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Low Power Mode usually saves more battery overall because it turns off Background App Refresh and also reduces or pauses several other power-consuming activities. Turning off Background App Refresh is the narrower option: it limits scheduled app updates but leaves display behavior, email fetch, downloads, photo syncing and other functions unchanged. Apple has not published a controlled, apples-to-apples percentage comparison, so there is no universal number of hours or percent that one setting saves on every iPhone or iPad.

Choose Low Power Mode when you need the broadest short-term reduction, such as during a long trip or when your charge is low. Choose Background App Refresh off when background updating appears to be the problem and you want to preserve normal brightness, refresh rate, syncing and performance. The Battery screen can show which apps and activities are actually using power before you decide.

What each setting changes

Low Power Mode is a bundle of changes

Low Power Mode is designed as a broad, temporary battery-saving mode. Apple lists Background App Refresh as turned off, but that is only one item in the bundle. Depending on the device and activity, Low Power Mode also reduces display brightness, sets Auto-Lock to 30 seconds, turns off automatic downloads, stops automatic email fetch, pauses iCloud Photos activity, reduces some visual effects and can make certain tasks run more slowly. On iPhone models with ProMotion, the display refresh rate is limited to 60 frames per second while the mode is active.

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Because several independent sources of power use are adjusted at once, Low Power Mode can save more in a situation where those features would otherwise be active. For example, a phone downloading updates, fetching mail, syncing a large photo library and keeping the display bright has more opportunities for the bundled limits to help than a phone that is mostly idle.

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Background App Refresh targets scheduled updating

Background App Refresh lets apps check for new content when you are not actively using them. Disabling it prevents that refresh activity, but it does not mean that every process stops whenever an app is in the background. Apple’s battery guidance distinguishes “Background Activity,” which can include playing music, tracking location or other work performed while an app is not on screen. A navigation app recording your route, an audio app playing content or a communication service handling an active task may still use power even when Background App Refresh is off.

That narrower scope is useful when you want to reduce background updating without changing the rest of the phone’s behavior. It also means the saving may be small if your battery drain comes mainly from the display, weak cellular signal, games, video, location use or an app doing other background work.

Side-by-side comparison

Comparison point Low Power Mode Background App Refresh turned off
Primary purpose Broad, temporary reduction in power use Narrow reduction in scheduled app updating
Background App Refresh Automatically turned off Turned off directly by the user
Display Brightness is reduced; ProMotion displays are limited to 60 frames per second No display change by itself
Auto-Lock 30-second default while active No change by itself
Email fetch Automatic fetch is turned off No change by itself
Downloads and updates Automatic downloads are turned off No change by itself
iCloud Photos Activity is paused No change by itself
Performance and effects Some visual effects are reduced and some tasks may run more slowly No bundled performance change
Control One switch controls several trade-offs Granular setting; you can review individual apps
Documented battery percentage Not stated by Apple for this comparison Not stated by Apple for this comparison

The settings overlap: when Low Power Mode is active, Background App Refresh is already off. Turning the same refresh switch off separately does not create a second, independent saving while Low Power Mode is running.

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Which one saves more in real use?

The evidence supports a directional answer, not a guaranteed measurement. Low Power Mode affects more power-related functions, so it has the greater potential to reduce consumption when those functions are relevant. Background App Refresh off can save less because it addresses only one category of activity. However, the actual difference depends on what your device is doing, the battery’s condition, radio signal, screen time, app mix and whether any app is performing other background work.

Apple’s published guidance does not provide a controlled test that holds the device, iOS version, battery health, network, brightness, workload and measurement period constant while comparing these two settings. Consequently, claims such as “Low Power Mode adds exactly 20 percent” or “Background App Refresh saves two hours” are not supported by the cited Apple documentation. Treat any result you observe on your own device as device-specific rather than a universal benchmark.

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When Low Power Mode is the better choice

  • Your battery is already low and you need the broadest immediate reduction.
  • You are travelling, away from a charger or expecting long periods between charges.
  • Automatic downloads, mail fetching, photo syncing or a bright display are likely to continue in the background.
  • You accept shorter Auto-Lock, reduced effects and slower completion of some tasks in exchange for endurance.

When Background App Refresh off is the better choice

  • You want to stop routine app checks but keep normal brightness, refresh behavior and downloads.
  • The Battery screen points to a particular app with substantial background activity that appears related to refreshing content.
  • You need iCloud Photos, mail fetching or automatic downloads to continue.
  • You are troubleshooting gradually and prefer one targeted change instead of a bundle of restrictions.

How to turn on Low Power Mode

iPhone 15 and later

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Tap Battery.
  3. Tap Power Mode.
  4. Turn on Low Power Mode.

Apple’s current support path places the control under Settings > Battery > Power Mode on iPhone 15 and later.

iPhone 14 and earlier

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Tap Battery.
  3. Turn on Low Power Mode.

On these models, Apple documents the shorter path Settings > Battery. The exact labels can vary with iOS language and device software.

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iPad

On supported iPad models, open Settings > Battery and enable Low Power Mode. If the option is not shown, the model or installed software may not support it. Low Power Mode turns off automatically when the device reaches 80 percent charge, although it can be enabled again later.

How to turn off Background App Refresh

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Tap General.
  3. Tap Background App Refresh.
  4. Choose Background App Refresh at the top to disable it for all apps, or select an individual app and turn its switch off.

