diff --git a/bin/omarchy-dev-theme-preview b/bin/omarchy-dev-theme-preview
index 324cd69d..3c6c14bc 100755
--- a/bin/omarchy-dev-theme-preview
+++ b/bin/omarchy-dev-theme-preview
@@ -84,40 +84,38 @@ resolve_colors_file() {
   fi
 }
 
-clean_toml_value() {
-  local value="$1"
+omarchy_tool() {
+  local tool="$1"
+  shift
 
-  value="${value#*[\"\']}"
-  value="${value%%[\"\']*}"
-  printf '%s' "$value"
+  if [[ -x $OMARCHY_PATH/bin/$tool ]]; then
+    "$OMARCHY_PATH/bin/$tool" "$@"
+  else
+    "$tool" "$@"
+  fi
 }
 
 load_colors() {
   local colors_file="$1"
   local key value
+  local -A resolved=()
 
-  while IFS='=' read -r key value; do
-    key="${key//[\"\' ]/}"
-    [[ $key && $key != \#* ]] || continue
-    value=$(clean_toml_value "$value")
-    COLORS[$key]="$value"
-  done <"$colors_file"
+  while IFS=$'\t' read -r key value; do
+    resolved[$key]="$value"
+  done < <(omarchy_tool omarchy-theme-color --file "$colors_file" --all)
 
-  # Legacy semantic names win when present so older themes keep their intended
-  # primary text/background colors even if they also had dimmer fg/bg slots.
-  [[ ${COLORS[background]} ]] && COLORS[bg]="${COLORS[background]}"
-  [[ ${COLORS[foreground]} ]] && COLORS[fg]="${COLORS[foreground]}"
-  [[ ${COLORS[bg]} ]] || COLORS[bg]="${COLORS[color0]}"
-  [[ ${COLORS[fg]} ]] || COLORS[fg]="${COLORS[color7]}"
-  [[ ${COLORS[light_fg]} ]] || COLORS[light_fg]="${COLORS[color7]:-${COLORS[fg]}}"
-  [[ ${COLORS[bright_fg]} ]] || COLORS[bright_fg]="${COLORS[color15]:-${COLORS[fg]}}"
-  [[ ${COLORS[selection_background]} ]] || COLORS[selection_background]="${COLORS[selection]}"
-  [[ ${COLORS[selection_foreground]} ]] || COLORS[selection_foreground]="${COLORS[bright_fg]}"
+  # Preview the palette the theme itself defines, at canonically resolved values.
+  while IFS=$'\t' read -r key value; do
+    COLORS[$key]="${resolved[$key]:-}"
+  done < <(omarchy_tool omarchy-theme-color --file "$colors_file" --raw)
 
-  if hex_valid "${COLORS[bg]}"; then
-    [[ ${COLORS[dark_bg]} ]] || COLORS[dark_bg]=$(mix_hex "${COLORS[bg]}" "#000000" 1 4)
-    [[ ${COLORS[darker_bg]} ]] || COLORS[darker_bg]=$(mix_hex "${COLORS[bg]}" "#000000" 1 2)
-  fi
+  # Plus the core slots every theme resolves, so sparse and legacy themes
+  # still render a complete preview.
+  for key in mode bg fg light_fg bright_fg selection_background selection_foreground dark_bg darker_bg; do
+    [[ -n ${resolved[$key]:-} ]] && COLORS[$key]="${resolved[$key]}"
+  done
+
+  return 0
 }
 
 hex_parts() {
@@ -188,11 +186,7 @@ apply_terminal_osc() {
       ;;
   esac
 
-  if [[ -x $OMARCHY_PATH/bin/omarchy-theme-osc ]]; then
-    "$OMARCHY_PATH/bin/omarchy-theme-osc" "$colors_file" || true
-  else
-    omarchy-theme-osc "$colors_file" || true
-  fi
+  omarchy_tool omarchy-theme-osc "$colors_file" || true
 }
 
 swatch() {
@@ -415,15 +409,7 @@ fi
 
 load_colors "$colors_file"
 
