diff --git a/mne/viz/backends/_qt.py b/mne/viz/backends/_qt.py
index e98d35778b2..a51b5c3b063 100644
--- a/mne/viz/backends/_qt.py
+++ b/mne/viz/backends/_qt.py
@@ -426,6 +426,7 @@ def _status_bar_initialize(self, window=None):
 
     def _status_bar_add_label(self, value, stretch=0):
         widget = QLabel(value)
+        widget.setStyleSheet("QLabel { color: black; }")
         self._layout_add_widget(self._status_bar_layout, widget, stretch)
         return _QtWidget(widget)