topic Archicad 30 Light mode: where did the contrast go? in General discussions

Archicad 30 Light mode: where did the contrast go?

ephrem — Tue, 13 Oct 2026 06:41:36 GMT

Hi everyone,

I’m testing Archicad 30 and I have a concern about the new interface, which I’d like to compare with your own experience.

Light mode: it is now far too bright, and readability has clearly suffered. In dialogs (Wall Selection Settings, Surfaces, Perspective Options, etc.), the value input fields are white on a white window background. They blend in and are barely visible. In Archicad 29, dialogs had a slightly greyed background, so the fields stood out clearly. That contrast is gone, and it makes scanning a dialog and locating the field to edit slower and more tiring.

Dark mode: it isn’t a satisfying alternative either. Many elements remain white (fields, panels, parts of dialogs), which creates a harsh and unpleasant contrast against the dark surfaces. The result feels inconsistent and not very ergonomic.

Questions for the community:

Do you also find the Light mode too bright and low in contrast compared to version 29?
Does the Dark mode’s remaining white elements bother you as well?
Have you found any workaround (OS appearance settings, display calibration, etc.)?

Questions for the Graphisoft team:

Is a contrast correction of the Light mode interface planned (for example a slightly greyed dialog background, or visible borders on input fields)?
If so, is it targeted for an upcoming update of Archicad 30?

In its current state, the visual comfort is clearly lower than in version 29, especially for those of us spending the whole day in dialogs. I’ve attached screenshots to illustrate.

Thanks for your feedback!

Ephrem

Betreff: Archicad 30 Light mode: where did the contrast go?

Andreas81ch — Tue, 13 Oct 2026 06:55:02 GMT

Yes, I don't understand this change too..... it's to bright and bad contrast......

Re: Archicad 30 Light mode: where did the contrast go?

laembert — Tue, 13 Oct 2026 07:36:09 GMT

I don't get why they changed it. What's the point of beta testing if they release this UX monstrosity?

Re: Archicad 30 Light mode: where did the contrast go?

Mahmoud Qenawi — Tue, 13 Oct 2026 08:23:22 GMT

Hi all,

Frankly I don’t see any change or downgrade to the light mode for Archicad 30.

I compared it with 29 version and it looks great, maybe it’s an issue related to your macOS.

Thanks.

Re: Archicad 30 Light mode: where did the contrast go?

Wlad222 — Tue, 13 Oct 2026 09:03:20 GMT

Yes. This is THE worst implementation of dark mode I have ever seen. Have the devs even looked at a modern dark mode app? You cant just inverse colors haha...

Re: Archicad 30 Light mode: where did the contrast go?

Barry Kelly — Tue, 13 Oct 2026 09:09:51 GMT

Maybe it is just a Mac issue as I didn't notice any difference in standard (light) mode in Window OS.

Dark mode in Windows is another matter and there are contrast issues that were mentioned in Beta.

Barry.