-mode="${COLORS[mode]}"
-if [[ -z $mode && ${COLORS[bg]} =~ ^#[0-9A-Fa-f]{6}$ ]]; then
-  if (( $(luma_sum "${COLORS[bg]}") > 1275000 )); then
-    mode="light"
-  else
-    mode="dark"
-  fi
-fi
-[[ -n $mode ]] || mode="dark"
+mode="${COLORS[mode]:-dark}"
 
 theme_label="$THEME_REF"
 if [[ -z $theme_label ]]; then
diff --git a/bin/omarchy-theme-color b/bin/omarchy-theme-color
new file mode 100755
index 00000000..fdc08e0c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/bin/omarchy-theme-color
@@ -0,0 +1,270 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+
+# omarchy:summary=Resolve semantic colors from an Omarchy theme colors.toml
+# omarchy:args=[--file <colors.toml>] (--all | --raw | <key> [fallback])
+# omarchy:hidden=true
+
+# Shared colors.toml parser/resolver. The alias/fallback cascade mirrors what
+# omarchy-theme-set-templates bakes into the generated configs at theme-set
+# time, so every consumer (templates, OSC sequences, tmux, GNOME, previews)
+# resolves the exact same palette.
+#
+#   --all            print every resolved key<TAB>value pair (sorted by key)
+#   --raw            print only the key<TAB>value pairs defined in the file
+#   <key> [fallback] print one resolved value; the fallback is tried as
+#                    another palette key first, then used verbatim
+#
+# Theme mode precedence: `mode` key, legacy `theme_type` key, a light.mode
+# file beside the colors.toml, background luminance auto-detect, dark.
+
+COLORS_FILE="$HOME/.local/state/omarchy/current/theme/colors.toml"
+OUTPUT=""
+QUERY_KEY=""
+QUERY_FALLBACK=""
+
+usage() {
+  echo "Usage: omarchy-theme-color [--file <colors.toml>] (--all | --raw | <key> [fallback])"
+}
+
+while [[ $# -gt 0 ]]; do
+  case "$1" in
+    --file)
+      COLORS_FILE="${2:-}"
+      shift 2
+      ;;
+    --all)
+      OUTPUT="all"
+      shift
+      ;;
+    --raw)
+      OUTPUT="raw"
+      shift
+      ;;
+    -h | --help)
+      usage
+      exit 0
+      ;;
+    *)
+      if [[ -z $QUERY_KEY ]]; then
+        QUERY_KEY="$1"
+      elif [[ -z $QUERY_FALLBACK ]]; then
+        QUERY_FALLBACK="$1"
+      else
+        usage >&2
+        exit 1
+      fi
+      shift
+      ;;
+  esac
+done
+
+if [[ -z $OUTPUT && -z $QUERY_KEY ]] || [[ -n $OUTPUT && -n $QUERY_KEY ]]; then
+  usage >&2
+  exit 1
+fi
+
+COLORS_DIR=$(dirname "$COLORS_FILE")
+
+declare -A THEME_COLORS
+
+# Mix two hex colors. Amount may be a fraction (0.30) or percentage (30%).
+mix_color() {
+  local start="${1#\#}"
+  local end="${2#\#}"
+  local amount="$3"
+
+  awk -v start="$start" -v end="$end" -v amount="$amount" '
+    function hex_value(char) {
+      return index("0123456789abcdef", tolower(char)) - 1
+    }
+
+    function hex_pair_to_int(hex, idx) {
+      return hex_value(substr(hex, idx, 1)) * 16 + hex_value(substr(hex, idx + 1, 1))
+    }
+
+    BEGIN {
+      if (amount ~ /%$/) {
+        sub(/%$/, "", amount)
+        amount = amount / 100
+      } else {
+        amount += 0
+        if (amount > 1) amount = amount / 100
+      }
+
+      if (amount < 0) amount = 0
+      if (amount > 1) amount = 1
+
+      start_r = hex_pair_to_int(start, 1)
+      start_g = hex_pair_to_int(start, 3)
+      start_b = hex_pair_to_int(start, 5)
+      end_r = hex_pair_to_int(end, 1)
+      end_g = hex_pair_to_int(end, 3)
+      end_b = hex_pair_to_int(end, 5)
+
+      red = int(start_r * (1 - amount) + end_r * amount + 0.5)
+      green = int(start_g * (1 - amount) + end_g * amount + 0.5)
+      blue = int(start_b * (1 - amount) + end_b * amount + 0.5)
+
+      printf "#%02x%02x%02x\n", red, green, blue
+    }
+  '
+}
+
+alias_theme_color() {
+  local key="$1"
+  local fallback="$2"
+
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[$key]} ]] || THEME_COLORS[$key]="${THEME_COLORS[$fallback]}"