Disabling the feature prevents the scheduled refresh function; it does not terminate every background operation. If you leave the master control on, reviewing apps individually gives you a compromise between current content and battery use. An app can still update when you open it, and active functions such as location tracking or audio playback can continue under their own permissions and controls.

Check what is actually draining the battery first

Before changing several settings, use Apple’s battery diagnostics. Open Settings > Battery and inspect the usage chart and the app and system activity categories for the period in question. Look for an app with unusually high foreground use, background activity or repeated activity during times when you were not using it.

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Interpret the “Background Activity” category correctly

Background Activity is broader than Background App Refresh. Apple gives examples such as music playback and location tracking. A high background figure therefore does not prove that the refresh switch is responsible. Check the app’s permissions, active sessions, downloads, navigation, media playback and notifications before assuming a refresh-only fix will solve the drain.

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Use a targeted test

  1. Record the Battery screen’s current usage period and note the apps or activities that stand out.
  2. Turn off Background App Refresh for the suspected app, or for all apps if you need a quick test.
  3. Use the device normally under similar network and screen conditions for a meaningful period.
  4. Review the Battery screen again and compare the activity pattern, not just the percentage shown at one moment.
  5. If drain remains high, investigate display brightness, signal strength, location use, video, games, charging health and other background categories instead of repeatedly toggling the same refresh switch.

This approach cannot produce a laboratory comparison, but it can show whether the setting is relevant to your own workload.

Trade-offs you will notice in Low Power Mode

Shorter display-on time

Low Power Mode uses a 30-second Auto-Lock default and reduces brightness. This can be helpful when the screen is frequently left on, but it may interrupt reading, navigation or recipes. You can temporarily disable the mode when a longer screen timeout is essential, then re-enable it afterward.

Slower or deferred tasks

Apple warns that some tasks may run more slowly while a power mode is active. Automatic downloads and email fetch are disabled, and iCloud Photos activity is paused. Content may therefore appear later than usual until the mode is switched off or the device reaches normal charging conditions.

Refresh-rate and visual changes

On ProMotion iPhones, Low Power Mode limits the display to 60 frames per second. Scrolling and animations may look less fluid than they do at the display’s higher refresh rates. Some visual effects are also reduced. These changes do not indicate a fault; they are part of the power-saving design.

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It is not a substitute for finding a faulty app

If one app repeatedly consumes large amounts of energy in the background, Low Power Mode may mask the symptom while imposing system-wide trade-offs. Use the Battery screen and the app’s own settings to decide whether a targeted restriction, update, sign-out or removal is more appropriate.

Trade-offs when Background App Refresh is off

Apps that rely on scheduled refresh may show older content until you open them. News feeds, weather information, social timelines, cloud dashboards and similar apps may not prepare their newest data in advance. You may also see a delay before content is ready after launching an app, because the update happens in the foreground.

The setting does not disable push notifications universally, and it does not stop every network request. A notification service, an active navigation session, audio playback or another permitted background task can continue. If your goal is to stop location or media activity, change the relevant permission or app control rather than relying on Background App Refresh.

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A practical decision framework

Pick Low Power Mode for an urgent endurance problem

If the battery icon is low and a charger is unavailable, Low Power Mode is the sensible first switch because it applies the broadest documented set of reductions in one action. Expect the display, syncing and task-speed changes described above. Once you are back at a charger or need normal behavior, turn it off.

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Pick Background App Refresh off for a narrow policy

If the phone otherwise behaves normally and you simply do not need apps preparing content in the background, disable the refresh feature. Start with individual apps when possible so essential workflows can retain background updating. This option avoids changing brightness, Auto-Lock, email fetch, downloads, photo activity and ProMotion behavior.

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Use both only when the broader mode is already justified

There is no extra refresh saving to gain by turning off Background App Refresh after Low Power Mode has already disabled it. Using both controls can still make sense as a longer-term preference if you want Background App Refresh to remain off after Low Power Mode is later disabled, but it is not a double reduction during the same Low Power Mode session.

Common misunderstandings and fixes

“Background App Refresh off stops all background battery use”

It does not. Check the Battery screen for background activity and identify whether music, location, communication, downloads or another task is responsible.

“Low Power Mode damages the battery”

The documented behavior is feature reduction, not battery damage. The practical concern is usability: slower tasks, paused syncing, reduced brightness and a 60-frame-per-second limit on ProMotion devices. Disable it when those trade-offs interfere with what you are doing.

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“The percentage should be the same on every device”

Battery percentages are affected by model, battery health, signal, temperature, workload and software. Apple does not publish a universal head-to-head saving figure for these two settings, so a result from one iPhone cannot be applied to another.

“A high Background Activity number proves refresh is the cause”

Background Activity includes work beyond refresh. Confirm the app’s behavior and permissions, then test a targeted change while observing the Battery screen over comparable use.

What Apple’s documentation establishes—and what it does not

Apple’s Low Power Mode documentation establishes that Background App Refresh is turned off as part of the mode and lists the other bundled changes. Apple’s battery-drain guidance explains how to inspect app and system activity, including the broader Background Activity category. The current iPhone Power Modes guide documents slower tasks and the 60-fps ProMotion limit. Apple’s Apple Watch guidance provides general context that background refresh can use power, but it should not be treated as an iPhone-specific battery test.

None of those documents supplies a controlled comparison of only Low Power Mode versus only Background App Refresh off, with a stated device, software version, test duration and measured percentage. The defensible conclusion is therefore about scope: Low Power Mode changes more things and has greater potential to save power; Background App Refresh off is more focused and usually has fewer functional consequences.

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Sources and current support pages

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