Appearance Reference
Vast’s appearance controls are intentionally granular. They let you tune the browser shell without changing website content unless a setting explicitly says it affects websites.
| Setting | What it changes | Why you might use it |
|---|---|---|
| Layout | Horizontal, Vertical, or experimental Purist chrome | Match tab density and workflow |
| Theme | Dark, Dim, Light, or System | Overall UI luminance |
| Accent color | Primary highlight | Personal identity / visibility |
| Secondary accent | Supporting highlight | More nuanced gradients and states |
| Background tint | Main chrome background tone | Reduce pure-black/gray feel |
| Surface tint | Panels and elevated surfaces | Separate content layers |
| Background style | Graphite, Midnight, Aurora, Violet, Carbon, Frost | Base visual character |
| Sidebar density | Comfortable or Compact | Trade space for readability |
| Sidebar mode | Auto, Docked, Overlay | Control panel/page competition |
| Sidebar width | Panel width | Fit notes/history content |
| Sidebar labels | Show/hide labels | Reduce visual noise |
| Corner radius | UI roundness | Change geometric character |
| Glassiness | Translucent surface effect | Increase/decrease glass treatment |
| Blur | Backdrop blur | Legibility over translucent surfaces |
| Glow | Highlight bloom | Emphasis around active elements |
| Borders | Surface outlines | Improve separation on similar tones |
| Shadow depth | Elevation | Improve layer distinction |
| Gradients | Gradient strength | Reduce or emphasize color transitions |
| Panel opacity | Side/local panel opacity | Balance page visibility and legibility |
| Chrome opacity | Main browser UI opacity | Tune transparency |
| Saturation | UI color intensity | Muted vs. vivid appearance |
| Animations | General motion | Preference/performance/accessibility |
| Opening animation | Startup visual | Cosmetic startup experience |
| Opening sound | Startup sound volume | Cosmetic audio feedback |
| Bookmarks bar | Bar visibility | Persistent quick access |
| New-Tab-only bookmarks bar | Restrict bar to New Tab | Keep websites visually cleaner |
| Force dark mode on websites | Best-effort website darkening | Dark workflow on sites without a theme |
Accessibility and compatibility
Section titled “Accessibility and compatibility”Visual customization should never be required to access a browser action. Reduced-motion and reduced-transparency preferences take priority over decorative effects where supported.
Website force-dark behavior can occasionally produce poor contrast or broken site styling. Disable it for compatibility when needed.