diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 1a4bc7170df..28797bffef2 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@
 - Added `utcOffset` prop to `EuiSuperDatePicker` ([#3436](https://github.com/elastic/eui/pull/3436))
 - Added `partition` key to `EuiChartThemeType` for Partition chart support ([#3387](https://github.com/elastic/eui/pull/3387))
 - Updated `EuiImage`'s `caption` prop type from `string` to `ReactNode` ([#3387](https://github.com/elastic/eui/pull/3387))
+- Fixed `EuiCodeEditor` console error when using the editor without import the default theme ([#3454](https://github.com/elastic/eui/pull/3454))
 
 **Bug Fixes**
 
diff --git a/src/components/code_editor/code_editor.tsx b/src/components/code_editor/code_editor.tsx
index c7fa69d1a4d..fb3da63061e 100644
--- a/src/components/code_editor/code_editor.tsx
+++ b/src/components/code_editor/code_editor.tsx
@@ -26,6 +26,7 @@ import { htmlIdGenerator, keyCodes } from '../../services';
 import { EuiI18n } from '../i18n';
 
 const DEFAULT_MODE = 'text';
+const DEFAULT_THEME = 'textmate';
 
 function setOrRemoveAttribute(
   element: HTMLTextAreaElement,
@@ -215,7 +216,7 @@ export class EuiCodeEditor extends Component<
       cursorStart,
       mode = DEFAULT_MODE,
       'data-test-subj': dataTestSubj = 'codeEditorContainer',
-      theme = 'github',
+      theme = DEFAULT_THEME,
       ...rest
     } = this.props;