how to change screen to show colors

Fred Harding 0 Reputation points
2026-09-29T19:19:53.9366667+00:00

After restart screen only shows black and white. How do I get colors back?

Windows for home | Windows 11 | Display and graphics
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  1. Clary-N 16,555 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2026-09-30T03:24:38.8433333+00:00

    Hi Fred Harding,

    Have you had a chance to try the steps in the AI Answer, especially turning off Color filters and did anything change?

    If the screen is still black and white, could you confirm whether the startup logo also appears without color and whether you’re using the built-in screen or an external monitor? As a quick next step, press Windows key + Ctrl + Shift + B once to reset the graphics driver. The screen may briefly flicker or beep.

    You can also check Settings > Accessibility > Contrast themes and make sure it is set to None. If possible, connect the device to another monitor or TV to see whether colors appear normally there.

    Let me know what you find and I’ll help narrow down the next step.

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  2. AI answer

    2026-09-29T19:20:08.0533333+00:00

    Try these Windows settings in order:

    1. Open Settings with Windows key + I.
    2. Go to Accessibility > Color filters.
    3. If Color filters is turned on, turn it Off.
      • If the screen is still black and white, turn it on briefly and check whether Inverted or another filter is selected, then turn it off again.

    If the screen is showing reversed colors instead of normal color:

    1. Go to Accessibility > Magnifier.
    2. If Magnifier is on, under Appearance, turn off Invert colors.

    If Windows is still hard to read after that:

    1. Go to Personalization > Colors.
    2. Set Choose your mode to Dark or another preferred mode.
    3. If the Taskbar or Start menu looks unclear, turn off Transparency effects.

    If color still does not return, check the display driver:

    1. Go to Settings > Windows Update and install the latest graphics driver updates, or get the latest driver from the PC manufacturer.

    If the issue started after a restart and only black and white remains, the most likely cause is that a Windows color filter was enabled.

    References:

    AI-generated content may be incorrect. Read our transparency notes for more information.

    Was this answer helpful?

    1 person found this answer helpful.

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