We all want our laptops to last as long as possible without having to be plugged in — after all, that's the whole point of a laptop. Windows 11 comes with a whole slew of settings and options you can tweak to extend the battery life of your laptop. This includes Battery saver, which turns off certain background tasks in Windows 11, like email and calendar syncing.

If you're having trouble with your laptop dying too quickly, try the options below to get more time out of your battery withouthaving to buy a new one.

Window with light shining through and Windows 11 text
Windows 11: Everything you need to know

Windows 11 is the latest and greatest operating system from Microsoft, and it packs a ton of changes. Here's what you need to know.

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Set up battery saver on Windows 11

If you want to change the behavior for battery saver on your Windows 11 PC, it's fairly straightforward. Here's what you need to do:

  1. Open the Settings app.
  2. In the System section, click Power & battery.
  3. Expand the Battery saver option to see all settings.
    Screenshot of the power and battery settings in Windows 11 Settings app with the battery saver section highlighted
    1. If you want to turn battery saver on immediately, simply click Turn on. This will enable battery saver until you turn it off.

      Having battery saver enabled at all times can limit the notifications you'll receive and could cause you to miss important information.

    2. Alternatively, if you want to change when battery saver is automatically enabled, you can use the dropdown menu next to Turn battery saver on automatically at, and choose the percentage you prefer. Battery saver will be enabled whenever the battery level is at that level or lower and the laptop isn't charging.

  4. Use the Lower screen brightness when using battery saver option for additional savings or disable it if the brightness change bothers you. If you enable this option, the brightness will be lowered by 20% when battery saver is enabled, compared to the standard brightness.
  5. All changes are saved automatically.

Change power and sleep settings

Beyond using battery saver, there are a few other settings you can tweak in to improve the battery life of your laptop. If you want to extend your battery life without the potential downsides of battery saver, try this:

  1. Open the Settings app and navigate to the Power & battery page as explained above.
  2. Click the dropdown menu next to Power mode and choose Best power efficiency to extend battery life (at the cost of overall performance).
    Screenshot of the Power and battery settings in Windows 11 with the power mode dropdown menu highlighted

    Conversely, if you need faster performance and don't care about battery life, you can use the Best performance mode.

  3. Expand the Screen & sleep button. These options let you change your computer's behavior when it's inactive, so it saves power when you're not using it.
    Screenshot of power and battery settings in Windows 11 with the screen and sleep section expanded and highlighted
  4. The On battery power, turn off my screen after option lets you choose a period of inactivity after which the screen will turn off automatically. Set it to a lower number to save power. There's also an option to change this behavior when your computer is plugged in, if you want to save power and reduce carbon emissions.
  5. The On battery power, put my device to sleep after option lets you determine when your device should go to sleep entirely after a certain period of inactivity. We recommend setting it to the same period as the option above to save more power, though you can make it longer (but not shorter).
  6. Changes are saved automatically.

Optimize display settings to save battery

Windows 11 also offers some additional features for saving battery in the display settings if you have a laptop. Here are a couple of things to try:

  1. Open the Settings app.
  2. Go to System, and then click Display.
    Screenshot of the Windows 11 Settings pap open in the System section with the Display button highlighted
  3. Lower the Brightness level to where you're still comfortable. The lower you go, the less power your laptop will use.
  4. Expand the Brightness section and turn off the option called Change brightness automatically when lighting changes.
  5. Set the Change brightness based on content dropdown menu to On Battery Only.
    Screenshot of Windows 11 settings showing a low brightness level, auto brightness disabled, and adaptive brightness based on content enabled
  6. Click the HDR button.
  7. Scroll down to Battery options and set it to Optimize for battery life.
    Screenshot of Windows 11 HDR settings with battery options set to optimize for battery life when viewing HDR content
  8. Click Video playback at the bottom of the page.
  9. Next to Battery options, choose Optimize for battery life. Additionally, enable the Play video at a lower resolution when on battery option.
    Screenshot of video playback settings on Windows 11 with battery options set to optimize for battery life and play videos at a lower resolution on battery power

These options will affect your viewing experience somewhat, but if you want your laptop to last as long as possible on battery, these are great ways to do it. You also don't have to enable all of these at the same time, so you can find the right compromise between quality and power efficiency.

Disable startup apps

Many apps set themselves to start automaticaly with your computer, and this can not only use more battery, but slow down your PC overall. It's pretty easy to disable startup tasks you don't need, though:

  1. Right-click an empty area of the taskbar and choose Task Manager.
  2. Click the Startup apps tab on the left (it looks like a speedometer).
    Screenshot of Task Manager with the Startup apps button highlighted
  3. Click the apps you don't want to start with your system, and then click Disable at the top of the window. You need to do this one at a time.
    Screenshot of the Startup apps page in Task Manager with the Disable button highlighted
  4. Restart your PC so it boots up again without those apps running.

Even if you have a new PC, it's worth checking this out, because some included apps like to start with the system, like OneDrive, Microsoft Edge, and Teams. Not to mention apps included by your PC manufacturer.

Change what the power button and lid do

If your laptop is using too much battery after you close it, it may not be going to sleep as it should when you close the lid. You can change those settings as well:

  1. Open the Start menu and search for Power plan. Choose the option called Choose a power plan.
    Screenshot of Windows search showing search results for power plan
  2. On the side bar, click Choose what closing the lid does.
  3. Under On Battery, set both the When I close the lid and When I press the power button options to Sleep or Hibernate. Hibernate will save more power, but your computer can take longer to start up afterward.
    Screenshot of power options in Control panel with the computer set to hibermate when the lid is closed or the power button is pressed
    • You can also do this for the Plugged In section to save more power at home.

  4. Click Save changes at the bottom of the window.

Disable Wi-Fi and/or Bluetooth

Finally, another way to save battery is to turn off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth if you don't need them. You can do one or the other, or both, depending on your needs. Here's how:

  1. Click the internet icon on the taskbar to open the Quick Actions panel.
  2. If the Wi-Fi button is colored, it means it's enabled. Click it to disable it (don't click the arrow next to it).
    Screenshot of Quick Actions in Windows 11 with the Wi-Fi button highlighted
  3. Do the same for the Bluetooth button.

With Wi-Fi turned off, your PC will use less battery, but you won't be able to use the internet unless you have a wired connection. Meanwhile. turning off Bluetooth should be less of a problem, but some wireless mice or headphones won't be able to connect.

Screenshot of Network and internet Settings in Windows 11 next to Wi-Fi adapter properties
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Make your laptop last longer

All of these options together will stack up to save a lot of power, so you can get a lot more time out of your laptop on a charge. Depending on your laptop model, there are other things you can try. Some laptops with discrete GPUs include power saving options as well, for example. If you have a gaming laptop, it might have RGB lighitng, which also uses a lot of battery, so you can try turning that off.

If battery life is very important to you and you're looking for a new laptop, we do also have a list of the best laptops for battery life that might help with your purchasing decision.