The fastest ways to extend your iPhone battery right now
Your iPhone's battery drains fastest when the screen is on at full brightness, when apps run in the background, and when your phone searches for cellular or Wi-Fi signals. You can add hours to a single charge by lowering screen brightness, closing unused apps, and turning on Low Power Mode — a built-in setting that reduces performance slightly but cuts battery drain by about 20 percent. The three changes that matter most are enabling Low Power Mode, reducing screen brightness to 40 percent or lower, and closing background app refresh for apps you do not use constantly.
If your battery drains noticeably faster than it did a few months ago, the battery itself may be aging. iPhones lose battery capacity over time — after 500 full charge cycles, an iPhone battery typically holds about 80 percent of its original capacity. You can check your battery's health by opening Settings, tapping Battery, then Battery Health & Charging. If the maximum capacity is below 80 percent, the battery is aging normally; below 50 percent means replacement will make a real difference.
Key Takeaways
- Low Power Mode reduces background activity and screen refresh rate, extending battery life by several hours without disabling core functions.
- Screen brightness is the single largest drain on battery — setting it to 40 percent or lower and enabling auto-brightness saves more power than any other single setting.
- Background app refresh allows apps to update even when you are not using them; turning it off for apps you check manually saves significant battery.
- Location services, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi searching drain battery even when you are not actively using them; turning them off when not needed extends charge time.
- If your battery health is below 50 percent, replacing the battery costs less than $70 and restores most of the original battery life.
Turn on Low Power Mode and keep it on
Low Power Mode is the single most effective built-in setting for extending battery life. When you turn it on, your iPhone reduces CPU speed, limits background app refresh, disables automatic downloads, reduces animation effects, and lowers screen refresh rate from 120 Hz to 60 Hz on newer models. The phone still makes calls, sends texts, opens apps, and browses the web — it just does these things slightly more slowly and uses far less power while doing them.
To enable Low Power Mode, open Settings, tap Battery, then tap Low Power Mode and toggle it on. On newer iPhones running iOS 16 or later, you can also swipe down from the top-right corner of the screen, find the battery icon, and tap it to turn on Low Power Mode from the control center. Many people turn Low Power Mode on only when the battery reaches 20 percent, but turning it on at 50 percent and leaving it on all day extends your charge by 4 to 6 hours. The performance difference is barely noticeable for everyday tasks like messaging, email, and social media.
Lower your screen brightness and enable auto-brightness
Your screen uses more power than any other component in your iPhone. At full brightness, it can drain your battery in 4 to 6 hours of continuous use. Reducing brightness to 40 percent or lower cuts screen power consumption roughly in half.
To adjust brightness manually, swipe down from the top-right corner of the screen (or up from the bottom on older models) to open the control center, then drag the brightness slider to the left. Set it to around 40 percent for indoor use and 60 percent for outdoor use in bright sunlight. For the most convenient approach, enable auto-brightness: open Settings, tap Display & Brightness, then toggle on Auto-Brightness. Your phone will then adjust brightness based on ambient light, keeping it as low as possible while remaining readable. Auto-brightness typically saves 15 to 20 percent of daily battery drain compared to manual brightness at the same average level.
Turn off background app refresh for apps you do not use constantly
Background app refresh allows apps to update their content even when you are not actively using them. Mail, weather, news, and social media apps refresh in the background so they show fresh information when you open them. This convenience costs battery life — each app that refreshes in the background uses a small amount of power, and collectively they can drain 10 to 15 percent of your daily battery.
To turn off background app refresh, open Settings, tap General, then tap Background App Refresh. You will see a list of every app on your phone. Toggle off background refresh for any app you do not need to update constantly — for example, you probably do not need a news app refreshing in the background if you check it manually once a day. Keep it on for Mail, Messages, and any app you rely on for notifications. Turning off background refresh for 10 to 15 apps typically adds 2 to 3 hours to your daily battery life.
Disable location services for apps that do not need it
Location services use GPS, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi signals to pinpoint your location. GPS is the most power-hungry — it runs continuously and drains battery quickly. Many apps request location permission but do not actually need it constantly. A weather app needs your location once when you open it; a notes app does not need it at all.
To manage location services, open Settings, tap Privacy & Security, then tap Location Services. You will see a list of every app that has requested location access. For each app, tap it and choose "Never", "While Using", or "Always". Choose "While Using" for apps like Maps that need location while you are actively using them. Choose "Never" for apps that do not need location at all. Turning off location for 5 to 10 apps saves 1 to 2 hours of battery per day. If you do not use location-based features regularly, you can turn off Location Services entirely by toggling it off at the top of the Location Services screen, though this will disable Maps and other location-dependent features.
