Power hungry: The apps most likely to drain your device’s battery

Checking a smartphone. — Image by © Tim Sandle

Smartphone batteries have decreased in lifespan by 23%, with the average device now requiring daily charging compared to every 1.5 days in 2019. This partially due to heavy energy drain by applications and a sign that battery performance remains one area where technology has not advanced.

A recent study by telecommunications and network company Elevate examined smartphone user habits to identify the applications that place the greatest strain on smartphone batteries.

The analysis considered key energy factors, including average screen time, data usage per hour, battery usage, and average background activity hours. The data was used to calculate average monthly battery usage, showing how many percent of the battery charge each app uses in 30 days.

The top 10 most energy-consuming apps

As shown in the above table, the app that puts the heaviest strain on the smartphone battery is Netflix, consuming 1500% of a full energy charge each month. It is the most-used app, and people spend 60 hours a month on it, watching films and TV shows. Netflix also runs active background processes, working for an additional 13 hours a month and draining the battery.

TikTok ranks 2nd among most battery-draining apps, with 825% of a charge used, almost 2 times less than Netflix. It consumes the same 25% of battery for every hour of use, just as Netflix does, but people spend less time on TikTok (33 hours). Background processes are also shorter for TikTok, using battery charge for 9.9 more hours.

YouTube takes third place, taking 540% of a battery charge each month. It is less energy-consuming than TikTok or Netflix, pulling 20% of a battery each hour, but it is among the most-used apps, with an average of 27 hours of screen time.

In fourth position is Threads, with 460%. The background activity is quite energy-draining for this app, with processes running for 6.9 hours each month, similar to YouTube. It also consumes the same 20% of a battery charge each hour, and people use the Threads app for 23 hours each month.

Snapchat is fifth in the ranking of the apps that put the heaviest strain on the battery charge, with 320%. People spend 16 hours on average using Snapchat, and, in addition, the app runs for more than half of that time in the background.

CapCut follows closely behind Snapchat with sixth place and 300% of battery spent each month. The app is the most energy-consuming in the top 10, draining 30% of the battery for each hour on it. The average screen time comes to 10 hours, but CapCut runs almost no background activity, with only 1 hour of non-active processes.

Instagram earns the seventh spot, with a similar 300% of the battery used. It is used more often than CapCut, with 15 hours of screentime, but it runs more background processes too, adding 4.5 hours to the battery use. For each 60 minutes on Instagram, the phone loses 20% of its charge, similar to YouTube and Threads.

In eighth position is Facebook, draining 270% of the battery charge each month. People spend more time on Facebook than on Instagram, with 18 hours, and the background activity takes a heavy toll on the phone, adding 5.7 hours of battery strain.

Spotify is ninth, using 225% of a battery monthly. It uses only 5% of the energy an hour, but the app has the highest background activity at 13.5 hours. Smartphone users spend 45 hours on Spotify actively, the second-longest time on the list.

ChatGPT closes the ranking of the apps that are putting the heaviest strain on smartphone batteries, with tenth place and 200%. It uses 4 times less energy than TikTok, but still drains battery by 20% with each hour of use.

While users are conscious of heavy usage during active streaming or video editing sessions, apps like Spotify continue consuming significant battery even when you’re not actively listening, highlighting the importance of managing background app refresh settings for optimal battery performance.