How to Enter Low Power Mode on the iPad

There's no Low Power Mode on the iPad, but tweaks extend battery life

By
Daniel Nations
Daniel Nations
Daniel Nations
Writer
  • University of Texas at Arlington
Daniel Nations has been a tech journalist since 1994. His work has appeared in Computer Currents, The Examiner, and other publications. He is a developer who has published apps in the Apple App Store, Google Play marketplace and Amazon Appstore; he also has worked as a data analyst and DB administrator.
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Updated on June 17, 2022
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Christine Baker
Reviewed by Christine Baker
Christine Baker is a marketing consultant with experience working for a variety of clients. Her expertise includes social media, web development, and graphic design.
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What to Know

  • Go to Control Center. Reduce screen brightness and turn off Bluetooth and Wi-Fi.
  • Avoid power-hungry apps. Identify these apps at Settings > Battery.
  • Turn off Background App Refresh and Location Services in the Settings app.

This article explains how to mimic the iPhone's Low Power Mode on an iPad with iOS 12 through iOS 9. The iPad can't achieve a true Low Power Mode—there's no toggle for slowing down the CPU—but changes to settings and features can extend battery life.

Use Control Center to Minimize Power Draw in iOS

Start by bringing up the Control Center by sliding your finger up from the bottom edge of the screen toward the top of the display or down from the top right corner, depending on your iOS version. Control Center is a shortcut to several controls that reduce battery usage:

  • Lower the brightness of the iPad's display. The brighter your screen, the more power the iPad requires to support that level of luminosity. Lower the display to the lowest setting that's comfortable to view given your environmental conditions.
  • Turn off Bluetooth. If you're not connecting to Bluetooth devices, shut the radios off. Leaving them on when you're not using a connected device still leaves the radio powered up and actively searching for signals.
  • Turn off Wi-Fi. If you don't need Wi-Fi, turn it off. Much as with Bluetooth, Wi-Fi uses radios that draw power as they scan for new connections.

Stay Away From Power-Hungry Apps

Another feature that can help if you need to squeeze as much power as possible from your iPad is the battery usage table. The iPad reports which apps have used the most power during the previous 24 hours, so you'll know which apps to avoid to preserve battery life. You can get to this information by going into the iPad's Settings app and choosing Battery from the left-side menu. Battery usage for different apps is shown in the middle of the screen.

Battery life usage on the iPad

Other Battery-Saving Settings

In a power emergency, you can also turn off Background App Refresh to prevent apps from contacting the internet and downloading data. You don't want a huge game update during a power shortage, and you can check for your email manually when you are ready. To reach Background App Refresh, go to Settings > General > Background App Refresh. Tap the slider at the top of the screen to turn off background refresh for every app on the iPad or make selections from the list if you must leave some of them turned on.

Background App Refresh settings screen on iPad

Location services can be a drain on your iPad battery, so turn this feature off at Settings > Privacy. Tap Location Services at the top of the screen and toggle the feature to the Off position.

Location Services screen in iOS Settings app on iPad

The iPad got split-view and slide-over multitasking when the iPhone received the Low Power Mode feature.

FAQ
  • How do I enter Low Power Mode in iPadOS 15?

    Beginning with iPadOS 15, Apple added a Low Power Mode to the iPad. Access it by going to Settings > Battery and use the slider next to Low Power Mode to activate the feature.

  • How do I add Low Power Mode to the iPadOS 15 Control Center?

    In iOS 15 or later, open the iPad Settings and select Control Center. In the More Controls section, go to Low Power Mode and tap the plus sign (+). The next time you open the Control Center, you will see a low battery icon. Tap it to activate Low Power Mode.

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