+}
+
+resolve_theme_mode() {
+  local bg_hex lum
+
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[mode]} ]] || THEME_COLORS[mode]="${THEME_COLORS[theme_type]}"
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[mode]} ]] && return
+
+  if [[ -f $COLORS_DIR/light.mode ]]; then
+    THEME_COLORS[mode]="light"
+  elif [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bg]} =~ ^#[0-9A-Fa-f]{6}$ ]]; then
+    bg_hex="${THEME_COLORS[bg]#\#}"
+    lum=$(( $(printf "%d" "0x${bg_hex:0:2}") + $(printf "%d" "0x${bg_hex:2:2}") + $(printf "%d" "0x${bg_hex:4:2}") ))
+    (( lum > 382 )) && THEME_COLORS[mode]="light" || THEME_COLORS[mode]="dark"
+  else
+    THEME_COLORS[mode]="dark"
+  fi
+}
+
+parse_colors_file() {
+  local key value
+
+  [[ -f $COLORS_FILE ]] || return 0
+
+  while IFS='=' read -r key value; do
+    key="${key//[\"\' ]/}"                # strip quotes and spaces from key
+    [[ $key && $key != \#* ]] || continue # skip empty lines and comments
+
+    if [[ $value == *[\"\']* ]]; then
+      value="${value#*[\"\']}"
+      value="${value%%[\"\']*}" # extract value between quotes (ignores inline comments)
+    else
+      value="${value#"${value%%[![:space:]]*}"}"
+      value="${value%"${value##*[![:space:]]}"}" # trim unquoted values
+    fi
+
+    THEME_COLORS[$key]="$value"
+    [[ $OUTPUT == "raw" ]] && printf '%s\t%s\n' "$key" "$value"
+  done <"$COLORS_FILE"
+
+  return 0
+}
+
+resolve_theme_colors() {
+  local key
+
+  # Canonical palette keys are bg/fg. Preserve older themes that still define
+  # background/foreground by treating those semantic values as the source of
+  # truth, then expose the old names as aliases for legacy consumers.
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[background]} ]] && THEME_COLORS[bg]="${THEME_COLORS[background]}"
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[foreground]} ]] && THEME_COLORS[fg]="${THEME_COLORS[foreground]}"
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bg]} ]] || THEME_COLORS[bg]="${THEME_COLORS[color0]}"
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[fg]} ]] || THEME_COLORS[fg]="${THEME_COLORS[color7]}"
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bg]} ]] && THEME_COLORS[background]="${THEME_COLORS[bg]}"
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[fg]} ]] && THEME_COLORS[foreground]="${THEME_COLORS[fg]}"
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bg]} ]] && THEME_COLORS[color0]="${THEME_COLORS[bg]}"
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[fg]} ]] && THEME_COLORS[color7]="${THEME_COLORS[fg]}"
+
+  # Legacy compatibility: map ANSI color0..color15 to semantic names.
+  declare -A legacy_alias=(
+    [red]=color1
+    [green]=color2
+    [yellow]=color3
+    [blue]=color4
+    [magenta]=color5
+    [cyan]=color6
+    [bright_red]=color9
+    [bright_green]=color10
+    [bright_yellow]=color11
+    [bright_blue]=color12
+    [bright_magenta]=color13
+    [bright_cyan]=color14
+  )
+  for key in "${!legacy_alias[@]}"; do
+    alias_theme_color "$key" "${legacy_alias[$key]}"
+  done
+  alias_theme_color magenta purple
+  alias_theme_color bright_magenta bright_purple
+
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[light_fg]} ]]   || THEME_COLORS[light_fg]="${THEME_COLORS[color7]:-${THEME_COLORS[fg]}}"
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bright_fg]} ]]  || THEME_COLORS[bright_fg]="${THEME_COLORS[color15]:-${THEME_COLORS[fg]}}"
+  THEME_COLORS[cursor]="${THEME_COLORS[bright_fg]}"
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[lighter_bg]} ]] || THEME_COLORS[lighter_bg]="${THEME_COLORS[color0]:-${THEME_COLORS[bg]}}"
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[dark_fg]} ]]    || THEME_COLORS[dark_fg]="${THEME_COLORS[color8]:-${THEME_COLORS[fg]}}"
