diff --git a/crates/core/src/dialog.rs b/crates/core/src/dialog.rs
index f24d23b..3856ebc 100644
--- a/crates/core/src/dialog.rs
+++ b/crates/core/src/dialog.rs
@@ -130,7 +130,11 @@ impl RenderOnce for Dialog {
             let theme = cx.theme();
             (
                 theme.colors.overlay,
-                theme.colors.border,
+                if theme.borders.overlays {
+                    theme.colors.border
+                } else {
+                    theme.colors.surface
+                },
                 theme.colors.foreground,
                 theme.colors.muted_foreground,
                 theme.colors.surface,
diff --git a/crates/core/src/menu.rs b/crates/core/src/menu.rs
index 1cae710..f6aea86 100644
--- a/crates/core/src/menu.rs
+++ b/crates/core/src/menu.rs
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ use gpui::{
     Entity, InteractiveElement as _, IntoElement, KeyDownEvent, MouseButton, MouseDownEvent,
     ParentElement as _, Pixels, Point, RenderOnce, Role, ScrollHandle, SharedString,
     StatefulInteractiveElement as _, Styled as _, Window, anchored, canvas, deferred, div,
-    ease_out_quint, px, relative,
+    ease_out_quint, point, px, relative,
 };
 use gpui_native_icons::{IconRole, icon as icon_glyph};
 use gpui_native_theme::ActiveTheme as _;
@@ -374,11 +374,11 @@ impl RenderOnce for Menu {
 
             let panel = v_flex()
                 .id("menu-panel")
+                .debug_selector(|| "menu-panel".to_string())
                 .occlude()
                 .track_focus(&focus)
                 .role(Role::Menu)
                 .aria_label(label)
-                .mt_1()
                 .min_w_56()
                 .p(chrome.spacing_unit)
                 .bg(chrome.surface)
@@ -435,7 +435,8 @@ impl RenderOnce for Menu {
             let anchored = match self.open_at {
                 Some(position) => anchored().position(position),
                 None => anchored(),
-            };
+            }
+            .offset(point(px(0.), chrome.spacing_unit));
 
             wrapper = wrapper.child(deferred(anchored.child(panel.with_animation(
                 "menu-enter",
diff --git a/crates/core/src/popover.rs b/crates/core/src/popover.rs
index 97d2be1..bc226f8 100644
--- a/crates/core/src/popover.rs
+++ b/crates/core/src/popover.rs
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ use gpui::{
     Animation, AnimationExt as _, AnyElement, App, Bounds, DispatchPhase, ElementId,
     InteractiveElement as _, IntoElement, KeyDownEvent, MouseButton, MouseDownEvent,
     ParentElement as _, Pixels, RenderOnce, Role, SharedString, StatefulInteractiveElement as _,
-    Styled as _, Window, anchored, canvas, deferred, div, ease_out_quint,
+    Styled as _, Window, anchored, canvas, deferred, div, ease_out_quint, point, px,
 };
 use gpui_native_theme::ActiveTheme as _;
 
@@ -91,13 +91,19 @@ impl Popover {
 
 impl RenderOnce for Popover {
     fn render(self, window: &mut Window, cx: &mut App) -> impl IntoElement {
-        let (colors, radius, shadows, enter_duration) = {
+        let (colors, radius, shadows, enter_duration, panel_border, anchor_gap) = {
             let theme = cx.theme();
             (
                 theme.colors,
                 theme.radius,
                 theme.elevations.popover.shadows(),
                 theme.motion.overlay,
+                if theme.borders.overlays {
+                    theme.colors.border
+                } else {
+                    theme.colors.surface
+                },
+                theme.spacing.unit,
             )
         };
 
@@ -165,17 +171,17 @@ impl RenderOnce for Popover {
 
             let panel = v_flex()
                 .id("popover-panel")
+                .debug_selector(|| "popover-panel".to_string())
                 .occlude()
                 .track_focus(&focus)
                 .role(Role::Dialog)
                 .aria_label(label)
-                .mt_1()
                 .min_w_32()
                 .bg(colors.surface)
                 .text_color(colors.surface_foreground)
                 .rounded(radius.overlay)
                 .border_1()
-                .border_color(colors.border)
+                .border_color(panel_border)
                 .shadow(shadows)
                 .overflow_hidden()
                 .on_mouse_down_out({
@@ -218,11 +224,15 @@ impl RenderOnce for Popover {
                     .inset_0(),
                 );
 
-            wrapper = wrapper.child(deferred(anchored().child(panel.with_animation(
-                "popover-enter",
-                Animation::new(enter_duration).with_easing(ease_out_quint()),
-                |panel, delta| panel.opacity(delta),
-            ))));
+            wrapper = wrapper.child(deferred(
+                anchored()
+                    .offset(point(px(0.), anchor_gap))
+                    .child(panel.with_animation(
+                        "popover-enter",
+                        Animation::new(enter_duration).with_easing(ease_out_quint()),
+                        |panel, delta| panel.opacity(delta),
+                    )),
+            ));
         }
 
