Cometchat angular theming

Purpose

How to theme the CometChat Angular UI Kit v5 (@cometchat/chat-uikit-angular@5). v5 theming is CSS-custom-property based — the same --cometchat-* token system the React kit uses. You override tokens in your global stylesheet; every <cometchat-*> component reads them through the cascade. There is no programmatic palette API in v5.

Read cometchat-angular-core first — install, init, login, standalone-component model.

Ground truth: @cometchat/[email protected] bundled types + the kit's bundled CSS variables. The full token list (200+) is shared across the web kits — query the docs MCP or read the kit's bundled css-variables.css rather than inventing names. Official docs: https://www.cometchat.com/docs/ui-kit/angular/overview · Docs MCP: claude mcp add --transport http cometchat-docs https://www.cometchat.com/docs/mcp (or fetch the URL directly without MCP).

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1. v4 → v5: what changed

Area	v4 (legacy, NgModule, Angular 12–15)	v5 (this skill, standalone, Angular 17–21)
Theme mechanism	CometChatThemeService injected in AppComponent	CSS variables (--cometchat-*) in global styles
Brand color	themeService.theme.palette.setPrimary({ light, dark })	:root { --cometchat-primary-color: #...; }
Light/dark mode	themeService.theme.palette.setMode("dark")	CometChatUIKit.themeMode = 'dark' (static setter) or the kit's ThemeService
Per-component styling	*Style objects (new ConversationsStyle({...})) from @cometchat/uikit-shared	CSS variables + scoped CSS overrides (::ng-deep / ViewEncapsulation.None)
Token source package	@cometchat/uikit-shared	bundled in @cometchat/chat-uikit-angular

Removed in v5 — do NOT emit (phantom symbols): CometChatThemeService; theme.palette.setMode()/setPrimary()/setAccent(); the *Style constructors (ConversationsStyle, MessageListStyle, AvatarStyle, …) and their @cometchat/uikit-shared package. Translate setPrimary({light,dark}) into a :root light token + a dark-scoped override (§4); translate each *Style field into the matching --cometchat-* variable or a scoped CSS rule (§7 Recipe 3).

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2. How theming works in v5

Every <cometchat-*> component reads --cometchat-* CSS variables at render time — there is no color/font props API on the components.

your global styles.css   :root { --cometchat-primary-color: #...; }
        ↓ (CSS cascade)
every <cometchat-*> component picks up the value automatically

Precedence (high → low): scoped CSS override (with ::ng-deep/ViewEncapsulation.None) → :root { --cometchat-* } global override → kit default tokens.

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3. Where to put overrides in Angular (the key nuance)

Global tokens → src/styles.css (the common case)

src/styles.{css,scss} is not view-encapsulated, so :root overrides there cascade into every component including the kit. ~95% of theming lives here:

/* src/styles.css — app-wide */
:root {
  --cometchat-primary-color: #6852D6;
  --cometchat-font-family: "Inter", sans-serif;
}

(Confirm it's listed in angular.json → …architect.build.options.styles — it is by default.)

Component-scoped overrides → need ::ng-deep or ViewEncapsulation.None

Angular gotcha (#1 reason a CometChat override "does nothing"): the kit renders inside your component's view, and Angular's default ViewEncapsulation.Emulated rewrites a component's CSS with a per-component attribute. A plain rule in chat.component.css only matches elements carrying that attribute — the kit's nested DOM does not — so the rule silently fails.

Option A — ::ng-deep (scoped, keeps default encapsulation):

/* chat.component.css */
:host ::ng-deep {
  --cometchat-primary-color: #FF6B35;
  --cometchat-background-color-01: #ffffff;
}

Option B — ViewEncapsulation.None (component CSS becomes global while mounted):

@Component({
  selector: "app-chat",
  standalone: true,
  styleUrls: ["./chat.component.css"],
  encapsulation: ViewEncapsulation.None,
})
export class ChatComponent {}

Recommendation: use global src/styles.css for brand/app-wide theming (no encapsulation issue). Reach for ::ng-deep / ViewEncapsulation.None only when you need different CometChat theming in different parts of the app.

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4. Light / dark mode

4a. CometChatUIKit.themeMode — the kit's switch

Static setter (verified in v5 .d.ts: static set themeMode(value: 'light' | 'dark')):

import { CometChatUIKit } from "@cometchat/chat-uikit-angular";
CometChatUIKit.themeMode = "dark";   // 'light' | 'dark'

4b. ThemeService — Angular-idiomatic toggle (optional)

The kit exports an injectable ThemeService (providedIn: 'root', from @cometchat/chat-uikit-angular) that on construction reads OS prefers-color-scheme, applies a data-theme attribute on <html> (SSR-safe via the DOCUMENT token), follows live OS changes, and exposes a currentTheme signal ('light' | 'dark'). API: currentTheme(), setTheme('light' | 'dark'), toggleTheme(), initFromPreference(). It is a mode toggle only (no colors/palette).