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[muted]} ]]      || THEME_COLORS[muted]="${THEME_COLORS[color8]:-${THEME_COLORS[dark_fg]}}"
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[selection]} ]]            || THEME_COLORS[selection]="${THEME_COLORS[selection_background]:-${THEME_COLORS[color8]:-${THEME_COLORS[color0]:-${THEME_COLORS[bg]}}}}"
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[selection_background]} ]] || THEME_COLORS[selection_background]="${THEME_COLORS[selection]}"
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[selection_foreground]} ]] || THEME_COLORS[selection_foreground]="${THEME_COLORS[bright_fg]}"
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[orange]} ]]               || THEME_COLORS[orange]="${THEME_COLORS[yellow]}"
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[brown]} ]]      || THEME_COLORS[brown]=$(mix_color "${THEME_COLORS[orange]}" "#000000" 50%)
+
+  # Auto-derive shades from base accents when not defined and not aliased from colorN
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[dark_bg]} ]]       || THEME_COLORS[dark_bg]=$(mix_color "${THEME_COLORS[bg]}" "#000000" 25%)
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[darker_bg]} ]]     || THEME_COLORS[darker_bg]=$(mix_color "${THEME_COLORS[bg]}" "#000000" 50%)
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bright_red]} ]]    || THEME_COLORS[bright_red]=$(mix_color "${THEME_COLORS[red]}" "#ffffff" 20%)
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bright_yellow]} ]] || THEME_COLORS[bright_yellow]=$(mix_color "${THEME_COLORS[yellow]}" "#ffffff" 20%)
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bright_green]} ]]  || THEME_COLORS[bright_green]=$(mix_color "${THEME_COLORS[green]}" "#ffffff" 20%)
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bright_cyan]} ]]   || THEME_COLORS[bright_cyan]=$(mix_color "${THEME_COLORS[cyan]}" "#ffffff" 20%)
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bright_blue]} ]]   || THEME_COLORS[bright_blue]=$(mix_color "${THEME_COLORS[blue]}" "#ffffff" 20%)
+  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bright_magenta]} ]] || THEME_COLORS[bright_magenta]=$(mix_color "${THEME_COLORS[magenta]}" "#ffffff" 20%)
+  alias_theme_color purple magenta
+  alias_theme_color bright_purple bright_magenta
+
+  # Keep semantic themes compatible with consumers that still reference the
+  # legacy ANSI names directly.
+  declare -A ansi_alias=(
+    [color0]=bg
+    [color1]=red
+    [color2]=green
+    [color3]=yellow
+    [color4]=blue
+    [color5]=magenta
+    [color6]=cyan
+    [color7]=fg
+    [color8]=muted
+    [color9]=bright_red
+    [color10]=bright_green
+    [color11]=bright_yellow
+    [color12]=bright_blue
+    [color13]=bright_magenta
+    [color14]=bright_cyan
+    [color15]=bright_fg
+  )
+  for key in "${!ansi_alias[@]}"; do
+    alias_theme_color "$key" "${ansi_alias[$key]}"
+  done
+
+  resolve_theme_mode
+  THEME_COLORS[theme_type]="${THEME_COLORS[mode]}"
+}
+
+parse_colors_file
+
+if [[ $OUTPUT == "raw" ]]; then
+  exit 0
+fi
+
+resolve_theme_colors
+
+if [[ $OUTPUT == "all" ]]; then
+  while IFS= read -r key; do
+    printf '%s\t%s\n' "$key" "${THEME_COLORS[$key]}"
+  done < <(printf '%s\n' "${!THEME_COLORS[@]}" | LC_ALL=C sort)
+  exit 0
+fi
+
+value="${THEME_COLORS[$QUERY_KEY]:-}"
+if [[ -z $value && -n $QUERY_FALLBACK ]]; then
+  value="${THEME_COLORS[$QUERY_FALLBACK]:-$QUERY_FALLBACK}"
+fi
+
+[[ -n $value ]] || exit 1
+printf '%s\n' "$value"
diff --git a/bin/omarchy-theme-osc b/bin/omarchy-theme-osc
index 05156885..04fe6c39 100755
--- a/bin/omarchy-theme-osc
+++ b/bin/omarchy-theme-osc
@@ -7,84 +7,27 @@ theme="${1:-$HOME/.local/state/omarchy/current/theme/colors.toml}"
 
