Samsung Galaxy battery draining fast? 6 fixes

Step-by-step guide

Follow these steps in order. After each step, check if it works.

1. 1

   See what is using the battery

   Open Settings, Battery. The graph shows daily use this week and the list below shows each app. Ours read Battery usage: 2%, with Google Play services at the top. Tap View details for more.

   Done
   
2. 2

   Read Usage by apps and features

   View details opens Battery activity. Pick a day at the top; Usage by apps and features lists each app with its screen time.

   Done
   
3. 3

   Open Background usage limits

   Back on the Battery page, below Power saving, tap Background usage limits.

   Done
   
4. 4

   Put unused apps to sleep

   Turn on Put unused apps to sleep. It was on on ours. Apps you have not used for a while are then limited in the background.

   Done
   
5. 5

   Add apps to Sleeping or Deep sleeping

   Tap Sleeping apps or Deep sleeping apps, then + at the top right, and add apps you rarely open. Both lists were empty on ours. Never auto sleeping apps is for apps that must stay awake, such as a messenger.

   Done
   
6. 6

   Open Device care

   Open Settings, Device care. On One UI 9 the top card just says Great! Your phone is running smoothly; there is no Optimize now button.

   Done
   
7. 7

   Clean memory

   Tap Memory, then Clean now. On ours it offered +2.1 GB.

   Done
   
8. 8

   Lower the brightness

   Open Settings, Display and drag the Brightness slider to the left. Adaptive brightness, just below, was on on ours; leave it on so the phone dims itself in the dark.

   Done
   
9. 9

   Shorten the screen timeout

   Further down Display, tap Screen timeout. Ours was set to 30 seconds; Samsung suggests 1 minute or less to save battery.

   Done
   
10. 10

    Turn on Power saving

    Settings, Battery, Power saving, then the switch at the top; ours showed Off. Standard limits background network use, syncing and location checks; Maximum limits everything except the apps you choose.

    Done
    
11. 11

    Uninstall the app that drains

    If one app uses far more battery than the rest, open Settings, Apps, the app, and tap Uninstall at the bottom.

    Done
    
12. 12

    If it only shows Disable

    Apps that came with the phone cannot be uninstalled. On ours, YouTube showed Open, Disable and Force stop; tap Disable to switch it off instead.

    Done
    

If you do not see this option

• No Device care in Settings? Tap Search in Settings and type Device care.
• Looking for Optimize now? One UI 9 has no Optimize now button on the Device care page (step 6). Use Memory, Clean now instead.

If this does not work

• Messages arrive late after you put apps to sleep Don't worry, the app is only asleep, not broken. Add the messaging app to Never auto sleeping apps under Background usage limits, so it stays awake for your messages.
• The battery still drains fast Then let the phone check its own health before you blame yourself or the apps. Open Samsung Members, Support, Phone diagnostics and run the Battery status test. On ours it reported Normal, Life: Good.

Good to know

Turn off Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or location in the quick panel when you are not using them, because a radio left on keeps looking for something to connect to.

To make the battery last longer over the years: how to limit charging to 80% on a Samsung Galaxy phone. Quick help for today: how to turn on Power saving on a Samsung Galaxy phone.

Watch these steps

Watch on YouTubeThe same steps, recorded on our Galaxy S26 · opens YouTube

About this guide

Device

Android

Shown on

Samsung Galaxy S26 (SM-S942N, Korean model), One UI 9, Android 17 (build S942NKSS4BZIG)

App

Settings

Path

Settings › Battery: check usage

Real screenshots

12 of 12 steps

Checked

October 2026

Sources

2 official, linked below

The screenshots are from our Samsung Galaxy S26, the Korean model SM-S942N, with One UI 9 and Android 17 (build S942NKSS4BZIG), in Dark mode. Menus can differ on models sold in other regions. We cleaned memory once and changed no settings.

What changed: every step re-shot on our own Galaxy S26 (Korean model SM-S942N) on One UI 9, dark mode, with the steps rewritten for the One UI 9 screens.

What to do next

Make your Galaxy battery last Step 2 of 6

1. How to put apps to sleep on a Samsung Galaxy phoneStop unused apps running in the background.
2. How to turn on Power saving on a Samsung Galaxy phoneStretch a low battery to the end of the day.
3. How to limit charging to 80% on a Samsung Galaxy phoneCharge to a limit to slow the wear.

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