Themes

Customize the appearance of your keyboard with different color themes, from dark modes to vibrant colors.

Quick Summary

What	Description
Purpose	Change keyboard colors and appearance
Access	Settings > Theme Manager (in Activities section)
Options	35+ built-in themes + custom DIY colors

[!NOTE] Keyboard themes only affect the keyboard itself. The settings screens follow your system light/dark mode setting.

Built-in Themes

CleverKeys includes many pre-designed themes:

Dark Themes

Theme	Description
CleverKeys Dark	Default - deep purple with silver accents
Dark	Classic dark gray
Black	Pure black for OLED screens
Alt Black	Alternative black styling
ePaper Black	High contrast e-ink dark
Cobalt	Blue-tinted dark theme
Pine	Dark green nature theme
Rose Pine	Muted rose and pine colors

Light Themes

Theme	Description
CleverKeys Light	Silver keys with purple accents
Light	Classic light gray
White	Pure white background
ePaper	High contrast e-ink style
Everforest Light	Soft green nature theme
Desert	Warm sandy tones
Jungle	Tropical teal theme
Jewel	Vibrant colored theme

System-Following Themes (Android 12+)

Theme	Description
Monet	Material You - follows system colors
Monet Light	Material You - forced light
Monet Dark	Material You - forced dark

[!NOTE] Monet themes require Android 12+ for dynamic color extraction. On older devices, these themes fall back to default colors.

How to Change Theme

Step 1: Open Theme Manager

1. Open CleverKeys Settings (gear icon)
2. Scroll to Activities section
3. Tap Theme Manager

Step 2: Select Theme

1. Scroll through available themes
2. Each theme shows its name and preview colors
3. Tap to select

Step 3: Apply

The theme applies immediately. No restart required.

A Theme per Layout

A layout can carry its own theme, so switching layouts switches the look too — for example a dark theme for your English layout and a light one for Persian.

1. Open Settings > Layout Manager
2. Tap the Theme chip on a layout
3. Pick a theme (search by name), or Follow global theme

While that layout is active the keyboard uses the chosen theme; switching back to a layout that follows the global theme restores the theme selected here in Theme Manager. Choosing a theme for a layout never changes your global theme. If a layout’s theme is deleted, or a restored backup names a DIY theme that is not on this device, the layout uses the global theme and Layout Manager shows the missing theme. Custom layouts can also declare a default theme in their XML (theme="rosepine"); see Custom Layouts.

DIY Theme Creator

CleverKeys includes a powerful theme creator for custom colors. Every field in the editor is rendered by the keyboard:

Accessible Colors

Element	Description
Key Colors	Key Default, Key Activated, Key Locked, Key Modifier, Key Special backgrounds
Label Colors	Key Label, Sub Label, Secondary Label
Border Colors	Key Border, Border Activated (the pressed key’s outline)
Swipe Trail	Swipe trail color and style
Ripple Effect	Press feedback color on suggestion-bar chips and buttons
Suggestion Bar	Suggestion Text, Suggestion Background, High Confidence accent
Background	Keyboard Background, Keyboard Surface (elevated panels)

Creating Custom Theme

1. Open Theme Manager
2. Scroll to Custom Theme or DIY section
3. Tap each color element to customize
4. Use the color picker or enter hex codes
5. The preview at the top of the editor is the real keyboard, scaled down and read-only: every color change re-renders it immediately. It shows Shift active, a locked modifier (Ctrl on the default layout), modifier and action keys at rest, sub-labels, the suggestion bar and a sample swipe trail, using your own opacity, border and swipe-trail settings

[!NOTE] Editing the theme you’re currently using updates the live keyboard immediately — no restart needed. Saved edits to a non-active custom theme take effect when you select it.

Theme Elements

What each theme affects:

┌─────────────────────────────────┐
│   Prediction Bar Background     │ ← Bar color
│   [word1] [word2] [word3]       │ ← Suggestion colors
├─────────────────────────────────┤
│ ┌───┐ ┌───┐ ┌───┐ ┌───┐ ┌───┐ │
│ │ Q │ │ W │ │ E │ │ R │ │ T │ │ ← Key bg + text
│ └───┘ └───┘ └───┘ └───┘ └───┘ │
│         Keyboard Background     │ ← Main background
└─────────────────────────────────┘

Tips and Tricks

• OLED screens: Use Black or ePaper Black themes to save battery
• Readability: Ensure good contrast between keys and text
• Eye strain: Dark themes are easier on eyes in low light
• Material You: Use Monet theme on Android 12+ for system color matching

[!TIP] The Monet theme on Android 12+ automatically uses your wallpaper’s accent colors.

Opacity Settings

Adjust transparency in the Appearance section:

Setting	Range	Description
Keyboard Opacity	0-100%	Overall keyboard transparency
Key Opacity	0-100%	Transparency of key backgrounds
Suggestion Bar Opacity	0-100%	Prediction bar transparency

Settings Locations

Setting	Location	Description
Theme Selection	Activities > Theme Manager	Select theme
Keyboard Opacity	Appearance section	Overall transparency
Key Opacity	Appearance section	Key transparency
Border Style	Appearance section	Key borders

Common Questions

Q: Can I create my own theme?

A: Yes! Use the DIY Theme Creator in Theme Manager to customize every color.

Q: How do I backup my custom theme?

A: Export your settings via Settings > Activities > Backup & Restore which includes theme settings.

Q: Why does Monet theme look different than expected?

A: Monet uses Android’s Material You color extraction. Results depend on your wallpaper and Android version. Requires Android 12+.

Q: The keyboard background is transparent!

A: Increase Keyboard Opacity in the Appearance section (Settings > Appearance).

Related Features

• Appearance Settings - Height, margins, opacity
• Backup & Restore - Save settings including theme
• Accessibility - Contrast options