Turn off Bluetooth and Wi-Fi when you are not using them
Bluetooth and Wi-Fi radios search for available networks and devices even when you are not actively connected to anything. This searching uses power. If you are in an area with weak Wi-Fi or many Bluetooth devices around, your phone works harder to maintain a connection, draining battery faster.
To turn off Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, swipe down from the top-right corner to open the control center and tap the Bluetooth and Wi-Fi icons. They will turn gray, indicating they are off. Turn them back on when you need them — for example, turn on Bluetooth before you get in your car if you use a wireless speaker or car audio system. Turning off both when you are at home with a wired internet connection or at work where you do not use wireless devices saves 1 to 2 hours per day. If you leave them on constantly, keep them on — the power cost of turning them on and off repeatedly is higher than leaving them running.
Check and replace an aging battery
iPhone batteries degrade over time. Every time you charge your phone, the battery loses a tiny amount of capacity. After about 500 full charge cycles — roughly one year of normal use — an iPhone battery typically holds about 80 percent of its original capacity. After 1,000 cycles, it may hold only 60 to 70 percent.
To check your battery's health, open Settings, tap Battery, then tap Battery Health & Charging. Look at the "Maximum Capacity" percentage. If it shows 80 percent or higher, your battery is in good condition and degradation is normal. If it shows 50 to 79 percent, your battery is aging noticeably and you may see shorter battery life. If it shows below 50 percent, the battery is significantly degraded and replacement will restore most of your original battery life.
You can replace your iPhone battery at an Apple Store, an Apple Authorized Service Provider, or through Apple's mail-in repair service. Battery replacement costs between $50 and $70 depending on your iPhone model, and the process takes 1 to 3 hours at a store or 5 to 7 business days by mail. If your iPhone is still under warranty or you have AppleCare+, battery replacement may be covered at no cost. If your battery health is below 50 percent and you plan to keep your phone for another year or two, replacement is worth the cost.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does closing apps in the background actually save battery?
Closing apps manually does almost nothing. Modern iPhones suspend apps automatically when you switch away from them, so they use almost no power while suspended. The only exception is apps with background app refresh enabled — those continue using power even after you close them. Turning off background app refresh is what saves battery, not closing apps manually.
Should I leave my phone plugged in overnight?
Modern iPhones manage overnight charging automatically. Once your battery reaches 100 percent, the phone stops charging and switches to a trickle charge that keeps the battery at 100 percent without degrading it. Leaving your phone plugged in overnight does not damage the battery. However, if you charge to 100 percent and then use the phone heavily, the battery works harder and degrades slightly faster over time. If you want to maximize battery lifespan, keep your phone between 20 and 80 percent charged most of the time — but this is a long-term optimization, not something that affects daily battery life.
Does turning off 5G save battery?
Yes, but the savings are usually small — about 5 to 10 percent of daily battery drain. 5G uses more power than 4G LTE, but most of the time you are not actively using 5G data. The real drain comes from your phone searching for a 5G signal when one is not available. If you are in an area with strong 5G coverage and use data-heavy apps like video streaming, turning off 5G saves noticeable battery. If you are in an area with weak 5G coverage, your phone drains battery searching for it, so turning it off helps. To turn off 5G, open Settings, tap Cellular, tap Cellular Plans (or Mobile Data), then toggle off 5G On This Line.
Will using dark mode save battery on my iPhone?
Dark mode saves battery only on iPhones with OLED screens — iPhone 12 and newer models. OLED screens turn off individual pixels to display black, so black pixels use almost no power. On older iPhones with LCD screens, all pixels are always lit, so dark mode makes no difference. If you have an iPhone 12 or newer and use dark mode, you can save 5 to 10 percent of battery by enabling it. Open Settings, tap Display & Brightness, then tap Dark.
What should I do if my battery drains even with Low Power Mode on?
If your battery drains quickly even with Low Power Mode enabled and brightness lowered, check which apps are using the most power. Open Settings, tap Battery, and look at Battery Usage by App. If one app is using more than 20 percent of your battery, that app may have a problem — try uninstalling and reinstalling it, or check the app's settings for features like background location or constant syncing. If no single app stands out and your battery health is above 50 percent, your phone may have a software issue — try restarting it by holding the power button and sliding to power off, then turning it back on.