diff --git a/templates/portal/base.html b/templates/portal/base.html
index 7fd0a3a..d4f55fe 100644
--- a/templates/portal/base.html
+++ b/templates/portal/base.html
@@ -5,8 +5,8 @@
     <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
     <title>{% block title %}Monitoring{% endblock %} · TMI</title>
 
-    <!-- apply saved theme before paint (no flash) -->
-    <script>(function(){var t=localStorage.getItem('portal-theme')||'dark';document.documentElement.setAttribute('data-theme',t);})();</script>
+    <!-- apply saved theme before paint (no flash); light is the default -->
+    <script>(function(){var t=localStorage.getItem('portal-theme')||'light';document.documentElement.setAttribute('data-theme',t);})();</script>
 
     <link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.googleapis.com">
     <link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.gstatic.com" crossorigin>
@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@
         }
     </script>
     <link rel="icon" type="image/png" sizes="32x32" href="/static/icons/favicon-32.png">
-    <meta name="theme-color" content="#080b14">
+    <meta name="theme-color" content="#f7f5ef">
 
     <style>
         /* ---- dark (default) ---- */
@@ -184,7 +184,8 @@
             const next = cur === 'light' ? 'dark' : 'light';
             document.documentElement.setAttribute('data-theme', next);
             try { localStorage.setItem('portal-theme', next); } catch (e) {}
-            document.documentElement.setAttribute('content', next === 'light' ? '#eef1f8' : '#080b14');
+            const mc = document.querySelector('meta[name="theme-color"]');
+            if (mc) mc.setAttribute('content', next === 'light' ? '#f7f5ef' : '#080b14');
             document.dispatchEvent(new CustomEvent('portal-theme', { detail: next }));
         }
     </script>