Allow customisation of user message background colour in conversation view
Feature Request
What: Allow users to customise the background highlight colour behind their sent messages in the Claude Code conversation view.
Current behaviour: User messages are displayed with a hardcoded #373737 background. This colour cannot be changed through any configuration — not via settings.json, Ghostty palette, or tmux settings.
Why it matters: The user message background is the primary visual anchor for scanning back through a conversation to find where you last spoke. A configurable colour would let users:
- Pick a colour with better contrast against their terminal theme
- Match their personal colour scheme / aesthetic
- Improve readability for accessibility needs
Suggested approach: A theme key in ~/.claude/settings.json, e.g.:
{
"theme": {
"userMessageBackground": "#2d1f3d"
}
}
Alternatively, mapping it to an ANSI palette index so terminal theme authors can control it via their palette would also work.
Environment: macOS, Ghostty terminal, tmux, Claude Code CLI.
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