting
• Light or dark theme, which is an ArcGIS Pro application option
• User interface scaling, which is an ArcGIS Pro application option

This video was created with ArcGIS Pro 3.2.

High contrast mode

The readability of the ArcGIS Pro user interface can be improved by turning on high contrast mode. The system color scheme increases the color contrast of text, menus, tabs, and icons to make them more distinct and easier to identify for users with low vision or color vision deficiency (also referred to as color blindness). However, high contrast mode does not change the appearance of certain views in ArcGIS Pro, such as maps and charts.

You should close any open ArcGIS Pro sessions before you turn on high contrast mode. Restart ArcGIS Pro after high contrast mode has been turned on.

To turn on high contrast mode, press left Shift+left Alt+Print Screen on your keyboard and click Yes on the High Contrast prompt.

To turn off high contrast mode, use the same keyboard shortcut: left Shift+left Alt+Print Screen.

For other ways to turn on high contrast mode, see Change color contrast in Windows on the Microsoft Support site.

Change the application theme

The light and dark theme settings are ArcGIS Pro application options. They are aesthetic choices for the user interface, not accessibility settings. However, you may find that one theme or the other improves visibility or reduces eyestrain under some conditions.

Follow these steps to change the application theme:

1. Open the ArcGIS Pro settings page in one of the following ways:
   • From an open project, click the Project tab on the ribbon.
   • From the start page, click the Settings tab .
2. In the list of tabs on the left, click Options.
3. On the Options dialog box, under Application, click General.
4. On the right, expand Application Theme. Click the drop-down arrow and click Light or Dark. Click OK.
5. Restart ArcGIS Pro.

   Note:

   If high contrast mode is turned on, only the light theme is supported.

User interface scaling

You can increase the size of the text, icons, and other parts of the ArcGIS Pro user interface with the User interface scaling application option.

Learn more about scaling the user interface

Reduce motion in the user interface

Some parts of the ArcGIS Pro user interface use animated effects to provide visual feedback and smooth transitions when items are opened, closed, or highlighted. Optionally, you can turn these effects off in the Windows operating system.

1. Press the Windows key and type show animations in the search box. Press the Enter key.

   In the Windows Ease of Access settings, the Display page appears.

2. Under Simplify and personalize Windows, turn off Show animations in Windows.

   Note:

   Changing this setting turns off animations for all applications on the computer.