ProfileCrest Developer Blog — Tutorials & Guides
CSS & RESPONSIVENESS July 18, 2026 8 min read CodeCrest Engineering Team

Dark & Light Mode Responsive Images in GitHub Markdown

Over 60% of developers use dark mode on GitHub. Learn how to use the HTML <picture> element to swap images automatically when a user switches between Dark and Light mode.

The Theme Compatibility Problem

An image or stats card that looks stunning on GitHub Dark Default can become unreadable or have ugly white borders when viewed on GitHub Light Default.

The Solution: HTML <picture> Element

GitHub's Markdown parser supports the HTML5 <picture> element paired with media queries targeting (prefers-color-scheme: dark) and (prefers-color-scheme: light):

<picture> <source media="(prefers-color-scheme: dark)" srcset="https://github-readme-stats.vercel.app/api?username=alex&theme=tokyonight"> <source media="(prefers-color-scheme: light)" srcset="https://github-readme-stats.vercel.app/api?username=alex&theme=default"> <img alt="GitHub Stats" src="https://github-readme-stats.vercel.app/api?username=alex&theme=default" /> </picture>

Automatic Theme Adaptive Output

ProfileCrest generates theme-adaptive HTML picture markup for all your badges and stats cards.

🚀 Open ProfileCrest Generator
Previous: Minimalist Design GuideNext: Top Profile Templates