"In the Dark" was written by Dev alongside the Cataracs, a group that consists of Niles Hollowell-Dhar and David Singer-Vine, who also produced the track.

[5] It was later mixed by Manny Marroquin at Larrabee Studios in Los Angeles, California and mastered by Tom Coyne at Sterling Sound in New York City.

[1] The song was released on April 25, 2011, via digital download as the second single from Dev's debut studio album, The Night the Sun Came Up.

[8] In the United Kingdom, "In the Dark" was released in a digital extended play (EP) alongside three remixes of the track as well as its music video.

Lewis Corner of British music website Digital Spy rated it four stars out of five, particularly praising the saxophone hook.

"[17] Bill Lamb of About.com rated "In the Dark" four stars out of five and praised Dev's vocals, as well as the song's sexy lyrics and the saxophone hook.

[12] Garyn Ganz of Rolling Stone graded the song three stars out of five and commented: "Dev speak-sings about her sex drive over a Nineties Latin house beat like a top-shelf version of Kesha – seductive, not sleazy.

"[19] While reviewing The Night the Sun Came Up, Slant Magazine critic Sal Cinquemani named the song the album's best track.

[15] McCall was mixed regarding "In the Dark"'s lyrical content and called the line "do your work on me/Open up my body and do some surgery" the "grossest pillow talk" since the Black Eyed Peas' "My Humps".

[14] LA Weekly writer Shea Serrano regarded the song as "predictable" and dismissed the metaphors, labeling them "confusing".

[20] Music magazine Spin included "In the Dark" at number 15 on its "Favorite Pop Tracks of 2011" list, naming it "radio gold".

[21] The Hollywood Reporter's music editor Shirley Halperin put it at number four on her "Top 10 Singles of 2011" list and called it "irresistible".

[citation needed] In the United States, "In the Dark" made its debut at number 92 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the issue dated August 20, 2011, almost three months after the song's release in April.

[23] The song steadily ascended on the chart for eight weeks before reaching its peak position of number 11 in the issue dated October 22, 2011.

[24] The song proved to be a bigger commercial success than Dev's debut single, "Bass Down Low" (2010), which reached number 61.

[30] In the United Kingdom, the song debuted and peaked at number 37 on the UK Singles Chart in the issue dated August 27, 2011.

Although failing to match "Bass Down Low"'s peak of number ten, it did give Dev her second top 40 single in the UK.

"[34] The video was filmed in Los Angeles, California in late-April 2011, just before Dev joined Usher as the opening act for his OMG Tour.

[36] Cory Lamz of Westword wrote a positive review of the video: "Watching 'In the Dark' is like dancing under a strobe light on ecstasy.