Two gotchas, verified against the v5.0.2 source:

1. It does NOT persist to localStorage. The kit's own JSDoc claims it does, but applyTheme() only sets the signal + the <html> data-theme attribute — there is no localStorage write. If you need persistence across reloads, wrap it (read/write localStorage yourself).
2. It does NOT touch CometChatUIKit.themeMode. Toggling ThemeService flips <html data-theme> (which your CSS overrides key off, §4c) but leaves the SDK-level themeMode (§4a) on its default. The kit's sample app bridges this with a thin wrapper that mirrors the signal into the SDK setter via an effect (see §4d).

import { Component, inject } from "@angular/core";
import { ThemeService } from "@cometchat/chat-uikit-angular";

@Component({
  selector: "app-root", standalone: true,
  template: `<button (click)="toggle()">{{ themeService.currentTheme() === 'dark' ? 'Light' : 'Dark' }} mode</button>`,
})
export class AppComponent {
  themeService = inject(ThemeService);
  constructor() { this.themeService.initFromPreference(); }
  toggle() { this.themeService.toggleTheme(); }   // or setTheme('dark' | 'light')
}

4d. Keep themeMode in sync (the sample-app pattern)

If you want the kit's ThemeService toggle (§4b) AND the SDK-level CometChatUIKit.themeMode (§4a) to stay aligned, wrap the kit service and mirror its signal — this is exactly what the v5 sample app does:

import { Injectable, inject, effect } from "@angular/core";
import { ThemeService as UIKitThemeService, CometChatUIKit } from "@cometchat/chat-uikit-angular";

@Injectable({ providedIn: "root" })
export class AppThemeService {
  private uiKitTheme = inject(UIKitThemeService);
  readonly currentTheme = this.uiKitTheme.currentTheme;          // re-expose for templates
  private sync = effect(() => { CometChatUIKit.themeMode = this.uiKitTheme.currentTheme(); },
                        { allowSignalWrites: true });
  setTheme(t: "light" | "dark") { this.uiKitTheme.setTheme(t); }
  toggleTheme() { this.uiKitTheme.toggleTheme(); }
}

Inject AppThemeService (not the kit one directly) so the SDK-sync side-effect always fires.

4c. Your own dark token overrides (CSS)

OS-driven:

@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
  :root {
    --cometchat-primary-color: #A594F3;
    --cometchat-background-color-01: #1A1A2E;
    --cometchat-text-color-primary: #E0E0E0;
  }
}

App-controlled (scope to whatever ThemeService/your toggle writes on <html>, e.g. data-theme="dark"):

[data-theme="dark"] {
  --cometchat-primary-color: #A594F3;
  --cometchat-background-color-01: #1A1A2E;
  --cometchat-text-color-primary: #E0E0E0;
}

Don't ship both OS-driven and app-toggle dark overrides unless the user explicitly wants the hybrid.

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5. The --cometchat-* token reference

Shared web-kit tokens (same names as the React kit). Set in src/styles.css. Do not invent names — query the docs MCP or read the kit's bundled css-variables.css.

Variable	Controls
--cometchat-primary-color	Outgoing bubble, primary buttons, active tab, accents
--cometchat-primary-color-hover	Hover of primary elements
--cometchat-text-color-primary	Main body text
--cometchat-text-color-secondary	Timestamps, muted labels
--cometchat-text-color-tertiary	Placeholders
--cometchat-background-color-01	Main app background
--cometchat-background-color-02	Panels (list, details sidebar)
--cometchat-background-color-03	Hover / selected states
--cometchat-icon-color-primary / -secondary	Icon tints
--cometchat-border-color-default / -light	Borders, dividers
--cometchat-font-family	All text
--cometchat-radius-1 / -2 / -3 / -max	Corner radii (-max = 999px circular)

Palette scales (the real brand-swap surface — verified present in the Angular kit): --cometchat-neutral-color-50 … -900 (greys: surfaces, borders, disabled; -300 is the incoming message-bubble body) and --cometchat-extended-primary-color-50 … -900 (the brand-color tints/shades the kit derives for hovers, badges, selected states — set these alongside --cometchat-primary-color for a full re-skin). Plus semantic --cometchat-error-color / -info-color / -success-color / -warning-color.

For the full 200+ list, query the docs MCP (§9).

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6. Preset themes

Write the values into src/styles.css as a :root block.

Preset	primary-color	text-color-primary	background-color-01	font-family	radius-2
slack	#611f69	#1d1c1d	#ffffff	Lato, sans-serif	8px
whatsapp	#25d366	#111b21	#f0f2f5	'Segoe UI', sans-serif	12px
imessage	#007aff	#000000	#ffffff	-apple-system, sans-serif	18px
discord (dark)	#5865f2	#dcddde	#36393f	'gg sans', sans-serif	8px
notion	#2eaadc	#37352f	#ffffff	-apple-system, sans-serif	6px

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7. Recipes

Recipe 1 — brand color (most common):

:root { --cometchat-primary-color: #FF6B35; --cometchat-primary-color-hover: #E85D2C; }

One token recolors the outgoing bubble, send button, active tab, and every primary accent.