 [[ -f $theme ]] || exit 0
 
-awk -F= '
-  function clean(value) {
-    gsub(/^[[:space:]]+|[[:space:]]+$/, "", value)
-    if (value ~ /^"/) {
-      sub(/^"/, "", value)
-      sub(/".*$/, "", value)
-    }
-    return value
-  }
+declare -A COLORS
 
-  function alias_color(target, source) {
-    if (colors[target] == "" && colors[source] != "") colors[target] = colors[source]
-  }
+while IFS=$'\t' read -r key value; do
+  COLORS[$key]="$value"
+done < <(omarchy-theme-color --file "$theme" --all)
 
-  function emit_color(color_index, key) {
-    if (colors[key] != "") printf "\033]4;%d;%s\007", color_index, colors[key]
-  }
+emit_osc() {
+  local code="$1"
+  local key="$2"
 
-  {
-    key = $1
-    gsub(/^[[:space:]]+|[[:space:]]+$/, "", key)
-    value = clean($2)
-    colors[key] = value
-  }
+  [[ -n ${COLORS[$key]:-} ]] || return 0
+  printf '\033]%s;%s\007' "$code" "${COLORS[$key]}"
+}
 
-  END {
-    if (colors["background"] != "") colors["bg"] = colors["background"]
-    if (colors["foreground"] != "") colors["fg"] = colors["foreground"]
-    if (colors["bg"] != "") colors["background"] = colors["bg"]
-    if (colors["fg"] != "") colors["foreground"] = colors["fg"]
-    if (colors["bg"] != "") colors["color0"] = colors["bg"]
-    if (colors["fg"] != "") colors["color7"] = colors["fg"]
+emit_osc 10 foreground
+emit_osc 11 background
+emit_osc 12 cursor
+emit_osc 17 selection_background
+emit_osc 19 selection_foreground
 
-    alias_color("color0", "bg")
-    alias_color("color0", "background")
-    alias_color("color1", "red")
-    alias_color("color2", "green")
-    alias_color("color3", "yellow")
-    alias_color("color4", "blue")
-    alias_color("color5", "magenta")
-    alias_color("color5", "purple")
-    alias_color("color6", "cyan")
-    alias_color("color7", "fg")
-    alias_color("color7", "foreground")
-    alias_color("color8", "muted")
-    alias_color("color8", "dark_fg")
-    alias_color("color8", "foreground")
-    alias_color("color9", "bright_red")
-    alias_color("color9", "red")
-    alias_color("color10", "bright_green")
-    alias_color("color10", "green")
-    alias_color("color11", "bright_yellow")
-    alias_color("color11", "yellow")
-    alias_color("color12", "bright_blue")
-    alias_color("color12", "blue")
-    alias_color("color13", "bright_magenta")
-    alias_color("color13", "bright_purple")
-    alias_color("color13", "magenta")
-    alias_color("color13", "purple")
-    alias_color("color14", "bright_cyan")
-    alias_color("color14", "cyan")
-    alias_color("color15", "bright_fg")
-    alias_color("color15", "foreground")
-    alias_color("light_fg", "color7")
-    alias_color("light_fg", "fg")
-    alias_color("bright_fg", "color15")
-    alias_color("bright_fg", "fg")
-    if (colors["bright_fg"] != "") colors["cursor"] = colors["bright_fg"]
-
-    if (colors["selection_background"] == "" && colors["selection"] != "") colors["selection_background"] = colors["selection"]
-    if (colors["selection_foreground"] == "") colors["selection_foreground"] = colors["bright_fg"]
-
-    if (colors["foreground"] != "") printf "\033]10;%s\007", colors["foreground"]
-    if (colors["background"] != "") printf "\033]11;%s\007", colors["background"]
-    if (colors["cursor"] != "") printf "\033]12;%s\007", colors["cursor"]
-    if (colors["selection_background"] != "") printf "\033]17;%s\007", colors["selection_background"]
-    if (colors["selection_foreground"] != "") printf "\033]19;%s\007", colors["selection_foreground"]
-
-    for (i = 0; i <= 15; i++) emit_color(i, "color" i)
-  }
-' "$theme"
+for i in {0..15}; do
+  [[ -n ${COLORS[color$i]:-} ]] || continue
+  printf '\033]4;%d;%s\007' "$i" "${COLORS[color$i]}"
+done
diff --git a/bin/omarchy-theme-set-gnome b/bin/omarchy-theme-set-gnome
index 1d9708b9..ca298ffb 100755
--- a/bin/omarchy-theme-set-gnome
+++ b/bin/omarchy-theme-set-gnome
@@ -13,33 +13,9 @@ fi
 THEME_DIR=$HOME/.local/state/omarchy/current/theme
 COLORS_FILE="$THEME_DIR/colors.toml"
 
