Top 9 Ways to Fix Inverted Colors Issue on Windows 10
Long before dark mode, there was a feature that allowed users to invert the colors on their screen. Useful if you are looking at the screen in the dark or have some form of visual impairment. To the rest of us, it looks horrible and is an eyesore. Unfortunately, several Windows 10 users have woken up to display the colors inverted on their computer. Whether it is due to a bug or software, the reason may be unknown, but you can fix it.
I remember for the first time noticing this option on my old iPhone 4s. I tried it on and it all looked weird. To me, it sounds like a special effect. As the name suggests, it reverses UI colors from light to dark and vice versa. Here’s how the Inverted Colors feature works in Windows 10 and how you can fix it.
Let’s start.
1. Disable inverted colors
Step 1: Press Windows key + I to open settings and find and open Invert Colors.
2nd step: Activate the Invert colors option here as required. Did you notice the handy shortcut below?
No need to change any other settings in there.
2. Turn off high contrast
Most people don’t know this, but there is another option called high contrast feature.
Step 1: Open settings again, find and open the ‘Invert colors using high contrast’ option.
2nd step: Disable the Enable high contrast option.
3. Color filters
Step 1: Go back to settings, find the color filters and open it.
2nd step: Turn off the color filters and check again if the colors are still inverted on your Windows 10 computer.
4. Turn off visual notifications
This is another accessibility setting designed to help those who have difficulty viewing computer screens.
Step 1: Find and open Control Panel from the Start menu.
2nd step: Find and open “Replace sounds with visual cues” in the search bar.
Step 3: Disable the option “Enable visual notifications for sounds”.
Remember to save the changes.
5. Graphics card settings
All graphics cards have their own settings. One of the things they control is the display and appearance of everything on the screen. Open your graphics card settings and check if there is an option for inverted colors or high contrast. Disable it if it is enabled. The options may vary depending on the make and model of the card.
6. Check the drivers
We have written a detailed guide on updating, uninstalling, and reinstalling drivers. I recommend going through this guide and trying to update and then reinstall the graphics card and graphics card drivers.
7. Registry Editor
You can force the display color inversion to stop using the Registry Editor. In fact, there is a lot you can do with it. It is an advanced and very powerful tool.
Step 1: Find Registry Editor in the Start menu and open it.
2nd step: Navigate to the folder structure below.
HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareMicrosoftScreenMagnifier
Double click on the ‘Invert’ DWORD file and set the value to 0 (zero). File does not exist? Right-click anywhere in an empty area and select DWORD (32-bit) Value under New.
Step 3: Name the file as Invert and save it, then double-click to open it. Now follow the instructions from step 2 above and set the value to 0.
8. Safe Mode
The first thing to do is to create a restore point to prevent data loss. Now start the computer in safe mode and check which recently installed application is causing this problem. You can also try a clean start, which will further help reduce possible conflicts.
9. System restore
If you’ve made it this far, there really isn’t an alternative for you. Windows 10 creates a system restore point whenever it detects a major change in the system. The process is automated and runs in the background. However, you can create a restore point manually, as we saw in the previous point.
Check out this article on how to restore your computer to an earlier time when everything was working as it should.
Inverted world
The inverted color option is an accessibility feature for those who have trouble viewing their computer screen under different circumstances. It’s a feature, not a bug. You need to find a way to turn it off using one of the methods we shared above. It will not interfere with the functionality of the system in any way and you can continue working on your computer as usual. The only thing that changes is how everything looks on the screen. Weird for those who haven’t asked for it.
Many developers use it when working on their code because it puts less strain on their eyes. There is also an option in the high contrast settings to control the colors. Maybe this will grow on you? We never know.