Key Takeaways

Energy Saver mode forces Google Chrome to be more efficient by limiting background activity and visual effects like smooth scrolling and stable video frame rates.

Worried about using Chrome on your laptop for fear that your battery will drain too fast? Enable Energy Saver mode to increase power efficiency. Here's how.

What Is Energy Saver Mode in Google Chrome?

Energy Saver is a Google Chrome feature designed to make the browser more energy efficient. Google says Energy Saver works "by limiting background activity and visual effects for websites with animations and videos." Google says that, in some cases, scrolling may be less smooth and video frame rates may e lower with this enabled.

Limiting background activity may cause web apps to stop working, and some tabs may need to be reloaded when they become active again.

The feature arrived for everyone in Chrome 110 for Windows, macOS, and Chromebooks. To check which version of Chrome you have, click the three-dot "..." menu in Chrome's toolbar then navigate to Help > About Chrome. Chrome's Memory Saver mode arrived at the same time.

Chrome should update automatically, but if it doesn't you can click "Update Google Chrome" to force the update or "Relaunch Chrome" to apply any outstanding updates that have been downloaded.

How to Configure Energy Saver in Chrome

Click on the three-dot icon in Chrome's toolbar then navigate to Settings > Performance. Here you'll be able to turn Energy Saver on or off and choose what triggers it.

You have two options here for when Chrome will turn Energy Saver on: when your laptop battery is 20% or lower or whenever your computer is unplugged. Choose the former to limit the feature to when your laptop is close to running out of battery or the latter if you want to maximize your runtime while you're running on battery power.

Combine Energy Saver with Other Battery Life Saving Tips

Chrome is a thirsty browser, but if you must use it then Energy Saver mode will certainly help. If energy efficiency is your top priority then you'll either want to switch to Edge on Windows or Safari on macOS.

There are plenty of other things Windows users can do to increase laptop battery life. These include enabling battery saver mode and tweaking screen brightness.

If you have a MacBook there are many reasons your battery might be draining quickly. Maintaining a healthy MacBook battery may help delay any MacBook battery replacements you may need in the future.

Even Chromebook owners can extend their computer's battery life with a few simple tips.