-# In-tree light themes now declare `mode = "light"` in colors.toml instead of
-# shipping a separate light.mode marker. Keep light.mode as a user-theme fallback.
-theme_mode() {
-  [[ -f $COLORS_FILE ]] || return
-
-  awk -F= '
-    {
-      field = $1
-      gsub(/^[[:space:]]+|[[:space:]]+$/, "", field)
-      if (field == "mode") {
-        value = $2
-        gsub(/^[[:space:]]+|[[:space:]]+$/, "", value)
-        if (value ~ /^"/) {
-          sub(/^"/, "", value)
-          sub(/".*$/, "", value)
-        }
-        print value
-        exit
-      }
-    }
-  ' "$COLORS_FILE"
-}
-
-mode=$(theme_mode)
-if [[ -z $mode && -f $THEME_DIR/light.mode ]]; then
-  mode="light"
-fi
+# omarchy-theme-color resolves mode from colors.toml (`mode = "light"`), a
+# legacy light.mode marker beside it, or background luminance for user themes.
+mode=$(omarchy-theme-color --file "$COLORS_FILE" mode)
 
 if [[ $mode == "light" ]]; then
   gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.interface color-scheme "prefer-light"
diff --git a/bin/omarchy-theme-set-templates b/bin/omarchy-theme-set-templates
index 06069845..de4d5991 100755
--- a/bin/omarchy-theme-set-templates
+++ b/bin/omarchy-theme-set-templates
@@ -367,30 +367,6 @@ apply_shell_section_overrides() {
   done
 }
 
-alias_theme_color() {
-  local key="$1"
-  local fallback="$2"
-
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[$key]} ]] || THEME_COLORS[$key]="${THEME_COLORS[$fallback]}"
-}
-
-resolve_theme_mode() {
-  local bg_hex lum
-
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[mode]} ]] || THEME_COLORS[mode]="${THEME_COLORS[theme_type]}"
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[mode]} ]] && return
-
-  if [[ -f $NEXT_THEME_DIR/light.mode ]]; then
-    THEME_COLORS[mode]="light"
-  elif [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bg]} =~ ^#[0-9A-Fa-f]{6}$ ]]; then
-    bg_hex="${THEME_COLORS[bg]#\#}"
-    lum=$(( $(printf "%d" "0x${bg_hex:0:2}") + $(printf "%d" "0x${bg_hex:2:2}") + $(printf "%d" "0x${bg_hex:4:2}") ))
-    (( lum > 382 )) && THEME_COLORS[mode]="light" || THEME_COLORS[mode]="dark"
-  else
-    THEME_COLORS[mode]="dark"
-  fi
-}
-
 # Only generate dynamic templates for themes with a colors.toml definition
 if [[ -f $COLORS_FILE ]]; then
   sed_script=$(mktemp)
@@ -398,103 +374,11 @@ if [[ -f $COLORS_FILE ]]; then
   shopt -s nullglob
   template_files=("$USER_TEMPLATES_DIR"/*.tpl "$TEMPLATES_DIR"/*.tpl)
 
