diff --git a/src/app/layout.tsx b/src/app/layout.tsx
index fb9d007..031f4e9 100644
--- a/src/app/layout.tsx
+++ b/src/app/layout.tsx
@@ -1,6 +1,15 @@
 import type { Metadata } from "next";
+import { Inter } from "next/font/google";
+
+import { ThemeScript } from "@/components/theme/theme-script";
 import "./globals.css";
 
+const inter = Inter({
+  subsets: ["latin"],
+  variable: "--font-inter",
+  display: "swap",
+});
+
 export const metadata: Metadata = {
   title: "Client Board",
   description: "Project tracking for client work",
@@ -10,7 +19,12 @@ export default function RootLayout({
   children,
 }: Readonly<{ children: React.ReactNode }>) {
   return (
-    <html lang="en">
+    // suppressHydrationWarning: ThemeScript mutates the class on <html> before
+    // React hydrates, so server and client markup differ here by design.
+    <html lang="en" className={inter.variable} suppressHydrationWarning>
+      <head>
+        <ThemeScript />
+      </head>
       <body>{children}</body>
     </html>
   );
diff --git a/src/components/theme/theme-script.tsx b/src/components/theme/theme-script.tsx
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..aa8d4c2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/components/theme/theme-script.tsx
@@ -0,0 +1,23 @@
+/**
+ * Applies the stored theme before first paint.
+ *
+ * This has to be a blocking inline script in <head>. A React effect runs after
+ * hydration, by which point the browser has already painted the default theme
+ * and the user sees a white flash on every navigation to a dark board. There
+ * is no way to fix that from inside React.
+ */
+const SCRIPT = `
+(function () {
+  try {
+    var stored = localStorage.getItem('theme');
+    var prefersDark = window.matchMedia('(prefers-color-scheme: dark)').matches;
+    var dark = stored === 'dark' || (stored !== 'light' && prefersDark);
+    document.documentElement.classList.toggle('dark', dark);
+    document.documentElement.style.colorScheme = dark ? 'dark' : 'light';
+  } catch (e) {}
+})();
+`;
+
+export function ThemeScript() {
+  return <script dangerouslySetInnerHTML={{ __html: SCRIPT }} />;
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/components/theme/theme-toggle.tsx b/src/components/theme/theme-toggle.tsx
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8820354
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/components/theme/theme-toggle.tsx
@@ -0,0 +1,60 @@
+"use client";
+
+import { useEffect, useState } from "react";
+
+type Theme = "light" | "dark" | "system";
+
+function apply(theme: Theme) {
+  const prefersDark = window.matchMedia("(prefers-color-scheme: dark)").matches;
+  const dark = theme === "dark" || (theme === "system" && prefersDark);
+
+  document.documentElement.classList.toggle("dark", dark);
+  document.documentElement.style.colorScheme = dark ? "dark" : "light";
+
+  if (theme === "system") localStorage.removeItem("theme");
+  else localStorage.setItem("theme", theme);
+}
+
+const OPTIONS: Array<{ value: Theme; label: string }> = [
+  { value: "light", label: "Light" },
+  { value: "system", label: "Auto" },
+  { value: "dark", label: "Dark" },
+];
+
+export function ThemeToggle() {
+  const [theme, setTheme] = useState<Theme>("system");
+
+  useEffect(() => {
+    const stored = localStorage.getItem("theme");
+    if (stored === "light" || stored === "dark") setTheme(stored);
+  }, []);
+
+  function choose(next: Theme) {
+    setTheme(next);
+    apply(next);
+  }
+
+  return (
+    <div
+      role="radiogroup"
+      aria-label="Colour theme"
+      className="inline-flex rounded-lg border border-border-subtle bg-surface p-0.5"
+    >
+      {OPTIONS.map((option) => (
+        <button
+          key={option.value}
+          role="radio"
+          aria-checked={theme === option.value}
+          onClick={() => choose(option.value)}
+          className={`rounded-md px-2.5 py-1 text-xs font-medium transition-colors ${
+            theme === option.value
+              ? "bg-panel text-text-primary shadow-[var(--shadow-tile)]"
+              : "text-text-muted hover:text-text-secondary"
+          }`}
+        >
+          {option.label}
+        </button>
+      ))}
+    </div>
+  );
+}
\ No newline at end of file