diff --git a/src/__tests__/native/color-scheme.test.tsx b/src/__tests__/native/color-scheme.test.tsx
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..0beced3f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/__tests__/native/color-scheme.test.tsx
@@ -0,0 +1,105 @@
+import {
+  Appearance,
+  type ColorSchemeName as ReactNativeColorSchemeName,
+} from "react-native";
+
+import { act, render, screen } from "@testing-library/react-native";
+import { View } from "react-native-css/components/View";
+import { registerCSS, testID } from "react-native-css/jest";
+import { colorScheme } from "react-native-css/runtime";
+import type { ColorSchemeName } from "react-native-css/runtime.types";
+
+import { setAppearanceColorScheme } from "../../color-scheme";
+
+const mockSetColorScheme = jest.fn();
+
+// `Appearance` reads its native module lazily, so mocking the module is enough to make
+// the writes observable. Without it `TurboModuleRegistry.get('Appearance')` is null
+// under jest and every `setColorScheme` is a silent no-op.
+jest.mock("react-native/Libraries/Utilities/NativeAppearance", () => ({
+  __esModule: true,
+  default: {
+    setColorScheme: (scheme: string) => {
+      mockSetColorScheme(scheme);
+    },
+    // `getColorScheme` feeds react-native's own post-write bookkeeping, which asserts
+    // the value is a resolved scheme or absent.
+    getColorScheme: () => undefined,
+    addListener: () => undefined,
+    removeListeners: () => undefined,
+  },
+}));
+
+/*******************************  Compile plane  ******************************/
+
+type Assert<T extends true> = T;
+type Covers<Actual, Accepted> = [Actual] extends [Accepted] ? true : false;
+
+type AppearanceChangeColorScheme = Parameters<
+  Parameters<typeof Appearance.addChangeListener>[0]
+>[0]["colorScheme"];
+
+/**
+ * `ColorSchemeName` is react-native-css's own union rather than react-native's, because
+ * react-native's changes shape inside this package's peer range: up to 0.85 "follow the
+ * system" is `null | undefined`, from 0.86 it is `"unspecified"`.
+ *
+ * These aliases are read off the installed react-native rather than restating either
+ * spelling, so `yarn typecheck` fails at whichever end of the range the checkout is on
+ * the moment the package stops covering a value react-native hands it.
+ */
+export type CoversReactNativeUnion = Assert<
+  Covers<ReactNativeColorSchemeName, ColorSchemeName>
+>;
+export type CoversAppearanceRead = Assert<
+  Covers<ReturnType<typeof Appearance.getColorScheme>, ColorSchemeName>
+>;
+export type CoversAppearanceEvent = Assert<
+  Covers<AppearanceChangeColorScheme, ColorSchemeName>
+>;
+
+/*******************************  Runtime plane  ******************************/
+
+beforeEach(() => {
+  mockSetColorScheme.mockClear();
+});
+
+test.each([
+  ["light", "light"],
+  ["dark", "dark"],
+  ["unspecified", "unspecified"],
+  [null, "unspecified"],
+  [undefined, "unspecified"],
+] satisfies [ColorSchemeName, string][])(
+  "setAppearanceColorScheme(%p) reaches the native module as %p",
+  (value, expected) => {
+    setAppearanceColorScheme(value);
+
+    expect(mockSetColorScheme).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+    expect(mockSetColorScheme).toHaveBeenCalledWith(expected);
+  },
+);
+
+test("prefers-color-scheme follows the scheme and releases on 'unspecified'", () => {
+  registerCSS(`
+.my-class { color: blue; }
+
+@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
+  .my-class { color: red; }
+}`);
+
+  render(<View testID={testID} className="my-class" />);
+  const component = screen.getByTestId(testID);
+
+  expect(component.props.style).toStrictEqual({ color: "#00f" });
+
+  act(() => {
+    colorScheme.set("dark");
+  });
+  expect(component.props.style).toStrictEqual({ color: "#f00" });
+
+  act(() => {
+    colorScheme.set("unspecified");
+  });
+  expect(component.props.style).toStrictEqual({ color: "#00f" });
+});
diff --git a/src/color-scheme.ts b/src/color-scheme.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..669a595f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/color-scheme.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+import { Appearance } from "react-native";
+
+import type { ColorSchemeName } from "./runtime.types";
+
+/**
+ * `Appearance.setColorScheme` is not declared the same way across the supported
+ * `react-native` range. On 0.81 it takes `"light" | "dark" | null | undefined`; from
+ * 0.82 it takes `"light" | "dark" | "unspecified"` and rejects `null`. The two
+ * parameter types overlap only on `"light" | "dark"`, so no single call can name the
+ * "follow the system" value and type-check on both.
+ *
+ * `"unspecified"` is the value that is right at runtime on every version: 0.82 and
+ * later hand the argument straight to the native module, and 0.81 maps `null` to
+ * `"unspecified"` before doing the same. So only the declaration has to be restated,
+ * and only for the one value the versions disagree about.
+ */
+interface AppearanceColorSchemeReset {
+  setColorScheme: (colorScheme: "unspecified") => void;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Writes a color scheme to `Appearance` in a way that compiles and runs on every
+ * `react-native` this package supports.
+ */
+export function setAppearanceColorScheme(value: ColorSchemeName): void {
+  if (value === "light" || value === "dark") {
+    // Declared identically by every version in the range.
+    Appearance.setColorScheme(value);
+    return;
+  }
+
+  (Appearance as unknown as AppearanceColorSchemeReset).setColorScheme(
+    "unspecified",
+  );
+}
diff --git a/src/jest/index.ts b/src/jest/index.ts
index a8d249f5..1c335f71 100644
--- a/src/jest/index.ts
+++ b/src/jest/index.ts
@@ -1,10 +1,11 @@
-import { Appearance, Dimensions } from "react-native";
+import { Dimensions } from "react-native";
 