Recipe 2 — brand + dark toggle: wire ThemeService (§4b — optionally the themeMode-syncing wrapper in §4d) + :root light tokens + [data-theme="dark"] overrides (§4c). The toggle flips <html data-theme>; your [data-theme="dark"] block recolors the kit.

Recipe 3 — custom bubble colors (class-level, not tokens; needs ::ng-deep; class names aren't version-stable — verify in DevTools). Prefer overriding the bubble's CSS variable inside the __body selector over a raw background (keeps the rest of the bubble styling intact; incoming bubbles read --cometchat-neutral-color-300):

/* outgoing — override the var the body reads */
:host ::ng-deep .cometchat-message-bubble-outgoing .cometchat-message-bubble__body { --cometchat-primary-color: #FF6B35; }
/* incoming — neutral-300 is the incoming body token */
:host ::ng-deep .cometchat-message-bubble-incoming .cometchat-message-bubble__body { --cometchat-neutral-color-300: #E8E8E8; }

Per-message-TYPE bubbles (style one type only — chain the type class onto __body). The Angular kit spells these correctly (unlike the React kit): __text-message, __image-message, __video-message, __audio-message, __file-message, __document-message, __poll-message, __sticker-message, __meeting-message, __whiteboard-message, __delete-message, __group-message; plus the non-directional .cometchat-action-bubble.

:host ::ng-deep .cometchat-message-bubble-outgoing .cometchat-message-bubble__body.cometchat-message-bubble__text-message { border-radius: 16px 16px 4px 16px; }

Recipe 4 — custom font: :root { --cometchat-font-family: "Inter", sans-serif; }

Recipe 5 — rounded corners: :root { --cometchat-radius-2: 12px; --cometchat-radius-max: 999px; }

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Localization

To translate the UI, switch the active language, or override individual strings, route to the dedicated cometchat-i18n skill — the canonical cross-family localization reference. Angular v5 uses CometChatLocalize.init({ language }) + setCurrentLanguage(...) / getLocalizedString(key) / addTranslation({...}) (the object signature, not the v4 positional init("es") form). cometchat-i18n covers bundled languages, custom strings, RTL, and date/time formatting.

Sound Manager — custom notification & call sounds

Sounds are a behavioral customization (not CSS) — driven by CometChatSoundManager, a helper class with static methods. The UI Kit plays the built-in cues automatically; use this to override a cue with your own audio. Sound is a frozen object ON the class (CometChatSoundManager.Sound), not a separate export. (Docs: ui-kit/angular/sound-manager.)

import { CometChatSoundManager } from "@cometchat/chat-uikit-angular";

// Play a default cue — keys: incomingCall | outgoingCall | incomingMessage
//                              | incomingMessageFromOther | outgoingMessage
CometChatSoundManager.play(CometChatSoundManager.Sound.incomingCall);

// Override a cue with your own audio (2nd arg = custom URL/asset path)
CometChatSoundManager.play(CometChatSoundManager.Sound.incomingMessage, 'assets/sounds/ping.mp3');

// Per-event helpers (call versions loop until pause); then stop:
CometChatSoundManager.onIncomingCall();
CometChatSoundManager.pause();

8. Anti-patterns

1. Don't use CometChatThemeService — phantom in v5. Theme via CSS variables + CometChatUIKit.themeMode / ThemeService.
2. Don't call theme.palette.setMode()/setPrimary() — phantom v4 APIs.
3. Don't construct *Style objects (new ConversationsStyle({...}), etc.) — pattern + @cometchat/uikit-shared gone in v5. Use CSS variables / scoped CSS.
4. Don't put component-scoped overrides in encapsulated component CSS and expect them to hit the kit — use global styles.css, :host ::ng-deep, or ViewEncapsulation.None (§3).
5. Don't invent --cometchat-* names — a misspelled token silently does nothing.
6. Don't rely on memorized kit CSS class names for component-level overrides (Recipe 3) — verify in DevTools per version.
7. Don't edit node_modules — override in your own stylesheet so it survives reinstalls.

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9. Docs MCP (recommended)

claude mcp add --transport http cometchat-docs https://www.cometchat.com/docs/mcp

For the full 200+ token list + component CSS selectors. Per-version exact tokens ship in node_modules/@cometchat/chat-uikit-angular/styles/css-variables.css (verified v5.0.2: tokens live under a :root block, with the kit's own dark overrides under [data-theme="dark"]). CometChatUIKit.themeMode (static get/set), ThemeService, and CometChatSoundManager are all confirmed in the bundled .d.ts.

Skill routing

• cometchat-angular-core — init/login/standalone
• cometchat-angular-components — selectors, inputs/outputs, slots
• cometchat-angular-customization — slot views, formatters, templates, events
• cometchat-angular-troubleshooting — colors not applying / encapsulation issues