-  while IFS='=' read -r key value; do
-    key="${key//[\"\' ]/}"                # strip quotes and spaces from key
-    [[ $key && $key != \#* ]] || continue # skip empty lines and comments
-    value="${value#*[\"\']}"
-    value="${value%%[\"\']*}" # extract value between quotes (ignores inline comments)
-
+  # Parsing and alias/fallback resolution (legacy colorN names, derived
+  # shades, mode/theme_type) is shared with every other colors.toml consumer.
+  while IFS=$'\t' read -r key value; do
     THEME_COLORS[$key]="$value"
-  done <"$COLORS_FILE"
-
-  # Canonical palette keys are bg/fg. Preserve older themes that still define
-  # background/foreground by treating those semantic values as the source of
-  # truth, then expose the old names as template aliases for user templates.
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[background]} ]] && THEME_COLORS[bg]="${THEME_COLORS[background]}"
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[foreground]} ]] && THEME_COLORS[fg]="${THEME_COLORS[foreground]}"
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bg]} ]] || THEME_COLORS[bg]="${THEME_COLORS[color0]}"
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[fg]} ]] || THEME_COLORS[fg]="${THEME_COLORS[color7]}"
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bg]} ]] && THEME_COLORS[background]="${THEME_COLORS[bg]}"
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[fg]} ]] && THEME_COLORS[foreground]="${THEME_COLORS[fg]}"
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bg]} ]] && THEME_COLORS[color0]="${THEME_COLORS[bg]}"
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[fg]} ]] && THEME_COLORS[color7]="${THEME_COLORS[fg]}"
-
-  # Legacy compatibility: map ANSI color0..color15 to semantic names.
-  declare -A legacy_alias=(
-    [red]=color1
-    [green]=color2
-    [yellow]=color3
-    [blue]=color4
-    [magenta]=color5
-    [cyan]=color6
-    [bright_red]=color9
-    [bright_green]=color10
-    [bright_yellow]=color11
-    [bright_blue]=color12
-    [bright_magenta]=color13
-    [bright_cyan]=color14
-  )
-  for key in "${!legacy_alias[@]}"; do
-    alias_theme_color "$key" "${legacy_alias[$key]}"
-  done
-  alias_theme_color magenta purple
-  alias_theme_color bright_magenta bright_purple
-
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[light_fg]} ]]   || THEME_COLORS[light_fg]="${THEME_COLORS[color7]:-${THEME_COLORS[fg]}}"
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bright_fg]} ]]  || THEME_COLORS[bright_fg]="${THEME_COLORS[color15]:-${THEME_COLORS[fg]}}"
-  THEME_COLORS[cursor]="${THEME_COLORS[bright_fg]}"
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[lighter_bg]} ]] || THEME_COLORS[lighter_bg]="${THEME_COLORS[color0]:-${THEME_COLORS[bg]}}"
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[dark_fg]} ]]    || THEME_COLORS[dark_fg]="${THEME_COLORS[color8]:-${THEME_COLORS[fg]}}"
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[muted]} ]]      || THEME_COLORS[muted]="${THEME_COLORS[color8]:-${THEME_COLORS[dark_fg]}}"
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[selection]} ]]            || THEME_COLORS[selection]="${THEME_COLORS[selection_background]:-${THEME_COLORS[color8]:-${THEME_COLORS[color0]:-${THEME_COLORS[bg]}}}}"
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[selection_background]} ]] || THEME_COLORS[selection_background]="${THEME_COLORS[selection]}"
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[selection_foreground]} ]] || THEME_COLORS[selection_foreground]="${THEME_COLORS[bright_fg]}"
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[orange]} ]]               || THEME_COLORS[orange]="${THEME_COLORS[yellow]}"
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[brown]} ]]      || THEME_COLORS[brown]=$(mix_color "${THEME_COLORS[orange]}" "#000000" 50%)
-
-  # Auto-derive shades from base accents when not defined and not aliased from colorN
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[dark_bg]} ]]       || THEME_COLORS[dark_bg]=$(mix_color "${THEME_COLORS[bg]}" "#000000" 25%)
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[darker_bg]} ]]     || THEME_COLORS[darker_bg]=$(mix_color "${THEME_COLORS[bg]}" "#000000" 50%)
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bright_red]} ]]    || THEME_COLORS[bright_red]=$(mix_color "${THEME_COLORS[red]}" "#ffffff" 20%)
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bright_yellow]} ]] || THEME_COLORS[bright_yellow]=$(mix_color "${THEME_COLORS[yellow]}" "#ffffff" 20%)
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bright_green]} ]]  || THEME_COLORS[bright_green]=$(mix_color "${THEME_COLORS[green]}" "#ffffff" 20%)
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bright_cyan]} ]]   || THEME_COLORS[bright_cyan]=$(mix_color "${THEME_COLORS[cyan]}" "#ffffff" 20%)
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bright_blue]} ]]   || THEME_COLORS[bright_blue]=$(mix_color "${THEME_COLORS[blue]}" "#ffffff" 20%)
-  [[ ${THEME_COLORS[bright_magenta]} ]] || THEME_COLORS[bright_magenta]=$(mix_color "${THEME_COLORS[magenta]}" "#ffffff" 20%)
-  alias_theme_color purple magenta
-  alias_theme_color bright_purple bright_magenta
-
-  # Keep semantic themes compatible with user templates that still reference
-  # the legacy ANSI placeholders directly.
-  declare -A ansi_alias=(
-    [color0]=bg
-    [color1]=red
-    [color2]=green
-    [color3]=yellow
-    [color4]=blue
-    [color5]=magenta
-    [color6]=cyan
-    [color7]=fg
-    [color8]=muted
-    [color9]=bright_red
-    [color10]=bright_green
-    [color11]=bright_yellow
-    [color12]=bright_blue
-    [color13]=bright_magenta
-    [color14]=bright_cyan
-    [color15]=bright_fg
-  )
-  for key in "${!ansi_alias[@]}"; do
-    alias_theme_color "$key" "${ansi_alias[$key]}"
-  done
-
-  # Resolve theme mode (dark|light) with this precedence:
-  #   1. `mode` key in colors.toml
-  #   2. legacy `light.mode` file shipped beside the theme
-  #   3. background luminance auto-detect
-  # `theme_type` is kept as an alias so existing templates ({{ theme_type }}) keep working.
-  resolve_theme_mode
-  THEME_COLORS[theme_type]="${THEME_COLORS[mode]}"
+  done < <(omarchy-theme-color --file "$COLORS_FILE" --all)
 