         wrapper
diff --git a/crates/core/tests/popover.rs b/crates/core/tests/popover.rs
index adaf33a..c51d024 100644
--- a/crates/core/tests/popover.rs
+++ b/crates/core/tests/popover.rs
@@ -45,6 +45,7 @@ impl Render for Harness {
                     })
                     .trigger(|_, _| {
                         div()
+                            .debug_selector(|| "popover-trigger".to_string())
                             .w(px(100.))
                             .h(px(32.))
                             .bg(rgba(0x000000ff))
@@ -188,3 +189,26 @@ fn clicking_another_control_dismisses_and_reaches_it() {
     assert_eq!(*changes.borrow(), vec![false]);
     assert_eq!(*clicks.borrow(), 1);
 }
+
+/// The panel hangs one spacing unit below the trigger: the anchor gap is
+/// theme-owned, and rides the anchored element so the window-edge clamp
+/// stays intact.
+#[test]
+fn the_panel_hangs_one_spacing_unit_below_the_trigger() {
+    let (cx, mut visual, _window, _changes, _clicks) = popover_window(true);
+
+    let trigger = visual
+        .debug_bounds("popover-trigger")
+        .expect("trigger rendered");
+    let panel = visual
+        .debug_bounds("popover-panel")
+        .expect("panel rendered");
+
+    let expected = cx.update(|cx| Theme::global(cx).spacing.unit);
+    let gap = panel.top() - trigger.bottom();
+    // Painted bounds are snapped to device pixels; allow half a pixel.
+    assert!(
+        (gap - expected).abs() <= px(0.5),
+        "the anchor gap is {gap:?}, expected {expected:?}"
+    );
+}
diff --git a/crates/theme/src/lib.rs b/crates/theme/src/lib.rs
index 26f8eb9..8681693 100644
--- a/crates/theme/src/lib.rs
+++ b/crates/theme/src/lib.rs
@@ -189,6 +189,13 @@ pub struct Elevation {
 }
 
 impl Elevation {
+    /// No shadow: dark floating layers separate by border.
+    fn none() -> Self {
+        Self {
+            layers: [Shadow::none(), Shadow::none()],
+        }
+    }
+
     fn single(key: Shadow) -> Self {
         Self {
             layers: [key, Shadow::none()],
@@ -232,8 +239,8 @@ impl Elevations {
     pub(crate) fn for_platform(source: SourceKind, variant: ThemeVariant) -> Self {
         if variant == ThemeVariant::Dark {
             return Self {
-                popover: Elevation::single(Shadow::black(0., 4., 24., 0.3)),
-                dialog: Elevation::single(Shadow::black(0., 8., 40., 0.35)),
+                popover: Elevation::none(),
+                dialog: Elevation::none(),
                 control: Elevation::single(Shadow::black(0., 1., 2., 0.25)),
             };
         }
diff --git a/crates/theme/src/resolve.rs b/crates/theme/src/resolve.rs
index 035d5b2..7811e16 100644
--- a/crates/theme/src/resolve.rs
+++ b/crates/theme/src/resolve.rs
@@ -545,6 +545,8 @@ mod tests {
                 resolved.borders.overlays,
                 "{source:?} frames floating layers in dark"
             );
+            assert!(resolved.elevations.popover.shadows().is_empty());
+            assert!(resolved.elevations.dialog.shadows().is_empty());
         }
     }
 
@@ -578,7 +580,7 @@ mod tests {
     #[test]
     fn elevations_and_motion_resolve_with_defaults() {
         let resolved = resolve(
-            &system(ThemeVariant::Dark, PartialPalette::default(), None),
+            &system(ThemeVariant::Light, PartialPalette::default(), None),
             None,
             None,
         );
@@ -590,7 +592,7 @@ mod tests {
         );
         assert!(resolved.motion.overlay > std::time::Duration::ZERO);
         let shadows = resolved.elevations.popover.shadows();
-        assert_eq!(shadows.len(), 1);
+        assert_eq!(shadows.len(), 2);
         assert!(!shadows[0].inset);
     }
 
diff --git a/docs/CHECKLIST.md b/docs/CHECKLIST.md
index 9fa77e1..f980d0a 100644
--- a/docs/CHECKLIST.md
+++ b/docs/CHECKLIST.md
@@ -14,9 +14,6 @@ is the first downstream consumer; its screens drive the order.
 Platform metric adoption continues one component at a time; each stop goes
 through the review gate and a gallery pass.
 
-- [ ] **Popover platform chrome** — overlay border gate; the anchor gap
-      through `Theme::spacing`.
-- [ ] **Dialog platform chrome** — overlay border gate.
 - [ ] **Toast platform chrome** — overlay border gate.
 - [ ] **Tooltip platform chrome** — overlay border gate.
 - [ ] **Alert platform chrome** — overlay border gate.
@@ -69,9 +66,9 @@ Gaps surfaced by the signed comparison; ordered by signed's usage.
       (GNOME gsettings `font-name`, KDE `kdeglobals font=`), per-source
       border + focus chrome (`Theme::borders`), and a per-platform spacing
       unit (`Theme::spacing`); overlay borders engage in dark mode, where
-      the elevation shadow barely reads and floating layers separate by
-      border instead. Components adopt the tokens one by one
-      (see Next and Queue)
+      floating layers separate by border instead of shadow — dark elevation
+      shadows are dropped entirely, since they only muddied the dark scrim.
+      Components adopt the tokens one by one (see Next and Queue)
 
 ### icons (`crates/icons`)
 
@@ -111,6 +108,13 @@ Gaps surfaced by the signed comparison; ordered by signed's usage.
       `Theme::spacing`, and every action row renders at the stated
       `menu_item_height` with content centered, so the stated metric is the
       whole row; rows carry debug selectors for headless geometry tests
+- [x] Popover platform chrome — the panel border behind
+      `Theme::borders.overlays` (and dark mode); the anchor gap is the
+      spacing unit and rides `anchored().offset`, not a margin, so the
+      window-edge clamp stays intact; the panel carries a debug selector
+- [x] Dialog platform chrome — the panel border behind
+      `Theme::borders.overlays` (and dark mode), taking the surface color
+      where the platform paints none
 - [x] Button, Checkbox, Switch, Radio + RadioGroup, Toggle, Link, Slider,
       Progress, Avatar (image + seeded pixel-art fallback)
 - [x] Spinner — painted ring + rotating-icon variant, indeterminate and