Skip to main content

Closing apps with Multitasking on your iPhone is pointless, Apple confirms

The iPhone isn’t exactly renowned for its long battery life, so many users quit apps with the iPhone’s Multitasking feature, hoping to save battery. Well, according to Apple software senior vice president Craig Federighi, quitting apps doesn’t really do anything for the battery at all.

The secret was revealed when a 9to5Mac reader simply emailed to ask Apple CEO Tim Cook whether or not he quit his apps using Multitasking, and if quitting apps helped battery life. Although Cook didn’t reply, Federighi answered with a pretty unambiguous “no and no.”

Recommended Videos

Apple executives have replied to customer emails before, but it’s interesting to see Federighi intervene to reply to an email addressed to Tim Cook.

Hopefully the reply will put to rest the myth that quitting apps will do anything for battery life. Quitting apps in general is clearly not intended to be a common event, as it involves having to swipe up on each and every app window using the Multitasking feature. From a technical standpoint, the apps themselves are either frozen in the phone’s RAM, or not actually open at all, just shown in Multitasking for history purposes. As such, “quitting” them doesn’t really do anything for battery life.

Apps that do use a lot of battery life are the ones that perform functions in the background, like Maps or Music. Even so, most of these kinds of apps are only using battery when they’re running — for example if you’re playing music or navigating using Maps. Once you stop the music or arrive at your destination, and you’re no longer using the app, the battery shouldn’t really be in use.

So, going forward, iPhone users don’t have to sacrifice quick access to apps from Multitasking. Instead, just use the apps when you need them, and then let them live in the background of your phone.

Christian de Looper
Christian de Looper is a long-time freelance writer who has covered every facet of the consumer tech and electric vehicle…
The iPhone 17 Pro Max could pack a curious battery update
A vapor chamber cooling system might point to a new level of performance
The back of the Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max.

The iPhone 17 launch is (almost certainly) fast approaching, and while the iPhone 17 Air is the phone getting the most coverage, a new rumor has emerged about another Apple device that’s intrigued me.

The word on the virtual street is that the iPhone 17 Pro (and Pro Max) are going to get a vapor cooling chamber, which would reduce heat from the phone in a new (and presumably more efficient) way.

Read more
Adobe made the best iPhone camera app you haven’t tried yet, and it’s free
Indigo camera core controls.

A year ago, a rather interesting camera tool came out from the house of Lux, makers of the fantastic Kino and Halide apps. The tool is called Process Zero, which essentially ripped the images of Apple’s computational adjustments and delivered a pristine photo. 

I even compared the current-gen iPhone with the iPhone 6s and realized the ills of computational photography. What I noticed repeatedly was that algorithmic processing makes the photos look sharper and more colorful, but they aren’t always accurate. And in doing so, they lose their natural charm. 

Read more
This one iPadOS 26 feature has me excited for the iPhone Fold
Semi-open state of a foldable iPhone concept

Samsung is set to launch the seventh generation of its Galaxy Z Fold book-style folding phone this Summer, but its biggest rival is yet to show its folding phone hand. Apple has long been expected to unveil an iPhone Fold, and the latest rumors suggest that it will launch next year.

I’ve used almost every folding phone released globally, with some exceptions for extremely obscure ones. While I've always been curious what an iPhone Fold would look like, I was fairly certain that Apple shouldn't build it, as I wasn’t sure they could deliver on one necessary feature.

Read more