   for key in "${!THEME_COLORS[@]}"; do
     add_template_value "$key" "${THEME_COLORS[$key]}"
diff --git a/bin/omarchy-theme-set-tmux b/bin/omarchy-theme-set-tmux
index 3765a8ca..07fb6481 100755
--- a/bin/omarchy-theme-set-tmux
+++ b/bin/omarchy-theme-set-tmux
@@ -37,11 +37,10 @@ sync_theme_environment() {
 
 sync_colorfgbg() {
   local colorfgbg="15;0"
-  local mode
 
-  mode=$(theme_color mode)
-
-  if [[ $mode == "light" ]] || [[ -z $mode && -f $CURRENT_THEME_PATH/light.mode ]]; then
+  # theme_color resolves mode from colors.toml, a legacy light.mode file, or
+  # background luminance, so a bare light check covers all theme styles.
+  if [[ $(theme_color mode) == "light" ]]; then
     colorfgbg="0;15"
   fi
 
@@ -53,34 +52,7 @@ theme_osc_sequences() {
 }
 
 theme_color() {
-  local key="$1"
-  local fallback="${2:-}"
-
-  awk -F= -v key="$key" -v fallback="$fallback" '
-    function clean(raw) {
-      gsub(/^[[:space:]]+|[[:space:]]+$/, "", raw)
-      if (raw ~ /^"/) {
-        sub(/^"/, "", raw)
-        sub(/".*$/, "", raw)
-      }
-      return raw
-    }
-
-    {
-      field = $1
-      gsub(/^[[:space:]]+|[[:space:]]+$/, "", field)
-      if (field == key) {
-        print clean($2)
-        found = 1
-        exit
-      }
-      if (fallback != "" && field == fallback) fallback_value = clean($2)
-    }
-
-    END {
-      if (!found && fallback_value != "") print fallback_value
-    }
-  ' "$COLORS_TOML"
+  omarchy-theme-color --file "$COLORS_TOML" "$@"
 }
 
 sync_tmux_window_style() {
@@ -88,8 +60,8 @@ sync_tmux_window_style() {
 
   [[ -f $COLORS_TOML ]] || return
 
-  foreground=$(theme_color foreground fg)
-  background=$(theme_color background bg)
+  foreground=$(theme_color foreground)
+  background=$(theme_color background)
 
   [[ -n $foreground && -n $background ]] || return