 import { inspect } from "node:util";
 
 import { compile, type CompilerOptions } from "react-native-css/compiler";
 import { StyleCollection } from "react-native-css/native";
 
+import { setAppearanceColorScheme } from "../color-scheme";
 import { colorScheme, dimensions } from "../native/reactivity";
 
 declare global {
@@ -21,7 +22,7 @@ export const testID = "react-native-css";
 beforeEach(() => {
   StyleCollection.styles.clear();
   dimensions.set(Dimensions.get("window"));
-  Appearance.setColorScheme("unspecified");
+  setAppearanceColorScheme(null);
   colorScheme.set(null);
 });
 
diff --git a/src/native/reactivity.ts b/src/native/reactivity.ts
index a32ac64d..8cc70c8b 100644
--- a/src/native/reactivity.ts
+++ b/src/native/reactivity.ts
@@ -1,14 +1,11 @@
 /* eslint-disable */
 import { createContext } from "react";
-import {
-  Appearance,
-  Dimensions,
-  type ColorSchemeName,
-  type LayoutRectangle,
-} from "react-native";
+import { Appearance, Dimensions, type LayoutRectangle } from "react-native";
 
 import type { StyleDescriptor } from "react-native-css/compiler";
 
+import type { ColorSchemeName } from "../runtime.types";
+
 export type Effect = {
   observers: Set<Observable<any, any>>;
   run(): void;
diff --git a/src/runtime.types.ts b/src/runtime.types.ts
index 69cab6ca..2ca2726d 100644
--- a/src/runtime.types.ts
+++ b/src/runtime.types.ts
@@ -9,12 +9,7 @@ import type {
   FunctionComponent,
   ReactElement,
 } from "react";
-import type {
-  ColorSchemeName,
-  ImageStyle,
-  TextStyle,
-  ViewStyle,
-} from "react-native";
+import type { ImageStyle, TextStyle, ViewStyle } from "react-native";
 
 import type { DotNotation, ResolveDotPath } from "react-native-css/utilities";
 
@@ -146,6 +141,23 @@ export type RNStyle = ViewStyle & TextStyle & ImageStyle;
 
 /********************************    Globals    ********************************/
 
+/**
+ * A color scheme, plus every spelling of "follow the system" in the supported
+ * `react-native` range.
+ *
+ * This deliberately does not reuse `react-native`'s own `ColorSchemeName`: that type
+ * is not stable across the `react-native` peer range. On 0.81 it is
+ * `"light" | "dark" | null | undefined`; from 0.82 it is
+ * `"light" | "dark" | "unspecified"`. Owning the union keeps `colorScheme` one API
+ * across the whole range, and accepts whichever spelling the installed version emits.
+ */
+export type ColorSchemeName =
+  | "light"
+  | "dark"
+  | "unspecified"
+  | null
+  | undefined;
+
 export interface ColorScheme {
   get: () => ColorSchemeName | null | undefined;
   set: (value: ColorSchemeName | null | undefined) => void;
diff --git a/src/web/api.tsx b/src/web/api.tsx
index 28e09ab8..99bbe38f 100644
--- a/src/web/api.tsx
+++ b/src/web/api.tsx
@@ -13,6 +13,7 @@ import type {
   StyledOptions,
 } from "react-native-css";
 
+import { setAppearanceColorScheme } from "../color-scheme";
 import type { ReactComponent, Styled } from "../runtime.types";
 import { assignStyle } from "./assign-style";
 
@@ -68,7 +69,7 @@ export const colorScheme: ColorScheme = {
     return Appearance.getColorScheme();
   },
   set(name) {
-    Appearance.setColorScheme(name ?? "unspecified");
+    setAppearanceColorScheme(name);
   },
 };