Note: for this guide, we used a Google Pixel 4a running Android 13. The steps may vary depending on the make, model and Android version your device is running.
Identify Active Apps That Are Consuming the Most Battery Life
The following steps will help you know which apps are open and running, how long they’ve been running, and the amount of RAM they’re consuming.
How to Close Android Apps Properly
Android apps have a funny way of “closing.” This is unlike on Windows or Mac, where you can usually close a program and kill its process simply by clicking the “X” icon in the corner of the window. On Android, the very idea of “closing” an app works quite differently. There is no dedicated button to close an app when it’s open. Yes, you can press the “Home” or “Back” buttons, and the app disappears from your screen, but at that point, it is simply on standby in the background. You’ll need to “kill” it instead to prevent it from running in the background:
How to Force-Stop Android Apps From Running in the Background
To stop Android apps from running in the background, you can also force-stop them. This is a pretty “aggressive” way of closing an app and means it’s possible your data or your recent game progress won’t be saved. Think of it like switching your PC off without shutting it down properly – it comes with some risk of losing some data but won’t do any long-term damage to the app, nor will it wipe out the app. Note: when you force-stop Android apps, it doesn’t prevent them from running in the background the next time you open them. To force-stop Android apps:
Setting Up a Background Process Limit
If you don’t want to worry about manually closing apps or force-stopping them, you can set a background process limit to restrict the number of background apps allowed to run at one point.
Optimizing Your Phone With Adaptive Battery and Sleep
General Battery Optimization
You can also optimize general battery usage by tweaking a few additional settings. Note: your phone must be running an older version of Android (11 or 12). Image credit: Daniel Romero via Unsplash All screenshots by Alexandra Arici With the advent of Android 10, Google has introduced various power management features that control how much power apps end up consuming. This is why, if an Android 10 or above update is available for your device, it should be installed right away.
