Comparison

Dark Surf vs Dark Reader Mode for Safari

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Dark Surf

Enhance your browsing experience with a customizable dark theme for Safari. Adjust shade, contrast, saturation, and image settings. Schedule dark mode or set it per-site.

Highlights
  • Customizable dark theme
  • Adjustable shade and contrast
  • Saturation and image handling
  • Scheduling for dark mode
  • Per-site theme controls
  • Preset themes (Midnight, Warm, AMOLED, Gray)
Features
Read full description

Dark Surf gives Safari a thoughtful dark mode for every website. Instead of painting over pages, Dark Surf reads each site’s own design and rebuilds it in the dark. Backgrounds and cards turn deep and calm, text stays crisp, and the colors that carry meaning, like buttons, links, warnings and highlights, keep their character. Photos stay natural. SMART BY DEFAULT • Leaves websites that already have a dark design alone • Keeps dark logos, icons and formulas visible • Keeps text on top of photos readable • Handles modern websites built with CSS variables, Tailwind, Bootstrap and web components MAKE IT YOURS • Six themes: Midnight, Ocean, Dim, Warm, Graphite and true-black AMOLED • Build your own palette from any colors • Fine-tune brightness and contrast, and choose how images look • See every change instantly in a live preview that runs Safari’s own Dark Surf engine YOUR RULES • Switch any website between Dark, Invert and Off right from Safari • Keep lists of websites that are always dark, inverted or never themed • Follow a schedule or your device’s Dark Mode, or pause for an hour PRIVATE BY DESIGN Pages are recolored on your device. Dark Surf has no account, no analytics, no ads and no tracking, and never sends the pages you visit to anyone. Dark Surf is a Safari extension. After installing, turn it on in Settings › Apps › Safari › Extensions. The app shows you how.

About

Dark Reader Mode for Safari

Enhance your nighttime browsing experience with a true dark theme that preserves website readability and image integrity. Enjoy customizable brightness, contrast, and color temperature settings for ultimate comfort. This utility works seamlessly within Safari on your iPhone and iPad.

Highlights
  • True dark theme rendering
  • Preserves image and logo integrity
  • Smart dark theme detection
  • Per-site brightness and contrast control
  • Customizable color temperature
  • Global on/off toggle
  • Per-site enable/disable
Features
Read full description

Browsing at night should not hurt your eyes or break websites. Dark Reader Mode for Safari applies a true dark theme with stylesheet-level rendering, so pages stay readable and natural. Download free and make any site comfortable to read. Why it feels better • No color inversion filters • Images and logos stay correct • Smart detection avoids double-darkening on sites that already support dark themes • Smooth flash prevention when pages load • Works on iPhone and iPad with Safari Free features • Global on/off toggle • Per-site enable/disable • Follow System, Always On, Always Off modes • Quick control from the Safari toolbar popup • Fully on-device processing with zero data collected Pro features • Per-site brightness control • Per-site contrast control • Per-site warmth and color temperature control • Per-site custom CSS injection Subscription information • Auto-renewable monthly subscription available • Optional lifetime purchase available • Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase • Subscription automatically renews unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period • Manage or cancel subscriptions in App Store Account Settings Privacy Policy: https://www.storqlabs.com/safari-dark-reader/privacy Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.storqlabs.com/safari-dark-reader/terms

Screenshots

Dark Surf4 screens
Dark Reader Mode for Safari4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Dark Reader Mode for Safari at 4.4 against Dark Surf's 3.0. Dark Reader Mode for Safari also leads on update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 4 months) and ratings volume (8 vs 2). Dark Surf's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Dark Reader Mode for Safari sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Dark Surf asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Dark Reader Mode for Safari holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 3.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 8 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Dark Surf ships an update every 4 months, Dark Reader Mode for Safari every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 13, 2026 and October 28, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 4 level
Dark Surf versus Dark Reader Mode for Safari: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDark SurfDark Reader Mode for Safari
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.0 (2 ratings)4.4 (8 ratings) — better
Number of ratings28 — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 5 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details — not scored
Size6 MB7 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperVali MikayilovStorq Labs BV

Customer experience

Dark Surf

All ratings2 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

Dark Reader Mode for Safari

All ratings6 ratings
Positive66.7%
Neutral33.3%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Dark Surf

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

Dark Reader Mode for Safari

Subscriptions1
  • Dark Reader Pro$0.991 Month
One-time1
  • Dark Reader Pro Lifetime$4.99

Questions

Is Dark Surf free?
Dark Surf is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Dark Reader Mode for Safari free?
Dark Reader Mode for Safari is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Dark Surf or Dark Reader Mode for Safari?
Dark Reader Mode for Safari is rated higher. Dark Surf averages 3.0 out of 5 from 2 ratings, while Dark Reader Mode for Safari averages 4.4 from 8 ratings.
Do Dark Surf or Dark Reader Mode for Safari have ads?
Neither Dark Surf nor Dark Reader Mode for Safari shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Dark Surf or Dark Reader Mode for Safari?
Dark Surf ships an update every 4 months, and Dark Reader Mode for Safari every 5 weeks. Most recently, Dark Surf was updated on October 13, 2026 and Dark Reader Mode for Safari on October 28, 2026.

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