If there is one thing iPhone owners can all agree on, it’s that the iPhone battery should last longer. While that may require some breakthroughs in battery technology, all hope is not lost. With a few smart tips or tweaks in iOS settings, your battery life can last most, if not the entire day, even with heavy use. Follow the guide below for the best ways to save battery life on an iPhone and leave the charger at home.
Battery-Hogging Apps
In order to save battery life on an iPhone, you have to know which apps are eating up most of your battery life. Head to “Settings -> Battery” and look at the list of the top apps by battery usage. It might take the apps a few moments to populate, but once they do, you will get a great sense of which apps are hogging your battery.
There is a strong likelihood this list may be full of apps that surprise you, including fan favorites like Facebook. Deleting the Facebook app and accessing the Web version of Facebook via Safari can help significantly with battery life. This list will also help you see how addicted you are to other apps or games that are quickly draining the battery. When you know the prime suspects, reducing their usage or finding alternatives could improve battery life in a big way.
Disable Background App Refresh
One of the best and worst features of the iPhone is Background App Refresh. Basically, this feature enables apps to update in the background so that when you next open the app, everything is already loaded. It comes in handy for critical apps like Email apps or Maps (Google or Apple) but is definitely not necessary for most other apps.
You do not have to disable it across the board for every app, but the more you disable, the more battery life you can gain back. To check which apps have this feature enabled:
1. Open the Settings app.
2. Navigate to “General -> Background App Refresh”.
3. Scroll through the app list and disable the feature for any apps that you do not frequently use or need.
Also read: How to Fix Cellular Data Not Working on iPhone and iPad
Wi-Fi Over Cellular Connectivity
Wi-Fi is definitely the better option for saving battery life. Mobile networks require more power than Wi-Fi, which leads to quicker battery drains.
Head to “Settings -> Cellular” to see a list of apps that use cellular data. You can find out which apps are hogging cellular data. Prime suspects include YouTube, Netflix, Facebook, etc. If there are apps you simply don’t need to work on cellular data, disable them and save battery life.
Low Power Mode
Low power mode places the phone into a mode that preserves power by disabling or limiting a variety of functions.
To enable this feature, head to “Settings -> Battery” and enable “Low Power Mode.” Once active, the iPhone will:
- Disable email fetch, at least with the default app
- Stop “Hey Siri” from functioning
- Completely stop Background App refreshes
- Pause automatic downloads
- Reduce some visual effects
- Auto-lock the screen at 30 seconds
- Disable iCloud Photos from syncing in the background
When this feature is on, the battery in the status bar turns yellow. Once your iPhone is charged to 80% or higher, Low Power Mode is automatically disabled.
Use Dark Mode
Research has shown that dark mode has a lesser impact on battery life and is better for the eyes. Dark mode is available for the iPhone X, iPhone XS and XS Max as well as the iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max. Turn on dark mode by heading to “Settings -> Display & Brightness” and switching the appearance from light to dark.
Limit Notifications
Cutting down on the number of notifications is a quick way to save a little battery life. Every time a notification arrives, the phone has to light up and make a connection to Wi-Fi or cellular towers.
To reduce the number of notifications:
1. Open the Settings app and tap on notifications.
2. Go through each app individually (yes, this could be a lot of apps) and adjust whether or not you want to receive notifications through banners, sounds, badges, etc.
3. The more you disable, the more battery life you can win back.
Reduce Device Brightness
Turning up the brightness on your iPhone has a negative impact on your battery. The higher the brightness, the more battery it uses.
Screen brightness can be controlled either through Control Center or through “Settings -> Display & Brightness.” You can activate auto-brightness to help manage screen brightness, but if you want to extend battery life, be cautious about going to full brightness outdoors for long(er) periods of time.
Turn Off Location Services
Location and GPS tracking can be incredibly useful with apps, especially map applications, but using it frequently can impact battery life.
To get to these location functions:
1. Open the Settings app.
2. Scroll until you see the Privacy option.
3. Tap on “Location Services.”
Now you have an opportunity to go through the list app by app and see what is using your location information. Weather, email, and retail store apps are likely to want to know your info to serve you better. Other apps may not necessitate such access, so disabling them will allow you to preserve battery life. You can also disable Location Services entirely, but that also prevents critical apps like Maps from assisting you while driving.
As you can see, it is easy to save battery life on an iPhone. Smaller, less impactful options like Siri or dynamic wallpapers can also eat up small amounts of battery life each day, so you may want to disable them, too.
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