Turn on Low Power Mode to cut battery drain by half
Low Power Mode reduces how hard your iPhone works, which slows battery drain significantly. When you turn it on, your phone limits background activity, reduces animation speed, and lowers screen brightness slightly. Most people notice their battery lasts 1.5 to 2 times longer when Low Power Mode is active.
To turn it on, open Settings, tap Battery, then toggle on Low Power Mode. You can also swipe up from the bottom of your screen (or down from the top-right on newer models) to open Control Center and tap the battery icon. Your phone will remind you when battery drops to 20 percent and ask if you want to enable it automatically.
Low Power Mode stays on until you manually turn it off or charge your phone to 80 percent. You can use your phone normally while it is on—apps work the same way, just slightly slower. The trade-off is worth it if you are away from a charger for most of the day.
Key Takeaways
- Low Power Mode cuts battery drain by limiting background activity and screen brightness, and you can turn it on manually or set it to set up at 20 percent battery.
- Turning off location services, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi when you are not using them prevents your phone from constantly searching for connections.
- Reducing screen brightness and setting a shorter auto-lock time (how long before the screen turns off) saves more battery than any other single setting.
- Background app refresh lets apps update even when you are not using them; turning it off for apps you do not check often reclaims significant battery life.
- Older batteries lose capacity over time, and you can check your battery health in Settings to see if replacement is worth considering.
Dim your screen and set auto-lock to 1 minute
Your screen is the single biggest drain on your battery. The brighter it is and the longer it stays on, the faster your battery empties. Reducing brightness by even 30 percent can extend battery life by several hours over a full day.
Go to Settings, tap Display & Brightness, and drag the brightness slider down to a level you can still read comfortably. You can also turn on Auto-Brightness, which adjusts brightness based on the light around you—this saves battery in dim rooms and outdoors. Many people find they do not notice the difference once they use it for a few days.
Next, set auto-lock to 1 minute. This is how long your screen stays on after you stop using your phone. Go to Settings, tap Display & Brightness, then Auto-Lock, and choose 1 minute. If you find yourself unlocking your phone constantly, 2 minutes is a reasonable middle ground. Every minute you add drains battery noticeably over the course of a day.
Turn off location services and background app refresh
Location Services lets apps know where you are, which requires your phone to use GPS constantly. Many apps request location even when you do not need it. Go to Settings, tap Privacy & Security, then Location Services. You will see a list of every app that uses location. Turn it off entirely for apps that do not need it—for example, a notes app does not need to know where you are.
For apps you do use with location (like Maps or weather), you can change the setting from "Always" to "While Using" or "Never." This way the app only uses GPS when you actually open it, not in the background.
Background App Refresh lets apps check for updates and new information even when you are not using them. This drains battery constantly. Go to Settings, tap General, then Background App Refresh. You can turn it off entirely, or toggle it off for individual apps. Keep it on for apps you check frequently (like Messages or Mail) and turn it off for apps you use rarely (like a banking app you check once a week).
Disable Bluetooth and Wi-Fi when you are not using them
Bluetooth and Wi-Fi both search for connections constantly, which uses power even when you are not connected to anything. If you are not actively using either one, turning them off saves battery.
Open Control Center (swipe up from the bottom or down from the top-right) and tap the Bluetooth icon to turn it off. Do the same for Wi-Fi. If you use Bluetooth headphones or a smartwatch regularly, keep Bluetooth on—the battery cost of keeping it on is less than the cost of turning it on and off repeatedly. The same applies to Wi-Fi: if you are at home or work where you use Wi-Fi regularly, leave it on.
A practical approach is to turn off Bluetooth and Wi-Fi when you leave home, then turn them back on when you arrive. This prevents your phone from searching for networks all day while you are out.
Check your battery health and consider replacement if needed
iPhone batteries degrade over time. After 500 full charge cycles (roughly one year of normal use), a battery typically holds 80 to 90 percent of its original capacity. After two years, it may hold 70 to 80 percent. You can check your battery's current health in Settings.
Go to Settings, tap Battery, then Battery Health & Charging. You will see "Maximum Capacity," which shows what percentage of the battery's original capacity remains. If it is below 80 percent and your phone is more than a year old, your battery is degrading normally. If it is below 50 percent, you will notice your phone drains much faster than it used to.
Apple offers battery replacement for a fee, which varies by model and location. If your phone is still under warranty or covered by AppleCare+, replacement may be free. If your battery health is above 80 percent, replacement is not necessary—the battery will continue to work fine, just with slightly less capacity than when new.
Close apps running in the background and limit notifications
Apps that run in the background consume battery even when you are not looking at them. Swipe up from the bottom of your screen (or down from the top-right on newer models) to see which apps are open. Swipe up on any app you are not actively using to close it. This is especially important for apps like Maps, video players, or music apps that use a lot of power.
Notifications also drain battery because your phone has to light up the screen and play sounds or vibrations each time one arrives. Go to Settings, tap Notifications, and turn off notifications for apps you do not need to hear from constantly. You can still check those apps manually when you want to.
Disable visual effects and use a dark wallpaper on newer iPhones
Animations and visual effects like parallax (the way your wallpaper shifts when you tilt your phone) use processing power and battery. Go to Settings, tap Accessibility, then Display & Text Size, and turn on Reduce Motion. This disables most animations throughout your phone.
On iPhones with OLED screens (iPhone 12 and newer), a dark wallpaper uses less battery than a bright one because OLED screens only light up the pixels that display color. Black pixels use almost no power. Set a dark or black wallpaper in Settings, tap Wallpaper, then Customize, and choose a dark image or solid black.
On older iPhones with LCD screens, wallpaper color does not affect battery life, so this step is not necessary.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does turning off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth really save that much battery?
It depends on how often your phone searches for connections. If you are in an area with weak Wi-Fi or Bluetooth signals, your phone works harder to find them, which drains battery faster. Turning them off in those situations saves noticeable battery. If you are in a strong signal area, the savings are smaller but still measurable over a full day.
Will Low Power Mode slow down my phone noticeably?
You may notice slightly slower animations and app loading times, but most people do not find it bothersome. Email, texting, and web browsing work at nearly normal speed. Video playback and games may feel slightly slower. The battery savings usually outweigh the minor slowdown.
Is it bad to leave my phone on Low Power Mode all the time?
No, Low Power Mode is safe to use continuously. It does not damage your battery or phone. Some people leave it on permanently and only turn it off when they need maximum performance for gaming or video editing.
How often should I fully charge my iPhone?
Modern iPhones manage charging intelligently and do not require full discharge cycles. You can charge your phone whenever it is convenient—plugging it in at 20 percent or 50 percent does not harm the battery. Keeping your phone between 20 and 80 percent charged most of the time actually extends battery lifespan slightly, but the difference is small.
Can I use battery-saving apps from the App Store to extend battery life?
Most third-party battery-saving apps do not provide real benefits beyond what Low Power Mode and the built-in settings offer. They often use battery themselves to monitor other apps. The settings built into your iPhone are more effective and do not drain power to run.